Two US marines killed in western Iraq
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-18 16:10

Two U.S. Marines were killed in fighting in western Iraq near the Jordanian border, the military said Tuesday.

The Marines died Monday when they were hit by small-arms fire as U.S. forces fought insurgents near the town of Rutba, 230 miles west of Baghdad, the military said. Four militants were killed and a small supply of their arms seized, the statement said.

The Marines were assigned to Regimental Combat Team 2, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward). The names of the deceased were being withheld pending notification of their relatives.

At least 1,978 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.