US, British soldiers die in training accident in Iraq

An American soldier and a British soldier are dead following “a training accident” in northern Iraq, United States and ​United Kingdom defense officials said.

The deaths took place at Erbil Air Base in the ⁠country’s Kurdistan Region on Sunday, the U.S. ‌Army said on X. The ​statement said the soldier’s identity was being withheld until their family was notified.

“It is with deep regret that ⁠we can confirm that a ‌training accident ‌occurred in northern Iraq,” the U.K. Defense Ministry wrote in a ⁠separate post on X.

The family of the British soldier has ‌been notified and has ‌requested a “period of grace” before more details are released.

Officials have not released ⁠additional information about the soldiers’ deaths, ​but said ⁠the ​incident was under investigation.

As of Tuesday, British defense officials told USA Today they had not released ⁠the name of the soldier killed.

USA TODAY has reached out to the U.S. ⁠Army for more information.