Medal of Honor for Army Capt. Will Swenson will make two for same battle

Second Ganjgal Medal of Honor case alive
By Dan Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Sep 15, 2011 19:16:10 EDT

ROB CURTIS / STAFF Former Army Capt. Will Swenson, center in red tie, is shown Sept. 15 at a White House ceremony where Dakota Meyer was presented the Medal of Honor by President Obama. Swenson is now being considered for the Medal of Honor, according to an officer who was with Task Force Mountain Warrior, the brigade that oversaw Swenson’s unit during the 2009 battle at Ganjgal.

A former Army captain has been recommended for the Medal of Honor, having played a vital role two years ago countering an ambush in eastern Afghanistan and braving enemy fire to help retrieve the bodies of three fallen Marines and a corpsman.

Will Swenson, who left active duty in February, was put up for the nation’s highest combat valor award for his actions during the Sept. 8, 2009, battle in the remote village of Ganjgal, according to an officer who was with Task Force Mountain Warrior, the brigade that oversaw Swenson’s unit.

Swenson worked alongside then-Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer, who received the Medal of Honor on Thursday for actions in the same battle. Swenson was at the White House for that ceremony.

If Swenson is awarded the Medal of Honor, it would mark the first time two service members received it for the same battle since the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993. The actions in that firefight were outlined in the movie and book “Black Hawk Down.”

Approval of Swenson’s award had apparently stalled, but it received new scrutiny last month by Marine Gen. John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The second look came after rampant speculation as to why Swenson had not received an award for valor.
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