Giunta Joins Pentagon's Hall of Heroes

By Terri Moon Cronk
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2010 - Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore A. Giunta's decision to risk his life so others could live placed him "squarely among the most magnificent of those worthy of this honor," Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today as the nation's first living Medal of Honor recipient in 40 years was inducted into the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes.
Giunta, then a specialist, was a 22-year-old rifle team leader serving in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley with the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team's Company B, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, when insurgents attacked his squad in October 2007. When approaching insurgents formed an L-shaped ambush, splitting Giunta's squad into two groups, Giunta braved enemy fire to pull a squad member back to cover.
President Barack Obama awarded Giunta the Medal of Honor yesterday in a White House ceremony.
"The Medal of Honor, our nation's highest award for valor, recognizes those who distinguish themselves conspicuously by gallantry, intrepidity at risk of their lives above and beyond the call of duty," Gates said at the Hall of Heroes ceremony. "All too often, those who meet that high standard do so at the cost of their lives -- this has been especially true of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. So it is indeed an occasion of great thankfulness and celebration when we can welcome one of these warriors home."
Giunta saved a second soldier while trying to connect with the other half of his squad. He saw two insurgents carrying off the second squad member and recovered him while shooting and killing one enemy fighter and wounding and driving off others. Giunta administered medical aid to the wounded soldier, but in spite of his efforts, the soldier died the next day during surgery.
"While we can never fail or forget to honor the fallen," Gates said, "we also need living heroes -- heroes who overcame every fear, every obstacle, to inspire, to teach and ennoble us by what they have done. Heroes like Sal Giunta.
"I say this because we're in the tenth year of a conflict fought on distant shores, waged by the few for the sake of the many," Gates continued. "A complex, and at times, a confusing struggle against enemies that lurk among the innocent, it is a conflict that lacks the traditional battle lines, clash of armies and clear-cut definition associated in the public mind with major wars."
Yet the fundamental nature of war, Gates added, and the role of individual selflessness, initiative and courage do not change.
Gates told Giunta he saw a television interview this week in which Giunta called himself "just a middleman ... representing all those who have served and sacrificed in Iraq and Afghanistan."
"Sergeant, your modesty and your humility, together with valor, truly sets you apart," Gates said. "Though you call yourself 'mediocre,' you are clearly exceptional, even among the fellow warriors you so graciously extolled."
More importantly, Gates told Giunta, "You are a living example, a reminder to America that there are heroes, modern heroes, who live and walk among us -- heroes who are still fighting and dying to protect us every day.
"Your valor and courage for your comrades and the entire generation of warriors you so ably represent offers enduring hope for the future of our country," Gates said.
 

Related Sites:
Staff Sgt. Salvatore A. Giunta, Medal of Honor
Related Articles:
President Awards Medal of Honor to Army Staff Sergeant

Coalition, Afghans Whittle Down Insurgent Leadership

Coalition, Afghans Whittle Down Insurgent Leadership Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2010 - Coalition and Afghan forces are increasing their efforts to remove insurgent leaders from the fight in Afghanistan, and Afghan security forces are growing in their operational leadership, military officials reported. Afghan and coalition forces today confirmed the capture of another of Helmand province's Taliban leaders and two additional suspects during a combined operation in the Nawah-ye Barakzai district on Nov. 15. The targeted man, who recently returned from Pakistan, was trying to provide leadership to Taliban members in Nawah after security forces detained the previous district leader Oct. 18. He is believed to have planned attacks against Afghan and coalition security members and to have supplied roadside-bomb components to insurgents. The suspect also has maintained close ties to other Taliban leaders, officials said. Recent reports indicate the detainee also was involved in planning an upcoming large-scale attack, and thus posed an immediate threat. Two additional suspects were detained in the operation. In other operations: -- Combined forces detained a Taliban bombing cell leader and two additional suspects in the Arghandab district of Kandahar last night. The detainee is believed responsible for leading attacks against Afghan and coalition forces, and reportedly was involved in kidnapping and threatening local civilians. -- A combined force yesterday captured a Haqqani terrorist network leader involved in planning suicide-bomber attacks in the Afghan capital of Kabul. Using intelligence tips, the security force peacefully searched a compound in Khost province, where they detained the suspect and one of his associates. The Haqqani leader is the second suspect linked to Kabul attacks captured this week, officials said. -- A coalition force killed two insurgents in Helmand's Garm Ser district yesterday. The force watched the men for more than 30 minutes as they dug along a foot path commonly used by ISAF and Afghan forces in an area where seven roadside bombs have been found in the last four days. A combined Afghan and ISAF team is investigating if any the men may have worked with insurgents. Also, military officials report that an Afghan-led operation in Helmand's Nahr-e Saraj district has driven a wedge in the middle of Taliban operations there. Working with an elite Irish military unit and British advisors, the Afghan unit pushed through the village of Saidan toward an area designated for a patrol base to be built. Afghan army Capt. Mohammad Tahir, company commander of the unit, said his soldiers' progress has put the district in a very important security position. "If we build a strong presence in this region, we will be able to provide better security for the Gereshk district and stop the Taliban traffic through the area," he said. The combined forces found many roadside bombs in the area and struck one of them, said British Capt. Ashley P.R. Hough, officer in charge of the mentoring team. "That didn't slow us down too much –- the [Afghan soldiers] were ... excellent," he said. "We extracted the casualties and they carried straight on, so we were up on to the hill exactly as planned." As the operation came to an end, the soldiers increased their security posture in the region and closed down a large open area previously available to the Taliban. "I see the next couple of months spent getting to know the locals, getting to know the ground, understanding the dynamics of what's going on here, where the Taliban is, and how we can isolate them from the population," Hough said. Having the patrol base established and more soldiers from the Irish Guards coming to partner with the Afghan army, there are high hopes for the small area in the district. "We can't predict the future," Tahir said. "But I think the future is very bright for us because of the continued support of the people in the area and because of the determination our soldiers have in building security."

Related Sites: NATO International Security Assistance Force