The Iraqi government has found the bodies of two American soldiers reportedly captured by terrorists in Iraq last week, and the bodies show signs of torture according to the preliminary reports:

The bodies of two U.S. soldiers who had been reported kidnapped have been found near the checkpoint where the men disappeared after an attack, a senior Iraqi military official said Tuesday. The U.S. military said two bodies had been found but had not yet been identified.

Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore., went missing Friday near the town of Youssifiyah, south of Baghdad. Spc. David J. Babineau, 25, of Springfield, Mass., was killed in the attack. ...

Ahmed Khalaf Falah, a farmer who said he witnessed the attack Friday, said three Humvees were manning a checkpoint when they came under fire from many directions. Two Humvees went after the assailants, but the third was ambushed before it could move, he told The Associated Press.

Seven masked gunmen, including one carrying what Falah described as a heavy machine gun, killed the driver of the third vehicle, then took the two other U.S. soldiers captive, the witness said. His account could not be verified independently.

McQ at QandO has written about this tactical shift in the terrorist game plan over the past few days, and how that tactics often shift on both sides in response to successes and failures in the field. The terrorists apparently detected a tactical pattern and came up with a strategy to exploit it, and CENTCOM will undoubtedly have already been working on a counter-tactic for patrols in the future. This happens in every war, but it doesn't make the loss any more palatable.

One of the families of the two men stated that the US should have paid the ransom from money captured from Saddam Hussein's riches. I can understand why they feel that way, and I don't blame them a bit (please see my update on this, too). However, I doubt that the soldiers even survived long enough for any negotiations to take place; they have been missing only a little under four days. In that time, the military received 66 intel tips, 18 of which were actionable, and they didn't have time to exploit them before the bodies were found. In any case, paying ransom for kidnappings only subsidizes more kidnappings, more Danegeld in proverbial terms, and it is a bad policy overall.

We'll keep the families in our prayers, as we do every day for all our young men and women in harm's way.

UPDATE: In case people find this post from the Blogometer, let me emphasize what I wrote above about understanding why the families of these men would be upset at the US policy of not paying ransom for hostages. After all, they are the ones most directly affected by that policy -- and they are entitled to their grief. People who take them to task for an eminently understanable emotional reaction really need to rethink their argument and cut these people a whole lot more slack.

The Blogometer, by the way, is an excellent daily roundup of the blogosphere, and I read it every day, and recommend it to you as well.

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» Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq from Stop The ACLU
Sad news this Tuesday via Washington Post The two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week were found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to an Iraqi defense official. General Abdul Aziz Muhammed... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 8:37 AM

» Iraq: Bodies of Missing Soldiers Found from It Shines For All
"The bodies of two missing U.S. soldiers have been found, a senior Iraqi military official said Tuesday, but the U.S. military said it could not confirm the report," the AP is reporting.... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 8:57 AM

» The Two American Soldiers Found from Liberty and Justice
The ones who did this to these young and brave American soldiers are nothing less but a bunch of brutal savages. Words that carry even the slightest signs of sympathy for these terrorists are sickening. [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:34 AM

» The Two American Soldiers Found from Liberty and Justice
The ones who did this to these young and brave American soldiers are nothing less but a bunch of brutal savages. Words that carry even the slightest signs of sympathy for these terrorists are sickening. [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:38 AM

» Tucker and Menchaca Found Dead in Iraq from Ninth State
God rest Tucker and Menchaca, and our prayers go out to their friends and family. This is horrible, horrible news. With any luck, the military will find and kill those responsible. Be careful, everyone, and pray to God this never happens again. ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:34 AM

» Brutality from The Florida Masochist
Secondly, for once will the liberal jacka@@es take their heads out of the ground for once. We're fighting an enemy who will committ any attrocity or brutality for their cause. They need to be squashed before they come to our shores. Wake up America, ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:43 AM

» "Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq" from protein wisdom

From the WaPo:Two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week have been found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to U.S. officials, and Iraqi officials say the soldiers had been tortured. Maj. Gen. ...

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:45 AM

» "Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq" from protein wisdom

From the WaPo:Two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week have been found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to U.S. officials, and Iraqi officials say the soldiers had been tortured. Maj. Gen. ...

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:46 AM

» "Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq" from protein wisdom

From the WaPo:Two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week have been found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to U.S. officials, and Iraqi officials say the soldiers had been tortured. Maj. Gen. ...

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:48 AM

» "Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq" from protein wisdom

From the WaPo:Two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week have been found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to U.S. officials, and Iraqi officials say the soldiers had been tortured. Maj. Gen. ...

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:50 AM

» "Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead in Iraq" from protein wisdom

From the WaPo:Two U.S. soldiers missing since an attack on a checkpoint last week have been found dead near a power plant in Yusifiyah, south of Baghdad, according to U.S. officials, and Iraqi officials say the soldiers had been tortured. Maj. Gen. ...

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:52 AM

» Kidnapped Soldiers Found from Flopping Aces
No one, no country, is safe from terrorism. This is a world war and until these countries understand this they will continue to become victims. Interesting that the traitor Murtha is not screaming about “murder” now huh? He was all over t... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 1:08 PM

» The Barbarity of Jihad from PartisanTimes.com
The bodies of two missing soldiers -- Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25 -- who were kidnaped in Iraq last week, have been discovered. US officials have yet to comment on whether the soldiers had been [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 1:20 PM

» The Barbarity of Jihad from PartisanTimes.com
The bodies of two missing soldiers -- Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25 -- who were kidnaped in Iraq last week, have been discovered. US officials have yet to comment on whether the soldiers had been [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 5:49 PM

» The Missing Soldiers: The reactions from Leaning Straight Up
I want to say coming out of the chute on this that I am very heartsick for the families of the latest two soldiers killed in Iraq.  I won’t dwell on their brutal deaths, enough other people are doing that. What I am concerned about is the r... [Read More]

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» U.S. Defeat in Iraq Imminent? from Strategic Outlook Institute - Weblog
What is the difference between “us” and “them.” On the day that we are informed two of our soldiers were “killed in a barbaric way,” we are told that three members of the U.S. military have been charged with murder... [Read More]

Tracked on June 21, 2006 4:53 AM