Newkirk, Okla. ? A 22-year-old soldier from Newkirk was killed Friday in Iraq when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle, family members have confirmed.

Spc. Jared D. Hartley was assigned to the 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, at Fort Riley, Kan.

Hartley was a turret gunner aboard a Humvee that was targeted near Taji, his brother, Staff Sgt. Alex Hartley, 25, told the Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Jared Hartley was a 2002 graduate of Newkirk High School. He joined the Army shortly after graduating from high school and deployed for a 13-month tour in Iraq, Alex Hartley said.

“When he came back, he was going to get out of the military, but they told him they needed him,” Alex Hartley said. “He said, ‘No problem, I’ll stay in as long as you need me.”‘

He returned for his second tour in March.

As of Monday, at least 1,770 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an AP count. At least 1,360 died as a result of hostile action. The figures include five military civilians.