The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. The three Combined Joint Task Force Seven soldiers were killed in an improvised explosive device attack on Jan. 27 near Iskandariyah. Killed were:

2nd Lt. Luke S. James, 24, of Oklahoma.

Staff Sgt. Lester O. Kinney II, 27, of Zanesville, Ohio.

Kinney and Luke were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 505th Infantry, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Sgt. Cory R. Mracek, 26, of Hay Springs, Neb. Mracek was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery, Fort Bragg, N.C.

The incident is under investigation.