A couple of our special knives...
Posted on 02/26/2005 5:53:00 PM PST by doug from upland
Iowa Marine may be candidate for Medal of Honor
Associated Press
Saturday, February 26, 2005, 2:59:02 PM
DES MOINES -- An Iowa Marine is receiving widespread praise for his bravery after leading a daring rescue mission in Iraq last fall. Sgt. Brad Kasal, of Afton, said he learned three fellow Marines were wounded inside an enemy-controlled house during house-to-house battles with insurgents in Fallujah on Nov. 13.
"The insurgents would kill them, or worse -- torture them and then kill them, so time was essential," Kasal said. "So I gathered up a bunch of young Marines and tried to enter the building to rescue them."
Kasal, 38, was shot seven times after leading his men into the house, and he suffered more than 40 shrapnel wounds after he bear-hugged a wounded Marine inside to protect him from a grenade explosion. He killed one enemy fighter in an exchange of rifle fire at point-blank range.
One Marine died in the rescue mission, but the other Americans came out alive.
More than three months later, a photo of the bloodied Kasal, still clutching his 9 mm handgun as he is helped by two fellow Marines from the Fallujah house, is displayed on dozens of Web sites.
An online newsletter published by the nonprofit Soldiers for the Truth reports it has learned that Kasal and another Marine could become the first Marine Corps recipients of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War.
The Medal of Honor is the nation's highest decoration for heroism in combat, and it requires the approval of Congress after extensive scrutiny by military officials.
Kasal's family and friends in Iowa said they are aware of talk that the Iowan may receive the Medal of Honor, and they are elated he may be under consideration.
"I'm damn proud, that's how I feel," said Gerald Kasal, 67, the serviceman's father. Kasal was raised on a family farm near Afton in southern Iowa.
A spokesman for the Marine Corps declined comment.
Kasal, who graduated from East Union High School in 1984, always wanted to join the Marines, friends say. He has spent the past 20 years in the Marines, including two tours in Iraq, stints in Somalia and Afghanistan, and many other overseas operations.
After Kasal was severely wounded in Iraq in November, he was transported to military hospitals in Germany and Maryland, where doctors worked to repair his shattered right leg and to remove shrapnel from his body.
Kasal lost about 4 inches of leg bone after being struck repeatedly by bullets from an AK-47 assault rifle, and he still faces a bone-grafting operation in about a month. He is recuperating at his home in Oceanside, Calif., near the Camp Pendleton Marine base.
He hopes to be mostly healed in about three to four months, but for now he must use a wheelchair and crutches.
"The support has been astounding from the Marine Corps and friends," said Kasal, who was a senior leader for about 170 Marines with Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. "I get a lot of letters and cards of well wishes."
The incident occurred on the fifth day of the assault on Fallujah, known as Operation Phantom Fury. There had been heavy street fighting the previous day, and the Marines were entering the most dangerous part of Fallujah.
Kasal led his men as they moved down the street, clearing one house after another. A wounded Marine told Kasal that he and three comrades had gone into a building full of enemy fighters and all of the Americans were wounded, but he was the only one who made it out.
Kasal rounded up a half-dozen other men to storm the two-story brick and stucco house. The men barged into the house and found several dead insurgents on the floor, along with a wounded Marine.
Kasal and another Marine, Pfc. Alexander Nicoll, then went to clear a room that hadn't been checked yet, and Kasal began peering around the doorway to avoid exposing himself.
He found himself almost face-to-face with an enemy fighter who yelled something in Arabic and fired a burst from his rifle. The bullets missed Kasal, and he was able to get his M-16 rifle over the top of the enemy fighter's weapon.
"I shoved it into his chest and just started pulling the trigger. I kept pulling the trigger, about seven or eight times until he finally went down. Then I put two more rounds into his forehead just to make sure he was dead," Kasal said.
Somewhere behind him an insurgent opened fire with an automatic weapon. A hail of bullets struck Kasal in his lower right leg, and he heard Nicoll scream from being hit by gunfire. Kasal, who was crawling to safety, went back to grab Nicoll and was shot again, this time in the buttocks.
Kasal began treating Nicoll's wounds. As he wrestled with Nicoll's protective vest, he saw a hand grenade about 4 feet away with the pin pulled. Kasal rolled on top of Nicoll and pushed him down, absorbing most of the grenade blast.
After about 30 minutes, other Marines made their way into the house from a different direction. Eventually, the Marines reached Kasal and Nicoll, carrying both to safety, although Nicoll later had his lower right leg amputated.
Killed in the assault was Marine Sgt. Byron Norwood, 25, of Pflugerville, Texas, whose parents were recognized by Bush in his State of the Union address.
Point Blank! I sure hope that they adopt that .280 or a .30 service rifle ASAP. This kind of thing is just BS. 22's are best used on squirrels.
Uncommon valor appears common among these fine young men!
A couple of our special knives...
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