
Sailors hold the U.S. flag during the burial service for Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Xavier Alec Martin, 24, at Arlington National Cemetery. Photo: Jacquelyn Martin / AP
These women and men have lost their lives in three wars without end that few follow and fewer understand: Iraq, Afghanistan and the broader hunt for terrorists everywhere.
- Since 9/11, U.S. military deaths in Afghanistan: 2,216.
- Total U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom: 4,411.
Here are the Defense Department's casualty releases from 2017:
- Army Spc. Isiah L. Booker, of Cibolo, Texas, died Jan. 7 in Jordan, in a non-combat-related incident.
- Army Spc. John P. Rodriguez, of Hemet, Calif., died Jan. 12, in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in a non-combat-related incident.
- Navy Chief Special Warfare Operator William "Ryan" Owens, 36, of Peoria, Ill., died Jan. 29 in the Arabian Peninsula of Yemen, of wounds sustained in a raid against al-Qaida.
- Army Pfc. Brian. P. Odiorne, 21, of Ware, Mass., died Feb. 20, in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, from a non-combat-related incident.
- Army Sgt. 1st Class Robert R. Boniface, 34, of San Luis Obispo, Calif., died March 19, in Logar Province, Afghanistan, from a non-combat-related incident.
- Air Force Staff Sgt. Austin Bieren, 25, of Umatilla, Ore., died March 28 in northern Syria in a non-combat-related incident while deployed in support of combat operations.
- Army Staff Sgt. Mark R. De Alencar, 37, of Edgewood, Md., died April 8 in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations.
- Army Sgt. Joshua P. Rodgers, 22, of Bloomington, Ill., died April 27 in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, as a result of small arms fire while engaged in dismounted operations.
- Army Sgt. Cameron H. Thomas, 23, of Kettering, Ohio, died April 27 in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, as a result of small arms fire while engaged in dismounted operations.
- Army 1st Lt. Weston C. Lee, 25, of Bluffton, Ga., died April 29, in Mosul, Iraq, from injuries while conducting security as part of support to partnered forces.
- Navy Senior Chief Special Warfare Operator Kyle Milliken, 38, of Falmouth, Maine, was killed during an operation against al-Shabaab on May 5 in a remote area approximately 40 miles west of Mogadishu.
- Army Spc. Etienne J. Murphy, 22, of Loganville, Ga., died May 26, in Al-Hasakah, Syria, of injuries sustained during a vehicle-rollover-related incident.
- Army Sgt. Eric M. Houck, 25, of Baltimore died June 10 in Peka Valley, Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, of gunshot wounds.
- Army Sgt. William M. Bays, 29 of Barstow, Calif., died June 10in Peka Valley, Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, of gunshot wounds.
- Army Corporal Dillon C. Baldridge, 22 of Youngsville, N.C., died June 10 in Peka Valley, Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, of gunshot wounds.
- Air Force Tech. Sgt. David Board, 49, of Barboursville, W.Va., died August 2 in Kuwait in a non-combat-related incident while deployed in support of combat operations.
- Army Sgt. Roshain Euvince Brooks, 30, of Brooklyn died Aug. 13 of wounds sustained while engaged in combat operations in Iraq.
- Army Spc. Allen Levi Stigler Jr., 22, of Arlington, Texas, died Aug. 13 of wounds sustained while engaged in combat operations in Iraq.
- Army GS-12 Daniel Hoadley, 54, of Colorado Springs died Aug. 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from a non-combat-related incident.
- Army Spc. Alexander W. Missildine, 20, of Tyler, Texas, died Oct. 1 in Salah ad-Din Province, Iraq, as a result of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his convoy.
- Army Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, 35, of Puyallup, Wash., died Oct. 4in an ambush in Niger.
- Army Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio, died Oct. 4 in an ambush in Niger.
- Army Sgt. La David T. Johnson, 25, of Miami Gardens, Fla., died Oct. 4 following an ambush in Niger.
- Army Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga., died Oct. 4 in an ambush in Niger.
- Army Chief Warrant Officer Jacob M. Sims, 36, of Juneau, Alaska, died Oct. 27 in Logar Province, Afghanistan, as a result of wounds sustained when he was involved in a helicopter crash.
- Army Sgt. First Class Stephen B. Cribben, 33, of Simi Valley, Calif., died Nov. 4 in Logar Province, Afghanistan as a result of wounds sustained while engaged in combat operations.