Four U.S. soldiers killed, another injured in Iraq last January:

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Four American soldiers have been killed and another injured during January this year, raising the total U.S. casualties in Iraq since its occupation in 2003, to 4,434, a U.S. Media  Adviser said on Tuesday. “Two U.S. soldiers have been killed on January 1st, in the first combat incident since the beginning of 2011,” he said, but gave no further details. On 15/1/2011, the U.S. Army had announced the killing of two American soldiers and wounding another, but failed to give any details about the venue or circumstances of their killing. An Iraqi Army source has said earlier that two Iraqi soldiers have opened fire on a group of U.S. soldiers, during their training in an American base south of Mosul, seriously wounding three of them, adding that the Iraqi soldiers belonged to the 3rd Iraqi Army Division west of Mosul. By the end of 2010, the number of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq had reached 4,430, as last year had recorded a minor loss in American casualties in Iraq, whilst the total losses during the same year had reached 60 soldiers killed, representing a 50% decrease in U.S. casualties, compared with 2009 that recorded 150 American soldiers killed. The U.S. casualties in Iraq last year had been the smallest number, compared with previous years, as 2009 had witnessed the killing of 150 U.S. soldiers, 74 of them for non-combat reasons, whilst 2008 had witnessed 314 casualties, including 89 for non-combat reasons, according to U.S. Army sources. ST / SKH 294