IS purportedly releases video of raid aftermath

Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler was the first U.S. soldier killed in ground combat since America began its offensive against the terror group previous year.

“He was a hard-working, honest young man and a great family man”, Shamblin told the Herald.

American and Kurdish commandos raided an Isis (Islamic State) prison in Iraq yesterday, freeing about 70 captives believed to be facing “mass execution” and leaving one United States soldier dead, U.S. and Iraqi officials said. The mission was the most significant raid against Islamic State in months, and Warren said it had been requested by the Kurdistan Regional Government.

High school friends said Wheeler, who graduated from Muldrow High School in 1994, enlisted in the Army when he was 19.

Carter said the freed hostages recounted their experiences, adding that “we could see” graves next to the compound. “I think there’s a lot of pride in the fact that he died not just for his country but for mankind and for doing the right thing”.

The operation followed intelligence that Kurdish peshmerga fighters were being held in that compound, officials said. He said the plan was not for American troops to enter the prison compound or to get involved in direct combat.

April Isa, now an English teacher at Muldrow high school, graduated with Wheeler in a class of less than 100 students. “There is a lot of sadness here today, but there is also a lot of pride in the fact that he wasn’t afraid to do it”. “Whenever Josh was in town, Zack would take vacation to spend that time with him”, said City Administrator Monty Lenington. 20 Isis fighters were killed and all of the hostages freed. Authorities said the raiders killed and captured a number of militants and recovered what the Pentagon called a trove of valuable intelligence about the terrorist organization.

A memorial for Wheeler posted to the special operations website said he enlisted in the Army as an infantryman in May 1995.

Wheeler was a heavily decorated soldier, who earned 11 Bronze Star medals and numerous other praises during his 20-year career in the Army.

He received the Purple Heart posthumously.

The defense chief also noted that Wheeler’s death “reminds us of the dangers that the coalition forces confront in Iraq, but also of the important assistance they provide local forces as they lead the fight against a barbaric enemy”.