FORT LEWIS, Wash. (AP) — Army chief of staff Gen. George Casey has praised the performance of the 5th Stryker Brigade in Afghanistan, saying the soldiers “have had a tough fight in a very tough area.”
Casey added, “I think they have done very well.”
The brigade is based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where Casey visited Friday with wounded soldiers and awarded a Purple Heart to one brigade infantryman.
The brigade is ending a yearlong tour. It suffered more than 35 deaths during its deployment in the Kandahar area.
One brigade soldier has been charged with murder in the killings of three Afghan civilians. An Army spokeswoman has said four more soldiers might also face charges.
