Joshua D. Betten

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star Medal to Joshua D. Betten, Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving with Company A, 3d Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne), during combat operations in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM, during Operation Anaconda on 5 March 2003. On that date Sergeant First Class Betten, together with Sergeant First Class Andrew Lewis, departed their fire base on the border of Afghanistan for a planned six-day, two-man sniper/observer mission, intended to provide early warning to their base and to interdict enemy infiltration. The two men prepared a night position about 1,600 meters from the base. Soon they were engaged by a large force of the enemy, moving on their position. Sergeant Lewis fired a claymore mine and set to cover their position, eliminating on attacker and then shot a second one with his pistol. Simultaneously, Sergeant Betten opened fire on other enemy soldiers, killing three of them. The team was quickly under fire from two sides and they were forced to cover each other as one reloaded and the other fired. At one point enemy soldiers were so close that Sergeant Lewis threw three grenades, finally breaking up the direct attack, though they remained under constant fire, while Sergeant Lewis was in constant communication with their base, which advised the two men that it would be 10 minutes before a relief force could arrive. When the two soldiers tried to move to a less exposed position, they came under machine gun fire from two directions. After expending all their rifle ammunition and with only their pistols, the two men slid 500 meters down a canyon cliff where they found cover while waiting for the relief force composed of other Special Forces members and Afghanistan soldiers. Once rescued, their report made it obvious that a large force was massing to attack the base. The quick and determined actions of these two soldiers gave enough advanced warning that the base was spared an attack. Both men defended not only each other, but all of the men in the base by their quick and effective actions by their bravery and quick response in the face of an overwhelming enemy assault. Sergeant First Class Betten’s actions are in keeping with the finest traditions of military heroism and reflect distinct credit upon himself, this Command, and the United States Army.