The U.S. soldier killed in action in eastern Afghanistan was identified Tuesday as Spc. Gabriel Conde of Loveland, Colorado.
Conde, 22, died Monday as a result of enemy small arms fire in Tagab district, located in Afghanistan’s Kapisa province, the Pentagon said.
Another soldier was wounded in the same incident.
At the time of his death, Conde was an infantryman assigned to 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
He deployed with the brigade to Afghanistan in September to support Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, his unit said in a press release.
“Spc. Conde was serving as a security enabler assigned to a special operations unit that was conducting operations with Afghan security forces against a Taliban facilitation network in Tagab district,” a Resolute Support spokesperson told Military Times. “I would also like to reiterate our sincere condolences to Spc. Conde's family, friends and unit, who remain in our thoughts and prayers.”
Conde enlisted in the Army in August 2015 and had been assigned to U.S. Army Alaska since April 2016.
His awards included the National Defense Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon and the Parachutist Badge.
According to the Defense Casualty Analysis System, two U.S. military members have been killed and 22 wounded in Afghanistan so far in 2018.
The incident occurred on the same day that eight Romanian troops were wounded and multiple Afghan civilians were reportedly killed by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device in the Daman district of Kandahar province, Afghanistan.
Kyle Rempfer was an editor and reporter who has covered combat operations, criminal cases, foreign military assistance and training accidents. Before entering journalism, Kyle served in U.S. Air Force Special Tactics and deployed in 2014 to Paktika Province, Afghanistan, and Baghdad, Iraq.
