U.S. Civilian Contractor Killed in Iraq (Another one is missing)

TIKRIT, Iraq - Suspected insurgents raked a convoy with automatic gunfire, killing a U.S. civilian contractor and wounding another American, a U.S. military official said Friday.

The attack happened Thursday west of Balad, 45 miles north of Baghdad, said Maj. Josslyn Aberle, spokeswoman of the 4th Infantry Division.

The victims were traveling to the north of Iraq in a convoy when the gunmen, who were believed to be loyalists of ousted leader Saddam Hussein, approached from the rear and opened fire at them, Aberle said. snip

Separately, the U.S. military also is looking into the reported disappearance of an American contractor, Kirk von Ackermann, 37, of Moss Beach, Calif., who went missing last month while driving between Saddam's hometown of Tikrit and Kirkuk.

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