WASHINGTON (AP) -- More Army and Marine reservists have died in Iraq since the start of the Fallujah offensive than in any comparable period since American forces entered Iraq in March 2003.
At least nine reservists died on Monday, according to an Associated Press count. Six were members of the Marine Corps Reserve, two were Army National Guard and two were Army Reserve. More U.S. troops were killed Tuesday, but details on their service affiliations are incomplete.
Nine is the highest number of part-time soldiers and Marines to have died in Iraq on a single day since the U.S.-led invasion was launched in March 2003. The only comparable surge in deaths of reservists was in June 2004 when nine died in a four-day span, according to Pentagon records.
The Pentagon's reporting of casualties since the Fallujah offensive began Monday has been slower and more incomplete than normal, in part because the military believes that detailed information is of potential value to the insurgent forces they are battling in the Sunni Arab city.
