DINUBA, Calif. — The shot in the chest that killed a Hawai'i-based airman in Southern Iraq wasn't fired by the enemy, but by someone on his base, his parents said.

Even as they mourn the death of their son, Airman 1st Class Carl Jerome Ware Jr., Carl and Rosalie Ware are trying to find out who fired at him, and why.

They told The Fresno Bee that military officers said their son was killed Saturday by personnel from his base at Camp Bucca as he made his way back to barracks at the end of his shift.

Carl Ware Jr., 22, was a military security officer with the 886th Expeditionary Security Squadron.

Military officers told the family they were investigating the shooting to try to determine if it was accidental or deliberate.

Officials at Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu, where Carl Ware Jr. was based, did not confirm or deny the family's account.

There's no date set for the end of the investigation, Maj. Charles Anthony, a spokesman for the Hawai'i National Guard, said yesterday.

"They just want to do a thorough job and make sure they have all the facts," he said.