Marines get the Medal of Honor for this
I haven't been blogging the election this afternoon because I have been tending to urgent family business. In my reading to catch up with the news, I spotted this entry:

From a source in the Iraqi Ministry of Interior:

Baghdad Police HQ reported that at 1200 hrs today, Police Constable Abd al Amir was killed in the line of duty at the Khalil bin Walid Polling Center in the Yarmuk section of Baghdad. Abd al Amir identified a suspicious man wearing an explosives belt, and immediately tackled him, shielding the lines of voters with his body, and dying instantly when the terrorist detonated his belt.

In the US military, sacrificing oneself like this is usually recognized by the presentation of the Medal of Honor to the next of kin. For example, Marine Pfc. Richard Anderson, who "fearlessly chose to sacrifice himself and save his companions by hurling his body upon the grenade and taking the full impact of the explosion" while serving with the 4th Marine Division on Roi Island, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, 1 February 1944.

However, Police Constable Abd al Amir cannot be awarded the MOH by the US government, for only members of the US military are eligible for the award. One hopes he will be appropriately memorialized by the new Iraqi government.

by Donald Sensing, 1/30/2005 06:11:58 PM. Permalink |