Second US service member killed in Afghanistan in 2019

A U.S. service member was killed Tuesday in Afghanistan, officials said, becoming the second U.S. service member to die in the country this year.

No additional details were released from Resolute Support, the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. The mission said in a statement that the incident is under investigation. 

The Pentagon did not immediately release the service member’s name, pending notification of next of kin.

{mosads}It is the second reported U.S. service member death from Afghanistan after Sgt. Cameron Meddock, 26, of Spearman, Texas, died last week.

Meddock was injured while supporting the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan known as Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, the Pentagon said. He was transported to Landstuhl, Germany, for medical attention where he died.

The United States has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan to train, advise and assist Afghan forces in their fight against the Taliban and also conduct counterterrorism missions against groups such as al Qaeda and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Reports emerged last month that said President Trump is expected to drastically cut the number of troops deployed in the war – now in its 18th year – but no decision has yet been made.