'Friendly fire' blamed in death of NFL player turned soldier
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New details released yesterday about Tillman's death indicate that he was gunned down by members of his elite Army Ranger platoon who mistakenly shot in his direction during an enemy ambush. According to a summary of the Army investigation, a Ranger squad leader mistook an allied Afghan Militia Force soldier standing near Tillman as the enemy, and he and other U.S. soldiers opened fire, killing both men.
That Tillman, 27, wasn't killed by enemy fire in a heroic rescue attempt was a major revelation by the U.S. military more than a month after the April 22 incident, which the Pentagon and members of Congress had hailed as an example of combat bravery.
Shortly after his death, Army officials awarded Tillman a Silver Star for combat valor and a Purple Heart. They said Tillman, a corporal, was killed while charging at the enemy up a hill, allowing the rest of his platoon to escape alive.
Instead, it appears Tillman's bravery in battle led him to become a victim of a series of events as he was trying to protect part of his stranded platoon, which Army officials say was attacked while hampered by a disabled vehicle it had in tow. The report said Tillman got out of his vehicle and shot at the enemy during a 20-minute firefight, and that he was killed when members of his unit opened fire after returning to the scene to help.
A woman who answered the door at the home of Tillman's parents in San Jose, Calif., said the family did not have anything to say publicly. News that friendly fire killed Tillman was first reported yesterday in the Arizona Republic and the Argus of Fremont (Calif.) newspapers. New details about the incident emerged yesterday.
Military officials could not explain the discrepancy between earlier reports and the releases yesterday, saying that a monthlong investigation into the attack helped clarify the events. Investigators reported that Tillman was killed after he got out of his vehicle and fought about a dozen enemy insurgents in restricted terrain and in poor light conditions.
"While there was no one specific finding of fault, the investigation results indicate that Corporal Tillman probably died as a result of friendly fire while his unit was engaged in combat with enemy forces," said Lt. Gen. Philip R. Kensinger Jr., who is in charge of the U.S. Army's Special Operations Command, based in Fort Bragg, N.C.
"The results of this investigation in no way diminish the bravery and sacrifice displayed by Corporal Tillman. Corporal Tillman was shot and killed while responding to enemy fire without regard for his own safety."
The report summary, however, leaves no doubt that Tillman was killed by friendly fire, saying that the Afghan fighter was "misidentified" by a Ranger squad leader, who then attacked. The report said other soldiers, who generally look to squad leaders for guidance, followed suit.
"Other members of the platoon, observing the direction of fire by the squad leader, oriented their fire in the same direction," the summary says. "This fire fatally wounded one Ranger and the AMF soldier."
Two other U.S. soldiers were injured by friendly fire in the same melee, though Army officials said yesterday they could not provide details. The full investigative report has yet to be released.
According to the summary, the incident was the result of a series of problems and failures as the Ranger platoon moved from one assignment to another through the mountainous terrain along the Pakistan border near the village of Spera, about 90 miles south of Kabul.
First, a vehicle broke down and the platoon mechanic could not fix it. Then, with no aircraft available to lift the vehicle out of the area, the soldiers decided to tow it. On April 22, they split up, sending a working vehicle ahead while Tillman's unit towed the disabled one, slowing it down, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Central Command in Florida.
"Approximately 30 minutes after the platoon split off in their separate directions, the section with the non-mission capable vehicle was ambushed by anti-coalition forces," the summary said. "Hearing the engagement, the other section of the platoon maneuvered to the location of the ambush and engaged in the fight."
It was then that the Afghan soldier was mistaken for the enemy and killed. Tillman, who was by his side, also was shot, the report said.
Tillman and his fellow Rangers were attacked in a region where U.S. forces have been searching out Taliban and al-Qaida leaders believed to be hiding there. Operation Mountain Storm has been scouring the area for months — looking for such leaders as Osama bin Laden — and has frequently been involved in skirmishes.
Kensinger, in his statement at Fort Bragg, said Tillman's unit was ambushed with small-arms and mortar fire at about 7:30 p.m. local time in the vicinity of a military base in Khost, Afghanistan. He described the ensuing firefight as "intense" and involving about a dozen enemy fighters shooting from multiple locations.
"There is an inherent degree of confusion in any firefight, particularly when a unit is ambushed, and especially under difficult light and terrain conditions which produce an environment that increases the likelihood of fratricide," Kensinger said.
Marine Capt. Bruce Frame, a Central Command spokesman, said there has been one other friendly-fire investigation during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, arising from a combat death in March 2002. According to the Defense Department, 51 U.S. soldiers have been killed in action in and around Afghanistan, and 122 U.S. soldiers have died in the operation.
A member of Company A of the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Tillman was one of an elite force of Army light-infantry soldiers often used for difficult assault missions around the globe. Tillman expressed deep patriotism in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. He and his brother, Kevin, joined the Army in 2002 and served in the same battalion.
Tillman, an Arizona Cardinals safety, walked away from a $3.6 million contract and made less than $20,000 in the Army. He shunned media attention, telling his family and the military that he didn't want to be treated differently from other soldiers.
More than 600 NFL players served in the military in World War II, and 19 were killed. One U.S. pro athlete — James Robert Kalsu, a Buffalo Bills offensive lineman — died in combat in Vietnam.