Sergeant dies from wounds sustained in training accident in Hungary
Sgt. Aaron Cox, of Mabank, Texas, was an infantryman with the 'Strike' 2nd Mobile Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).
The sergeant died from wounds sustained during a vehicle accident during preparations for the upcoming Exercise Saber Guardian 25.
The accident is under investigation.
'The loss of Sgt. Cox is a tragedy for all of us on the Strike team,' said, Col. Duke Reim, commander, 2MBCT, 101st Airborne Division. 'He was a strong soldier and leader, who quickly rose through the ranks while serving. We are in direct contact with his family, for care and support that they need during this difficult time. We would like to thank our Hungarian Allies for their prompt response and support to our soldiers.'
Cox enlisted in 2021 and graduated basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, before being assigned to the 101st at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in 2022. The sergeant was a graduate of the Army Basic Leader Course and Combat Lifesaver Course.
He previously deployed to Poland. The Hungary deployment was his second deployment.
His awards include the Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Expert Infantryman Badge and Air Assault Badge.
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CNN
21 hours ago
- CNN
A US citizen and Army veteran was detained at an immigration raid and held for 3 days. His family scrambled to find him
George Retes, a 25-year-old Army veteran and father of two, had been planning his three-year-old daughter's Minnie Mouse birthday party at the park for weeks. He would get her an inflatable bounce house, invite the whole family and shower her with gifts and treats. She was excited for the fun party and he was excited to see the smile on her face, he said. Those plans fell apart last week when Retes – a US citizen – was detained by federal immigration agents during an immigration raid and protest at a legal Southern California marijuana farm where he worked. Left injured and burned from pepper spray and tear gas, Retes was detained for three days without explanation, he said. His wife, who couldn't reach him during his detention, was scrambling to find out where her husband had been taken. And Retes missed the party he and his toddler had been dreaming about. Instead of seeing flickering birthday candles and hearing children's laughter on his daughter's birthday, the father found himself alone in a cell with bright lights that never turned off, his skin burning and limbs aching. As he laid on a thin mattress covering a cement slab, he wondered if he would ever see his family again. 'All I wanted was to be there for my daughter's birthday … I was so excited to watch her turn three and just enjoy her day and just watch her be happy for her day,' Retes told CNN. 'And it sucked not being there.' The arrest unfolded on July 10 when federal immigration officers carried out large-scale raids at two Glass House marijuana farms in Carpinteria and Camarillo and arrested over 300 people – part of an ongoing trend of immigration enforcement at worksites like farms and construction sites that have struck fear into immigrant communities. That day, Retes says he woke up and drove to work like he would any other day, not knowing there was unrest at his workplace. When he arrived at Glass House Farms in Camarillo – where he works as a contract security guard – he was met with throngs of protesters, cars piled up in the middle of the road and people standing in the street. He made his way through the crowd and was confronted by a barricade of agents blocking anyone from going into Glass House, he recounted. The Department of Homeland Security said Immigration Customs Enforcement and US Customs and Border Protection officers were executing warrants at the marijuana grow sites and were met with hundreds of protesters. He got out of his car and walked up to the agents to let them know he's an American citizen who's just trying to get to work. 'I didn't think it was gonna be a problem for me to go to work … as long as I identified myself and let them know what I was trying to do,' he said. The agents refused to listen to him, Retes said, so he returned to his car. That's when he says the situation escalated: The agents surrounded his car and started yelling conflicting orders to get out of his car, reverse and park his car, according to the father. Retes then reversed, trying to leave the tense scene, he said. Agents continued yelling, banged on his window and pulled on his door trying to get it open, he said. The uniformed federal agents eventually threw what appeared to be tear gas into the crowd of protesters, which blurred Retes' vision and made him choke. 'I'm trying to leave. I'm trying to get out of here,' Retes said he told the agents in between gasping breaths. At that moment, one agent shattered his driver's side window, and another sprayed pepper spray in his face, Retes said, recalling feeling a piece of glass from the window cut his leg. Then, they dragged him out of the car and threw him on the ground, pinning him down, he said. 'I had one agent kneeling on my back and another one kneeling on my neck,' said Retes, who noted he had neck and back injuries from his four-year Army service. Retes recalled telling officers he couldn't breathe because of the pepper spray and tear gas. But he said they proceeded to put him in handcuffs and dragged him away without explaining what he was arrested for. The Department of Homeland Security would later accuse Retes of assault – an allegation he vehemently denies. 