Apparent Insider Attack Kills Two U.S. Service Members in Afghanistan

Two American service members have been killed in Afghanistan, according to the Washington Post:

Two U.S. service members have been killed in action in Afghanistan in what appears to be an insider attack.

The NATO-led Resolute Support Mission said Monday that two Americans are dead, withholding additional information pending notification of their families. A U.S. official later confirmed the deaths were the result of a so-called “green on blue” attack, during which an Afghan service member or an attacker wearing an Afghan uniform, fires on U.S. or allied forces.

The initial U.S. assessment followed claims by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on Twitter that the Americans died when an Afghan soldier turned his gun on them in a military camp in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province.

Although no official identification has been released by the military, the Post noted a Facebook entry identifying the fallen as Paratroopers from the U.S. Army 3rd Brigade Combat team, 82nd Airborne Division:

According to one media report, members of the U.S. Army’s 3rd Brigade Combat team, 82nd Airborne Division, posted a Facebook tribute to their slain comrades but did not identify them.

“It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of the loss of two Paratroopers from the Brigade during combat operations,” the Facebook post read.

America is forever indebted to the service and sacrifice of these soldiers and their families. Freedom is not free.