US Navy Officer Killed in Mosul Operation Came Under Small Arms Fire

A US serviceman was killed during the operation to liberate the Iraqi city of Mosul from Daesh.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Navy Chief Petty Officer Jason Finan was killed when the Kurdish Peshmerga troops he was embedded with came under small arms fire during the US-led coalition operation to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from Daesh, Operation Inherent Resolve said in a press release on Tuesday.

"Finan was behind the forward line of troops advising Peshmerga forces during their offensive on Mosul when the element he was with came under small arms fire," the release stated.

The coalition said Finan’s vehicle struck an improvised explosive device while he was repositioning to a more advantageous position, and he died from his wounds at a troop hospital in Erbil.

The US Defense Department identified Finan on Friday and White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said the naval officer had been supporting Peshmerga forces in the Mosul offensive.

US officials have repeatedly emphasized that no US service members are on the front lines of the coalition operations.

On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi announced the start of the Mosul operation. More than 30,000 Iraqi and 4,000 Kurdish fighters are taking part in the offensive, backed by about 5,000 US troops and coalition airstrikes.