Eight U.S. service members and two members of the Afghan National Security Force were killed Saturday in a battle with militants in eastern Afghanistan, officials said.
Tribal militants attacked two security outposts in the Nuristan province, said the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The militants launched their attack from a local mosque and a nearby village, the international alliance said. Coalition forces repelled the attack, inflicting “heavy enemy casualties,” the alliance said without offering details. All eight service members killed were Americans, the U.S. military said. “My heart goes out to the families of those we have lost and to their fellow soldiers who remained to finish this fight,” said Col. Randy George, commander of Task Force Mountain Warrior. “This was a complex attack in a difficult area. Both the U.S. and Afghan soldiers fought bravely together; I am extremely proud of their professionalism and bravery.” ISAF withheld the identities of the deceased until family members were notified.
