Gen. Petraeus has ordered another investigation of the circumstances surrounding the Battle of Wanat. Army Gen. David Petraeus, who heads the U.S. Central Command, has appointed Richard Natonski, a Marine Corps lieutenant general, to handle the inquiry, Central Command announced Wednesday. New issues have arisen since an official Army investigation into the battle was completed more than a year ago, the command said, but it would not say what those issues were. Family members of the soldiers killed when their remote outpost was attacked by an estimated 200 Taliban have said the Army's investigation was inadequate. More than two dozen soldiers were wounded during the battle on July 13, 2008. "When you have an entire infantry platoon basically rendered combat ineffective, surprised by 200 insurgents, something just doesn't sit right," said David Brostrom, a retired Army colonel whose son Jonathan was one of the soldiers killed. In a July 9 letter, Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., had asked the Pentagon inspector general for an independent review of "the actions taken at each level of the chain of command" during what has become known as the Battle of Wanat involving a platoon from the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. I know a number of the survivors of this battle and have heard the story first hand. It was not the most perfectly managed situation, but it was far from a command failure. I will have a comprehensive piece on this early next week.
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Posted
Oct 01 2009, 01:47 AM
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BLACKFIVE