DoD Identifies US Service Member Killed In Apparent Insider Attack In Afghanistan

Army Cpl. Joseph Maciel U.S. Army

The Department of Defense on Sunday identified the American service member killed during an apparent insider attack in southern Afghanistan on July 7 as Army Cpl. Joseph Maciel of South Gate, California.

Maciel, assigned to 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Benning, Georgia, died from injuries sustained during an apparent insider attack in the Tarin Kowt District of the Uruzgan Province in southern Afghanistan.

Maciel was one of 300 soldiers deployed with Task Force 1-28 infantry in support of the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade, a new Army unit tasked with enhancing the ongoing U.S. training, advisory, and assistance mission as part of Resolute Support in Afghanistan.

The last insider attack on NATO-led forces occurred in August 2017. While The Taliban claimed in January 2018 that fighters had wounded a U.S. service member in a similar attack, the incident was officially classified as an insurgent attack.

The incident is currently under investigation, according to the DoD.