Posted on 10/15/2006 5:45:42 AM PDT by RDTF
A Navy SEAL sacrificed his life to save his comrades by throwing himself on top of a grenade Iraqi insurgents tossed into their sniper hideout, fellow members of the elite force said.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor had been near the only door to the rooftop structure Sept. 29 when the grenade hit him in the chest and bounced to the floor, said four SEALs who spoke to The Associated Press this week on condition of anonymity because their work requires their identities to remain secret.
"He never took his eye off the grenade, his only movement was down toward it," said a 28-year-old lieutenant who sustained shrapnel wounds to both legs that day. "He undoubtedly saved mine and the other SEALs' lives, and we owe him."
Monsoor, a 25-year-old gunner, was killed in the explosion in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. He was only the second SEAL to die in Iraq since the war began.
Two SEALs next to Monsoor were injured; another who was 10 to 15 feet from the blast was unhurt. The four had been working with Iraqi soldiers providing sniper security while U.S. and Iraqi forces conducted missions in the area.
snip
Prior to his death, Monsoor had already demonstrated courage under fire. He has been posthumously awarded the Silver Star for his actions May 9 in Ramadi, when he and another SEAL pulled a team member shot in the leg to safety while bullets pinged off the ground around them.
Monsoor's funeral was held Thursday at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego. He has also been submitted for an award for his actions the day he died.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
ping
Sounds like a Medal of Honor candidate to me.
Thank GOD for men and women like these.
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Amen
A genuine hero. God bless and keep him.
Someone should send F'n Kerry this story...
BTTT
Ditto that Mary :-(
Thank GOD for men and women like these.
~~~~~~
Amen!
In this case the CMoH is almost a given. Awhile back, I studied all the CMoH citations for WWII: by far the largest category was, "Fell on grenade to save comrades" -- awarded posthumously.
IIRC, some actually had the presence of mind to remove their "steel pot" helmet, cover the grenade with it, and, then fall on top of the helmet. A few of those awards were actually received by live (but badly wounded) heroes.
Thank God for ALL our troops!
Can't you picture him waving and saying, "Hi, Mom!" in that photo?
For some reason, that was my first thought when I saw it.
What courage!
Condolences to his comrades, friends and family.
I am just in awe of them
thanks hegemony for pointing out this story on the middle east thread
You're right! No words can express the gratitude, or the grief for the loss!
God bless him, the entire US owes him.
No. The entire world owes him its gratitude.
I only hope and pray his death is not in vain.
Words cannot express what we feel for his heroic actions and for his family. God bless him and his family, God help us all.
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