The two soldiers, identified as Staff Sgt. Ian P. McLaughlin, 29, of Newport News, Virginia; and Pfc. Miguel A. Villalon, 21, of Joliet, Illinois, was named in a Department of Defense statement on Sunday. Both soldiers were assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division based in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, according to the statement.
“The soldiers were conducting operations as part of NATO’s Resolute Support Mission. The incident is under investigation,” the Pentagon wrote.
Villalon and McLaughlin were killed in action when their vehicle was struck by a roadside improvised explosive device (IED), the agency said.
More than 2,400 American service members have been killed in Afghanistan over the nearly 19-year war. And last year was among the deadliest in recent years as the United States attempted to hold peace talks with the Taliban. Twenty-three American troops were killed.
The Taliban leadership decided at the end of December to support a temporary cease-fire to allow for a peace deal to be signed, but they never said when it would go into effect. The final approval required from their leader, Maulvi Hibatullah Akhundzada, was never announced.
Two U.S. service members were killed when their helicopter crashed in eastern Logar province In November. The U.S. military at the time said preliminary reports did not indicate it was caused by enemy fire. However, the Taliban claimed to have shot down the helicopter—a claim the U.S military dismissed as false.
Last week, John Bass, the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, stepped down in an expected departure, said State Department on Monday.
