Pentagon Identifies Two 82nd Airborne Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan

The Department of Defense has identified the two soldiers who died Monday in Uruzgan province, Afghanistan, from wounds reportedly incurred during an insider attack.

Pfc. Brandon Jay Kreischer, 20, of Stryker, Ohio, and Spc. Michael Isaiah Nance, 24, of Chicago, were killed during a "combat related incident" in Tarin Kowt, according to a Pentagon release. The area is roughly 100 miles north of Kandahar.

The troops were members of Company B, 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, based in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Stars and Stripes reported that the killings were the result of an insider attack and that the perpetrator was an Afghan soldier.The report noted that the Afghan soldier was wounded and taken into police custody following the attack.

However, both the release that announced the deaths and the Defense Department statement on Tuesday said the two died from small arms fire and the incident was under investigation.

Related:

• Two Army Paratroopers Die in Afghanistan, Bringing Year's Casualties to 15
• Insider Attack Kills two 82nd Airborne Soldiers

Army Col. Arthur Sellers, commanding officer of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, said the unit is focused on providing the soldiers' families with "every available resource to help them in this most difficult time."

"These young men were true All Americans and embodied the qualities of selfless service and courage as they answered our nation's call to deploy to Afghanistan," Sellers said.

Nance has served in the Army since 2017 and was assigned to the unit as an automatic rifleman. His awards and decorations included the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, the Combat Infantryman Badge and Basic Parachutist Badge. 

He is survived by parents.

Kreischer joined the Army in June 2018 and served as a rifleman 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He too had earned the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, the Combat Infantryman Badge and Basic Parachutist Badge. 

He leaves behind a wife, according to the 82nd Airborne Division's public affairs office.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @patriciakime.