2 US service members killed in Afghanistan amid ISIS fight
They were killed in Nangarhar province.
— -- Two U.S. military service members were killed Wednesday night in an anti-ISIS operation in the Achin District of Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan, according to Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis.
A third U.S. service member was wounded in action.
U.S. Department of Defense policy is to release the names of those killed in action 24 hours after next of kin notification.
"The fight against ISIS-K is important for the world but, sadly, it is not without sacrifice,” Gen. John W. Nicholson, commander, U.S. Forces-Afghanistan, said. “On behalf of all U.S. Forces and our coalition partners, I offer our deepest sympathies to the families, friends, and fellow service members of our fallen comrades.”
ISIS-K stands for ISIS-Khorasan, a branch of the organization operating in the Khorasan region of Afghanistan.
Achin is the same district where a U.S. soldier was killed earlier this month and where the massive ordnance air blast (MOAB) bomb was dropped April 14.
During a Monday news conference with U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis, Nicholson said ISIS is attempting to establish a presence in Afghanistan, and the MOAB bomb was meant to send "a very clear message" to the group.
“I will say we were sending a very clear message to ISIS, not only to ISIS here in Afghanistan but also ISIS main,” Nicholson said. “If they come here to Afghanistan, they will be destroyed. In keeping secretary’s intent, they will be annihilated.”
President Trump has ordered a review of the U.S. policy in Afghanistan.
ABC News' Elizabeth McLaughlin contributed to this report.