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President Donald Trump has informed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that he wants more US troops withdrawn from Afghanistan before the 2020 American election.Some US troops would remain to continue the counter-terror Operation Freedom's Sentinel.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:NATO Service Member Killed in Herat

A non-US NATO service member has been killed in Herat Province,Western Afghanistan on 22 October 2018.The person was serving in the Resolute Support Mission's Train,Advise and Assist Command-West (TAAC-West).Two other troops were wounded.No nationalities or identities were available.TAAC-West is led by Italian personnel.Also serving in TAAC-West are troops from Albania,Lithuania,Slovenia,Ukraine and the US.TAAC-West is helping the Afghan National Army's 207th Corps and the 606th Afghan National Police Zone.*
The incident was reportedly a green on blue attack,or someone disguised as an Afghan National Defence and Security Forces member attacking a Coalition service member.A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the attack,saying one of their "infiltrators" was the assailant.The flare-up was the second green on blue attack in less than a week.On 18 October,the Taliban militants claimed responsibility for an attack following a security review session in Kandahar Province,Southern Afghanistan,in which two Afghan leaders were killed and two Americans were wounded.The Afghans lost were the highly admired Kandahar Province police chief GEN Abdul Raziq,and a senior Afghan intelligence officer.Those wounded in the firefight included a US general officer,BGEN Jeffrey D. Smiley,US Army,commander of TAAC-South,and a US contractor.The Taliban Islamist extremists said they had hoped to kill the new commander of US Forces Afghanistan and NATO's Resolute Support Mission,GEN Austin Scott Miller,US Army,who took command on 2 September 2018,but he escaped unscathed.
GEN Miller has a Special Operations Forces background,having recently served as commander,Joint Special Operations Command.He is a veteran of the Battle of Mogadishu,Somalia;the Iraq War;and the Afghan War.Among his decorations are the Bronze Star Medal,the Purple Heart Medal and the Legion of Merit.

West Virginia Soldier Killed in Afghanistan as New Commander Takes the Reins

A senior US Army non-commissioned officer was killed in a green on blue attack,an attack by a person disguised as an Afghan soldier or police officer against a coalition member,on Monday 3 September 2018 in Eastern Logar Province.CSM Timothy Bolyard of Thornton,West Virginia,42,was the sixth US combat death of the year in the Afghan War,and the second to fall in a green on blue attack.CPL Joseph Maciel was killed in a green on blue attack in July in Uruzgan Province.*
A second US Soldier was wounded in the most recent attack and is in stable condition.Reportedly, there had been a meeting of key Afghan leaders and US military advisors at Forward Operating Base Shark preceding the attack.Then of a sudden a spray of bullets from an Afghan National Police Humvee struck the two Soldiers in the back.An ANP officer was shot dead in response,and four others were arrested.
The Taliban miltants have an office that promotes and encourages green on blue attacks.*
CSM Bolyard was a member of 1st Squadron,38th Cavalry Regiment,currently a unit of the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade (SFAB) out of Fort Benning,Georgia.The SFAB concept was formulated by the Trump Administration as part of its South Asia Strategy.It assigns members of non-special operations units to train,advise and assist the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces on the frontlines,thus freeing up Special Operations Forces and Brigade Combat Teams to concentrate on counter-terror missions against the Taliban,ISIL-K and al-Qaida Islamist extremists.*
Another US service member was killed in Afghanistan on 4 September in a so-called non-combat incident,the seventh US military death in Afghanistan for 2018.This service member's identity is being withheld pending family notification.Both incidents are under investigation.*
CSM Bolyard,who was married and the father of two,was on his thirteenth deployment and had been repeatedly decorated for his accomplishments,having been awarded six Bronze Star Medals,two of them with combat V device for valour;six Army Commendation Medals;nine Army Achievement Medals;four Meritorious Service Medals;the Iraq Campaign Medal with four Campaign Stars;the Kosovo Campaign Medal;and the Combat Action Badge.
BGEN Scott Jackson,commander of 1st SFAB,said of CSM Bolyard that:
He will live in our memories and the hundreds of Soldiers he led and cared for throughout his exceptional career.*
On Sunday 2 September 2018,the former Commander,US Special Operations Command,GEN Austin Scott Miller,US Army,assumed command of NATO Resolute Support Mission and US Forces-Afghanistan from GEN John Nicholson after his 30 months of service.GEN Miller has served in both Iraq and Afghanistan,as well as Somalia,having been decorated with the Bronze Star Medal,Purple Heart Medal and the Legion of Merit,among other awards.

Afghan War:Green on Blue Attack Kills US Soldier

A so-called "green on blue" attack,which is an attack by an enemy posing as an ally,killed US Army CPL Joseph Maciel,20,of South Gate,California on 7 July 2018 in Tarin Kowt district of Uruzgan Province.Uruzgan borders Kandahar Province to the south.The incident is under investigation.Two other US Soldiers were wounded and are in stable condition.*
CPL Maciel was a member of 1st Battalion,28th Infantry Regiment,3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Benning,Georgia.He was serving with the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade,one of the new units set up to help implement the President's South Asia Strategy in Afghanistan.CPL Maciel received the Purple Heart Medal,Bronze Star Medal and Army Achievement Medal,along with the Afghanistan Campaign Medal.*
The unit was returning the US Army to the practice of having US infantry troops training and advising the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces,rather than just Special Operations Forces doing that task.The SFAB had received special training at Fort Benning in establishing rapport with the ANDSF and in foreign languages.
CPL Maciel was engaged in providing force protection for the unit's trainers and advisors.The SFAB numbers about 800 trainers and advisors and 300 support troops across Afghanistan.*
A Taliban spokesman said the attacker acted alone;but the Taliban "appreciated" his deed.It was the third US combat death this year in Afghanistan,and the first US green on blue fatality since June 2017.1st Battalion commander LTCOL David Connor said that CPL Maciel was:
an excellent Soldier beloved by his teammates and dedicated to our mission.He will be greatly missed by the entire Black Lion family.

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.

Bulletin:Three US Troops Killed in Afghanistan - green on blue attack

US officials say three American service members were killed and a fourth wounded in Achin district of Nangarhar Province,Afghanistan on Saturday,10 June 2017.The incident is being labeled a green-on-blue attack,a NATO code word for an enemy infiltrator who opens fire on coalition forces while wearing an Afghan National Defence and Security Forces uniform.The treacherous attack occurred while US and ANDSF personnel were conducting a counterterrorist operation in the district,an ISIL-K stronghold that US and Afghan Special Operations Forces have been focused on for several months now.An Afghan official said ANDSF members shot the gunman dead.*
The Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the incident,calling the perpetrator a "mujahadid,"or freedom fighter.On Saturday,US Vice President Mike Pence mentioned the deaths and offered the American people's thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of the victims.*
ISIL-K and the Taliban had been fighting each other,so it is possible they have begun to cooperate against the US and Afghan forces now.*
ISIL-K is short for ISIL-Khorasan.The Islamist extremists refer to Nangarhar as being their Khorasan Province.In April,two more US troops were killed in action in Achin district of Nangarhar during combat with ISIL-K.*
The US and its NATO Allies are considering upping the number of forces in Afghanistan in light of the persistent militant activity.