Bulletin:US Service Member Killed

A US service member was killed in action in Afghanistan today,NATO's Resolute Support Mission in the Afghan Capital Kabul announced.
The service member's identify is being withheld until 24 hours after notification of family,in accordance with Department of Defense policy.
It is the twentieth combat death of a US service member in Afghanistan this year.

NATO:US and Romanian Troops Killed in Action in Kabul,Afghanistan - many distrust Taliban negotiators

NATO's Resolute Support Mission announced that an American and a Romanian service member were killed in action in the Afghan capital Kabul on 5 September 2019:
In accordance with NATO policy,Resolute Support will not disclose additional details.Further information will come from Romania.
The second service member was from the U.S.In accordance with U.S. Department of Defense policy,the name of the service member killed in action is being withheld until 24 hours after family notification is complete.*
The service members were reportedly on a mixed patrol when a minibus VBIED struck a checkpoint near Camp Resolute Support and the US Embassy in the heavily guarded Green Zone,where Afghan govermnment buildings are also located.At least ten other people died in the blast,and a second Romanian service member was severely wounded,according to official sources.The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the suicide attack "killed 12 foreign invaders".*
The attack came as heavily-criticised negotiations with the distrusted Taliban militants have reached agreement in principle.The negotiations are seen by many as being hastily pushed along by President Donald Trump to impress his supporters in the run-up to the 2020 American presidential elections.*
Camp Resolute Support opened a permanent passenger terminal and control tower for its three helicopter landing zones in July 2018.The project was in response to increasing air traffic as deteriorating security in Kabul made road travel inadvisable.*

Afghan War:Pentagon Identifies Green Beret Killed in Combat Operation

The Pentagon has released the identity of a US Soldier killed in action on 29 August 2019 in Zabul Province,Southern Afghanistan,just Northeast of Kandahar.He was SFC Dustin B. Ard,31,of Idaho Falls,Idaho.SFC Ard,a Special Forces Communications Sergeant serving in support of NATO's Resolute Support Mission,was reportedly taking part in an air assault on a Taliban militant-held area.The battle is being investigated.He is the fifteenth US service member to die in combat this year in Afghanistan,the highest death toll since the end of large-scale combat operations in 2014.*
SFC Ard was a member of 2nd Battalion,1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord,Washington State.On his second tour in Afghanistan,he had completed the Special Operations Sensitive Site Exploitation Course and the Special Operations Joint Terminal Attack Controller Course,among many others.*
Among SFC Ard's decorations were the Bronze Star Medal;Purple Heart Medal;NATO Medal;Army Good Conduct Medal (2);Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Campaign Star;Combat Infantry Badge;and Military Free Fall Parachutist Badge.He is survived by his wife,Mary;his daughter,Reagan;and an unborn child.*
President Donald Trump said he plans to reduce the current US troop level in Afghanistan of about 14,000 to 8,600,pending the successful conclusion of negotiations with the Taliban Islamist extremists.*
"But ye are a chosen generation,a royal priesthood,an holy nation,a peculiar people;that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;"
- I Peter 2:9

Afghan War Developments:Two US Troops Killed;One Croatian Soldier Killed Near NATO Base

NATO's Resolute Support Mission said two US troops were killed on 29 July 2019.According to the Afghan Army,they were shot dead by an Afghan soldier in a green-on-blue attack (insider attack).The US Army's 82d Airborne Division revealed that the two were its Soldiers.Their identities will be withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin.*
In a separate incident,a Croatian Soldier was killed in action and two others were wounded on 24 July near a NATO base on the outskirts of Kabul,when a suicide bomber on a motorcycle collided with their vehicle.It was the first non-US NATO death in the Afghan War of 2019.*
President Donald Trump has informed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that he wants more US troops withdrawn from Afghanistan before the 2020 American election.Some US troops would remain to continue the counter-terror Operation Freedom's Sentinel.

