Afghanistan War Turns 18: Here Are The Fallen Americans From Ohio

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, President 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. 1st Class 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.

According to the Department of Defense, 2,300 U.S. service members have died since the start of the conflict in Afghanistan.

In July 2019, Ohio private first class Jay Kreischer, from Stryker, Ohio, was killed in Tarin Kowt in the Uruzgan Province of Afghanistan. The paratrooper died because of wounds he received in combat, the Department of Defense report noted.

On May 2, 2011, members of the highly elite SEAL Team Six raided a compound in Pakistan, killing Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda and mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks. Since that day, which Americans saw as a major victory in the war, over 800 Americans have been killed in Afghanistan.

Ohio was home to 34 of these fallen Americans who died since that day.

• Private First Class Brandon Jay Kreischer, from Stryker, 20, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - small arms fire
• Specialist Joseph Collette, from Lancaster, 29, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire
• Sergeant Cameron Thomas, from Kettering, 23, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - small arms fire
• Specialist Joseph Riley, from Grove City, 27, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Major Michael Donahue, from Columbus, 41, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - suicide car bomb
• civilian Stephen Byus, from Reynoldsburg, 39, killed by hostile fire - suicide car bomb
• Specialist Justin Helton, from Beaver, 25, U.S. Army Hostile - friendly fire
• Specialist Angel Lopez, from Parma, 27, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - small arms fire
• Staff Sergeant Sonny Zimmerman, from Waynesfield, 25, U.S. Army, killed by - hostile fire - RPG attack
• Chief Warrant Officer James Groves III, from Kettering, 37, U.S. Army, killed in non-hostile - helicopter crash
• Staff Sergeant Wesley Williams, from New Carlisle, 25, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Sergeant Bobby Estle, from Lebanon, 38, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - small arms fire
• Private 1st Class Jeffrey Rice, from Troy, 24, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Staff Sergeant Robert Massarelli, from Hamilton, 32, U.S. Army, killed in non-hostile - vehicle accident
• Corporal Nicholas Olivas, from Fairfield, 20, U.S. Army Hostile, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Sergeant John Huling, from West Chester, 25, U.S. Marine, killed by hostile fire - small arms fire
• 2nd Lieutenant David Rylander, from Stow, 23, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Sergeant 1st Class Jeffrey Rieck, from Columbus, 45, U.S. Army National Guard, killed by hostile fire - suicide bomber
• Captain Nicholas J. Rozanski,from Dublin, 36, U.S. Army National Guard, killed by hostile fire - suicide bomber
• Sergeant 1st Class Shawn Hannon, from Grove City, 44, U.S. Army National Guard, killed by hostile fire - suicide bomber
• Staff Sergeant Christopher Brown, from Columbus, 26, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• 1st Lieutenant Ashley White, from Alliance, 24, U.S. Army National Guard, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Chief Petty Officer Raymond Border, from West Lafayette, 31 ,U.S. Navy, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Staff Sergeant Robert Cowdrey, from Atwater, 39, U.S. Army, killed by hostile fire
• Lance Corporal Terry Wright, from Scio, 21, U.S. Marine, killed by non-hostile fire
• Sergeant Daniel Patron, from Canton, 26, U.S. Marine, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Sergeant Dennis Kancler, from Brecksville, 26, U.S. Marine, killed by non-hostile - fire
• Private 1st Class Gustavo Rios-Ordonez, from Englewood, 25, U.S. Army Hostile, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Lance Corporal Joshua McDaniels, from Dublin, 21, U.S. Marine, killed by hostile fire, IED
• Corporal Paul Zanowick, from Miamisburg, 23, U.S. Marine Hostile, killed by hostile fire
• Specialist Adam Hamilton, from Kent, 22, U.S. Army Hostile, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• 1st Lieutenant John Runkle, from West Salem, 27, U.S. Army Hostile, killed by hostile fire - IED attack
• Chief Warrant Officer Christopher Thibodeau, from Chesterland, 28, U.S. Army Hostile, killed in helicopter crash
• Private 1st Class William Blevins, from Sardinia, 21, U.S. Army Hostile, killed by hostile fire - IED

There is no part of America that has not been touched by the war. For a full list of American deaths in Afghanistan since the start of Operation Enduring Freedom, visit icasualties.org.

For troops 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, which partners with the United States, 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.