[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 14, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H300-H301]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1930
HONORING CORPORAL JONATHAN YALE AND LANCE CORPORAL JORDAN HAERTER
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Corporal Jonathan Yale
and Lance Corporal Jordan Haerter, who grew up in different parts of
this Nation but gave their lives to this country together in Iraq. Both
have been nominated for the Navy Cross for their actions on April 22,
2008, and both are owed a great gratitude by this Nation for their
actions.
Tony Perry--a journalist who I got to know in Fallujah in 2004--from
the LA Times, who has covered this story, describes what transpired
that morning best. Corporal Jonathan Yale, 21, grew up in poor rural
Virginia. He had joined the Marine Corps to put structure in his life
and to help support his mother and sister. He was within a few days of
heading home.
Lance Corporal Jordan Haerter, 19, was from a comfortable middle
class suburb on Long Island. As a boy, he had worn military garb and he
had felt the pull of adventure and patriotism. He had just arrived in
Iraq.
On April 22, 2008, the two were assigned to guard the main gate to
Joint Security Station Nasser in Ramadi, the capital of the Anbar
province, once an insurgent stronghold, and still a very dangerous
place. Dozens of marines and Iraqi police lived at the compound and
some were still sleeping after all-night patrols when Yale and Haerter
reported for duty that warm, sultry morning. Yale, respected for his
quiet, efficient manner, was assigned to show Haerter how to take over
his duties. Haerter had volunteered to watch the main gate, even though
it was considered the most hazardous of the compound's three guards
station because it could be approached from a busy thoroughfare.
The sun had barely risen when the two sentries spotted a 20-foot long
truck headed toward the gate, weaving with increasing speed through the
concrete barriers to the gate. Two Iraqi police officers ran for their
lives, so did several Iraqi police on the adjacent street. Yale and
Haerter tried to waive off this truck, but it just kept coming. They
opened fire, Yale with the machine gun, Haerter with an M-16. Their
bullets peppered the radiator and windshield. The truck slowed, but
kept rolling. A few dozen feet from the gate the big truck exploded.
Investigators found that it was loaded with over 2,000 pounds of
explosives and that its driver, his hand on a ``dead-man switch,'' was
determined to commit suicide and slaughter the marines and Iraqi
police.
The thunderous explosion rocked much of Ramadi, interrupting the
morning call to prayers for many mosques. A nearby mosque and a home
were flattened. The blast ripped a crater five feet deep and 20 feet
across into the street. Shards of concrete shattered everywhere, and
choking dust filled the air.
Haerter was dead, Yale was dying. Three marines about 300 feet away
were injured, so were eight Iraqi police and two dozen civilians, but
several dozen other nearby marines and Iraqi police, while shaken, were
unhurt.
Mr. Speaker, we all hope that in times of great crisis, we will rise
to the occasion and do the right thing. Haerter and Yale rose to the
occasion and defended their fellow Marines. It is an honor to call them
fellow Marines.
Major General John Kelly, Commanding General, First Marine
Expeditionary Force (Forward) interviewed the witnesses himself. What
he learned from these interviews led him to nominate the two for the
Navy Cross, the second highest award for combat bravery for the Marine
Corps and the United States Navy. In General Kelly's statement in
support of the Navy Cross, he writes: ``Because they did what they did,
only 2 families had their hearts broken on 22 April, rather than as
many as 50. These families will never know how truly close they came to
a knock on their door that night.''
We are winning in Iraq and Afghanistan because of brave Marines like
Corporal Jonathan T. Yale and Lance Corporal Jordan D. Haerter. To
their families I offer my heartfelt condolences. And to Corporal Yale
and Corporal Haerter, I say, Marines, job well done.
This is but one example of the bravery and sacrifice of over 4,000
men and women who have given their lives to the cause of liberty since
2001 and the over 1.5 million men and women who have served in
Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom and come home,
and, of course, the over 150,000 that are serving now.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to include for the Record Tony Perry's
entire article and Major General Kelly's statement in support of the
award of the Navy Cross. I encourage all of my colleague and hope all
Americans will read about these two brave Marines and keep their
families in their prayers.
