12 May,2009 11:45 AM IST | | Agencies
An American Army sergeant shot and killed five fellow soldiers following an altercation at a military counseling centre in Iraq on Monday, officials said. The attack drew attention to the issues of combat stress and morale among soldiers serving multiple combat tours over six years of war.
The suspect had been disarmed after an incident at the center but returned with another weapon, according to a senior military official in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation into the shootings was ongoing.
Attacks on fellow soldiers, known as fraggings, were not uncommon during the Vietnam war but are believed to be rare in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A US military statement said the assailant was taken into custody following the 2 pm (local time) shooting at Camp Liberty, a sprawling US base on the western edge of Baghdad near the city's international airport.
