This post has been updated with the names of the Marines who were killed.
CAPITOL HILL – Three Marines were killed in an improvised explosive device attack near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan on Monday, Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer told a Senate panel on Tuesday.
Staff Sgt. Christopher K.A. Slutman, 43, of Newark, Del., Cpl. Robert A. Hendriks, 25, of Locust Valley, N.Y. and Sgt. Benjamin S. Hines, 31, of York, Penn. were near Bagram Air Base in a convoy when they were attacked.
They were assigned to 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Marine Forces Reserve. An unspecified number of other troops were also injured in the attack and treated, according to a Pentagon statement.
“We feel and mourn the loss of these Americans with their families and loved ones. They volunteered to protect their country. We will continue our mission,” Gen. Scott Miller, commanding general of Operation Resolute Support and U.S. forces in Afghanistan, said in a statement.
The Pentagon also amended an earlier report that said a contractor was killed in the IED attack.
“Three U.S service members were killed in an improvised explosive device attack during a convoy near Bagram Airfield,” reads a Tuesday statement from the Operation Resolute Support staff. “The contractor who was reported as killed, is alive. The contractor, an Afghan citizen, was initially treated along with other injured civilians, later identified as a contractor and treated at Bagram.”
The Marines who died are the fourth, fifth and sixth who were killed on duty this year, following two who died in an AH-1Z Viper helicopter crash last month and a Marine who was shot while on guard duty in Washington, D.C., in January.
The following are the April 8 and 9 statements from Operation Resolute Support on the deaths of the three Marines.
April 9 Statement
UPDATE: Three U.S. Service Members Killed on April 8 in Afghanistan; Contractor and Three Service Members Wounded
Kabul, Afghanistan – To clarify initial reporting released yesterday, April 8, 2019, three U.S service members were killed in an improvised explosive device attack during a convoy near Bagram Airfield. The contractor who was reported as killed, is alive. The contractor, an Afghan citizen, was initially treated along with other injured civilians, later identified as a contractor and treated at Bagram Airfield.
The names of the service members killed in action will be released in accordance with U.S. Department of Defense policies.
“We feel and mourn the loss of these Americans with their families and loved ones. They volunteered to protect their country. We will continue our mission,” said Gen. Scott Miller, Commanding General of Resolute Support and United States Forces – Afghanistan.
April 8 Statement
KABUL, Afghanistan – Three U.S. service members and one contractor were killed, and three U.S. service members were wounded by an improvised explosive device April 8 near Bagram Air Base.
The wounded service members were evacuated and are receiving medical care.
In accordance with U.S. Department of Defense policy, the name of the service members killed in action are being withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin is complete.
