---
title: "‘Friendly Fire’ Possible Cause Of Ranger Deaths In Afghanistan, DoD Says"
date: "2017-04-28"
modified: "2017-04-28"
authors:
  - name: "Jared Keller"
    job_title: "Former Managing Editor"
    link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/jaredkeller/"
url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/friendly-fire-army-afghanistan-pentagon-investigation/"
categories:
  - "Afghanistan"
  - "Army"
  - "Around the World"
  - "Military Branches"
  - "News"
tags:
  - "central command"
  - "ISIS"
  - "Pentagon"
  - "scandals"
---

# ‘Friendly Fire’ Possible Cause Of Ranger Deaths In Afghanistan, DoD Says

![](<https://taskandpurpose.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/03/19040063-1.jpg>)

The Pentagon on Friday [announced](<https://twitter.com/wjhenn/status/857993020284817409>) a 15-6 investigation into the deaths of two Army Rangers killed in a firefight with ISIS forces in Afghanistan on April 27, citing a possible "friendly fire" incident.

The two Rangers were killed in eastern Nangarhar province, near the same area the U.S. Air Force dropped the 21,600-pound Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) bomb on April 13.

[According](<https://www.armytimes.com/articles/two-army-rangers-killed-fighting-isis-in-aghanistan-identified>) to Army Times, the Rangers had partnered with local Afghan security forces for a crucial raid as part of a larger campaign to root out and neutralize pockets of ISIS fighters throughout the region.

"In the beginning of what was an intense three-hour firefight, it is possible these Rangers were struck by friendly fire," Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis [said](<https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/pentagon-investigating-whether-army-rangers-killed-by-friendly-fire/article/2621584>).

U.S. Forces Afghanistan also released a [detailed statement ](<https://twitter.com/DefenseBaron/status/858008121742110720>)describing the circumstances of the firefight and lauding both the Rangers and Afghan Special Security Forces for their "exemplary" performance:

*Within a few minutes of landing, our combined force came under intense fire from multiple directions and well-prepared fighting positions. Nevertheless, our forces successfully closed on the enemy, killed several high-level ISIS-K leaders and upwards of 35 fighters. If confirmed, the death of the Emir and his associated will significantly degrade ISIS-K operations in Afghanistan and help reach our goal of destroying them in 2017.*

*Based on our reports from forces on the ground, the engagement was close-quarters from multiple compounds. Air strikes were used in self-defense to enable our operations and to medically evacuate the wounded Rangers. We do not have any indication there were civilian casualties as a result of this operation.*

The Rangers killed were [identified](<https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1166066/dod-identifies-army-casualties/>) by the Pentagon as Sgt. Joshua P. Rodgers, 22, and Sgt. Cameron H. Thomas, 23. Both soldiers were assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment out of Fort Benning, Georgia.

## Author
Jared Keller is the former managing editor of Task & Purpose. His writing has appeared in Aeon, the Los Angeles Review of Books, the New Republic, Pacific Standard, Smithsonian, and The Washington Post, among other publications.

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