{"id":36699,"date":"2018-05-10T16:04:25","date_gmt":"2018-05-10T16:04:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/05\/10\/overrun-and-outnumbered-special-ops-soldiers-fought-to-the-end-in-deadly-niger-ambush\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T03:13:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T03:13:27","slug":"overrun-and-outnumbered-special-ops-soldiers-fought-to-the-end-in-deadly-niger-ambush","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/home\/2018\/05\/10\/overrun-and-outnumbered-special-ops-soldiers-fought-to-the-end-in-deadly-niger-ambush\/","title":{"rendered":"Overrun and outnumbered, special ops soldiers fought to the end in deadly Niger ambush"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-smg-jwplayer-video\"><atype-video-jwplayer nostick=\"true\" playlisturl=\"https:\/\/cdn.jwplayer.com\/v2\/playlists\/fCzRqMW8?tags=e2ec4e1d-7c04-4fde-8301-fc3075211e72\" poster=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/video-poster-e2ec4e1d-7c04-4fde-8301-fc3075211e72.jpg\" aspectratio=\"16 \/ 9\" mute autostart=\"false\"><\/atype-video-jwplayer><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In a recreation released by the Pentagon, see the October 2017 ambush in Niger that left four Green Berets dead.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the final moments of his life, Sgt. La David Johnson was alone, evading overwhelming militant fire in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2018\/03\/06\/probe-finds-deadly-niger-mission-lacked-proper-approval\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Niger<\/a> last October, as he ran the length of five football fields to reach the only cover in the area: a single thorny tree. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The last two friendly forces with Johnson had been killed minutes before; two Nigerien soldiers who had stayed with Johnson as their eight-vehicle convoy was ambushed by scores of enemy fighters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Each of the eight vehicles \u2014 three U.S. vehicles and five Nigerien vehicles \u2015 became separated from each other within minutes,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2018\/03\/06\/probe-finds-deadly-niger-mission-lacked-proper-approval\/\"> in a kill zone that was thousands of yards<\/a> long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under heavy enemy fire, the vehicles had stopped, and U.S. and Nigerien forces exited to return fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As enemy forces closed in, the team commander made a string of split-second decisions to have the 11 U.S. forces and approximately 30 Nigerien forces get back in their vehicles and pull back to avoid being flanked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the vehicles ultimately lost contact with each other and did not immediately have visibility on the forces left behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These details of the soldier\u2019s final moments, along with those of Staff Sgts. Bryan Black, Jeremiah Johnson and Dustin Wright, were revealed Thursday as the Pentagon released to the media the military\u2019s extensive review of that Oct. 4 ambush.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere will be awards for valor,\u201d Gen. Thomas Waldhauser. commander of U.S. Africa Command, told reporters Thursday. <br><\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2018\/05\/10\/niger-investigation-what-went-wrong-whats-being-done-to-fix-it\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"197\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_17279847282098.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Niger investigation: What went wrong, what\u2019s being done to fix it<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Mistakes that led to an outmanned and outgunned convoy of U.S. and Nigerien forces getting overrun last October were widespread, a 6,300-page investigation has found.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the months since the ambush, U.S. Africa Command has conducted an extensive investigation to answer other questions that have haunted the soldiers\u2019 families and riled Congress: What were those service members doing there, and why didn\u2019t they have better support? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"504\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-Niger.png.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-30219\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-Niger.png.png 1200w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-Niger.png.png?resize=300,126 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-Niger.png.png?resize=768,323 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-Niger.png.png?resize=1024,430 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, from left, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, Sgt. La David Johnson and Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright were killed in Niger when a joint patrol of American and Niger forces was ambushed on Oct. 4. (U.S. Army via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As Sgt. La David Johnson fought for his life, Black, Jeremiah Johnson and Wright were returning fire from outside the second U.S. vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jeremiah Johnson acknowledged the order to move out with a \u201cthumbs up,\u201d and another team member threw a smoke grenade to give them cover to move.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2018\/05\/08\/did-military-hid-niger-mission-from-congress-key-senator-asks\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/3226958.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Did military hide the real mission of the Niger ambush from Congress?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">U.S. senators are questioning whether the military hid from Congress its true mission in a Niger ambush last October that ended in the deaths of four American Green Berets.