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U.S. soldiers found dead in Iraq

Atul Aneja

The bodies show signs of torture

DUBAI: Two American soldiers who went missing on Friday have been found dead at a location south of Baghdad.

According to the Iraqi Defence Ministry spokesman Abdul Aziz Mohammed, the bodies of the two men were found in a farming area in the Yusifiya area. The U.S. military said the bodies had not yet been identified. The personnel — Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker — belonged to the U.S. 101st Airborne division. Gen. Mohammed said the bodies bore signs of torture.

"The two U.S. soldiers were found in the Yusifiyah area near the power station and unfortunately their bodies show that they had been tortured and then killed viciously," he told a news conference. With the latest deaths, the total number of U.S. military losses in Iraq has reached 2,502.

The Mujahideen Shura Council, which includes the Al-Qaeda in Iraq, had claimed that it had kidnapped the two men from a checkpoint, while another soldier was killed in the incident.

The U.S.-led forces had mounted a massive operation to rescue the two soldiers following their abduction. The Council also claimed that it had abducted four Russian diplomats from Baghdad's upscale Mansour district.

Russian forces have been combating Chechen rebels whose Al-Qaeda links have been suspected in the past.

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