Polish troops die in Iraq

2004-05-08 21:15

Warsaw - Two Polish soldiers were killed in separate incidents in Iraq Saturday, one of them after walking into an improvised booby trap and the other in a traffic accident, a spokesperson for the Polish-led multinational force said.

The deaths brought to four the number of Polish soldiers killed so far in Iraq.

One of the soldiers died after walking into an "improvised booby trap with explosives" near the city of Imam, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Strzelecki said by telephone from the force's Camp Babylon headquarters. The soldier, whose identity was not released, died at a hospital about four hours later.

Earlier on Saturday, the driver of a vehicle travelling in a military convoy died after it hit a civilian truck travelling in the opposite direction near the city of Karbala, Strzelecki said.

The vehicle rolled down an embankment, killing the driver, who was identified as Marek Krajewski, and injuring two other Polish soldiers. The Polish Defence Ministry said two Iraqi civilians also were injured.

"This is basically the worst day (so far) for Poland," Strzelecki said.

The multinational force includes some 2 400 Polish troops.

- SAPA