The Pentagon identified two U.S. Army special operations forces soldiers killed in an ambush Saturday in Afghanistan.
According to a Defense Department statement, the two soldiers were Sgt. Javier Jaguar Gutierrez of San Antonio, Texas, and Sgt. Antonio Rey Rodriguez of Las Cruces, New Mexico. Both men were 28 years old.
The deadly firefight took place in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, where U.S.-Afghan coalition forces are working to clear the area of the Taliban.
Col. Sonny Leggett, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Afghanistan, said early reports indicated Gutierrez and Rodriguez died after “an individual in an Afghan uniform opened fire on the combined U.S. and Afghan force with a machine gun,” said Col. Sonny Leggett, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Afghanistan.
Six other U.S. soldiers were wounded in the attack. Afghanistan’s defense ministry said one Afghan soldier was killed and three others were wounded in the attack.
“Afghan commandos and U.S. forces were visiting an Afghan army base for an operation. After initial greetings, one of the commandos opened fire with a machine gun,” said Ajmal Omar, deputy head of the area’s provincial council. “There was fear of a second shooter also, so they disarmed everyone at night.”
The gunman’s motive is under investigation, according to Leggett.
Members of the Taliban have infiltrated U.S. and Afghan forces by posing as soldiers to carry out attacks. A NATO analysis calculated that 10% of such “green-on-blue” attacks are tied directly to insurgents, and the vast majority are due to personal or cultural disagreements.
Last year in Afghanistan, 21 U.S. troops died, 19 in combat and two in what was described by the Pentagon as “non-combat incidents,” according to a count by the Washington Examiner. So far this year, four U.S. troops have died: two in the incident Saturday, and two 82nd Airborne soldiers who were killed Jan. 11 when a roadside bomb struck their vehicle while on patrol.
Jamie McIntyre contributed to this report.
