Biden will award Medal of Honor to three US soldiers

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden volition grant the Medal of Honor adjacent week to 3 U.S. soldiers who fought successful the wars successful Afghanistan and Iraq, the White House said Friday.

The soldiers are Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Celiz, an Army Ranger who died aft stepping betwixt Taliban fighters and a U.S. chopper evacuating his chap soldiers successful 2018; Master Sgt. Earl Plumlee, a Special Forces worker who fought disconnected Taliban insurgents aft monolithic onslaught successful Afghanistan successful 2013; and Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe, 35, who suffered fatal injuries successful Iraq portion rescuing chap soldiers from a burning conveyance successful 2005.

The 3 volition beryllium recognized astatine a White House ceremonial connected Dec. 16.

Cashe volition go the archetypal Black U.S. work subordinate to person the Medal of Honor for actions since Vietnam, according to the White House.

He was connected patrol adjacent Samarra, Iraq successful October 2005 erstwhile the Bradley Fighting Vehicle helium was commanding was attacked with tiny arms occurrence and a roadside weaponry that acceptable it flame. Cashe pulled six chap soldiers from the burning wreckage and suffered devastating burns himself.

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Cashe, who grew up successful Oviedo, Florida, died from his burns astatine a Texas infirmary the pursuing month. Three of the soldiers helium pulled from the flaming conveyance besides perished.

Celiz, 32, was starring an cognition to wide an country of force forces successful Paktia Province, Afghanistan, erstwhile his squad came nether attack.

As a aesculapian evacuation chopper arrived to retrieve a casualty, it came nether sustained sustained force fire.

Celiz exposed himself to dense occurrence arsenic helium led the evacuation. As the casualty was loaded into the chopper and his squad returned to cover, Celiz remained astatine the chopper, returning occurrence and perpetually repositioning himself to shield to the craft and its crew.

As the chopper lifted off, Celiz was deed by force fire. Though injured, helium motioned to the craft to depart alternatively than stay to load him and hazard further casualties.

Celiz was a South Carolina autochthonal and had enlisted successful the Army successful 2006.

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Plumlee was serving astatine a basal successful Ghazni, Afghanistan, erstwhile it came nether monolithic attack, with insurgents blowing a sixty-foot breach successful the base’s perimeter wall.

Ten insurgents wearing Afghan National Army uniforms and termination vests poured done the breach. Plumlee and 5 Special Operations members mounted 2 vehicles and raced toward the tract of the detonation.

He killed 2 insurgents, 1 with a well-placed grenade and the different by utilizing precision sniper occurrence to detonate the insurgent’s termination vest. He engaged respective others astatine adjacent range.

At 1 constituent successful the battle, an insurgent detonated his termination vest, mortally wounding a chap U.S. soldier.

Plumlee ran to the wounded soldier, carried him to information and rendered archetypal aid.

He is presently serving with the 1st Special Forces Group astatine Fort Lewis, Washington.

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