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Salvadoran-born California soldier dies in Fallujah
Friday November 19, 2004
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Salvadoran-born soldier from California was killed during fierce urban fighting in Fallujah, the Department of Defense announced Friday.
The soldier was among tens of thousands of U.S. and Iraqi forces engaged in Operation Phantom Fury, the largest assault on the insurgent stronghold since the war began. Fallujah, a city of 300,000 about 40 miles west of Baghdad, had become a major base for insurgent operations.
He immigrated to the United States from El Salvador and enlisted in the Army, officials said. He is survived by family members in California and El Salvador.
California continues to bear a heavy toll in the Iraq conflict. Officials say the state has suffered more casualties than any other in the nation.
His remains will be returned to California for burial.
(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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