One of missing troops from Houston

Houston Chronicle:

One of two soldiers missing and reportedly held captive by insurgents in Iraq is from Houston.

The Defense Department identified the man as Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23.

Menchaca and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore., were apparently kidnapped Friday night in an attack on a checkpoint outside the restive town of Yusufiya. The Pentagon said Spc. David J. Babineau, 25, of Springfield, Mass., was killed in the attack.

U.S. forces have intensified their search for Menchaca and Tucker, widening their pursuit to areas beyond Yusufiya, and drawing troops from at least three brigade combat teams.

Family members said they were awaiting word about Menchaca.

"They're looking for him everywhere," Menchaca's mother, Maria Vasquez, of Brownsville, said by telephone.

Menchaca's brother, Julio Cesar Vasquez, of Houston, said Menchaca joined the military last year and deployed to Iraq within months. Menchaca is assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne based out of Fort Campbell, Ky.

Menchaca's wife, 18-year-old Christina Menchaca, of Big Spring, said representatives of the military told her they were taking "every means possible to find him."

...

The enemy in Iraq does not contact the Red Cross if it takes a POW. In fact it usually kills anyone it has custody of. What makes this case unusual is that the enemy should know that taking a US troop prisoner will create an intense manhunt for them and the prisoner. Resources will focus on the area and flood the zone with more troops making it more difficult for the enemy to operate and maneuver. It will also change operating procedures to make sure it does not happen again. The 101st is a proud unit that adopted the phrase "band of brothers" in World War II. It is unlikely that the unit will rest to a man until these soldiers are found.

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