Region | Iraq
US soldiers accidentally kill Iraqi child
US soldiers mistakenly shot and killed a child in Iraq's Diyala province, the US military said on Thursday.
- Agencies
- Published: 13:16 March 13, 2008
Baghdad: US soldiers mistakenly shot and killed a child in Iraq's Diyala province, the US military said on Thursday.
Soldiers fired a warning shot into a sand berm after they found a "suspicious woman who appeared to be signalling to someone".
The military said a young girl suffering from a gunshot wound was found on the other side of the berm. Soldiers treated the girl and called for emergency help but she died on the way to a military hospital.
The girl appeared to be ‘around 10 years old,' said Maj. Brad Leighton, a military spokesman.
The shooting took place on Wednesday in the volatile Diyala province, where several roadside bombs had recently been found.
The killing of Iraqi civilians has long put a strain on relations between Baghdad and Washington, who this week began talks on future relations and the presence of US troops after the current UN mandate expires at the end of this year.
"Coalition forces take the loss of any innocent civilian life seriously and the incident will be thoroughly investigated," US military spokesman Major Dan Meyers said in a statement.
Critics say US forces often fire on suspected militants without taking reasonable care to find out who else is in the area. The US military says militants often hide among civilians and deliberately use them as shields.
Last month, a child was among nine civilians accidentally killed in a US military strike south of Baghdad.
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