President Bush publicly honored a fallen Navy SEAL by presenting his grieving parents with the Medal of Honor, and privately honored their sacrifice by wearing a dog tag they’d given him.
The president posthumously awarded the nation’s highest military honor for valor to Lt. Michael Murphy of Patchogue, New York. He is the first person to receive the Medal of Honor from combat in Afghanistan.
Murphy, Luttrell and two other SEALs were searching for a terrorist when their mission was compromised after they were spotted by locals, who presumably alerted the Taliban to their presence.
An intense gun battle ensued, with more than 50 anti-coalition fighters swarming around the outnumbered SEALs.
Although wounded, Murphy is credited with risking his own life by moving into the open for a better position to transmit a call for help.
Still under fire, Murphy provided his unit’s location and the size of the enemy force. At one point he was shot twice in the back, causing him to drop the mobile phone. Murphy picked it back up, completed the call and continued firing at the enemy who was closing in.
He then returned to his cover position with his men and continued the battle. A U.S. helicopter sent to rescue the men was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, killing all 16 aboard. It was the worst single-day death toll for U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
By the end of the two-hour gunfight, Murphy and two of his comrades were also dead. An estimated 35 Taliban were also killed. Luttrell was blown over a ridge and knocked unconscious. He escaped, and was protected by local villagers for several days before he was rescued.
Murphy, who died before his 30th birthday, is the fourth Navy SEAL to earn the award and the first since the Vietnam War.
Two Medals of Honor have been awarded posthumously in the Iraq war: to Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham, who was killed in 2004 after covering a grenade with his helmet, and to Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith, who was killed in 2003 after holding off Iraqi forces with a machine gun before he was killed at the Baghdad airport.
We highly recommend everyone read the book written by Marcus Luttrell, the lone survivor of this covert mission in Afghanistan. He tells all about his friend and comrade Lt. Michael Murphy and the entire mission known as “Operation Red Wing.”
Lt. Michael Murphy and his SEAL team are are true American heroes and deserve to be recognized.
-The Hot Joints Staff