'I just had no clue what was gonna happen to me,' Retes said. Retes became one of a number of US citizens and legal permanent residents detained or arrested in the tense raids amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown – with some arrested without explanation and with no way to contact their families, immigrant advocacy groups say. Shows of force and clashes between immigration officers and protesters at raid sites have become periodical occurrences in the Los Angeles area as more people oppose the federal government's immigration enforcement actions. An EMT wrapped Retes' leg wound in gauze before the father was escorted into an unmarked SUV and taken to an empty field, where there were federal agents from several agencies, Retes said. Agents took his fingerprints and photos. And when Retes asked why he was detained, the agents wouldn't answer him, he recounted. 'They never told me anything … I sat there for hours asking them why I was here, why I'm being arrested, and no one could give me an answer,' Retes said. 'No one even knew who arrested me or why they arrested me. No one knew what was going to happen to me or who I was even going to go with.' Retes was eventually driven to downtown Los Angeles' Metropolitan Detention Center, where he was held by the US Marshals Service, online records show. He was booked, given prison clothes and placed in a holding cell with a professor who was detained during immigration protests that same day, Retes said. On Friday morning, Retes filled out his intake form and answered questions from the medical staff about his childhood, past and his life now. Based on his answers, they determined he should be put on suicide watch, where he remained alone in a cell with bright lights that never turned off, according to Retes. Guards were always outside his cell and a psychiatrist checked on him once a day to ensure he wouldn't harm himself, he said. In the cell for days, Retes was never told why he was arrested or if he was charged with any crimes, he said. Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, told CNN in a statement on Sunday that Retes had not been charged. The US Attorney's Office told CNN Friday it would not be pressing charges against Retes. McLaughlin later said Retes was detained for alleged assault, but did not provide details on the accusation. 'As CBP and ICE agents were executing criminal search warrants on July 10 at the marijuana facility in Camarillo, CA, George Retes—a U.S. citizen—became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement,' McLaughlin said Thursday. 'He challenged agents and blocked their route by refusing to move his vehicle out of the road.' Retes denies the agency's allegations. 'I would like to see where I assaulted an officer, and if that's true, why wasn't I charged?' he said. 'They could lie all they want. That's not what happened.' CNN has reached out to the US Marshals and US Customs and Border Protection for comment. Glass House said last week it received immigration and naturalization warrants on the day of the raids. 'As per the law, we verified that the warrants were valid and we complied. Workers were detained and we are assisting to provide them legal representation,' Glass House said in a statement. Retes described his detention as 'depressing, very confusing' and said he was 'so lost' for those three long days. In pain from his injured leg and burning skin, all he could think of as he was stuck alone in the cell was that he would miss his daughter's third birthday. 'I was there with my thoughts the entire time, wondering if I was ever going to get out, if anyone ever even knew my story or what had happened to me,' he said. 'I just thought I was never gonna see my kids again.' Though tear gas and pepper spray burned his eyes and skin, he was never given a chance to shower, he said. With an intense burning pain in his arms and legs, it was impossible for Retes to sleep on what he described as a cement block with a thin mattress and thin blanket, he said. And he never received medical care for the gash on his leg, even after he pleaded for it, Retes said. During his detention, Retes wasn't able to speak with an attorney or call his wife to let her know where he was, he said, adding that no one else called to let his loved ones know where he was. 'They didn't give them any information about where I was at,' he said. 'Any agency they called they were just giving them the runaround.' Meanwhile, his wife was calling anybody she could to find out where her husband was taken and speaking with local news stations through tears. 'I just don't know where he's at. I've been up since 6 a.m. trying to call the sheriff's, the police department, Oxnard, Camarillo, Ventura… They say they don't know,' his wife Guadalupe Torres told CNN affiliate KABC on Friday. The Federal Bureau of Prisons, which runs the Metropolitan Detention Center, declined to comment Friday on the conditions of Retes' confinement, citing privacy and security reasons, but told CNN in a statement that 'all individuals in BOP custody, regardless of housing assignment, are continually encouraged to maintain contact with loved ones, friends, and outside resources.' 