At least 929 US military deaths in Afghan region since 2001
By APFriday, March 5, 2010
US military deaths in Afghan region at 929
As of Friday, March 5, 2010, at least 929 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to an Associated Press count.
The AP count is three more than the Defense Department’s tally, last updated Friday at 10 a.m. EDT.
At least 720 military personnel died in the Afghan region as a result of hostile action, according to the military’s numbers.
Outside the Afghan region, the department reports 76 more members of the U.S. military died in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Of those, eight were the result of hostile action. The military lists these other locations as Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Jordan; Kenya; Kyrgyzstan; Philippines; Seychelles; Sudan; Tajikistan; Turkey; and Yemen.
The Defense Department also counts two military civilian deaths.
The latest identifications reported by the military:
—Spc. Josiah D. Crumpler, 27, of Hillsborough, N.C., and Spc. Matthew D. Huston, 24, of Athens, Ga.; died Monday in Bala Murghab, Afghanistan, when insurgents attacked their unit with small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades. Both were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
— Spc. Ian T.D. Gelig, 25, of Stevenson Ranch, Calif.; died Monday in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device; assigned to the 782nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
—Lance Cpl. Carlos A. Aragon, 19, of Orem, Utah, died Monday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 4th Marine Division, Marine Forces Reserve, Camp Pendleton, Calif.
—Sgt. Vincent L.C. Owens, 21, of Fort Smith, Ark.; died Monday at Forward Operating Base Sharana, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered earlier that day when enemy forces attacked his vehicle using direct fire in Yosuf Khel; assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
—Staff Sgt. William S. Ricketts, 27, of Corinth, Miss.; died Feb. 27 at Bala Murghab, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms fire; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
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