R.I.P.
Via Washington Post:
A U.S. service member was killed by a bomb blast in northern Iraq on Thursday as U.S. troops expanded their support to local forces battling the Islamic State.
In a statement, the headquarters of the U.S. military campaign against the extremist group said the death resulted from an improvised explosive device but provided no further details. It is the fourth U.S. combat casualty since renewed military operations began in 2014, and the first since a major offensive to reclaim the city of Mosul began earlier this week.
A U.S. defense official said the incident took place “near Mosul” but declined to provide additional information.