Killed soldier from Caribbean

AP

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – A serviceman from the U.S. Caribbean territory died of injuries suffered in a mortar attack in Iraq, a military spokesman said Sunday.

Sgt. Angel D. Mercado Velazquez, 25, who was assigned to the 325th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division based at Fort Bragg, N.C., died Friday in Yusifiyah, Iraq, Army spokesman Jose Pagan said in a statement.

Mercado, from the southwestern town of Sabana Grande, is survived by his wife and parents, Pagan said.

It was not clear when his remains would be returned to the U.S. territory of roughly 4 million people.

Sonia Santiago, who heads Mothers Against the War – a Puerto Rican group made up of mothers of soldiers serving in Iraq – expressed her condolences to his family.

To date, 52 Puerto Rican–born soldiers have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Mothers Against the War.

An estimated 200,000 Puerto Ricans have enlisted in the U.S. Army since 1917, when the United States required them to serve in the military. More than 3,000 Puerto Ricans, who are American citizens, have died in battle.