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wright began driving their vehicle slowly forward, while Black and Johnson remained outside, using the vehicle as cover to continue firing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As Black moved slightly ahead of the vehicle, he was shot and killed by enemy fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jeremiah Johnson would fall next. Badly wounded by enemy fire, he could not continue on. Wright stayed beside him, returning fire until both were killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">La David Johnson, the special operations mechanic and driver, and two Nigeriens had been returning fire from outside his vehicle. He fired the vehicle\u2019s M240 mounted machine gun until it ran out of bullets, then picked up an M2010 sniper rifle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When the call came to pull back, the three were trapped. Intense incoming fire kept La David Johnson from being able to reach the driver\u2019s seat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, they ran. The Nigeriens were shot; La David Johnson was the only one left. He reached the lone tree, took position and returned fire as an enemy truck with its own mounted machine gun closed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His body was found two days later. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defense.gov\/portals\/1\/features\/2018\/0418_niger\/img\/Oct-2017-Niger-Ambush-Summary-of-Investigation.pdf\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">eight-page unclassified summary<\/a> released Thursday \u2014 part of the 6,000-page report \u2014 AFRICOM concluded that \u201cindividual, organizational and institutional failures &#8230; contributed to the tragic events of Oct. 4, 2017.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In its main findings, the report said the team had departed the night before on a mission \u201ctargeting a key member of [the Islamic State-Greater Sahara.]\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the team, which had previously focused on train and advise missions and helping stand up Niger\u2019s counterterrorism forces, did not have the authority to conduct that type of mission without higher level approval that was never obtained, the investigation found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The two commanders responsible for seeking authorization \u2015 the team commander and company commander at their advanced operating base \u2014 \u201cinaccurately characterized the nature of the mission in the [concept of operations.]\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/flashpoints\/2018\/02\/13\/fallout-from-niger-ambush-could-scale-back-africa-missions-strip-commanders-of-autonomy\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-AFRICOM.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Fallout from Niger ambush could scale back Africa missions, strip commanders of autonomy<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A probe into the Niger ambush that killed four U.S. soldiers is expected to recommend reducing ground missions in West Africa and stripping field commanders of the autonomy that allows them to send service members on risky missions.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then, the base commander \u201capproved the CONOPS based on the incorrect belief that he had the authority to do so.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The team did not drill or rehearse the mission in advance, and at the time they departed on the mission, \u201cno command higher than the [forward base commander] was aware the mission sought to find\/fix and, if possible, capture a key member of ISIS-Greater Sahara,\u201d the investigation found. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AFRICOM has already taken some steps in the wake of the attack, including new guidance on the planning and approval of military operations and a review of equipment requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The actions of all the U.S. forces are also still under review by individual military commands for \u201cpersonnel actions relevant to this incident, including \u201dappropriate administrative or disciplinary action.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the months since the Oct. 4 ambush, U.S. Africa Command has conducted an extensive investigation to answer two questions: What were those service members doing there, and why didn\u2019t they have better support?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":30219,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":23,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,12,25,69],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3344],"class_list":["post-36699","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-marine-corps"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"VDJVTFXGPBC6ZGJALSF3BXBYKM","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-military\/2018\/05\/10\/overrun-and-outnumbered-special-ops-soldiers-fought-to-the-end-in-deadly-niger-ambush\/","remove_feature_photo":true,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Overrun and outnumbered, special ops soldiers fought to the end in deadly Niger ambush - Marine Corps Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In the months since the Oct. 4 ambush, U.S. Africa Command has conducted an extensive investigation to answer two questions: What were those service members doing there, and why didn\u2019t they have better support?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Overrun and outnumbered, special ops soldiers fought to the end in deadly Niger ambush\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In the months since the Oct. 4 ambush, U.S. 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