{"slug":"trump-niger-ambush-four-soldiers-killed","title":"Niger Ambush: Four U.S. Soldiers Killed, Trump's Response Criticized as Callous","date":"2017-10-04","lastUpdated":"2017-11-01","description":"On October 4, 2017, four U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers were killed in an ambush by Islamic State-affiliated militants near Tongo Tongo, Niger. The deaths went unacknowledged by Trump for 12 days. When he called the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, Rep. Frederica Wilson heard the call on speaker phone and reported Trump told the widow her husband 'knew what he signed up for.' The incident raised questions about the lack of congressional notification about the scope of U.S. military operations in Africa.","summary":"The four soldiers — Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, and Sgt. La David Johnson — were killed in an ambush 12 days before Trump publicly acknowledged their deaths. Trump's delayed response and his disputed call to Johnson's widow — in which witnesses say he told her her husband 'knew what he signed up for' — became a national controversy. Trump denied the account. The incident also exposed the extent of U.S. military operations in Africa that Congress had not been notified about.","category":"foreign-policy","severity":"critical","ongoing":false,"sources":[{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/19/us/politics/trump-la-david-johnson-widow-niger.html","title":"Trump's Call to Soldier's Widow Described as Disrespectful","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/10/17/trump-went-12-days-without-calling-the-families-of-soldiers-killed-in-niger-then-doubled-down/","title":"Trump went 12 days without calling families of soldiers killed in Niger","publisher":"The Washington Post"},{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/10/us/politics/niger-ambush-army-investigation.html","title":"Army Investigation of Niger Ambush Criticizes Soldiers and Officers","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41679621","title":"Trump disputes account of call to fallen soldier's widow","publisher":"BBC News"}],"draft":false,"status":"published","tags":["Niger","soldiers","Africa","first-term","military","oversight"],"relatedEntries":[],"timeline":[{"date":"2017-10-04","title":"Four soldiers killed in Niger ambush","summary":"An ambush by approximately 50 militants affiliated with the Islamic State's Greater Sahara affiliate kills four U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers and five Nigerien soldiers near the village of Tongo Tongo. Sgt. Johnson's body is not recovered for two days."},{"date":"2017-10-16","title":"Trump publicly mentions deaths for first time","summary":"Twelve days after the deaths, a reporter asks Trump at a press conference about the soldiers killed in Niger. Trump, apparently unaware of the delay, falsely claims that prior presidents had not called families of fallen soldiers — a claim immediately refuted by former Obama and Bush officials."},{"date":"2017-10-19","title":"Wilson reports on phone call; Trump denies","summary":"Rep. Wilson reports that Trump told Johnson's widow her husband 'knew what he signed up for.' Trump tweets that Wilson 'totally fabricated' the account. Johnson's mother, who was also present, confirms Wilson's account."},{"date":"2017-10-23","title":"White House Chief of Staff Kelly defends Trump","summary":"John Kelly delivers a White House briefing defending Trump's call, while inaccurately accusing Wilson of boasting about securing FBI building funding in a 2015 speech — a claim video immediately refutes."},{"date":"2018-05-10","title":"Army investigation released — finds systemic deficiencies","summary":"The Army releases its investigation of the Niger ambush, finding deficiencies in planning, preparation, and intelligence. The investigation does not release the full classified findings."}],"location":{"name":"Tongo Tongo, Niger","lat":14.7,"lng":3.2},"custom":{"era":"first-term","posture":"reported","warCrimeClassification":"enabling","internationalLaw":[],"iccRelevance":false,"victims":"Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, Sgt. La David Johnson (all killed in action); their families who were subjected to public dispute about condolence calls","structuredVictims":[{"name":"Sgt. La David Johnson","group":"U.S. Army Special Forces","status":"Killed in action October 4, 2017"},{"name":"Staff Sgt. Bryan Black","group":"U.S. Army Special Forces","status":"Killed in action October 4, 2017"}],"structuredPerpetrators":[{"name":"Donald Trump","role":"President of the United States; Commander-in-Chief","institution":"White House"}],"updateLog":[{"date":"2017-11-01","summary":"Updated with ongoing controversy and congressional oversight questions."}]}}