Bodies of the two missing U.S. soldiers have been found in Yousfiyah in south of Baghdad, Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday.

"The bodies of the two U.S. soldiers were found in Yousfiyah near the power station, but unfortunately the bodies showed signs of torture," General Abul Aziz Muhammed told a news conference.

On Friday, unknown gunmen attacked a U.S. military checkpoint near Yousfiyah. A soldier was killed and two others went missing, according to a U.S. statement.

Coalition forces spokesman Major General William Caldwell said on Monday that more than 8,000 U.S. soldiers, Iraqi army and police are working together, conducting an intensive search operation to determine the status of these soldiers.

"We are using every means at our disposal," he said.

The two missing soldiers are Kristian Menchaca, 23, and Thomas L. Tucker, while the third soldier who was killed is David J. Babineau, 25, according to Caldwell.

On Monday, the Mujahideen Shora Council, an extremist Islamic group led by al-Qaida in Iraq network claimed responsibility for abducting the two U.S. soldiers.

"Your brothers in the military wing of the Mujahideen Shora Council kidnapped two American soldiers near Yousifiyah," the group said in a statement posted on an Islamic Web site.

The authenticity of the statement could not be immediately verified.

Source: Xinhua