BAGHDAD, Iraq — A U.S. Marine was killed during fighting in the town of Haditha, northwest of Baghdad, where more than 1,000 Marines, sailors and Iraqi troops are conducting a security operation, the military said today.

As of yesterday, at least 1,654 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The Marine was killed Thursday when a rocket-propelled grenade exploded near him, a statement said.