U.S. Conflict In Afghanistan: Fallen Americans From Colorado

On Monday, the United States combat presence in Afghanistan became old enough to vote and buy tobacco.

It was Oct. 7, 2001, less than a month after the Sept. 11 attacks, when President George W. Bush announced the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, and 18 years later, it remains the longest war in United States history, surpassing the Vietnam War by at least eight months.

There are approximately 14,000 U.S. troops still in Afghanistan. That number has dropped significantly from the high-point of 100,000 in 2011, but it is also up from the 8,400 troops stationed in Afghanistan when President Donald Trump first took office.

A step toward withdrawal was expected to take place in September, after the two countries reached a deal “in principal” to remove 5,000 U.S. troops. But at the last minute, Trump canceled a secret meeting with Taliban leaders and the Afghan president that was to be held at Camp David. Trump blamed the cancellation on the death of a U.S. service member who the Taliban claimed credit for in Kabul.

The service member was identified by the Defense Department as Sgt. 1st Class Jeremy W. Griffin, of Greenbrier, Tennessee, a Green Beret on his fourth combat deployment in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Sgt. Griffin was the 17th American service member to die during combat operations this year, the highest number of losses in a year since 2014, according to ABC News.

He was also a husband, a father and a son.

There is no part of America that has not been touched by the war. Approximately 2,400 U.S. troops have died since the start of the conflict in Afghanistan.

Colorado was home to ten of these fallen heroes:

• Will D. Lindsay, from Cortez, died in hostile fire
• Gabriel D. Conde, from Loveland, died in hostile fire
• Jacob H. Wykstra, from Thornton, died in a helicopter crash
• Liam J. Nevins, from Denver, died in hostile fire
• Rob L. Nichols, from Colorado Springs, died in a hostile suicide bombing
• David M. Sonka, from Parker, died in hostile fire
• Mark T. Voss, from Colorado Springs, died in an aircraft crash
• Christopher J. Birdwell, from Windsor, died in hostile fire
• Darrel L. Enos, from Colorado Springs, died in hostile fire
• Kedith L. Jacobs, from Denver, died in hostile fire

For soldiers returning to the United States, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provides information on a variety of health care, disability, education, and record related subjects.

The Afghan military has also had its own loss of life from the conflict. The New York Times recently reported more than 50,000 Afghan security forces have been killed in the past five years.

U.S. officials haven’t announced any new peace talks. However, on Friday the Taliban met with a U.S. envoy in Pakistan, the first such encounter since President Trump called off recent talks between the two countries, Time Magazine said.