Afghan War:US Service Member Killed in Action - revised

NATO's Resolute Support Mission said a US service member was killed in Afghanistan on 13 July 2019.In accordance with Pentagon policy,the service member's name will be withheld until 24 hours after next of kin notification is complete.*
The Taliban Islamist extremists have claimed responsibility for an attack which reportedly took place in Sayedabad District,Wardak Province,Afghanistan.They said they used an IED to strike a US vehicle.It is now known this is not the enemy action that killed the Soldier mentioned above.*
Wardak Province is in Central Afghanistan,being located just southwest of the Afghan capital Kabul.

Bulletin:Two US Troops Killed in Afghanistan Combat

In a news release, NATO said two US service members were killed while conducting an operation in Afghanistan.They were killed by small arms fire.*
In accordance with Pentagon policy, the names of those killed in action are withheld for 24 hours following the notification of all next of kin.*
The incident brings the total of US service members killed in action this year in Afghanistan up to four.In 2018,13 American troops died in combat in the Afghan War.

Afghan War:Army Ranger Dies From Combat Wounds - plus another NATO casualty bulletin just crossed the wires

On 17 January 2019 in Landstuhl,Germany,US Army Ranger SGT Cameron A. Meddock,26,of Spearman,Texas,died from wounds caused by small arms fire he took during combat operations on 13 January in Jawand District of Badghis Province,Northwest Afghanistan.He was likely serving in support of Operation Freedom's Sentinel,the US counterterror effort in Afghanistan.The province had until recently been considered quiet,but the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant-Khorasan group began filtering into the remoter areas there.*
SGT Meddock,the first combat death in Afghanistan for 2019,was on his second Afghanistan tour.He was a fire team leader with Company A,2nd Battalion,75th Ranger Regiment,out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord,Washington State.The Ranger's death coincides with a report by the Afghan Khaama Press news agency that a combat operation in Badghis Province has killed at least 10 ISIL-K Islamist extremists.*
SGT Meddock's decorations include the Purple Heart Medal;Joint Service Commendation for Combat;Army Achievement Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters;and the Afghan Campaign Medal with campaign star.
He was the husband of Stephanie Meddock,who is expecting their first child.*
Meanwhile,another NATO Resolute Support Press Release has just reached the desk.It says a US service member was killed in Afghanistan on 22 January 2019 as a result of enemy small arms fire.The incident is being investigated.In accordance with US Department of Defense policy,the name of the service member is being withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin is complete.More information will be shared as approporiate.*
My flesh and my heart may fail,but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
- Psalm 73:26

NATO Bulletin and Update:Three More US Troops Die in Ghazni,Afghanistan Blast;Initial Review of Nimruz Province Incident Indicates Friendly Fire

NATO's Resolute Support Mission has issued two news releases today on US fatalities in the Afghan War,one of them updating yesterday's release on the death of SGT Leandro A.S. Jasso;the other reports a separate,later incident which occurred on 27 November 2018.
The new incident:
Word has been received that three more US service members were killed in action on 27 November 2018,this time near the city of Ghazni,which is south of the Afghan capital,Kabul.They died in an IED explosion that was claimed by the Taliban Islamist extremists.Three more troops were wounded,as was a civilian contractor.The wounded personnel were medevaced out for advanced treatment.Further details are pending family notification.*
The update:
An initial review of the 24 November 2018 incident that took the life of SGT Jasso of Leavenworth,Washington State shows that he likely died of friendly fire,NATO explained.SGT Jasso was accompanying members of the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces on an assault of multiple barricaded al-Qaida shooters.In the close quarters combat that ensued,it is believed that an ANDSF member mistakenly shot SGT Jasso.There is no evidence of a green on blue attack (insider attack) in this case.
In the words of Resolute Support and US Forces-Afghanistan commander GEN Austin Scott Miller:
SGT Jasso was killed defending our nation,fighting al-Qaida alongside our Afghan partners.All of us,and throughout our Coalition of 41 nations,recognise the threats posed by groups such as al-Qaida and ISIS and are determined to fight them here.*
The two lethal incidents bring the total US troop losses in the Afghan War this year to 13.

