Soldier from isles dies in grenade attack in Iraq

A soldier from Central Oahu was killed in combat in Iraq, the Pentagon said yesterday.

Sgt. Myla L. Maravillosa, 24, of Wahiawa died Saturday in Kirkuk, Iraq, of injuries sustained in Al Hawijah, Iraq, when her vehicle was attacked by enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenades, the Defense Department said in a news release.

Maravillosa was assigned to the Army Reserve's 203rd Military Intelligence Battalion, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.

As of yesterday at least 2,168 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. At least 1,696 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military's numbers. The figures include five military civilians.

The AP count is six more than the Defense Department's tally, last updated at 5 a.m. HST Friday.