A Navy SEAL who led a mission to rescue a stranded teammate while engaging in a firefight “against the tenacious and more heavily armed enemy forces” on a snowy mountaintop in Afghanistan is set to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
The White House announced Monday that President Trump will present the award to Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Britt K. Slabinski on May 24.
On March 4, 2002, the now-retired SEAL was in charge of a reconnaissance team that was assigned to a snow-covered 10,000-foot peak in the Middle Eastern country to support a coalition offensive against Al Qaeda in the valley below, the White House said.
But as members of Slabinski’s team was setting up their position, they came under fire from enemy fighters hidden in the area. One of his teammates fell out of a helicopter, which ended up crash landing in the valley.
“Then-Senior Chief Slabinski boldly rallied his remaining team and organized supporting assets for a daring assault back to the mountain peak in an attempt to rescue their stranded teammate,” the White House said. “Later, after a second enemy-opposed insertion, then-Senior Chief Slabinski led his six-man joint team up a snow-covered hill, in a frontal assault against two bunkers under withering enemy fire from three directions.” – READ MORE
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