Surge success, right?
"3 US soldiers may have died from friendly fire" by Lolita C. Baldor, Associated Press | January 16, 2008
WASHINGTON - Three Army soldiers who were gunned down during an intensive, three-hour firefight in Salahuddin Province north of Baghdad last week might have died from friendly fire, military officials said yesterday.
The three 101st Airborne Division soldiers were part of an Army company that was attacked by as many as 15 insurgents on Jan. 8, after discovering several large caches of explosives.
Military officials said the deaths were being investigated to determine whether the soldiers were killed by shots from the enemy or by US forces, including members of their unit and aircraft called in for backup.
A detailed account was given by several officials to the Associated Press.
The three soldiers were searching buildings southwest of Samarra early that Tuesday morning when they found more than 1,000 pounds of homemade explosives, two 55-gallon barrels rigged to blow up, a roadside bomb, bullets, and bomb-making materials.
Soon afterward they discovered that a second building was filled with explosives, guns, ammunition, and a disassembled suicide vest.
When they moved in on the insurgents, reports said, the soldiers discovered an extensive tunnel and trench network that was defended by 10 to 15 of the enemy, who attacked the company using mortars, grenades, and guns.
The fight lasted about three hours, escalating to a massive battle with US aircraft blasting the insurgents with rockets, several bombs, and .50-caliber guns.
At some point soldiers discovered that two members of their unit - Private First Class Ivan E. Merlo, 19, of San Marcos, Calif., and Private First Class Phillip J. Pannier, 20, of Washburn, Ill., had been killed. Three others were injured, and one of them - Sergeant David J. Hart, 22, of Lake View Terrace, Calif. - later died."
