KABUL, Afghanistan — Delays in closing a remote U.S. military outpost in eastern Afghanistan increased the vulnerability of the base, where eight Fort Carson soldiers were killed during a prolonged siege by 300 insurgents Oct. 3, according to a summary of a military investigation released Friday.
The attack on Combat Outpost Keating in the Nurestan province was one of the worst insurgent attacks against U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
The investigation, led by Maj. Gen. Guy C. Swan III, drew on interviews from about 140 people either at the outpost or who had information about the attack. The inquiry found that the roughly 60 soldiers stationed there fought courageously, killing about 150 insurgents as they defended their base.
But the report also said those soldiers were stationed in a place of “no tactical or strategic value” and said critical intelligence and surveillance capabilities that could have helped them prevent such an onslaught had been diverted to other missions.
With limited staffing and located in a ravine surrounded by steep hillsides, the mission for Bravo Troop, 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry had devolved into protecting their base, Swan concluded. In their five months at the outpost, they were attacked about 47 times, three times as often as the previous unit.
“As a result, the chain of command decided to close the remote outpost as soon as it could,” the report said.
But a scheduled closure last summer was delayed because the equipment needed to haul away base supplies and to conduct surveillance and gather intelligence was sent to other missions, the report said.
“The delayed closing of COP Keating is important as it contributed to a mindset of imminent closure that served to impede improvements in force protection on the COP,” the report said. “There were inadequate measures taken by the chain of command, resulting in an attractive target for enemy fighters.”
The report said commanders should have done more to improve the base’s defenses and to analyze intelligence reports that the enemy was planning a major assault. It recommended that the squadron commander overseeing the outpost receive a letter of reprimand.
The attack began at 5:58 a.m. with a deluge of insurgent gunfire and mortars from all sides and a simultaneous attack on another nearby U.S. outpost that limited the U.S. soldiers’ ability to fire in return. Afghan soldiers standing guard could not hold their positions, and insurgents entered the base in three places, the report said. U.S. soldiers eventually regained the momentum with the help of fighter jets and helicopters. Besides the eight soldiers killed, 22 were wounded.
