Mark E. Mitchell

Mark E. Mitchell was the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict of the United States Department of Defense. A retired colonel, Mitchell was the first member of the United States Army to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross during the War in Afghanistan and was the first to receive the award since the Vietnam War.[2][3] He received the award in 2003 for his actions during the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi, which took place in late November to early December 2001.

Mark E. Mitchell
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1987–2015[1]
RankColonel
UnitSpecial Forces
Commands held5th Special Forces Group
Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Arabian Peninsula
Battles/warsGulf War
War in Afghanistan
Iraq War
AwardsDistinguished Service Cross
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal (4)

Early life, education and family

Mitchell's home of record is Brookfield, Wisconsin.[4] He is an alumnus of Marquette University (1987), and graduated with a degree in biomedical engineering.[5] In 2012, he received Marquette University's Alumni Professional Achievement Award.[6] In the late 1990s, Mitchell attended the Naval Postgraduate School, writing the thesis Strategic Leverage: Information Operations and Special Operations Forces.[7] In the 2000s, Mitchell attended The John F. Kennedy School of Government and The United States Army War College.[8] Mitchell is married, and has two daughters.[9]

Military career

Mitchell began his career assigned to the 24th Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Georgia.[6] Having served during the Persian Gulf War, Mitchell was with the 5th Special Forces Group at the beginning of the Invasion of Afghanistan.[10] Entering Afghanistan via helicopter, Mitchell and other members of his special forces group began to work with Abdul Rashid Dostum of the Northern Alliance, travelling on horse back.[11] In late November 2001, Mitchell responded to Mazar-e-Sharif and led a fifteen-person special forces team, made up of British and Americans, to stop a prison uprising involving John Walker Lindh at Qala-i-Jangi; for his actions he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, and a Navy SEAL was awarded a Navy Cross.[12] Mitchell was later involved in the capture of Mohammad Fazl.[13][14] In 2003, he deployed to Iraq.[5] Later that year he traveled to MacDill Air Force Base, where he received the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions leading the effort to quell the Taliban's offensive at the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi in 2001.[15] CIA Director George Tenet, the widow of CIA officer Johnny Micheal Spann, and others attended the award ceremony.[16]

Mitchell receiving his Distinguished Service Cross from General Bryan D. Brown in 2003

From 2003 to 2009, Mitchell deployed to Iraq at least once a year.[17] In 2005, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel.[18] While in Iraq, Mitchell trained and mentored his Iraqi counterparts; however, he says that a year after the United States left Iraq, the capabilities he had taught the Iraqis had been "squandered".[19] By the summer of 2007, Mitchell was the executive officer of 5th Special Forces Group and became its commanding officer at the rank of colonel in August 2009.[8] By 2010, Mitchell was in command of Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Arabian Peninsula, with over four thousand American operators, who fought alongside Iraqi Special Operations Forces against the insurgency.[20] At Fort Campbell Mitchell accepted steel from the World Trade Center on behalf of 5th Special Forces Group in 2011, and while in Afghanistan he was part of a mission to bury the steel there.[21] In 2012, Mitchell was assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, specifically working with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict & Interdependent Capabilities.[6] He was also interviewed on the radio program Someone You Should Know in 2012.[22]

In 2014, Mitchell was a member of the Obama Administration's National Security Council as the director for counterrorism;[13][23] he held that position until January 2015.[24] While director, he was criticized for threatening families, including Kayla Mueller's, with criminal penalties for attempting to negotiate a ransom for the release of their children.[14] When the Obama Administration relaxed the American policy against ransom payment in exchange for hostages in June 2015, Mitchell criticized the change.[25]

Awards and decorations

Mitchell has received several awards, and other decorations including the following:[6]

Distinguished Service Cross
Defense Superior Service Medal
 Bronze Star Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Combat Infantryman Badge (second award)
Expert Infantryman Badge
Master Parachutist Badge
Air Assault Badge
Military Freefall Parachutist Badge
Special Forces Tab
Ranger tab

Distinguished Service Cross citation

His award citation reads:[26]

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Major Mark E. Mitchell, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 3d Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), during the period of 25 to 28 November 2001. Major Mitchell distinguished himself while engaged in combat operations during Operation Enduring Freedom. As the Ground Force Commander of a rescue operation during the Battle of Qala-I-Jang Fortress, Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, Major Mitchell ensured the freedom of one American and the posthumous repatriation of another. His unparalleled courage under fire, decisive leadership and personal sacrifice were directly responsible for the success of the rescue operation and were further instrumental in ensuring the city of Mazar-e-Sharif did not fall back in the hands of the Taliban. His personal example has added yet another laurel to the proud military history of this Nation and serves as the standard for all others to emulate. Major Mitchell's gallant deed was truly above and beyond the call of duty and is in keeping with the finest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), the United States Army, and the United States of America.