[[Page H301]]
[From Los Angeles Times Dec. 29, 2008]
A Speeding Truck Bomb, and A Shared Act Of Courage
(By Tony Perry)
San Diego.--Two Marines in Iraq saved dozens--but not
themselves. They'll be awarded the Navy Cross. They had known
each other only a few minutes, but they will be linked
forever in what Marine brass say is one of the most
extraordinary acts of courage and sacrifice in the Iraq war.
Cpl. Jonathan Yale, 21, grew up poor in rural Virginia. He
had joined the Marine Corps to put structure in his life and
to help support his mother and sister. He was within a few
days of heading home.
Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, 19, was from a comfortably
middle-class suburb on Long Island. As a boy, he had worn
military garb, and he had felt the pull of adventure and
patriotism. He had just arrived in Iraq.
On April 22, the two were assigned to guard the main gate
to Joint Security Station Nasser in Ramadi, the capital of
Anbar province, once an insurgent stronghold and still a
dangerous region. Dozens of Marines and Iraqi police lived at
the compound, and some were still sleeping after all-night
patrols when Yale and Haerter reported for duty that warm,
sultry morning.
Yale, respected for his quiet, efficient manner, was
assigned to show Haerter how to take over his duties.
Haerter had volunteered to watch the main gate, even though
it was considered the most hazardous of the compound's three
guard stations because it could be approached from a busy
thoroughfare.
The sun had barely risen when the two sentries spotted a
20-foot-long truck headed toward the gate, weaving with
increasing speed through the concrete barriers. Two Iraqi
police officers assigned to the gate ran for their lives.
So did several Iraqi police on the adjacent street.
Yale and Haerter tried to wave off the truck, but it kept
coming. They opened fire, Yale with a machine gun, Haerter
with an M-16. Their bullets peppered the radiator and
windshield. The truck slowed but kept rolling.
A few dozen feet from the gate, the truck exploded.
Investigators found that it was loaded with 2,000 pounds of
explosives and that its driver, his hand on a ``dead-man
switch,'' was determined to commit suicide and slaughter
Marines and Iraqi police.
The thunderous explosion rocked much of Ramadi,
interrupting the morning call to prayers from the many
mosques. A nearby mosque and a home were flattened. The blast
ripped a crater 5 feet deep and 20 feet across into the
street. Shards of concrete scattered everywhere, and choking
dust filled the air.
Haerter was dead; Yale was dying. Three Marines about 300
feet away were injured. So were eight Iraqi police and two
dozen civilians. But several dozen other nearby Marines and
Iraqi police, while shaken, were unhurt. A Black Hawk
helicopter was summoned in a futile attempt to get Yale to a
field hospital in time. A sheet was placed over Haerter.
When it was considered safe to take Haerter's body to a
second helicopter, his section leader insisted he be covered
by an American flag. ``We did not want him carried out with
just a sheet,'' said Staff Sgt. Kenneth Grooms.
Maj. Gen. John Kelly, the top Marine in Iraq, wanted to
know how the attack happened. Like many veteran Marines, he
is haunted by the memory of the 1983 bombing of the barracks
in Beirut, when a blast from an explosives-laden truck killed
241 U.S. service personnel, including 220 Marines.
Not given to dark thoughts or insecurities, Kelly, who
commanded Marines in the fight for Baghdad and Tikrit in 2003
and Fallouja in 2004, admits that the specter of another
Beirut gives him nightmares as he commands the 22,000 Marines
in Iraq. He went to Ramadi to interview Iraqi witnesses--a
task generals usually delegate to subordinates. Some Iraqis
told him they were incredulous that the two Marines had not
fled. When Marine technicians restored a damaged security
camera, the images were undeniable.
While Iraqi police fled, Haerter and Yale had never
flinched and never stopped firing as the Mercedes truck--the
same model used in the Beirut bombing--sped directly toward
them.
Without their steadfastness, the truck would probably have
penetrated the compound before it exploded, and 50 or more
Marines and Iraqis would have been killed. The incident
happened in just six seconds.
``No time to talk it over; no time to call the lieutenant;
no time to think about their own lives or even the American
and Iraqi lives they were protecting,'' Kelly said. ``More
than enough time, however, to do their duty. They never
hesitated or tried to escape.''
