Eleven were killed in bombings from July 24 to Aug. 3.
The U.S. military announced Tuesday that three American soldiers were killed the night before when their vehicle overturned during combat operations in south Baghdad.
Officials said the latest guardsmen killed were from a Douglasville-based detachment of the 1st Battalion, 108th Armor Regiment and were part of a convoy conducting a night mission at the time of the accident.
Local officials, friends and family members identified them as Sgt. Thomas Strickland, 27, of Fairplay; Spc. Joshua Dingler, 19, of Hiram and Spc. Paul Saylor of Bremen.
Their deaths bring to 15 the number of 48th Brigade soldiers who have died since the unit arrived in Baghdad in early June, including four in vehicle accidents. Another 48th soldier died in a vehicle accident in Kuwait in May.
Strickland is the first Douglas County resident to die in combat since Vietnam, said county spokesman Wes Tallon.
“We had a huge send-off for our Army National Guard unit in January,” Tallon said. “The whole community is very tight-knit and you know this is something we hoped would never happen.”
Sgt. Joe Brown of Dallas, who is at home recuperating from wounds suffered in Iraq, said Dingler was a driver in his platoon.
“He was like a son to me. In fact, he called me dad,” Brown told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “They were great soldiers and some of the best men that I’ve had the privilege of knowing. I am a better person because of having known them.”
Gov. Sonny Perdue has called for a moment of silence at 1 p.m. on Thursday to honor Georgia soldiers who have fallen in Iraq. The observation will coincide with a prayer vigil from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the state Capitol
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