The Pentagon on Wednesday released the names of the three U.S. special operations troops killed this week by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan.
The Taliban attack in eastern Ghazni province killed Army Capt. Andrew Patrick Ross, 29; Army Sgt. 1st Class Eric Michael Emond, 39; and Air Force Staff Sgt. Dylan J. Elchin, 25, according to the statement. The two soldiers were with the 3rd Special Forces Group out of Fort Bragg in North Carolina and the airman was part of the 26th Special Tactics Squadron out of Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico.
The bombing is the bloodiest single attack on U.S. forces this year after President Trump approved a new strategy and troop surge aimed at forcing the Taliban into peace talks.
The Americans were traveling in a convoy in Ghazni city when the bomb detonated, according to the New York Times.
In August, U.S. forces fought with Afghan security forces on the front lines in a dayslong battle to recapture Ghazni city from the Taliban.
A total of 13 service members have died and 11 of those have been killed in combat or by insider attacks and friendly fire from Afghan security forces.
U.S. Army Ranger Sgt. Leandro A.S. Jasso, 25, was killed Saturday when an Afghan ally shot him in a close-quarter battle with al Qaeda fighters in Nimruz province, Afghanistan.