'Each individual is independently treated on a case-by-case basis, and treatment is provided as clinically indicated, including referrals to specialists,' the statement read, in part. Finally, on Sunday, Retes was told he would be released and was walked downstairs, where he signed for his belongings and was told he was free to leave, the father recalled. 'So I basically was locked up for no reason, and missed my daughter's birthday for no reason?' Retes said he asked the guards. He says he was met with silence. Once he was outside, Retes was happy to feel the fresh air and the sun against his skin, he said. His wife picked him up and the couple headed to his parents' house to see their young daughter and eight-year-old son. 'I felt relieved to see a familiar face, and just at that moment when I saw her, I knew it was real that I was finally out,' Retes said of reuniting with his wife. Once they arrived at the house, the first thing Retes did was run up to his kids and hug them. They ran into his arms screaming 'Dad,' he said. 'It was the best thing ever, that feeling I'll never forget. It was so nice to finally … hold them,' Retes said. 'They were just really happy that I was out and that I was okay … it kind of just eased all their minds,' Retes said of his wife and children. 'We're just kind of trying to take it one day at a time.' But Retes – who said he joined the Army when he was 18 and was deployed in Iraq in 2019 – said he and his family are still in distress about the events of July 10. 'No one deserves to be treated the way I did,' he said. 'It shouldn't even matter if I'm a veteran, it shouldn't matter if I'm a US citizen or the color of my skin, or if I'm here illegally or I'm an immigrant.' Retes said he apologized to his daughter for missing her birthday. Because she's so young, he was unable to explain to her why he was gone, he said. 'It's just something that I'm gonna have to live with for the rest of my life,' he said. CNN's Zoe Sottile contributed to this report.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Army will look for false accusations, consider ‘credibility' in misconduct cases
The Army has made changes in how it investigates misconduct allegations with new rules that may muddy the waters for soldiers making anonymous reports of misconduct like toxic leadership or hazing, former military lawyers warned. The updated rules also stop the flagging of an accused soldier's personnel record in advance of an investigation, which could delay career progression, and introduce punishments for soldiers proven to have made false accusations. The changes came in a June update to the Army's 15-6 regulation, which governs the process for investigating military-related misconduct like sexual harassment, toxic leadership, adultery, fraternization, cruelty and maltreatment of subordinates, violation of orders and regulations, misuse of government resources, and hazing. The new regulation introduces several new terms that add new processes or concepts into the framework of a 15-6 investigation. Those investigations can lead to administrative punishments or more serious Uniformed Code of Military Justice proceedings that result in discharges or rank and grade demotions. An Army official told Task & Purpose that the goal is to reduce the number of 15-6 investigations and 'clarify' for commanders, especially for junior officers, that there are other processes — like a memorandum for records — they are encouraged to use for 'everyday friction' within their command and when there's not 'sufficient evidence.' The regulation changes follow an April 23 memo from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, that ordered changes to the investigation process and including new terminology used verbatim in the new Army regulation. Hegseth referred to it as the 'No More Walking On Eggshells Policy,' in a video posted to X on April 25. 'Too often at the Defense Department, there are complaints made for certain reasons that can't be verified that end people's career, either through [Equal Opportunity] or the [Inspector General]. We need to reform that process completely so commanders can be commanders,' Hegseth said in the video. 'Credible evidence' The largest change to the 15-6 investigation process is the addition of a new 'credibility' review at the early stage of some complaints. Traditionally, an Army 15-6 investigation had three fact-finding or evidence-gathering phases: preliminary inquiries, administrative investigations and boards of officers. The new regulation now lays out an additional phase, called a 'credibility assessment,' which would precede the three other phases, and possibly short-circuit the full investigation. The regulation states that officials receiving the complaint should initially review 'to determine if sufficient credible information exists to warrant further fact-finding or evidence-gathering.' The assessment is based on language used in Hegseth's memo, for 'credible' evidence or information which is defined as 'attributable or corroborated information,' that considers 'the original source, the nature of the information, and the totality of the circumstances' to determine if it is 'sufficient' for investigators to pursue an inquiry. Rachel VanLandingham, a former Air Force lawyer, said information needing to be 'corroborated' or 'attributed' could mean that an anonymous report will not be sufficient enough to 'trigger' a 15-6 investigation. She said this could impact inquiries into hostile work environments because of toxic leaders. 