Afghan War Update:US Air Force A-10s,UAV Rain Fire on Taliban in Extended Air Operation,USF-A Reveals

New details received from Task Force-Southwest today,30 May,indicate that US Forces-Afghanistan conducted a series of precision strikes over a ten day period,17-26 May 2018,killing more than 70 senior Taliban leaders.Outgoing USF-A and NATO Resolute Support commander GEN John Nicholson,US Army,added:
These strikes represent one of the largest blows to Taliban leadership in the last year,the cumulative effects of which will be felt nationwide for quite some time.*
The most devastating of the strikes was previously reported by this blog on 29 May,having occurred on 24 May.In the course of the HIMARS rocket artillery barrage by US Marines,four HIMARS rockets destroyed a known Taliban command and control node in Musa Qalah during a high-level gathering of Taliban commanders.Among the more than 50 casualties was the deputy shadow governor of Helmand Province;multiple Taliban district governors;intelligence commanders;and key provincial leadership from Kandahar,Kunduz,Herat,Farah,Uruzgu and Helmand Provinces.*
Also on 24 May,USAF A-10s struck a Taliban Red Unit commander for Helmand and his associate as they transited Sangin district.On 25 May,a shadow district governor was killed and a shadow district headquarters was destroyed in Nahr-e-Saraj by A-10s.*
On 26 May,an MQ-1c Gray Eagle UAV killed a senior IED facilitator who had coordinated IED operations against the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces;international forces;and the Afghan people for 13 years.Within the same period of 17-26 May,more than 15 other Taliban Islamist extremists were killed in separate strikes throughout Helmand.*
In conclusion,GEN Nicholson promised that:
As we continue the season of talking and fighting,we will continue to increase pressure on the Taliban and remain vigilant to opportunities for negotiated peace.

Afghan War:US Marines Attack High Level Taliban Targets

According to US Forces-Afghanistan,on 24 May 2018,US Marines in Task Force-Southwest conducted a strike on Taliban militants using the M142 High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).The strike was aimed at a command and control node for high-level Taliban leaders in Musa Qala district,Helmand Province.The structure targeted was a known gathering point for the Islamist extremist leaders,where they planned and facilitated attacks on the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces,who are working to secure the area's elections.
TF-SW commander BGEN Benjamin T. Watson,USMC,explained:
One way we support our Afghan partners is with kinetic strikes so they are able to maintain the offensive.Strikes like this not only degrade Taliban operations,but also give our partners the ability to maintain pressure against a weakened enemy.*
TF-SW has been deployed in Helmand since April 2017 to train,advise and assist the Afghan National Army 215th Corps and the Afghan National Police 505th Zone.*
US Forces-Afghanistan was set up in 2005 and is a US-led mission to direct and enable US military operations in support of NATO's Resolute Support Mission,sustaining campaign momentum in the besieged nation.Currently there are about 14,000 US troops in Afghanistan.Besides training the ANDSF,they engage the enemy in combat operations such as air and artillery strikes,as well as counter-terrorist raids alongside ANDSF Special Operations Forces.

Afghan War:B-52 Upgrade Pulverises Islamist Militants

A press release has been issued by NATO's Resolute Support Mission,Afghanistan.Dated 6 FEB 2018,it reads:
United States Forces-Afghanistan launched a series of precision strikes in Northern Afghanistan in a direct effort to destroy insurgent revenue sources,training facilities,and support networks.Over the past 96 hours,U.S. forces conducted air operations to strike Taliban training facilities in Badakhshan province,preventing the planning and rehearsal of terrorist acts near the border with China and Tajikistan by such organisations as the East Turkistan Islamic Movement and others.The strikes also destroyed Afghan National Army vehicles in the process of being converted to vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices.
During the strikes,a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress dropped 24 precision-guided munitions on Taliban fighting positions,setting a record of the most guided munitions ever dropped by a B-52.The aircraft has played a leading role for decades,and was recently reconfigured with a conventional rotary launcher to increase its reach and lethality.
Continued U.S. strikes disrupt Taliban support networks in Helmand province,as well as destroying their sources of revenue such as illegal narcotics.*
This Blog's Analysis:Such strikes were made possible by President Donald Trump's new South Asia Strategy.In the past four years,the only strikes allowed were those in response to NATO or Afghan troops coming under fire.Proactive operations against the enemy in such areas as the Hindu Kush Mountains were off limits.Thus the Islamist extremists were able to build up an infrastructure for the proliferation of terrorist acts against civilians,as well as the land grabs and blue on green attacks that we have seen over the past four years.

