| But surprisingly, none of them are named Henri or Jean-Claude... |
Three, and possibly four, Frenchmen have been killed in Iraq fighting with insurgents seeking to oust US-led forces in the country, a French official said Thursday.
A 24-year-old Frenchman from Paris identified as Tarek W. was killed on September 17, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
He was the latest addition to a list French authorities have drawn up of French casualties in Iraq, all of whom appear to be of Arab origin.
The two other men on the list were Redouane el-Hakim, a 19-year-old also from Paris who was killed July 17, and Abdel Halim Badjoudj, 19, killed in Iraq on October 20, according to the official, who confirmed a report in Le Figaro newspaper. The case of El-Hakim, who was of Tunisian origin, was first reported October 22 and confirmed by officials. They said his brother, Boubakeur, 21, was being detained by Syrian authorities.
French officials were checking the identity of a fourth man who was killed in recent weeks to see if he, too, held French citizenship. Authorities estimate that around a dozen Frenchmen of north African Arab background have gone to Iraq via Syria to join the insurgency against US-led troops, but said there was no proof of an organised recruitment network. |