IED's Blamed in at Least Half of Latest Iraq and Afghanistan War Casualties

Four of the 12 died in circumstances that were not combat-related. 6 Army soldiers were killed in explosions stemming from improvised explosive devices or 'IED's'.

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(SALEM, Ore.) - The United States has reported a significant number of casualties in June, 2009.

This latest report is the third that we have issued so far in June, and includes one person who died aboard a Navy ship on the North Arabian Sea whose death was not combat-related. Seven of the casualties were in Afghanistan and four were in Iraq.

The average age of this group of 12 Americans is 30. Two of those killed are over 40-years old and one was 52.

Four of the 12 died in circumstances that were not combat-related. 6 Army soldiers were killed in explosions stemming from improvised explosive devices or 'IED's'. In the case of the two Marines who were killed, it was only stated that they died during combat operations.

Local sources in Indiana report that the death of 25-year old Chancellor A. Keesling, marks the 102nd military death from Indiana in Iraq so far.

Specialist Chancellor A. Keesling of Indianapolis, Indiana, died June 19th in Baghdad, Iraq of a non-combat related incident.

He was assigned to the 961st Engineer Company, Sharonville, Ohio.

The government reports that the circumstances surrounding this incident are under investigation.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting operations in Afghanistan.

A U.S. Army Sergeant and a Staff Sergeant died in Kandahar, Afghanistan when their vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device.

Sergeant Paul G. Smith, 43, of Peoria, Ilinois was killed in the explosion. He was an Illinois Army National Guardsman assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 106th Cavalry, Aurora, Illinois.

Staff Sergeant Joshua A. Melton, 26, of Carlyle, Illinois also died of wounds suffered in the incident. He was an Illinois Army National Guardsman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 130th Infantry, Marion, Illinois.

The Department of Defense announced the death of a sailor who was supporting operations in Iraq and maritime security operations in the Fifth Fleet area of responsibility.

Command Master Chief Jeffrey J. Garber who was 43 years old, died of non-hostile causes June 20th aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the North Arabian Sea.

He is from Hemingford, Nebraska The DoD reports that the incident aboard the Eisenhower that led to the death of Jeff Garber is under investigation.

A Texas Army sergeant was killed June 16th in Iraq. The DoD did not specifically state the location of the incident.

They say 25-year old Joshua W. Soto of San Angelo, Texas, died from wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 77th Armor Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss Texas.

A 52-year old Massachusetts soldier died in a Texas military hospital June 17th from wounds suffered in Afghanistan March 8th 2009.

The DoD reports that Sergeant 1st Class Kevin A. Dupont of Templeton, Massachusetts, died June 17th at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, of wounds suffered March 8th in Kandau, Afghanistan, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

He was assigned to the 79th Troop Command, Rehoboth, Massachusetts.

A U.S. Army officer from Los Angeles, California died of a non-combat related incident June 16th in Mosul, Iraq.

Captain Kafele H. Sims of Los Angeles who was 32-years old, died June 16th in a non-combat related incident. The government reports that the circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.

He was assigned to the 18th Engineer Brigade, Schwetzingen, Germany.

The Department of Defense released information about another soldier who died in a U.S. hospital after being evacuated from a battlefields in Afghanistan.

22-year old Jonathan C. O'Neill, an Army Specialist from Zephyrhills, Florida, died June 15th at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, of wounds suffered June 2nd in Paktya, Afghanistan, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

He was assigned to the 549th Military Police Company, 385th Military Police Battalion, 16th Military Police Brigade (Airborne) at Fort Stewart, Georgia.

A soldier killed June 13th in Samarra City, Iraq, was part of an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team that was trying to "neutralize" an IED when it exploded.

Staff Sergeant Edmond L. Lo, is from Salem, New Hampshire. He was 23-years old and assigned to the 797th Ordnance Company, 79th Ordnance Battalion, Fort Hood, Texas.

A Marine officer from Missouri was killed in Afghanistan during combat operations in the Farah Province.

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Ricky L. Richardson Jr. of Franklin, Missouri was 33-years old. He died June 10th during combat operations.

He was assigned to 9th Engineer Support Battalion, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Okinawa, Japan.

A soldier killed in Afghanistan June 9th was part of the Army's Airborne Air Assault forces.

Specialist Eduardo S. Silva, 25, of Greenfield, California, died at Bagram Airfield of Afghanistan, in a non-combat related incident.

He was assigned to the 563rd Aviation Support Battalion, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

The government states in a news release that the circumstances surrounding Specialist Silva's death are under investigation.

A 20-year old Marine was killed in Afghanistan June 6th.

Lance Corporal Joshua R. Whittle of Downey, California, died while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

For our recent casualty reports, visit these links:

From June 7th 2009: Rate of American Casualties in Iraq & Afghanistan Accelerates - Tim King Salem-News.com

From June 2nd 2009: War Casualties Mounting in Iraq & Afghanistan - Tim King Salem-News.com

From May 24th 2009: Average Age Among 11 Recent War Casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan is 32 - Tim King Salem-News.com