Soldier Killed in Action Identified - Green Beret was immigrant from the Baltic States

The office of Senator Cory Booker,D-New Jersey,has identified the US Soldier who was killed in Achin district of Nangarhar Province,Afghanistan on 1 January 2018.US Army First Sergeant Mihail Golin,34,of Fort Lee,New Jersey,was killed by enemy fire while on dismounted patrol in the mountainous region near the Pakistani border that has been the haven of ISIL-K Islamist extremists.SGT Golin was a member of the 2nd Battalion,10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) out of Fort Carson,Colorado.*
SGT Golin had immigrated to the US from NATO Ally Latvia when he was 21.His father,David Golin,said he was proud of his son,who wanted to serve his new country.Other survivors include SGT Golin's ex-wife and a daughter,6.*
It's been pointed out by several media outlets that NATO's Resolute Support Mission commander,US Army General John Nicholson,has warned that the President's new,more assertive South Asia policy would expose US troops to more danger in Afghanistan.They are embedding with Afghan National Defence and Security Forces closer to the front lines,in addition to continuing the counterterror raids that were already being staged with Afghan commandos.

Afghanistan:'It's A New War,'Air Force General Says - fifth generation fighters used

On 12 December 2017,US Air Force Brigadier General Lance Bunch,Director of Future Operations CJ-35,Resolute Support Headquarters,Kabul,Afghanistan,addressed the media at the Pentagon via teleconference.He is in charge of synchronisation,contingency planning and air campaign integration for Resolute Support Mission and Operation Freedom's Sentinel.BRIG GEN Bunch said that:
As General Nicholson has said,we will be here until the job is done.Our future shop developed an air interdiction campaign,a counter-revenue campaign using air power.We have been able to target the Taliban in their safe zones,their command and control nodes,illicit revenue-generating ventures and their logistical network.This new air interdiction campaign directly strengthens the Afghan defence forces and their continued battlefield success.In the past three weeks,since the campaign began,we have been able to eliminate 25 narcotics processing labs from the Taliban inventory.This amounts to nearly 80 million dollars in drug money from the kingpins' pockets,while denying over 16 million in direct revenue to their Taliban partners.*
The US Marines have also been able to use their HiMARS rockets against such facilities.The Afghan National Interdiction Unit also conducted two simultaneous raids of Taliban narcotics bazaars as part of this campaign.This resulted in over 2,000 kg of heroin and 5,000 kg of opium getting confiscated.The Taliban narcotics leadership has been caught off guard,so we were able to target Mullah Shah Wali,the Taliban special forces branch,or Red Unit,commander of this Taliban squad in Helmand Province,delivering yet another blow to this criminal network.This was a joint effort by the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces,the US Army,Air Force,Navy and Marines,all collectively exercising authorities granted under the South Asia Policy-and it's not over;in fact,it's only just begun,and this will be a very long winter for the Taliban,as we will continue to disrupt their resources again,and again,and again-but a key part of these operations are a strong Afghan defence forces.Whereas before we could only embed at the Corps level,our new SAP will allow us to embed all the way down to the Kandak,or Battalion level.This allows us to train,advise and assist Afghan units and leaders directly controlling the fight,and accelerate their transition to increased ability and capacity.The US force uplift announced in the new SAP has already happened.This policy,coupled with our air campaign,will allow Afghan defence forces to keep pressure on the Taliban through the winter.*
In early 2018,the new Security Force Assistance Brigade will deploy into theatre and further enhance our assistance to the Afghan security forces going into the next fighting season.The Taliban have been unable to take a provincial capital or even a single city.This year,the Taliban have fared poorly.We,along with our Afghan partners,are on the path to victory.Now,with our new authorities,we're able to target networks,not just individual fighters.Our SFAB will deploy in the March of 2018 time frame.*
We're currently unfolding the air interdiction campaign.We continue to leverage our Intelligence,Surveillance and Reconnaissance across the theatre to find the enemy wherever they may be so that we can develop targets.There's been much said that as the war in Iraq and Syria starts to wind down,the main effort will shift to Afghanistan;and as those assets become available and come to us,we'll of course be able to leverage them to full effect.*
