The Pentagon announced on Wednesday the tragic loss of two U.S. soldiers in the Middle East in what appears to be two unrelated non-combat incidents.
Staff Sgt. Saul Fabian Gonzalez of Pullman, Michigan, a 26-year-old Army staff sergeant died June 17 in the city of Erbil in Iraq during a non-combat incident.
Gonzalez served with D Troop, 2nd Squadron, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. His unit belongs to Fort Campbell, Kentucky’s storied 101st Airborne Division.
Military officials said the incident remains under investigation. The Army hasn’t released details about the circumstances of his death. Non-combat incidents can include accidents, medical emergencies, or other causes.
Two days earlier, on June 15, Sgt. 1st Class Emmett Wilfred Goodridge Jr., 40, of Roseville, Minnesota, died at Camp Buehring in Kuwait in a non-combat incident. He served with the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, part of the 10th Mountain Division based at Fort Drum, New York.
The Defense Department provided no additional details about how Goodridge died. Military officials typically release such information only after notifying family members and completing initial investigations.
Camp Buehring serves as a staging area for forces rotating through the region. The facility hosts thousands of service members supporting operations throughout the Middle East.
Goodridge and Gonzalez were two of roughly 2,500 American troops still stationed across Iraq and Syria as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S. military’s name for the international war against the Islamic State. The mission continues despite the territorial defeat of ISIS in 2019. American troops are advising and assisting Iraqi security forces against ISIS remnants.