At least 1,113 US military deaths in Afghan region since 2001

US military deaths in Afghan region at 1,113

As of Thursday, July 22, 2010, at least 1,113 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to an Associated Press count.

The AP count is seven more than the Defense Department’s tally, last updated Thursday at 10 a.m. EDT.

At least 883 military personnel have died in the Afghan region as a result of hostile action, according to the military’s numbers.

Outside the Afghan region, the department reports at least 78 more members of the U.S. military died in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Of those, eight were the result of hostile action. The military lists these other locations as Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Jordan; Kenya; Kyrgyzstan; Philippines; Seychelles; Sudan; Tajikistan; Turkey; and Yemen.

The Defense Department also counts two military civilian deaths.

Since the start of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, 7,010 U.S. service members have been wounded in hostile action, according to the Defense Department’s weekly tally.

The latest deaths reported by the military:

— Two American service members died Thursday in a helicopter crash in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

The latest identifications reported by the military:

—Staff Sgt. Brian F. Piercy, 27, of Clovis, Calif.; died Monday in Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.

—Cpl. Paul J. Miller, 22, of Traverse City, Mich.; died Monday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to 3rd Combat Engineer Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

—Cpl. Joe L. Wrightsman, 23, of Jonesboro, La.; died Sunday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

—Cpl. Julio Vargas, 23, of Sylmar, Calif.; died Tuesday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to the 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

—Sgt. Anibal Santiago, 37, of Belvidere, Ill.; died Sunday in Bagram, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained July 17 in a noncombat related incident in Khost, Afghanistan; assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Benning, Ga.

—1st Lt. Robert N. Bennedsen, 25, of Vashon, Wash.; died Sunday at Qalat, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device; assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany.

—Gunnery Sgt. Christopher L. Eastman, 28, of Moose Pass, Alaska; died Sunday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to the 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

—Sgt. Justin B. Allen, 23, of Coal Grove, Ohio; died Sunday in Zhari, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when he was shot by insurgents while conducting combat operations; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.

—Sgt. Matthew W. Weikert, 29, of Jacksonville, Ill.; died July 17 in Paktika province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

—Sgt. Jesse R. Tilton, 23, of Decatur, Ill.; died July 16 at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained July 13 when insurgents attacked his unit in Kandahar city, Afghanistan, with rifle, rocket propelled grenade and small arms fire; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.

—Staff Sgt. Justus S. Bartelt, 27, of Polo, Ill.; died July 16 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

—Cpl. Dave M. Santos, 21, of Rota, Northern Mariana Islands; died July 16 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. This incident is under investigation.

—Sgt. 1st Class John H. Jarrell, 32, of Brunson, S.C., and Sgt. Leston M. Winters, 30, of Sour Lake, Texas; died July 15 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

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