BAGHDAD — Three Iraqi men herding cattle were killed Saturday after wandering into the middle of a U.S.-Iraqi mortar training exercise north of the Iraqi capital, the U.S. military said.
American forces were conducting a live-fire training exercise with Iraqis near Taji, about 12 miles north of Baghdad, when the men walked onto the artillery range, the military said.
An 11-year-old boy also was wounded and evacuated to a U.S. military hospital, where he was in stable condition, the military said.
The accident comes at a time when the U.S. military is shifting its primary role in Iraq from combat to training Iraqi forces. The U.S. military said Saturday it will have reduced combat power in Iraq at the end of the month by the equivalent of two brigades, or roughly 8,000 troops, meeting the first target in President Barack Obama’s withdrawal plan.
The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, will not be replaced when it returns to Fort Carson at the end of August.
The Associated Press
