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U.S. Army soldier killed in Afghanistan in second troop death this year

By Nicholas Sakelaris
A U.S. service member died Tuesday in a gun battle in Afghanistan, the second American soldier to die there this year. File Photo by Sgt. J.A. Moeller/ U.S. Army/UPI
A U.S. service member died Tuesday in a gun battle in Afghanistan, the second American soldier to die there this year. File Photo by Sgt. J.A. Moeller/ U.S. Army/UPI | License Photo

Jan. 23 (UPI) -- A U.S. Army sergeant died Tuesday in a firefight with enemy forces in Afghanistan, the second American soldier killed there this year.

The soldier was hit by small-arms fire in Urozgan province in central Afghanistan, north of Kandahar, said military spokesman Col. Dave Butler.

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The killed soldier was identified as Staff Sgt. Joshua Z. Beale, of Carrollton, Va. The Pentagon said Wednesday afternoon Beale, 32, was supporting Operation Freedom's Sentinel as a member of the Army's 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), based in Fort Bragg, N.C.

Beale's death happened four days after U.S. Army Ranger Sgt. Cameron A Meddock, of Spearman, Texas, died from injuries he received in a gun battle in Jawand District.

About 14,000 U.S. troops remain in Afghanistan. President Donald Trump has considered pulling half of American troops, but no final decision has been made.

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