'You need anonymous complaints because people are afraid of their commanders and if their commanders are retributive and hostile and toxic, you're not going to leave your name,' VanLandingham said. 'If you have a bunch of folks in a unit that are really afraid of their commander, they don't want to say anything so they leave a bunch of anonymous complaints that's not corroborated and that's not attributable to anybody. But damn straight, the higher level commander — when he's got 10 of these — should be investigating.' The Army official said that not knowing the source prevents investigators from asking follow-up questions and that a 'vague anonymous complaint' is 'probably not actionable' because investigators cannot ask follow-up questions that would establish credibility. False accusations Hegseth's memo also called for 'disciplinary actions against personnel who knowingly submit false complaints,' a topic which now has its own new section in the Army 15-6 manual. According to the new language, soldiers can face punitive measures for 'knowingly' or 'repeatedly' submitting false and 'frivolous' allegations that could trigger investigations. The manual defines frivolous allegations as those 'that a reasonable person knows has no merit,' and which were made for 'an unreasonable purpose' like harassment. Military justice lawyers told Task & Purpose the focus on punishing accusations deemed as false could have a chilling effect on victims of sexual harassment coming forward. Under current rules, formal reports of sexual harassment cannot be made anonymously. Four former military lawyers told Task & Purpose that proving a false allegation would require a high standard of proof, which makes the new rule appear to be more of a message to discourage reports than an actual enforcement mechanism. Barb Snow, a former active duty and Reserve Army jag officer for 11 years, pointed out that making false official statements is already an offense under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 'Making the AR-15-6 process a quasi-criminal offense investigation process' will dissuade troops from coming forward, she said. Retired Col. Don Christensen, former chief prosecutor for the Air Force and the former president for Protect Our Defenders, said the new language reflects an ongoing conversation within military circles around sexual harassment. He said he worries that victims will fear punishment, and retaliation for a report that isn't substantiated with enough evidence to pursue legal or administrative actions. 'My biggest concern isn't so much that people will be prosecuted for it, but that it will chill people from coming forward,' Christensen said. 'There's always been this, I would say undercurrent, of people in the military who very much want to punish, particularly women who come forward, and if that doesn't result in a conviction, then they immediately label it a false allegation. There's a huge difference between being able to get a conviction and something being false.' No more flagging Under the new rules, soldiers can still find their personnel records 'flagged' during the formal evidence-gathering phase of a 15-6 investigation, which soldiers have long complained can impact promotions or delay base moves. But during a credibility assessment, soldiers will not be flagged. Daniel Conway, a former Marine staff sergeant and captain who currently represents service members at military trials, said flagging can be 'really disruptive' because it can interrupt deployments or assignments. 'If you're a command sergeant major and you get accused of making inappropriate comments, you wind up with a 15-6,' he said. 'It takes four, five, six months. You've now been rendered pretty much useless to the Army for half a year.' Conway said he thinks the changes will cut down the number of 15-6 investigations for more minor issues. 'Being in San Antonio, we have a training command here with drill sergeants, and I'm constantly over the years representing drill sergeants who are being subjected to 15-6 investigations on frivolous complaints from trainees — really the most minor of stuff.' Robert Capovilla, a former Army lawyer who currently represents troops in military cases, said the changes will be most relevant for sexual harassment cases where 'the allegation itself ends that soldier's career.' 'The dirty secret of military justice is, a lot of these people who are flagged for prolonged periods of time, even if they end up winning their case, the damage to their career is irreversible,' Capovilla said. The regulation states that the Army will appoint specially trained investigative officers outside the chain of command of the reporter and subject to handle administrative investigations of formal sexual harassment complaints. Capovilla called it a welcome change. 'We've seen untrained investigating officers who do not understand the definition of sexual harassment come back and almost universally conclude that sexual harassment occurred,' he said. 'Then those soldiers and airmen and Marines and everything are facing separation boards or boards of inquiry based on nothing but an amateur investigation that was done by somebody who didn't even understand what they were doing.' The latest on Task & Purpose Operation Midnight Hammer damaged, but may not have destroyed Iran's nuclear sites An Army base will now honor a Buffalo Soldier 2 aircraft carriers, 9 destroyers, and multiple fighter wings gather in the Middle East Marines and sailors are building trenches for the drone age The Army is deactivating police units in deep cuts to number of military cops Solve the daily Crossword
