The Pentagon on Friday identified two Army Rangers killed fighting the Islamic State in Afghanistan this week.
Sgt. Joshua P. Rodgers, 22, of Bloomington, Ill., and Sgt. Cameron H. Thomas, 23, of Kettering, Ohio, died Thursday during a firefight in Nangarhar province, according to a press release. Both soldiers were assigned to 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment based at Fort Benning, Ga.
They are the latest U.S. casualties in a stepped-up campaign against ISIS-Khorasan in the eastern province along border with Pakistan.
Staff Sgt. Mark De Alencar was mortally wounded April 8 in Nangarhar province when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations.
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis offered his “respect and sympathies” to the two soldiers’ families on Friday in a statement.
“Fighting alongside their Afghan partners, Josh and Cameron proved themselves willing to go into danger and impose a brutal cost on enemies in their path,” Mattis said. “They carried out their operation against ISIS-K in Afghanistan before making the ultimate sacrifice to defend our nation and our freedoms.
“Our nation owes them an irredeemable debt, and we give our deepest condolences to their families.”
The Air Force dropped a Massive Ordnance Air Blast, the so-called “mother of all bombs,” on an ISIS-K tunnel complex there this month.
