Pentagon names US soldier killed in Afghanistan

The Pentagon on Friday announced the death of Army Spc. James Slape, the seventh U.S. soldier to be killed in combat in Afghanistan this year.

In an announcement, the Pentagon said Slape, a member of the North Carolina Army National Guard, died Oct. 4 as a result of a roadside bomb attack. The incident is still under investigation, according to the release.

{mosads}The adjutant general of the North Carolina National Guard told The Washington Post on Saturday that the Guard was “deeply saddened” by Slape’s death.

“We honor his courage, his selfless service, and we extend our deepest sympathy to his family, friends and fellow soldiers as we hold them firmly in our hearts and prayers during this difficult time,” Major Gen. Greg Lusk told the Post.

Slape, 23, was trained in explosive ordnance disposal and was on his way to another vehicle that had been struck by an explosive device when he was caught in a bomb’s blast, according to the Post. He has since posthumously been promoted to the rank of sergeant.

“The soldier was medically evacuated to a medical care facility, but despite valiant efforts to save him, his wounds were fatal,” a spokeswoman for the U.S. military in Afghanistan told the Post.

Slape’s family has asked not to be contacted by the media, according to a spokesman for the North Carolina National Guard.

A similar incident occurred in August when Staff Sgt. Reymund Rarogal Transfiguracion, 36, was killed by an improvised explosive device in the Helmand province of Afghanistan.

Transfiguracion died of “wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near him while he was conducting combat patrol operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan,” the Pentagon said in a statement at the time.