Two U.S. special operators have died in the same Afghan province in the span of just two weeks.
The first death occurred when 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment Chief Warrant Officer Jacob M. Sims crashed his helicopter into a tree during combat operations on Oct 27. The crash reportedly occurred while Sims was ferrying U.S. and Afghan troops to a special night time combat raid within the Afghan province.
CW2 Jacob M. Sims, 36, of Juneau, Alaska, died Oct. 27 in Logar Province, Afghanistan, after helicopter crash. Member of the 160th SOAR pic.twitter.com/L8DWru61OG
— Howard Altman (@haltman) October 29, 2017
Sims’s death was followed by the Saturday death of U.S. Army Green Beret Sgt. 1st Class Stephen B. Cribben. The Pentagon was not forthcoming with details of Cribben’s death, only noting that he was killed during “combat operations.”
Honoring Green Beret SFC Stephen Cribben, 33, of Simi Valley, Calif., killed Saturday in combat in Afghanistan. 10th Special Forces Group. pic.twitter.com/n95cM0lVEp
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) November 5, 2017
The deaths highlight the renewed tempo of combat operations in Afghanistan under the Trump administration. President Donald Trump vowed to extend the U.S. presence in Afghanistan until conditions on the ground merited a withdrawal and loosened U.S. rules of engagement. The loosening now allows U.S. forces to pursue Taliban insurgents anywhere in the country.
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