The U.S. military will provide its soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan with flame-resistant uniforms by early 2007, a newspaper reported Friday.

More than 160,000 suits made of the flame-retardant fabric NOMEX would be sent to combat zones, the USA Today newspaper reported, quoting Thomas Edwards, assistant deputy chief of staff for Army logistics.

After receiving the Army's request on Sept. 21, the Pentagon shipped 70,000 suits by Oct. 13 to outfit troops who patrol outside U.S. bases. The Pentagon moved quickly because Iraqi insurgents were using homemade bombs and targeting the fuel tanks of vehicles, Edwards said.

The bombs, called improvised explosive devices, were the top killer of U.S. troops in Iraq, causing 28 of the 47 U.S. fatalities this month, according to the report.

The uniforms, hoods and gloves would cost about 70 million U.S. dollars.

NOMEX, a DuPont-manufactured fiber, resisted burning for about nine seconds, long enough to allow troops to escape from a burning vehicle, Edwards said.

Source: Xinhua