U.S. soldier kills boy in Kosovo machine-gun accident, says Pentagon

July 10, 2000
Web posted at: 10:29 p.m. EDT (0229 GMT)

From CNN National Security Producer Chris Plante

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An ethnic Albanian boy was killed Monday in Kosovo when a U.S. Army soldier accidentally fired an automatic weapon while visiting his school, Pentagon sources tell CNN.

The boy, believed to be 4 or 5 years old, was taken with his parents to the hospital facility at the U.S.-run Camp Bond Steel, where he was pronounced dead, the officials said.

No one else was hit by the gunfire, officials said.

The incident occurred in the town of Cerkes Sadorina at about 9:40 a.m. local time, according to officials who asked that they not be named.

One Army official described the death as "a tragic accident."

The soldiers were at the school on a visit that was intended to be a goodwill gesture when a soldier accidentally fired several rounds from a "squad automatic weapon" or "SAW," according to officials.

The SAW is a .556-caliber automatic rifle that uses the same ammunition as the standard-issue M-16 combat rifle.

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U.S. Department of Defense
United States Army
Kosova Foundation For Economic Reconstruction And Development
Kosova Crisis Center
Kosovo - from Albanian.com

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