A 27-year-old has been identified as the U.S. Marine killed in an ISIS rocket attack in Iraq as the Pentagon announced they would be sending in more troops on the ground.
Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin died Sunday in northern Iraq from wounds suffered when his unit was attacked with rocket fire by the terrorists.
Cardin, who was from Temecula, California, was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
The last U.S. service member killed in Iraq was in October 2015. Army Master Sgt. Joshua L. Wheeler, a special operations soldier, was killed in a firefight in during a raid on an Islamic State prison.
Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin, 27, died Sunday in northern Iraq from wounds suffered when his unit was attacked with rocket fire by the jihadists
Cardin, who was from Temecula, California, was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
According to <a style="font-weight: bold;" class="" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener" target="_blank" website Staff Sgt. Cardin joined the Marine Corps in June of 2006 as a field artillery Marine.
His awards include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medal, three Marine Corps Good Conduct medals, three Afghanistan Campaign medals, Iraq Campaign medal, National Defense Service medal, Presidential Unit Citation-Navy, Navy Unit Commendation Medal, NATO Medal-ISAF Afghanistan, Global War on Terrorism Medal, and three Sea Service Deployment ribbons.
On Sunday, US military officials announced that a group of Marines will support U.S. and coalition efforts against Islamic State.
A group of Marines from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, or MEU, will add to the U.S. forces already in Iraq.
The 26th MEU in Words is currently deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations, which covers the Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean.
The attack which left Staff Sergeant Cardin dead was an ‘indirect fire attack,’ specifically rockets, the official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he wasn’t authorized to brief the media.
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‘It was a lucky strike by ISIS,’ an official told Fox who also said that less than five others were injured.
An Iraqi army officer in Makhmour said that the mortars landed at 8:20 a.m on Saturday.
Two Iraqi commanders stationed at the base also reported a rocket attack Saturday, but denied anyone had been hurt or killed.
The U.S.-led coalition has reported that the build-up of Iraqi troops at Makhmour in preparation for an assault on Mosul has brought a spike in the frequency of such indirect fire attacks.
The Islamic State has been in control of Mosul since June 2014 and the American troops were stationed to help Iraqi and pershermga forces reclaim the city, according to the Washington Post. This is the second soldier who has been killed since combat operates began in the summer of 2014, according to Fox.
Army Master Sgt Joshua Wheeler was killed during a hostage rescue in Iraq.
Wheeler’s tragic passing was the first in Iraq since the withdrawal of US forces in 2011.
Staff Sgt. Cardin joined the Marine Corps in June of 2006 as a field artillery Marine. His awards include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medal, three Marine Corps Good Conduct medals, three Afghanistan Campaign medals and an Iraq Campaign medal
Cardin is seen with his fellow Marines during one of his tours. It was shared on social media by a friend
A detachment of U.S. Marines is on the ground in Iraq to fight ISIS, it has been revealed.; The announcement comes a day after a Marine was killed by a rocket strike from the terrorists at the Makhmour base (pictured)
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