A member of the U.S. Army’s elite Delta Force, Wheeler was the first American to die in combat in Iraq in almost four years.
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But these Iraqi men were saved from their brutal captivity by a daring raid by US, Kurdish and Iraqi forces last week.
The operation also is “an example of a case where we could do something we alone had the capability to do”, Carter said. The combined force raided a makeshift IS prison in order to free a large number of hostages. Sixty-nine hostages were freed and more than 20 ISIS terrorists killed. U.S. Special Forces worked with Kurdish and Iraqi troops on the rescue mission, which the Kurdish Regional Government requested.
“However, when a fire fight ensued, this American did what I’m very proud that Americans do in that situation”, he said.
The raid cost the life of American Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, a Delta Force commando from Oklahoma.
The Department of Defense said Wheeler died from wounds caused by small-arms fire during the operation. The raid led to the death of one American soldier.
“They tortured us with electricity and put bags on our head until we could not breathe”, said Mohamed Hassan Abdulla, who is from the village of Alkhan in Kirkuk, where he was working in the police office. “But we do have people who are in harm’s way, and who evidently have shown a willingness to put themselves in harm’s way in order to have mission success”.
Since USA special operators are on the ground in several nations with which the U.S.is not at war working against ISIS, it is not clear that we the public would be told if one were killed in action.
The footage, captured by a Kurdish fighter’s helmet camera, shows the hostages crouching and running through the prison. “Thanks to the efforts of Kurdish and USA forces, we were rescued”. “It represents a continuation of our advise-and- assist mission”, he added.
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The fact is the Kurds have managed to consolidate control over their territory in Northern Iraq, while the Iraqi Army still has thousands of square miles to take back from ISIS. The Pentagon insists, however, this does not conflict with President Barack Obama’s assurances that the USA would not deploy “boots on the ground” to engage in combat.
