A soldier from Wahiawa killed in Iraq on Christmas Eve will be buried in her native Philippines, her mother said yesterday.

Army Sgt. Myla L. Maravillosa suffered fatal injuries when her Humvee was attacked by enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenades in Al Hawijah. The 1999 graduate of Leilehua High School was assigned to the Army Reserve's 203rd Military Intelligence Battalion out of Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.

She had been deployed to Iraq on Nov. 20.

Local services have not been announced, but Maravillosa's mother, Estelita Maravillosa, said a funeral and burial will be held in the Philippines "so she can always be visited by my family."

The mother said Maravillosa will be buried near her maternal grandfather, Agapito Lumayag, in Bohol Province. Myla Maravillosa was born in the Philippines and moved to Hawai'i in 1997.

Maravillosa joined the Army Reserve after graduating from Leilehua. She attended Leeward Community College and planned to attend Hawai'i Pacific University before being called to active duty.