SEATTLE — A US soldier pleaded guilty on Monday to shooting dead five fellow servicemen at a military counseling center in Iraq, in a plea deal his defense attorneys reached with Army prosecutors to avoid capital punishment. Army Sergeant John Russell is accused of killing two medical staff officers and three soldiers at Camp Liberty, adjacent to the Baghdad airport, in a 2009 shooting spree the military said at the time could have been triggered by combat stress. Russell pleaded guilty to five counts of intentional murder, one count of attempted murder, and one count of assault at a hearing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state, according to his civilian defense lawyer, James Culp. The trial is scheduled to begin May 6. — Reuters