Uncle Sam
03-02-2004, 09:50 AM
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4412131/
The overwhelming majority of coalition casualties since the start of the Iraq conflict in March have been Americans. The British military has reported 58 deaths, while Italy has reported 17, Spain eight, Bulgaria five, Thailand two and Estonia, Denmark, Ukraine and Poland one apiece.
The Estonian soldier was killed over the weekend when a roadside bomb exploded while his platoon was on patrol, an Estonian government spokeswoman said Sunday. He was the first Estonian soldier to die from hostile fire since independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The soldier, Junior Sgt. Andres Nuiamae, 21, was the first coalition soldier killed by hostile fire in Iraq since Feb. 19, when a pair of Americans were killed in a roadside bombing near Khaldiyah, 50 miles west of the capital.
“This is a very painful reminder that the situation in Iraq has not stabilized by today and common efforts by coalition troops to restore peace are necessary,” Estonian Prime Minister Juhan Parts said. “We can never overestimate his courage and readiness to serve both Estonia and all the countries and people that hold dear freedom and democracy.”
The overwhelming majority of coalition casualties since the start of the Iraq conflict in March have been Americans. The British military has reported 58 deaths, while Italy has reported 17, Spain eight, Bulgaria five, Thailand two and Estonia, Denmark, Ukraine and Poland one apiece.
The Estonian soldier was killed over the weekend when a roadside bomb exploded while his platoon was on patrol, an Estonian government spokeswoman said Sunday. He was the first Estonian soldier to die from hostile fire since independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The soldier, Junior Sgt. Andres Nuiamae, 21, was the first coalition soldier killed by hostile fire in Iraq since Feb. 19, when a pair of Americans were killed in a roadside bombing near Khaldiyah, 50 miles west of the capital.
“This is a very painful reminder that the situation in Iraq has not stabilized by today and common efforts by coalition troops to restore peace are necessary,” Estonian Prime Minister Juhan Parts said. “We can never overestimate his courage and readiness to serve both Estonia and all the countries and people that hold dear freedom and democracy.”