Medal of Honor recipient Salvatore Giunta tells his story
| Washington
Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta recently became the first living soldier from the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan to be chosen to receive the Medal of Honor, America's highest award for valor. He spoke Wednesday to Pentagon reporters about the night of the attack, in which his 鈥渆xtraordinary bravery鈥� in battle, according to the White House, brought him to the attention of the nation.
Still, he contends, 鈥淚n this job, I am only mediocre. I鈥檓 average.
"This was a situation that we were put into,鈥� he says via a live video feed from Italy, where he is now stationed. 鈥淚 was just one brush stroke in that picture, and everyone else was one brush stroke in that picture. And what I wasn鈥檛 the first brush stroke of that picture, and it wasn鈥檛 the last brush stroke in that picture, and it wasn鈥檛 the best, it was just another brush stroke that helped, you know, complete this picture.鈥�
Here, in his own words, is his tale.
A day like any other, at first
The day began like any other day for a US soldier in Afghanistan, says Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta. His platoon was out on a multiday mission in the violent and rugged Korengal Valley of eastern Afghanistan. It鈥檚 an area the US military has since pulled out of, after deciding that the relatively low population density didn鈥檛 merit the heavy toll it was taking on the American soldiers who were serving at the small, vulnerable outposts there.
The mission for Giunta鈥檚 1st Platoon was to overwatch 2nd Platoon, which was in a village nestled in the valley below them. 鈥淵ou know,鈥� he said, 鈥渓et them know we鈥檙e here for them.鈥�
To do that, they planned to set up on the ridge line above the village. They moved out before daybreak, hiking for two hours and arriving at their outlook post just before dawn.
The day was quiet, for the most part. The troops were picking up chatter known as ICOM, or intelligence communication, coming from nearby insurgents in conversation with one another. It was chatter along the lines of, 鈥淭he enemy鈥檚 setting up. They're going to do something,鈥� recalled Giunta. 鈥淏ut I mean, as a soldier in Afghanistan, that 鈥� you expect that. You鈥檙e going to hear ICOM chatter that says all sorts of crazy, off-the-wall stuff. And be it true or not, I mean, that鈥檚 what we came there to do. We 鈥� we鈥檙e waiting for them.鈥�
So Giunta鈥檚 platoon was at its overlook post all day while 2nd Platoon spent time in the village, getting to know the elders.
As they were preparing to leave, the sun was setting over the mountains. 鈥淣ight鈥檚 falling, we have Apache attack helicopters above us, flying around, you know, covering us.鈥� The platoon was breaking down its equipment, the soldiers 鈥測ou know, giving hand-and-arm signals, letting everyone know what鈥檚 about to happen, that we鈥檙e going to move back to the Korengal outpost.鈥�
The soldiers pushed out. But between 50 to 100 meters from where they had been all day, they encountered an ambush.
'It all kind of goes blurry'
There were between 10 and 20 insurgents, Giunta told reporters. But in the midst of battle, he added, 鈥淚t all kind of goes blurry.鈥� Much of what followed, he said, was simply soldierly instinct.
鈥淭here wasn鈥檛 a whole lot of thinking that I needed to do. This is my job,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that we prepare for, because you have to train how you fight.鈥�
Giunta鈥檚 unit was staving off the L-shaped ambush in one direction, but Giunta instinctively went forward. Early in the ambush, Giunta had been shot in what soldiers call the SAPI, or small arms protective insert, plate 鈥� in other words, his bullet-proof vest. But that shot came from a different direction.
鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 from the direction that everyone else was shooting or I was shooting,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o, you know, there鈥檚 nothing to do with [the information] at that time, but that鈥檚 something to always keep in the back of your mind. And I definitely felt that I got hit from that direction.鈥�
Looking for Sergeant Brennan
Later, Giunta moved forward in the direction from which he had been shot, expecting to link up with a fellow soldier, Sgt. Josh Brennan. What he didn鈥檛 realize was that Brennan had been injured and was taken prisoner and being carried off by insurgents.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 run to do anything heroic or to save 鈥� to save Brennan,鈥� Giunta said. 鈥淏rennan, in my mind, wasn鈥檛 in trouble. I was just going to go up and I鈥檓 going to find Brennan and we鈥檙e going to shoot together, because it鈥檚 better to shoot with a buddy than be shooting alone.鈥�
He saved Brennan from being carried off by two insurgents, after killing one and injuring the second. Brennan died of his injuries, but the platoon was able to carry him out, back to his family. The platoon suffered deaths and casualties that day.
When Giunta learned he would be first living soldier in either the war in Iraq or Afghanistan to become the recipient of the nation鈥檚 highest award for valor, the Medal of Honor, Brennan鈥檚 father called to congratulate him. 鈥淚 keep in touch with Josh Brennan鈥檚 father. He鈥檚 a real stand-up guy,鈥� Giunta said. 鈥淎nd he鈥檚 expressed his gratitude to me which, you know, that鈥檚 kind of a hard one to stomach, because that鈥檚 still a loss. I鈥檓 glad that we could bring Josh back, but I wish it was under different circumstances.鈥�
After repelling the ambush, as the soldiers made their way back to their lonely Korengal outpost, 鈥渢here wasn鈥檛 a whole lot of even talking afterwards,鈥� Giunta said. 鈥淚 mean, just because all this happens, after the medevac bird comes in and starts picking people up, it鈥檚 not over. You鈥檙e not out of Afghanistan. You鈥檙e not off the side of the mountain. You鈥檙e just minus some buddies. And there鈥檚 no time to talk. You still have to complete the mission. And we鈥檙e still an hour-and-a-half walk away from where we needed to be, and now we have extra equipment and less men.鈥�
Who's a hero?
His parents, Giunta says, are proud of him. 鈥淢y parents were proud, and they鈥檝e expressed that throughout my whole life. Even, I don鈥檛 know, tying my shoes made them proud, riding my bike without my training wheels made them proud. They鈥檙e very 鈥� they鈥檙e very proud parents. And this was 鈥� this was one more thing.鈥�
Giunta's wife is proud of him, too. That doesn鈥檛 mean, however, that she looks forward to the day he might return to war, though the Pentagon often keeps Medal of Honor recipients from deploying again. 鈥淗aving your husband, your boyfriend, your son, your loved one get deployed and knowing that they鈥檙e going to be somewhere that鈥檚 dangerous, and you know that they鈥檙e without water, without electricity, it鈥檚 an awful feeling,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd you don鈥檛 want anything to happen to him, so why would you want him to go back again?鈥�
Giunta's actions during the harrowing events of Oct. 25, 2007, have made him a national hero. But as he prepares to receive America鈥檚 highest form of gratitude for a soldier, Giunta says he doesn鈥檛 necessarily feel like one. 鈥淚f I鈥檓 a hero, every man that stands around me, every woman in the military, everyone who goes into the unknown is a hero,鈥� he says. 鈥淪o if you think that鈥檚 a hero 鈥� as long as you include everyone with me.鈥�
