Staff Sgt. Ricardo Barraza, 24, of Shafter, Calif., and Sgt. Dale G. Brehm, 23, of Turlock, Calif., died March 18 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, when they came under enemy fire, the department said in a news release.

They were killed March 18th in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, when they came under enemy fire.

Both were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, a special-forces unit stationed at Fort Lewis, south of Tacoma.

Brehm joined the military in 2001 after graduating from Turlock Adult School. Married two years, Tuesday would have been his 24th birthday.

He was a rifleman and grenadier in the Ranger regiment and served three tours in Afghanistan and three tours in Iraq.

Brehm is survived by his wife, Raini Brehm, of Steilacoom, Wash., and his father and mother, both of Turlock, Calif.

Barraza's family says he enlisted in the military after graduating high school in 1999, and had been in Iraq since 2002.

He is survived by his parents, Fransisco and Nina Barraza, and two sisters, Amanda and Rachael of Shafter, Calif., and his fiance, Maghan Herrington of Yakima, Wash.

The U.S. Army Special Operations Command said both soldiers were awarded numerous decorations, including the Army Commendation Medal and Army Achievement Medal. Both were posthumously awarded the purple heart.