bobdina
09-10-2009, 01:24 PM
Report: Marines killed in ambush denied fire support
Staff report
Posted : Thursday Sep 10, 2009 9:48:44 EDT
Four Marines were killed Tuesday during an hours-long shootout in eastern Afghanistan, according to reports.
In a frantic first-person account of the battle, a U.S. journalist who watched it unfold said the Marines, part of an embedded training team working alongside U.S. and Afghan soldiers in the Sarkani District of Kunar province, requested artillery support to beat back the enemy ambush but were repeatedly denied by commanders who feared it would cause civilian casualties. Air support, which included U.S. helicopters, took more than an hour to arrive on the scene, according to the report published by the McClatchy News Service.
The incident is being investigated, according to the Defense Department.
Eight Afghan troops and an interpreter also died in the fighting, which the report characterized as a “furious storm” of small-arms fire and rocket attacks. Another three U.S. troops and 19 Afghans were reported wounded.
The Defense Department has not identified the dead, pending notification of their families. Marine ETTs in Afghanistan are assigned to Regional Corps Advisory Command. These advisers, who operate in four- and six-man teams, are members of the 3rd Marine Division.
Pentagon officials have disputed the accuracy of McClatchy’s report, saying Wednesday that the incident cannot be blamed on the guidelines recently enacted by U.S. commanders under pressure to reduce civilian deaths in Afghanistan.
The delay in getting helicopters to the scene “was a result, as is often the case in Afghanistan, of the fact that there are great distances between bases where such assets are located and where our troops are out operating,” said Geoff Morrell, a Pentagon spokesman. “That is just the nature of the beast in Afghanistan. It is a large country and we operate all over it.”
He could not confirm whether commanders had denied the team’s other requests for fire support.
When the attack occurred, 13 Marine and Army trainers were partnered with about 80 Afghan soldiers and border police, McClatchy reported. Their mission to the village of Ganjal, less than 10 miles from the Pakistan border, was supposed to include a meeting with local elders, with the Afghans taking the lead.
also see this post for more details http://www.apacheclips.com/boards/showthread.php?t=3645
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/09/marine_ambush_090909w/
Staff report
Posted : Thursday Sep 10, 2009 9:48:44 EDT
Four Marines were killed Tuesday during an hours-long shootout in eastern Afghanistan, according to reports.
In a frantic first-person account of the battle, a U.S. journalist who watched it unfold said the Marines, part of an embedded training team working alongside U.S. and Afghan soldiers in the Sarkani District of Kunar province, requested artillery support to beat back the enemy ambush but were repeatedly denied by commanders who feared it would cause civilian casualties. Air support, which included U.S. helicopters, took more than an hour to arrive on the scene, according to the report published by the McClatchy News Service.
The incident is being investigated, according to the Defense Department.
Eight Afghan troops and an interpreter also died in the fighting, which the report characterized as a “furious storm” of small-arms fire and rocket attacks. Another three U.S. troops and 19 Afghans were reported wounded.
The Defense Department has not identified the dead, pending notification of their families. Marine ETTs in Afghanistan are assigned to Regional Corps Advisory Command. These advisers, who operate in four- and six-man teams, are members of the 3rd Marine Division.
Pentagon officials have disputed the accuracy of McClatchy’s report, saying Wednesday that the incident cannot be blamed on the guidelines recently enacted by U.S. commanders under pressure to reduce civilian deaths in Afghanistan.
The delay in getting helicopters to the scene “was a result, as is often the case in Afghanistan, of the fact that there are great distances between bases where such assets are located and where our troops are out operating,” said Geoff Morrell, a Pentagon spokesman. “That is just the nature of the beast in Afghanistan. It is a large country and we operate all over it.”
He could not confirm whether commanders had denied the team’s other requests for fire support.
When the attack occurred, 13 Marine and Army trainers were partnered with about 80 Afghan soldiers and border police, McClatchy reported. Their mission to the village of Ganjal, less than 10 miles from the Pakistan border, was supposed to include a meeting with local elders, with the Afghans taking the lead.
also see this post for more details http://www.apacheclips.com/boards/showthread.php?t=3645
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/09/marine_ambush_090909w/