FALLUJAH, Iraq -- Eighteen U.S. troops have died in the attack on Fallujah and 69 have been injured, according to the commander of the 1st Marine Division.
Five Iraqi troops have been killed, Maj. Gen. Richard Natonski said. He briefed reporters in Fallujah Thursday.
There are some 10,000 American troops involved in the now-four-day-old assault. Another 3,000 Iraqi forces have joined them in the fight to oust insurgents from Fallujah.
According to the Pentagon, as of Wednesday 1,149 U.S. troops have died in Iraq since March 2003, 887 of them in combat. All but 109 have died since U.S. President George W. Bush declared the end of major combat operations in May 2003. More than 8,500 U.S. troops have been wounded in action. Just under 4,000 have been returned to duty within three days. The others were seriously injured.
