From Dent , Minnesota (pop.192) to Al Khalidiyah, Iraq

A second Minnesota soldier killed in Iraq this week was identified today as Staff Sgt. Joshua Robert Hanson, 27, of Dent, Minn. Hanson died near Khalidiyah, Iraq, on Aug. 30 of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his military vehicle.

From staff reports

A second Minnesota soldier killed in Iraq this week was identified today as Staff Sgt. Joshua Robert Hanson, 27, of Dent, Minn.

Hanson died near Khalidiyah, Iraq, on Aug. 30 of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his military vehicle.

On Sunday, Spc. Qixing Lee, 20, of Minneapolis died from a bomb while on foot patrol just north of Baghdad. Lee was among four American soldiers killed in the attack, and all of them were members of the 1st Battalion of the 66th Armored Regiment, based at Fort Hood, Texas, an Army spokesman said.

Hanson was assigned to the Minnesota Army National Guard’s Company A, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry, based in Detroit Lakes, Minn. Six other soldiers from Alpha Company were wounded during the incident and returned to duty, according to a Guard news release.

Hanson’s unit was described as a combat arms unit consisting of soldiers primarily from Detroit Lakes and Bemidji. Members of Alpha Company mobilized with the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 34th Infantry Division last fall and deployed to Iraq in March. “The loss of our brother, Staff Sgt. Joshua Hanson, is felt across the state of Minnesota,” Major General Larry Shellito, the Adjutant General of Minnesota, said in a statement. “It’s our priority to assist the Hanson family during this difficult time. I ask that all Minnesotans take time to reflect in a moment of silence to honor this young hero.” More than 40 soldiers with Minnesota ties have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.