Veterans Organizations Team Up To Urge Pentagon to Conduct New Review of 2017 Ambush at Tongo Tongo, Niger

WASHINGTON – Concerned Veterans for America and VoteVets, two groups typically on opposite sides on policy issues, are teaming up on a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, today, urging him to order a new review of the deadly 2017 ambush on U.S. troops at Tongo Tongo, Niger. That attack cost the lives of four American soldiers — Staff Sergeant Bryan Black, Staff Sergeant Jeremiah Johnson, Sergeant La David Johnson, and Staff Sergeant Dustin Wright.

The full letter can be found here: https://act.votevets.org/go/2056?t=2&ak_proof=1&akid=%2E213770%2Ebym-zm

“While our two organizations take opposing positions on many issues, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder on two principles: First, that our elected leaders must do more to avoid committing our armed forces to open-ended wars with ill-defined goals; and second, families of fallen Americans deserve transparency when it comes to what happened to their loved ones,” the groups write in the letter, signed by VoteVets Senior Advisor Major General (U.S. Army, Ret.) Paul Eaton and Russ Duerstine, U.S. Air Force Veteran and Deputy Director of Concerned Veterans for America.

The request comes on the heels of the release of an explosive new documentary, “3212 UNREDACTED,” by ABC News, which shed new light on the attacks, and called into question the accuracy of the investigation afterwards.  The veterans groups cite the lack of independence of the investigation in their letter, and say new evidence, in the documentary, warrants a new investigation – and possibly new valor awards for some, and reprimands for others.

“A new investigation is also justified given the recent recovery of 45 minutes of helmet camera footage from the battle. The American public and the families of the fallen, in particular, deserve a comprehensive and objective investigation that takes this new evidence into account,” the groups write. “If new findings warrant, we urge you to review and reconsider both general officer memoranda of reprimand and valor awards.”