Iraq attack kills five US soldiers; three are missing

"Five US soldiers were killed and three went missing when their unit was attacked south of Baghdad, the US military has said.

The attack on a patrol of seven US soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter occured early on Saturday morning.

The US military said the attack took place at 4:44am near Mahmudiya, about 30km south of the capital.
Mahmudiya is a stronghold of Sunni Arab fighters opposed to the US-backed government in Iraq.

Troops who arrived later found five of the soldiers dead and the other three remained missing, according to a statement from Major-General William Caldwell, the chief US military spokesman in Iraq.

"The quick reaction force reported finding five members of the team killed in action and three others whose duty status and whereabouts are unknown," Caldwell said......"