Two US generals forced to retire over attack on US base in Afghanistan

The US Marine Corps has forced two two-star generals to retire for what the top general called their failure to secure a base in Afghanistan attacked by the Taliban last year, killing two Marines and destroying several aircraft.






US Marine, Major General Charles Mark Gurganus Photo: AFP/Getty Images




our foreign staff

12:09AM BST 01 Oct 2013


The commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. James Amos, said he took the action after reviewing the findings of a four-month investigation by the US Central Command.

Fifteen Taliban fighters penetrated Camp Bastion in southwestern Afghanistan and destroyed almost an entire squadron of Marine AV-8B Harrier jets in a September 2012 attack that was one of the most brazen of the war.

Gen Amos said he asked Maj. Gen. Charles M. Gurganus and Maj. Gen. Gregg A. Sturdevant to retire. They agreed to do so.

He also recommended that Maj Gen Gurganus' nomination to the rank of lieutenant general be rescinded and that Maj Gen Sturdevant receive a letter of censure from the secretary of the Navy.

Maj Gen Gurganus was commander of all coalition forces in southwestern Afghanistan. Maj Gen Sturdevant was commander of Marine aviation in the area.


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It is the first time since the Vietnam War that any general has been forced to retire for negligence after a successful enemy attack.

Gen Amos said the two generals did not deploy enough troops to guard the base and "failed to exercise the level of judgment expected of commanders of their rank."

"It was unrealistic to think that a determined enemy would not be able to penetrate the perimeter fence," Gen Amos said.

"In their duty to protect their forces these two generals did not meet [the] standard."

The attack occurred at Camp Bastion, the British-run Nato air base in Helmand province that adjoins Camp Leatherneck, a US facility that also serves as the Nato headquarters for southwestern Afghanistan.

Marines use Camp Bastion's runway and dozens of US helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft are parked there.

On the night of the attack, Tongan troops, who had been assigned as lookouts by the British commanders of Camp Bastion, left one watchtower unmanned.

The investigation found that aspects of the US-British security plan were "sub-optimal," with no single officer in charge of security for both camps.

Troop reductions also affected security measures, it found.

Two US marines were killed in the attack and eight were wounded. The cost of damage to aircraft was estimated at $200m.

When told of the decision to relieve him of his duties, Maj Gen Gurganus told Gen Amos "As the most senior commander on the ground, I am accountable."

Gen Amos said it was the "hardest decision I have had to make as commandant of the Marine Corps" and that he had served with both men in combat, calling them "extraordinary Marine officers."

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