Stephan Mace of the Army's 61st Cavalry Regiment knew the Taliban would be waiting for him when he returned to eastern Afghanistan in September.During a two-week leave in early September, the 21-year-old specialist sat on his father's couch in Winchester, Virginia, and discussed his concerns over Forward Operating Base Keating in Kamdesh District, a region known as a Taliban stronghold.
"He talked about the village next to the base, that it had 300 Taliban, and they couldn't do anything about it because they were in mosques hiding or with other civilians," says his father, Larry Mace.
"They knew they were there and they couldn't do anything about it and they killed them."
Is this because of the new ROE or a local decision? How would having more boots on the ground make a difference if the additional forces were under orders to passively watch a gathering threat, just the the forces already deployed?
IIRC mosques and private residences are off-limits to anyone but Afghan forces (of questionable loyalty).
Mace was one of eight American soldiers killed in a 12-hour standoff on Saturday. That was the most Americans killed by hostile action in Afghanistan in a single day since last July, when nine soldiers died in Wanat, just 20 miles away.
Some military analysts say the attacks underscore how outnumbered troops are in that region. The United States believes that about 200 insurgents had been planning Saturday's attack for days, hiding mortars, rockets and heavy machine guns in the mountains, sources have told CNN.
More personal background on the other soldiers at the link.