Soldiers Killed in Nuristan Had One Week Left in Afghanistan
Jul 15 at 10:10pm by David Tate
With time almost out on a 15-month tour in Afghanistan, the paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) suffered another setback this week when nine members of the unit’s Second Battalion, 503rd Parachute Regiment were named as fallen soldiers from the deadly insurgent assault on their base in Want, Waygol district, Nuristan Province.
Family members from at least two of the soldiers say it was their last week in Afghanistan and most likely would have been their last mission before rotating back to their base in Italy.
The paratroopers killed in the July 13 attack were members of a platoon from Chosen Company and are listed below:
- 1st Lt. Jonathan Brostom
- Sgt. Israel Garcia
- Cpl. Pruit Rainey
- Cpl. Jonathan Ayers
- Cpl. Matthew Phillips
- Cpl. Jason Bogar
- PFC Sergio Abad
- Cpl. Jason Hovater
- Cpl. Gunnar Zwillig
Chosen Company has been hit especially hard on this tour with a total of 15 members being killed in action. Five of the six other Chosen soldiers died in a deadly RPG-filled ambush near Aranus, Waygol district, Nuristan Province in November 2007.
2/503 , itself, has suffered more soldiers killed in action than any other battalion to have participated in Operation Enduring Freedom.
- 2/503 AB - 24 KIA
- 1/503 AA - 10 KIA
- 1/91 CAV - 5 KIA
- Special Training Battalion - 3 KIA
In all, 42 members of the 173rd ABCT that make up Task Force Bayonet have been killed in action since they landed in eastern Afghanistan in April 2007. In that same period, US officials say attacks in their sector are up more than 50%.
In comparison to the unit’s Afghanistan deployment in 2004-2005, the unit lost 17 members killed in action with 13 killed due to hostile fire. All 42 soldiers killed during the 2007-2008 tour have died from hostile fire.
Note: While Wanat is in Kunar according to most available maps, the government of Afghanistan says Wanat (Want) is actually in Waygol district, Nuristan Province. That position is supported by NGOs familiar with the area and will be reflected as such from this post forward.
2 Responses for "Soldiers Killed in Nuristan Had One Week Left in Afghanistan"
Vicki
July 16th, 2008 at 7:35 am
1My son has served with the 173rd Airborne Brig during both of these tours to Afghanistan. It is impossible to describe the heartbreak the families at home have went through, or the pain at knowing what our sons/husbans/fathers have endured.
For the past 15 months the 173rd “skysoldiers” have stood on a very dangerous thin line between the evil taliban al queda, and the poor villages of afghanistan. They have provided humanitarian aid, medical treatments, jobs, and support. However, more often they have provided direct military mite. They have placed themselves, between an enemy that doesnt hesitate to torture and kill children, women and civilian men, and villages full of people who have only known brutality and fear for far to long.
These soldiers KNOW why they are fighting. The remember the towers crashing down on Sept 11, and saw glimpses of that fear on their American friends and families. They took the Battle to the Taliban’s home ground and off of our own. Never doubt the Taliban is there…there are strong, they are evil, they still train and plot and hate America.
These soldiers haven’t simply been through hell….they’ve been living there for the past year. They do it for each of us. Please take a moment to mourn their dead, pray for the survivors, and share compassion for the many wounded.
May God Always Bless America dn those who serve to keep her safe.
kelly
July 16th, 2008 at 8:42 am
2God Bless those babies/men for what they did. And may God Bless all those that are in harm’s way. I cry as I write this.
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