Release # 03-05-104

CAMP DOHA, Kuwait -- Two civilians were killed and two were injured in Samarra late Wednesday night when they attempted to drive their vehicle through a Coalition checkpoint.

At about 11:00 p.m., a vehicle moving an estimated 40 mph tried to drive through a well-established and well-lit checkpoint guarded by Coalition soldiers and three tanks. Soldiers fired numerous warning shots but the vehicle continued onward, forcing soldiers on the ground to jump out of the way. The soldiers then fired at it with a tank-mounted machine gun, killing two civilians inside the vehicle.

Two other civilians in the vehicle were injured and taken to the Samarra Hospital. No coalition soldiers were injured in the attack.

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