Troops battle insurgents from mosque for second time in week

Above: A soldier with the 3rd Infantry Division provides security in front of a mosque complex during a patrol in the Rusafa area of Baghdad two weeks ago.

For the second time in a week, American troops battled with insurgents firing from a mosque, official said Tuesday.

According to the U.S. military, troops operating south of Mahmudiyah were “responding to reports of weapons being moved into a mosque” and were attacked with rocket-propelled grenades over the weekend.

Military officials said a tip had been phoned in about weapons being unloaded from a vehicle and carried into the mosque.

Troops from the 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery Regiment, 10th Mountain Division from Fort Drum, N.Y., went to investigate.

As the troops approached the mosque in the vehicles, a rocket-propelled grenade was fired from the mosque, hitting a vehicle.

No injuries were reported from that strike.

From Stars and Stripes