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Identity Of U.S Soldier Killed During Al-Shabaab Attack On Military Base Revealed

Mayfield Jr., 23, died while supporting Operation Octave Shield, the name for the mission focused on targeting militant groups in Somalia, the Pentagon said.

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The identity of a United States soldier killed by Al-Shabaab during an attack on the country’s military base in Kenya has been revealed.

According to the CNN, the U.S Department of Defense identified the soldier as Army Spc. Henry “Mitch” Mayfield Jr.

Mayfield Jr., 23, died while supporting Operation Octave Shield, the name for the mission focused on targeting militant groups in Somalia, the Pentagon said.

He was killed during an attack that included mortars and small arms fire.

The attackers breached the base’s perimeter and damaged six aircraft.

There was no immediate information released regarding how Mayfield was killed during the attack.

Mayfield was assigned to 1st Battalion, 58th Aviation Regiment, 164th Theater Airfield Operations Group, out of Fort Rucker, Alabama.

His battalion provides expeditionary air traffic control and airfield management.

Mayfield and two contractors died after the attack on Manda Bay Airfield, which is roughly 150 miles South of the Kenya-Somalia border.

Two other Defense Department members were also injured in the attack but remain in stable condition, according to U.S. Africa Command.

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