Perspective: Remembering those ambushed at Karbala

"You don't have to love the war," Pvt. Johnathon M. Millican wrote on his MySpace page, "but you have to love the warrior."

He was one of four soldiers killed after militants abducted them Jan. 20 from the governor's office in Karbala, Iraq, in a sophisticated sneak attack, the military confirmed Friday.

The four soldiers, and a fifth killed in the attack itself, were remembered for their athleticism - one was a bobsledder who competed with the U.S. national team - for their compassion and their dedication.

"He always wanted to be in the military," said Karen Mezger, a friend of 1st Lt. Jacob Fritz's family and a counselor at the rural Nebraska high school he attended. "He was there because he believed in it."

The attackers posed as an American security team, speaking English, wearing U.S. military combat fatigues and traveling in the type of SUVs U.S. government convoys use, U.S. military and Iraqi officials said. The U.S. command initially reported that five soldiers were killed while "repelling the attack," but on Friday confirmed reports from Iraqi officials that four of the soldiers had been taken alive.

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