Virginia native dies three times, returns to Marjah
by Sgt. Earnest J. Barnes 2nd MarDiv
MARJAH DISTRICT, Helmand prov ince, Afghanistan — Some Marines involved in the battle for Marjah in 2010 say they stared death in the face. One Manassas, Va., native involved in the intense fighting not only stared death in the face, but shook its hand as well.
Lance Cpl. Matthew T. Earle, an assaultman with India Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, was critically wounded while conducting counterinsurgency operations in 2010, but lived to tell the story. Now he is back in Marjah, setting the example for his Marines.
Earle’s squad was conducting a patrol to assess how local residents felt about the insurgency and the coalition troops tasked with liberating the city of Marjah.
Pictured: Lance Cpl. Matthew T. Earle, a Manassas, Va., native and an assaultman with India Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, returned to Marjah just shy of a year after he was medically evacuated with two punctured lungs and a chipped vertebra, injuries he sustained during an insurgent ambush in Marjah in 2010.
His squad stopped at a local mosque to speak to an elder, when two men drove up on motorcycles and brought the Marines a warning. They said insurgents were planning to ambush the Marines from multiple directions as soon as they left the mosque. The Marines heeded the warning and decided to wait until dusk to leave; they hoped the enemy wouldn’t attack as valuable sunlight faded.
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