Yale was always trying to boost the morale of his buddies,
said Lance Cpl. Brandon Creely, 21, of Boise, Idaho.
``Whenever I was down, he'd tell a joke, tell me it's not as
bad as it seems.''
Staff Sgt. Grooms, 28, said he knows how Haerter should be
remembered. ``He was a hero,'' Grooms said, ``and a damn fine
person.''
____
Statement of Major General John F. Kelly, USMC--In support of the Navy
Cross Recommendations in the Cases of Corporal Jonathan T. Yale, USMC
and Lance Corporal Jordan C. Haerter, USMC
The following statement is a compilation of events from my personal
interview of several Iraqi police men, view for a video tape of the
entire event capture by the Joint Security Station's (JSS) security
camera, and walking the site.
At 0745C on 22 April 2008, Joint Security Station, JSS,
Nasser, Ramadi, Iraq, was attacked by a very large truck bomb
with an estimate explosive weight over 2,000 lbs. The truck
was driven by a suicide bomber who was consumed in the blast.
At the time two battalions, 1st Battalion 9th Marines and 2
Battalion 8th marines were conducting a relief in place at
JSS Nasser. The JSS by its nature who housed a relatively
large number of Iraqi police. At the time of the attack two
Marines, Corporal Jonathan T. Yale and Lance Corporal Jordan
C. Haerter were standing post at the entry control point
(ECP-- along with two Iraqi policemen. At least 8 other Iraqi
policemen were also on duty about 60m away at the
intersection (Routes Apple and Sophia) of a busy city street,
and the entrance alley to the JSS in the Sophia District of
Ramadi.
Without warning a Mercedes tank truck made the turn and
immediately accelerated negotiating the serpentine careening
towards the entryway of the JSS compound. The Marines
undoubtedly understood immediately what was taking place as
they went straight to the guns without any escalation of
force firing continuously until the truck lurched to a stop
just outside the compound's gate, and literally a few feet
from the Marines, when it detonated. Both Marines were killed
still firing their weapons. Three Marines were also wounded
over 100m from the event, as were at least eight Iraqi
officers and 24 civilians. A nearby mosque and house were
both destroyed, with a number of others houses suffering
significant damage. The blast crater measured 20 feet in
diameter and five feet deep. At the time of the attack, and
because of the ongoing relief in place, there were over 50
Marines on site with a similar number of Iraqi police
officers. It was only due to the bravery of the two Marines
that a catastrophe was averted, but that is exactly why they
were there to prevent such a bomb from entering the compound
and they did exactly that.
When interviewing several police officers separately on 25
April at the JSS they all told essentially the same story.
When the truck turned down the entryway to the JSS the tip
off that it was not an innocent delivery was that it
accelerated through the concrete Jersey walls. The Marines on
station immediately began to fire then some of the police
joined in. One of the officers made the point that no sane
man would have stood there and fired--yet two men did.
Another said he knew the Marines were crazy (he meant
fearless I think), but this was beyond what he'd seen Marines
do even when he was fighting us as an insurgent two years
before. A third who was no more than 15 feet from the two
Marines when the truck turned into the alley ran to safety in
the few seconds it took the truck to negotiate the 60 m to
the gate (caught on tape). He survived. He told me when he
observed the truck accelerating and the Marines firing he ran
but the Marines did not. All were in agreement that had the
Marines not stood their ground to their deaths the truck
would have wiped out the JSS and everyone in it.
Subsequent to my taking these interviews I viewed a video
of the entire event captured by our surveillance camera at
the entryway of the JSS. It took several days to forensically
recover the images from the badly damaged camera. I did not
know either one of the hero's, but I have known thousands
like them in my career. They will do anything we ask them to
do--even to their deaths. Like the police officers they could
have run and likely survived, but did not. I do not think
anyone would have called them cowards if they had. They took
seriously the duties and responsibilities of a Marine on
post, and stood their ground before they would allow anyone
or anything to pass. For their dedication they lost their
lives. Because they did what they did only 2 families had
their hearts broken on 22 April, rather than as many as 50.
These families will never know how truly close they came to a
knock on the door that night.
John F. Kelly,
Major General, U.S. Marine Corps Commanding General, I Marine
Expeditionary Force (Forward).
____________________