A soldier from Northern Virginia died on the battlefield in Afghanistan.
Army Specialist Douglas Jay Green, 23, of Sterling died Sunday when insurgents attacked his unit in the Kandahar Province. Green was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment,
1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Wainwright, Alaska.
The Department of Defense said Green's unit was attacked with improvised explosive devices and small arms fire.
Specialist Green had been in Afghanistan since April. Previously, he served a tour of duty in Iraq.
August has become the deadliest month for U.S. troops in the nearly 10-year-old war in Afghanistan, where international forces have started to go home and let Afghan forces take charge of securing their country.
This month, 66 U.S. troops have died, eclipsing the 65 killed in July 2010, according to a tally by The Associated Press.
