On Monday, a Special Forces operator was killed in action during combat operations in Afghanistan.

Sergeant First Class Jeremy Griffin, 41, succumbed to a small arms fire wound while on operations in Wardak province. He was assigned to the 3^rd Battalion, 1^st Special Forces Group (Airborne), which is based at Joint Base Lewis-McCord, Washington.

Colonel Owen Ray, the commanding officer of the 1^st Special Forces Group, said in a press statement that “the loss of Sgt. 1st Class Griffin is felt across the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) Family and the entire Special Forces community. He was a warrior – an accomplished, respected and loved Special Forces Soldier that will never be forgotten. We ask that you keep his Family and teammates in your thoughts and prayers.”

Sgt. 1^st Class Griffin enlisted into the Army in 2004. He deployed twice to Iraq (in 2006 and 2009) with the 82^nd Airborne Division in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was attached to the 7^th Special Forces Group (Airborne) before attending and successfully completing the Special Forces Assessment and Selection (SFAS) and Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) in 2014. He was a Special Forces Communication Sergeant (18E).

According to a release by the United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), Sgt. 1^st Class Griffin had graduated from the following military schools: Basic, Advanced, and Senior Leader Courses; U.S. Army Basic and Advanced Airborne Schools; Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, Basic Korean Course; Ranger School; Basic and Advanced Military Free Fall Parachutist Course; Military Freefall Advanced Tactical Infiltration Course; Special Operations Joint Terminal Attack Controller Course; Special Forces Intelligence Sergeants Course; and Special Forces Qualification Course.

In August, three more Green Berets were killed in Afghanistan. Sergeant First Class Dustin Ard, also from the 1^st SFG, was killed by small-arms fire during a joint operation with Afghan Special Operations Forces (SOF), and Master Sergeants Luis Deleon-Figueroa and Jose Gonzalez, from the 7^th Special Forces Group, were killed by small-arms fire.

Sgt. Griffin had received the following awards and decorations during his 15-year career in the Army: Bronze Star Medal; Army Commendation Medal (1 Oak Leaf Cluster); Army Achievement Medal (3 OLC); Army Good Conduct Medal (fifth award); National Defense Service Medal; Afghanistan Campaign Medal (3 Campaign Stars); Iraq Campaign Medal (2 Campaign Stars); Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Korea Defense Service Medal; Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon (Numeral 3); Army Service Ribbon; Overseas Service Ribbon; NATO Medal; Army Marksmanship Qualification Badge (Expert); Parachutist Badge; Master Military Free Fall Parachutist Badge; Combat Infantry Badge; Combat Action Badge; Ranger and Army Special Forces Tabs.