Chain of errors led to 4 U.S. soldiers' killing in Niger ambush: report

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Pentagon said Thursday that a series of errors led to the killing of four U.S. soldiers in Niger in 2017, but stopped short of naming anyone or taking any disciplinary action.

"This investigation identifies individual, organizational, and institutional failures and deficiencies that contributed to the tragic events of 4 October 2017," an eight-page summary of the months-long probe said.

In October 2017, four U.S. soldiers were killed in an ambush by the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara near Tongo Tongo, a village in Niger.

After an investigation led by Chief of Staff to the Commander of U.S. Africa Command Major General Roger Cloutier, the Pentagon concluded that the mission was undermanned and underequipped due to its goal being wrongly reported. The troops were deployed in Niger to train Niger's counterterrorism forces and were not prepared for combat.

The report also found that the reconnaissance work prior to the mission was not thorough.

Commander of U.S. Africa Command Thomas Waldhauser said at the press briefing that he took responsibility for the incident. At the moment, no disciplinary action was being taken against any personnel, he said.

According to a 10-minute video recreation of the incident shown during the press briefing, a caravan of eight vehicles operated by U.S. and Nigerien forces moved out of the village and ran into the ambush. Cloutier said the attackers were the largest militant group U.S. forces had encountered in Niger.

"Yes, it was a dangerous area. Yes, they knew the activities (that) went on there, but they had never seen anything in this magnitude -- numbers, mobility and training... It was a total tactical surprise," Cloutier said.

During the crossfire, the caravan was broken up and the three vehicles operated by U.S. soldiers were separated. As militants encircled them, four soldiers were killed or fatally wounded.

They were named as Staff sergeants Jeremiah Johnson, Bryan Black and Dustin Wright and Sgt. La David Johnson. Enditem