Military confirms Phila. man, 27, killed in Afghanistan

Military authorities yesterday confirmed the death of Philadelphia native Staff Sgt. William D. Vile, who was killed Friday in an insurgent attack in Afghanistan.

The Armed Forces Medical Examiner positively identified the remains of Vile, 27, whose unit was attacked near the village of Nishagam in Konar Province along the Pakistan border in northeastern Afghanistan, officials said.

Two other soldiers were killed in the attack. Konar Province has a reputation for being one of the most dangerous places in the Afghan war zone. American soldiers call it "enemy central."

A relative of Vile's, who asked not to be named, said last night that the staff sergeant's mother was notified by the Department of Defense on Friday that her son may have been killed in an explosion.

The relative said it was Vile's fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan.

Vile's distraught mother, Donna Vile, declined to comment last night. She was at home in her second-story rowhouse apartment in Bridesburg awaiting news about her son.

Vile, who grew up in the city, enlisted in 1999 and was awarded two Purple Heart medals among other commendations and the Expert Infantryman Badge, a military spokeswoman said.

He was last assigned to the First Brigade, First Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kan. He trained for 60 days at Fort Riley to serve as an adviser to Afghan security forces. He was deployed to Afghanistan last summer.

A 2007 report from Fort Drum, N.Y., shows that Vile graduated from a "warrior leader course" with the 10th Mountain Division.

Also killed by direct fire in the attack were Sgt. James D. Pirtle, 21, of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Spec. Ryan C. King, 22, of Dallas, Ga. Both men were assigned to the First Infantry Division's Special Troops Battalion, Third Brigade Combat Team, at Fort Hood, Texas.

Stars and Stripes, an independent newspaper that serves the U.S. military community, reported yesterday that officials said the three soldiers were with Afghan and international forces when they were attacked by insurgents with small-arms and rocket-propelled grenades.

Because Vile was believed to have been killed in the attack, Vile's family was allowed to travel to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware for the return of the remains.

Vile had been listed by the Defense Department as "duty status whereabouts unknown" because his remains had yet to be positively identified.

There have been 52 American casualties in Afghanistan this year and 682 since Operation Enduring Freedom started in 2001, according to iCasualties.org, which chronicles on its Web site (http://icasualties.org/) casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan.