Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM AUGUST 7-13, 2019 UCW 13 Two more American service members have lost their lives at the hands of those they are sworn to protect. ey were para- troopers of Fort Bragg's 3rd Brigade Com- bat Team, 82nd Airborne Division killed by an Afghan soldier in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan. e Pentagon identified the soldiers as Spc. Michael Nance of Chicago, Illinois, and Pfc. Brandon Kreischer of Stryker, Ohio. ey were members of Com- pany B., 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. e Afghan soldier was wounded and is in custody, according to U.S. Central Command officials. e incident is the first known insider at- tack in Afghanistan since November when Maj. Brent Taylor of the Utah National Guard was killed by an Afghan soldier at a military training center in Kabul. Insider attacks as they've become known, have plagued American forces throughout the war, but enhanced security have made them less common in recent years. e most recent deaths brings the number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan this year to 14. All but two were combat related. "It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of the loss of two paratroopers from the Brigade during combat operations," 3rd Brigade commander Col. Art Sellers said in the statement. "As we move for- ward together, I ask for your thoughts and prayers for the families affected and for the paratroopers of their unit who are still deployed," Sellers added. Violence has continued across Afghanistan even as American and Taliban officials hold direct talks aimed at ending the U.S.'s longest war, now in its 18th year. Although the number of American troops in Afghanistan has dropped to about 14,000, the American military has taken a more proactive role in assisting Afghan forces. e remaining Ameri- can forces are helping the Afghan military defend its positions and have worked to deplete the Taliban through airstrikes and commando raids, partly to gain leverage at the negotiating table in Doha. More than 2,400 American military personnel have been killed since the war began in 2001, and more than 20,000 more have been wounded. General Scott Miller, who com- mands U.S. forces in Afghanistan, reiter- ated the need for a political settlement to end the conflict. "Peace talks (are) out there, regional players pressing for peace, the Taliban talking about peace, the Af- ghan government is talking about peace," Miller said soon after his arrival in country earlier this year. Meanwhile, the U.N. has documented 1,366 civilians killed and 2,446 wounded in its latest report on Afghan noncombat casualties between January and June of this year. In April, the world body documented more deaths caused by pro-government forces for the first time since it began systematically tracking civilian casualties a decade ago. Together, the figure was down by over a quarter from the first half of last year and is the lowest number for the period since 2012. Despite the overall decrease, the U.N. said the numbers remained "shocking and unacceptable." Two Fort Bragg paratroopers died in combat by JEFF THOMPSON Spc. Michael Nance NEWS SPONSORSHIPS AVAILABLE Individual & Team Players | Sign up now Golf Charity ursday, September 19, 2019 Gates Four Golf & Country Club • Registration: 9:30AM • Shotgun Start: 11AM • Texas Scramble Format • Dinner & Awards Following Tournament 2 5 T H A N N U A L For More Information Call 910-485-0555 or email projects@thecareclinic.org Pfc. Brandon Kreischer