News24
3 days ago
- News24
Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church kills 3
Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP An Israeli strike hit Gaza's only Catholic church, killing three civilians and wounding 10, including a priest. The church was sheltering around 600 displaced people, many of them children and people with special needs. Israel said it does not target religious sites and is investigating the incident, which drew international condemnation. An Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church killed three people on Thursday, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said, as Israel said it 'never targets' religious sites and regretted any harm to civilians. Pope Leo XIV said he was 'deeply saddened' by the loss of life, which a witness said was the result of a tank shell hitting the church. AFP footage showed those injured being treated at Gaza City's Al-Ahli Hospital, also known as the Baptist Hospital, with one receiving oxygen and blood while lying under a foil blanket. Mourners knelt next to two white body bags laid out on the floor. 'In the morning, a tank shell targeted us and hit the church, and a number of civilians were killed and wounded,' said Shadi Abu Daoud, a displaced man whose 70-year-old mother was killed in the strike. The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem named the dead as Najwa Abu Daoud, Saad Issa Kostandi Salameh and Foumia Issa Latif Ayyad. 'This morning, at approximately 10:20 am (0720 GMT), the Compound of the Holy Family in Gaza... was struck by the Israeli army,' it said in a statement. 'As of this hour, three individuals lost their lives as a result of the injuries sustained and 10 others were wounded,' including the community's parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, it added, revising a previous toll of two. Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP An AFP photograph showed Father Romanelli with a bandage around his lower leg at Al-Ahli Hospital. Gaza civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal confirmed that three people were killed in an Israeli strike on the church in Gaza City, with which the late Pope Francis kept regular contact through the war. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told Vatican News that: 'What we know for sure is that a tank, the IDF says by mistake, but we are not sure about this, they hit the church directly'. 'Serious act' The patriarchate, which has jurisdiction for Catholics in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Jordan and Cyprus, said it 'strongly condemns this strike and this targeting of innocent civilians'. The site was sheltering around 600 displaced people, the majority of them children and 54 with special needs. A statement read: The people in the Holy Family Compound are people who found in the church a sanctuary - hoping that the horrors of war might at least spare their lives, after their homes, possessions and dignity had already been stripped away. It came as Gaza's civil defence agency reported that Israeli strikes elsewhere across the Palestinian territory killed at least 22 people. Israel expressed 'deep sorrow' over the damage and civilian casualties, adding that the military was investigating, as foreign leaders, including those from France and Italy, called the strike 'unacceptable'. 'Israel never targets churches or religious sites and regrets any harm to a religious site or uninvolved civilians,' the Israeli foreign ministry said on X. Israel expresses deep sorrow over the damage to the Holy Family Church in Gaza City and over any civilian casualty. The IDF is examining this incident, the circumstances of which are still unclear, and the results of the investigation will be published transparently. Israel never… — Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) July 17, 2025 Out of the Gaza Strip's population of more than two million, about 1 000 are Christians. Most of them are Orthodox, but according to the Latin Patriarchate, there are about 135 Catholics in the territory. Pope Francis repeatedly called for an end to the war, which erupted in October 2023. In his final Easter message, a day before his death on 21 April, he condemned the 'deplorable humanitarian situation' in the Palestinian territory. 'Totally unacceptable' Monsignor Pascal Gollnisch, the head of Catholic charity l'Oeuvre d'Orient, told AFP the raid was 'totally unacceptable'. He said: It is a place of worship. It is a Catholic church known for its peaceful attitude and for being a peacemaker. These are people who are at the service of the population. 'There was no strategic objective, there were no jihadists in this church. There were families, there were civilians.' More than 21 months of war have created dire humanitarian conditions for Gaza's population, displacing most residents at least once and triggering severe shortages of food and other essentials. The war was triggered by a Hamas attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1 219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Israel's retaliatory military offensive has killed at least 58 667 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency and other parties.
