Utah mayor and father of seven named as US Army officer killed in Afghanistan
by Naomi Lim
| November 04, 2018 10:12 AM
The U.S. service member who died in an apparent insider attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, this weekend has been identified as the mayor of a small city in Utah.
Maj. Brent Taylor, 39, of the the Utah National Guard said a member was killed Saturday by an Afghan serving in the country's defence forces. He is survived by his wife, Jennie, and their seven children. It was his fourth overseas deployment.
Taylor had been on a year-long leave of absence as mayor of North Ogden, a position he had held since 2013, so he could use his experience as a part of the Utah Army National Guard to help train troops in an Afghan commando battalion.
His attacker was immediately shot by other Afghan forces, according to the NATO-led Resolute Support coalition. Another soldier wounded in the incident is in stable condition.
When announcing his latest overseas posting in January, Taylor said via a Facebook Live video that he wanted to support President Trump's strategy in the region, adding that service "is really what leadership is all about."
In his last post on the social media platform last week, Taylor urged Americans to remember there was more that united the country in a time of political hyperpartisanship.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/utah-mayor-killed-in-apparent-insider-attack-while-serving-in-afghanistan
