An Australian soldier was shot and killed in a "tragic accident" inside Baghdad's green zone, the army chief said Saturday.
He was the second soldier with Australian citizenship to die in Iraq since the US-led war began in 2003, but was the Australian military's first casualty.
The soldier, whose identity was not immediately released, was killed Friday afternoon in a shooting accident, Australian army chief Lt. Gen. Peter Leahy told reporters in Canberra.
Leahy said the soldier was struck by a single gunshot while serving with the Operation Catalyst Security Detachment in Baghdad. He was taken to a US military hospital where he died.
