thedrifter
08-29-07, 06:56 AM
Camp Pendleton Marines killed in Iraq
By:MARK WALKER - Staff Writer
Two slain over the weekend in Anbar province combat
CAMP PENDLETON -- Two 21-year-old Marines from Camp Pendleton were killed over the weekend in Iraq's Anbar province, the Defense Department announced.
Dead are Matthew S. Medlicott of Houston and Rogelio A. Ramirez of Pasadena.
Each died of wounds from what were described only as "combat operations."
Medlicott was identified by the Defense Department as a lance corporal. A Camp Pendleton affairs spokesman said Ramirez was a private first class.
Both men were assigned to Camp Pendleton's 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
Medlicott was a rifleman on his second tour in Iraq. He joined the Marine Corps on July 9, 2004.
Ramirez also was a rifleman who joined the service a little more than two years ago.
About 8,000 Camp Pendleton Marines are in Iraq. Most are serving with North Carolina's II Marine Expeditionary Force, which is working in the sprawling Anbar province west of Baghdad.
Camp Pendleton's 2,200-member 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit also is in Iraq, having arrived there earlier this summer.
Marine officials have pointed to improvement in the Anbar region in recent months, saying the number of attacks are down as a result of greater cooperation from tribal sheiks that have long ruled the region.
Despite successes the military has cited in recent months, attacks in Anbar continue on an almost daily basis, with 70 such incidents reported last week.
At least 338 locally based Marines have been killed in Iraq since the invasion by a U.S.-led coalition in March 2003, according to an unofficial count kept by the North County Times.
The U.S. has lost 3,731 troops since the invasion with two other recent deaths pending Defense Department confirmation.
-- Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.
Ellie
By:MARK WALKER - Staff Writer
Two slain over the weekend in Anbar province combat
CAMP PENDLETON -- Two 21-year-old Marines from Camp Pendleton were killed over the weekend in Iraq's Anbar province, the Defense Department announced.
Dead are Matthew S. Medlicott of Houston and Rogelio A. Ramirez of Pasadena.
Each died of wounds from what were described only as "combat operations."
Medlicott was identified by the Defense Department as a lance corporal. A Camp Pendleton affairs spokesman said Ramirez was a private first class.
Both men were assigned to Camp Pendleton's 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
Medlicott was a rifleman on his second tour in Iraq. He joined the Marine Corps on July 9, 2004.
Ramirez also was a rifleman who joined the service a little more than two years ago.
About 8,000 Camp Pendleton Marines are in Iraq. Most are serving with North Carolina's II Marine Expeditionary Force, which is working in the sprawling Anbar province west of Baghdad.
Camp Pendleton's 2,200-member 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit also is in Iraq, having arrived there earlier this summer.
Marine officials have pointed to improvement in the Anbar region in recent months, saying the number of attacks are down as a result of greater cooperation from tribal sheiks that have long ruled the region.
Despite successes the military has cited in recent months, attacks in Anbar continue on an almost daily basis, with 70 such incidents reported last week.
At least 338 locally based Marines have been killed in Iraq since the invasion by a U.S.-led coalition in March 2003, according to an unofficial count kept by the North County Times.
The U.S. has lost 3,731 troops since the invasion with two other recent deaths pending Defense Department confirmation.
-- Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.
Ellie