Two American contractors killed in Iraq bomb blast

BAGHDAD - Two Americans working for the Blackwater security firm were killed and a third wounded in a roadside bombing just south of Baghdad Saturday, the US embassy said.
"The US embassy confirms that two American employees of Blackwater Security Consulting were killed early yesterday afternoon on the road to Hilla when an IED (improvised explosive device) exploded next to their vehicle," a statement said.
The vehicle had just left Baghdad when it was hit, embassy spokesman Bob Callahan added.
Blackwater, which provides security for US officials in Iraq, lost four employees in Fallujah last March. The bodies were mutilated by an angry mob, sparking a massive US offensive in the city.
At least 209 foreign contractors have been killed since the 2003 US-led invasion, according to Iraq Coalition Casualty Count, an independent body that tracks the losses of the United States and its allies.

03/13/2005 10:15 GMT