We're looking to triple the size of the Afghan Air Force by 2023.They did 500 more sorties in 2017 than 2016.This is a new war,and the gloves are off,if you will.We are able to go after the Taliban support structure,whereas before we could only strike in support of the Afghan forces that were in contact with the enemy.So now we're able to go after their weapons cache sites;their revenue generators;their C2 nodes-all the ones where they thought they were safe and they are no longer,so it has definitely been a game changer and the Taliban is definitely feeling it.I think what General Nicholson said is that the war is in a stalemate,but the momentum is definitely shifting to the ANDSF.*
The assets we've been using include the B-52 with its new conventional rotary launcher;the F-22;F-16;A-29;HiMARS;F/A-18;over the horizon air refueling assets;JSTARS and ISR assets.We used the fifth generation F-22 fighter jet to limit collateral damage in the Northern Helmand interdiction campaign.The most precise weapon at our disposal is the small diameter bomb carried by the F-22s.*
We're looking for opportunities to disrupt their ability to fund their operations,to recruit fighters or buy weapons.The Taliban gets 300-500 million a year as their total budget.Sixty percent comes from their narco-processing trade;the vast majority of that comes from Northern Helmand,which is their economic engine.The forces we have right now are enough to keep the ANDSF on the offensive through the winter.*
BRIG GEN Bunch said that,besides the Taliban,ISIL-Khorasan had up to 1,000 fighters in Afghanistan;but he didn't have the number of recent US air strikes on al-Qaida fighters on hand.US Forces Afghanistan does not currently have the authority to conduct airstrikes on Pakistan.Asked whether the uplift in US forces has resulted in the drawdown of the CIA's Ground Branch paramilitary operatives,who have been active in Afghanistan since right after 9-11,BRIG GEN Bunch said that was beyond his pay grade.

NATO and Afghanistan:Mattis and Stoltenberg Discuss the New Strategy - a compelling advantage

On 27 September,NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis held talks with Afghan leaders in Kabul,including President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Dr.Abdullah Abdullah of the National Unity Government.*
At a press conference after the discussions,Mr.Mattis and Mr.Stoltenberg gave a frank briefing on the new approach.
Mr.Stoltenberg:NATO doesn't quit when the going gets tough.That is why I much welcome that many nations have pledged further contributions to our mission here in Afghanistan,including more troops from the US.And I welcome President Trump's new,conditions-based approach to Afghanistan and the region.NATO is committed to funding the Afghan security forces until at least 2020,and we will continue to provide almost a billion each year to the Afghan defence and security forces.
At our defence ministerial in June,we actually decided to increase our NATO troop levels in Afghanistan,and several Allies have already started to step up to their pledges to send more troops.So they are sending more troops because it is in their interest to have a more stable Afghanistan.*
Mr.Mattis:We will not abandon Afghanistan to a merciless enemy trying to kill its way to power.
This new strategy is conditions-based,and not time-based,because war is principally a matter of will,and we've made clear that we have the will to stand together.
Through our partnership,we will suffocate any hope that al-Qaida,or ISIS-Daesh,Haqqani or the Taliban have of winning by killing.
We are up against an enemy right now that intentionally fights among innocent people;that intentionally hides behind women and children;that intentionally tries to draw fire on the innocent,and we do everything humanly possible...to protect the innocent on the battlefield.We're not the perfect guys;but we are the good guys.
We are bringing in reinforcements,and those reinforcements are designed to add more advisors to your units in the field,and more trainers in your military schools.We are going to give them more advantage to the NATO access,and advantage to the NATO air forces overhead,to make sure that at no time does the Taliban own the high ground.We will always own the high ground.
I prefer to not go into the specific numbers right now.We are bringing more Americans in;there are more coalition forces coming in.I don't want to tell the enemy exactly what we're doing,but the whole point is to make certain that we have a compelling battlefield advantage over anything the Taliban tries to mass against your forces.We are not going to stand for that.
There's an increasing collusion.There's increasing teamwork among the various terrorist bands,and I will just tell you that this simply gives more impetus to those of us who are against terrorism to work together,Secretary Mattis told the reporters gathered in Kabul.*
Among others attending the talks were General John Nicholson,US Army,NATO Resolute Support Mission and Operation Freedom's Sentinel commander;Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison,US Ambassador to NATO;and Afghan national security officials.

