President bestows the Medal of Honor to SSG Salvatore Giunta

November 16, 2010 · By Jerry Castillo

SSG Salvatore A Giunta

SSG Salvatore A Giunta

Nov. 16, 2010 White House, President Barack Obama awarded the Medal of Honor to Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta for extraordinary bravery in the face of almost death. Giunta is the first living recipient of the award since the Vietnam War.

During the ceremony, President Barack Obama broke from his written speech to say, “I really like this guy,” about Giunta. His remark was met with laughter and applause.

The official citation reads:

Then-Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta distinguished himself by acts of gallantry at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifle team leader with Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment during combat operations against an armed enemy in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan on October 25, 2007. When an insurgent force ambush split Specialist Giunta’s squad into two groups, he exposed himself to enemy fire to pull a comrade back to cover. Later, while engaging the enemy and attempting to link up with the rest of his squad, Specialist Giunta noticed two insurgents carrying away a fellow soldier. He immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other, and provided medical aid to his wounded comrade while the rest of his squad caught up and provided security. His courage and leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon’s ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American paratrooper from enemy hands.

The film below is RESTREPO, the Salvatore Giunta story, a film by Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington

The Sal Giunta Story from Sebastian Junger on Vimeo.

Below is a news story as seen on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams interviewing SSG Salvatore Giunta.

One Response

  1. Tweets that mention President bestows the Medal of Honor to SSG Salvatore Giunta | USFallen.org -- Topsy.com

    November 16th, 2010 at 4:40 PM

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    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Carlos Niebla and USFALLENORG, AllMilitaryNews. AllMilitaryNews said: (USFallen.org) President bestows the Medal of Honor to SSG Salvatore Giunta: Nov. 16, 2010 White House… http://bit.ly/bIZy5N #Military [...]


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