Department of Defense Releases Names of Service Members Killed Thursday in Kabul

The Department of Defense announced the names of the 13 U.S. service members who were killed Thursday as a result of deadly suicide attacks during evacuations out of Kabul, Afghanistan.

For the Marine Corps, the deceased are: 

• Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah. 
• Marine Corps Sgt. Johanny Rosariopichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts. 
• Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California. 
• Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California. 
• Marine Corps Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska. 
• Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana. 
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas. 
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri.  
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming. 
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California. 
• Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California. 

For the Navy, the deceased is Navy Hospitalman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio. 

For the Army, the deceased is Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee. 

U.S. troops are continuing their near-impossible mission to evacuate an estimated 1,000 remaining Americans, and tens of thousands of Afghan allies under constant threat of attack from ISIS-K or IS-K, short for the Islamic State of Khorasan Province.

MG Taylor: We continue to evacuate American citizens and vulnerable Afghans out of Kabul. In fact, there are approximately 1,400 individuals at the Kabul airport who have been screened and manifested for flights today. pic.twitter.com/RZVUkUKLnD

— Department of Defense  (@DeptofDefense) August 28, 2021

The U.S. is relying on the Taliban, a group that's spent years working to kill Americans, to keep out terrorists with the same goal from entering the airport's perimeter. 

The President is promising retaliation for the 13 Americans' lives lost.

"We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay," President Biden said during a national address to the nation Thursday.

IS-K is the regional affiliate of ISIS in Afghanistan and Pakistan and while not as organized as the Taliban, it's much more extreme in its beliefs and even more violent.

Please continue to pray for the families of those who tragically lost their lives Thursday and for those who remain in Afghanistan. 

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