Update:Nationality of Afghanistan Suicide Blast Victim Revealed

A Republic of Georgia Soldier was killed by a personnel-borne IED on Thursday in Kabul Province,Afghanistan,NATO's Resolute Support Mission said in a press release today.The Georgian was on patrol with Afghan and US troops when the attack occurred.*
Georgia has about 900 troops in Afghanistan,and is the largest non-NATO contributor to the coalition.It was the coalition's third fatality in two days,after the killing of two US troops by a VBIED on Wednesday.*
Georgia aspires to NATO membership and is currently a NATO partner and hosting Exercise Noble Partner 2017.Two US troops,three other Georgians and an interpreter received non-life threatening injuries in the attack;while two Afghan civilians were killed and seven wounded.

Bulletin:NATO Says A Third Soldier Dies in a Second Suicide Blast

A press release just received from NATO's Resolute Support Mission says that a second suicide blast has killed the third coalition Soldier in two days in Afghanistan.The Thursday attack was carried out in Qarabagh district of Kabul Province by means of a personnel-borne IED that exploded as a joint Afghan-coalition patrol was passing by.Six other coalition personnel,including an interpreter,were injured by the blast and are being treated at Bagram Airfield for non-life threatening injuries.Yesterday,two US Soldiers died when  a Taliban militant rammed a VBIED into a NATO convoy that was returning to Bagram Airfield.
No nationality for the third fatality has yet been provided.
In a related development,Senator John McCain,R-Arizona,has again taken the Trump administration to task for failing to chart a course for the Afghan War.In a Facebook post,the senator said:
Our commanders-in-chief,not our commanders in the field,are responsible for this failure.*
Senator McCain added that,if nothing were done by September,he would offer an amendment to the defense authorization bill that does lay out a strategy for the war.

Bulletin:NATO Convoy Attacked in Afghanistan - two US troops killed

NATO's Resolute Support Mission said a NATO convoy came under attack in Kandahar Province,Afghanistan.The convoy was on a routine train,advise and assist mission at the time of the incident.US Navy Captain Jeff  Davis at the Pentagon confirmed that two US troops were killed in action and said Resolute Support would provide further information.
The Taliban militants claimed responsibility for what was reportedly a suicide attack.US Soldiers were photographed investigating damage done to one of the convoy's armoured vehicles.
This brings the US death toll in Afghanistan combat to nine so far this year,equaling the toll for all of 2016.The Trump administration,which has been in office for over six months,has been criticised for dragging its feet in coming up with a plan for this longest war in American history,which began in 2001 in response to the 9-11 attacks that al-Qaida planned and directed from Afghanistan with the aquiescence of the Taliban regime.