Post military career

As of 2016, Mitchell had retired and become a non-resident fellow at the Combating Terrorism Center.[27] He has also written about irregular warfare in the Small Wars Journal.[28]

In 2009, Doug Stanton wrote the book Horse Soldiers, a third of which focuses on the actions of Mitchell.[29][30] 12 Strong, a 2018 movie produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring Chris Hemsworth, Michael Shannon and Michael Peña, is based on Horse Soldiers.[31]

References
  1. David Siry (26 October 2015). "Creative Problem Solving in a Special Forces Environment". West Point Center of Oral History. United States Military Academy. Archived from the original on 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  2. "Hall of Valor – Mark E. Mitchell". Military Times. Archived from the original on 29 November 2011.
  3. Army Public Affairs (2 February 2007). "Afghanistan SF leader gets first DSC since Vietnam". United States Department of the Army.
  4. "Mark E. Mitchell". Military Times. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  5. Haberkorn, Jen (20 November 2003). "ROTC grad honored for heroic war acts". Marquette Wire. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  6. "All-University Recipients Professional Achievement Award COL. MARK E. MITCHELL, ENG '87". Marquette University Alumni Association. April 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  7. Mitchell, Mark E. (March 1999). Strategic Leverage: Information Operations and Special Operations Forces (PDF) (Master's Thesis). Defense Technical Information Center. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  8. Olsen, Major April N. (18 August 2009). "5th Special Forces Group welcomes new commander". Army.mil. United States Army. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  9. Pickard, Gabrielle (2 September 2011). "The Unsung Navy Seal Heroes You Never Heard About". Top Secret Writers. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  10. Oliver North; Chuck Holton (1 November 2010). American Heroes in Special Operations. B&H Publishing Group. pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-1-4336-7343-6.
  11. Flesher, John (10 May 2009). "A military victory few can imagine". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  12. Zoroya, Gregg (10 November 2006). "Major led team that quelled Afghan prison riot". USA Today. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  13. Quade, Alex (4 August 2014). "Shock U.S. Army admission: Obama freed Taliban 'psychopath' in Bergdahl trade". Washington Times. Retrieved 2 November 2016. Army Col. Mark Mitchell, director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council, is a Green Beret who helped capture Mullah Mohammad Fazl in the early days of the war in Afghanistan.
  14. Meek, James Gordon; Christie, Megan; Epstein, Brian; Ross, Brian (29 August 2016). "Emails Show ISIS Appeared Eager to Release Kayla Mueller for Ransom, Expert Says". ABC News. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  15. Stacy, Mitchell (15 November 2003). "Hero soldier decorated at MacDill". Ocala Star Banner. Associated Press. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  16. Brink, Graham (15 November 2013). "A David wins a goliath honor". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  17. Huber, H. Max (11 March 2009). "National Security Fellas". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  18. Robert Skimin (2005). Footprints of Heroes: From the American Revolution to the War in Iraq. Prometheus Books, Publishers. p. 311. ISBN 978-1-61592-761-6.
  19. Mekhennet, Souad; Ryan, Missy (16 April 2016). "Outside the wire: How U.S. Special Operations troops secretly help foreign forces target terrorists". Washington Post. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  20. Myers, Steven Lee (17 September 2010). "Special Ops and the 'End of Combat' in Iraq". New York Times. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  21. Paddie, Glen (5 May 2011). "NYC gifts 5th Group with piece of history". Fort Campbell Courier. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2016. Alt URL
  22. "Someone You Should Know: Special Forces Major Mark E. Mitchell". Pundit Review. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  23. Lawrence Wright (23 August 2016). The Terror Years: From Al-Qaeda to the Islamic State. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 302. ISBN 978-0-385-35205-5.
  24. "Exclusive: Italy paying ransoms in Syria and Somalia". Al Jazeera. 9 October 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  25. MacAskill, Ewen; Kirchgaessner, Stephanie (8 October 2015). "Italian intelligence lied about hostage rescue to hide ransom payment". Guardian. United Kingdom. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  26. Caspar W. Weinberger; Wynton C. Hall (29 May 2007). Home of the Brave: Honoring the Unsung Heroes in the War on Terror. Tom Doherty Associates. p. 199. ISBN 978-0-7653-5703-8.
  27. "COLONEL (RET) MARK E. MITCHELL, US ARMY". Combating Terrorism Center. United States Military Academy. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  28. Ferenzi, Steve (18 May 2016). "Imposing Costs by Other Means: Strategic Irregular Warfare Options to Counter Russian Aggression". Small Wars Foundation. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  29. Stanton, Doug (25 May 2009). "The Quiet Professionals: The Untold Story of U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  30. D. Stanton (6 January 2014). Horse Soldiers. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4767-8019-1.
  31. Williams, Brian Glyn (4 January 2017). "The Hammer and the Horse. Chris Hemsworth (Thor from Avengers Movies), CIA, Green Berets and Afghanistan's Most Feared Warlord Unite for Epic Movie". Huffington Post. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
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