Two U.S. generals fired over Taliban attack on Afghanistan base where Prince Harry was staying that left two Marines dead
- Major General Charles 'Mark' Gurganus and Major General Gregg Sturdevant have both been asked to retire over the September 2012 attack
- Fifteen Taliban insurgents slipped into Camp Bastion and destroyed $200million in U.S. aircraft
- Prince Harry was at the base at the time and Taliban said suicide squad had intended to kill him
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Two Marine generals have been fired over the security lapses that allowed 15 Taliban insurgents to infiltrate the NATO base in Afghanistan where Prince Harry was housed last September.
The attack claimed the lives of two U.S.
Marines, including a Lieutenant Colonel, and destroyed six $24million
Harrier jets and a C-130 transport plane - the largest single loss of
American air power since the Vietnam War.
Major General Charles 'Mark' Gurganus, the commander of Regional
Command Southwest in Afghanistan, and Major General Gregg Sturdevant,
the commander of the Marines' aviation wing, have both been asked to
retire, it was revealed today.
Major General Charles 'Mark' Gurganus, (left) the commander of Regional Command Southwest in Afghanistan, and Major General Gregg Sturdevant, (right) the commander of the Marines' aviation wing, have both been asked to retire
Target: The Taliban said that Prince Harry, who was stationed at Camp Bastion, was a target of the attackers
Marine Corps Commandant General James
Amos demanded the resignation of the two commanders because they failed
to ensure security at the base.
On September 14, 2012, 15 Taliban insurgents, dressed in U.S. military uniforms, slipped under a fence at the military outpost in Helmand Province.
Taliban propagandists said the Camp
Bastion attackers intended to find and assassinate Prince Harry, who was
living at the compound.
There have been conflicting reports
as to whether Captain Wales, the fourth in line to the throne, was sent
to a safe room or whether he was treated like any other soldier during
the four-hour gun battle.
Prince Harry is the pilot of an
Apache helicopter gunship.
However, the team targeted numerous
NATO aircraft, destroying or heavily damaging more than a dozen and
causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
Reliving the day: Details of the September 2012 raid were state secrets until now
USA Today reports that General Amos said : 'In their duty to protect their forces these two generals did not meet that standard.'
Lieutenant Colonel Christopher
Raible, 40, was killed when he mustered a counter attack against the
invaders and charged armed only with his sidearm.
Marine Sergeant Bradley Atwell, 27, was killed, as well.
American Marines and members of the British Royal Air Force killed 14 of the attackers and captured one.
General Gurganus was in charge of ensuring that the American aircraft were secure from assault. He requested more Marines for base security, but was denied.
Still, commanders say the general
left base guard towers unoccupied and other defenses under-manned.
General Sturdevant was faulted for assuming other units would protect his aircraft wing and not setting up security measures of his own.
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