The Pentagon has released the names of the three Green Berets killed Wednesday in Niger after first notifying next of kin.
The Pentagon officially announced the names of the three Green Berets killed during a joint operation with Nigerian forces in a statement Friday.
Army Staff Sgts. Bryan C. Black, Jeremiah W. Johnson and Dustin M. Wright were the three killed.
Black, 35, was from Puyallup, Wash. Johnson, 39, was from Springboro, Ohio and Wright, 29, was from Lyons, Ga. All three, who were assigned to 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) in Fort Bragg, N.C., were involved in a training, advising and assisting mission in southwest Niger when they came under hostile fire. U.S. officials told CNN that current evidence suggests that as many as 50 fighters affiliated with the Islamic State conducted the assault.
The Pentagon is still conducting an investigation of the incident and attempting to determine the location of the fighters.
Two other Green Berets suffered injuries as a result of the attack as well. They were subsequently evacuated to a treatment facility in Germany by French Super Puma helicopters, where they remain in stable condition. No French soldiers were killed in the attack.
There are about 800 U.S. troops in Niger for the purpose of conducting patrols and training local Nigerian forces to fight Boko Haram, a terror group affiliated with ISIS, and al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb.
“US forces are in Niger to provide training and security assistance to the Nigerien Armed Forces, including support for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance efforts, in their efforts to target violent extremist organizations in the region,” said U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Anthony Falvo, a spokesman for U.S. Africa Command.
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