The Story:
The charred remains of four American contractors hung - like trophies – over the Euphrates River. Crowds of Iraqis looked on, shouting: “Fallujah will be the graveyard of the Americans.” It was 2004 in Fallujah: Coalition forces had been forced to pull out of the city, and with an influx of foreign jihadists adding to the insurgent ranks, it had turned into an urban jungle. This was the situation on the ground facing then-Cpl. Robert Mitchell Jr. and his fellow Marines as they headed for Fallujah.
Mitchell, a member of Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, was on his second tour to Iraq when Coalition forces launched a joint US –Iraqi offensive to reclaim Fallujah from the insurgents who had fortified the city. Dubbed Operation Phantom Fury, the assault on Fallujah began on Nov. 8, 2004, and quickly turned into a blood, street-by-street contest with Mitchell and his fellow Marines stuck in the thick of fighting.
Day-by-day, Mitchell and his squad pushed through the city, clearing neighborhood by neighborhood. The Marine squad found themselves engaged in classic guerilla warfare, locating and eliminating strong pockets of enemy resistance. During an attack against an insurgent strong hold on Nov. 12, Mitchell was shot through the bicep; but Mitchell continued on, undeterred by the injury.
The next day, an assault against a house went horribly wrong, as several wounded Marines lay trapped inside with several well-fortified insurgents waiting in ambush positions. Mitchell’s squad got the call to come and assist.
Arriving on the scene, they took up firing positions. The first floor of the house was littered with dead or dying insurgents, and the wounded Marines lay further inside. Other enemy fighters were in fortified positions on the roof looking down through a skylight, creating a kill zone between Mitchell and the wounded Marines.
Covered by suppressive fire, Mitchell raced through the kill-zone as enemy fire rained down from the sky-light above. An insurgent grenade sent shrapnel through the back of Mitchell’s leg; but this did not stop him as he fought his way through the house to a wounded Marine. A trained combat lifesaver, Mitchell began treating the bullet-mangled leg of Lance Cpl. Cory Carlisle. As Mitchell stabilized Carlisle’s bleeding, he was called to assist two more Marines -holed up across the hall - who had sustained serious injuries. Racing once more through the kill zone, Mitchell was hit again by shrapnel, causing injury to his leg and his face.
Mitchell was bleeding profusely but his sole focus was on his fellow Marines whose injuries required his immediate attention. As he applied bandages and pressure to the Marines in an attempt to stall blood-loss, he noticed an injured insurgent reaching for his weapon. Mitchell quickly drew his combat knife and lunged forward, driving the weapon into the insurgent, eliminating the threat, before returning his attention to his injured Marines.
With insurgents still firing from an elevated, protected position, Mitchell relayed information to Marines outside the house as to the whereabouts of the remaining insurgents. With this information, the Marines were able to suppress the insurgents on the roof via firing positions on adjacent structures, and one-by-one, extract the wounded Marines from the building which has since been dubbed the “House of Hell”. Despite his own severe wounds, Mitchell was among the last to leave the house, and did so assisting another wounded Marine.
For his actions during Operation Phantom Fury, Mitchell was awarded the Navy Cross on July 28, 2006.