Afghan War:Second Green on Blue Attack Rattles NATO - Camp Shaheen incident

In the second green-on-blue attack on less than a week,an Afghan soldier reportedly opened fire on his coalition allies on 17 June 2017 at Camp Shaheen in Mazar i Sharif,Balkh Province,Northern Afghanistan,a US military spokesman said.One Afghan soldier was killed and another wounded along with seven American troops,in the as yet unclear incident.The Taliban Islamist extremists claimed responsiblity for the new attack.The remaining US troops were evacuated from the base following the flare-up,which the NATO Resolute Support Mission said is being looked into.
On 11 June,three US Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division were killed in a similar attack in Nangarhar Province that was also claimed by the Taliban.*
Camp Shaheen has a German detachment that is leading the NATO advise and assist mission there,but there was no indication of German casualties at the base,which is headquarters for the Afghan Army's 209th Corps.In April 2017,the Taliban militants mounted a major assault there,killing or wounding more than a hundred Afghan soldiers.*
President Donald Trump has recently delegated the authority to set US troop levels in Afghanistan to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis,who has come under congressional criticism for the delay in issuing an outline for the war effort.The Secretary said,however,that there will be no immediate change in troop levels.By next month,Mr.Mattis is to present the Trump administration with options for its Afghan War strategy.

US Soldier Killed in Afghanistan Firefight Identified

The Pentagon announced that Staff Sergeant Mark R DeAlencar,37,of Edgewood,Maryland,died on 8 April 2017 in Nangarhar Province,Afghanistan,when his unit took small arms fire from ISIL militants during combat operations with Afghan National Defence and Security Forces.SSGT DeAlencar was assigned to 1st Battalion,7th Special Forces Group (Airborne),based at Eglin Air Force Base,Florida.
The Green Beret was a graduate of Joppatowne High School in Harford County,Maryland.He was the husband of Natasha DeAlencar and the father of five.His body was flown to Dover AFB,Delaware,where it was received in a dignified manner.He is to be interred in Arlington National Cemetery.
SSGT DeAlencar was serving in support of Operation Freedom's Sentinel,the US role in NATO's Resolute Support Mission,which consists of train,advise and assist activities,as well as counterterrorism operations.

OIR Coalition Forces Engage ISIL in Ground Combat in Syria,Afghanistan - American combat death

Two battles between the Operation Inherent Resolve coalition and militants of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant on Saturday point up the danger faced by US and British Special Operations Forces in country as well as their indigenous colleagues as they engage the ISIL menace directly or indirectly.A US SOF member was killed in action against ISIL-Khorasan in Afghanistan,according to US Navy Captain Bill Salvin,Spokesman for US Forces-Afghanistan and NATO's Resolute Support Mission in Kabul.In a press release on 8 April 2017,CAPT Salvin said the US service member was killed while conducting operations against ISIL-Khorasan in Nangarhar Province of Eastern Afghanistan.The American was a member of the SOF team fighting ISIL along with Afghan National Defence and Security Forces in Achin District of Nangarhar.No further information was released pending notification of next of kin.
The Afghan War is now,at more than 15 years in length,the longest war in US history.In the course of the war,at least 2249 US troops have died,as well as hundreds of other NATO and coalition troops.Some 20,210 American soldiers have been wounded in the conflict.
ISIL refers to Nangarhar as being its "Khorasan Province."*
Meanwhile in Syria,about 30 ISIL militants staged a raid on an OIR coalition Special Operations Forces base used by both US and British SOFs,as well as OIR-affiliated Syrian rebels.The al-Tanf base,near the Jordanian border,came under attack after US forces had withdrawn into the desert following the launch of 59 cruise missiles against a Syrian government air base,in retaliation for an Assad regime use of chemical weapons against civilians.The Islamist extremists,dressed in Syrian rebel uniforms,stormed the base with suicide bombers who blew the gate up.The surviving militants surged onto the base and opened fire on the inhabitants.A fierce,three-hour firefight erupted when US SOFs and their Syrian colleagues rushed back from the desert to drive ISIL out.Two of the Syrian allies were killed in the battle,despite intensive OIR coalition close air support.No US casualties were reported;nor was information released regarding British SOF participation in the battle,as is customary in the very close-mouthed British special operations approach.
The ISIL assault on the al-Tanf base was described by a US official as having been serious,complex and coordinated.The facility is used for train,advise and assist by OIR coalition SOFs and their Syrian rebel allies.