Army Major Mark Mitchell, 38, was awarded the first Distinguished Service Cross in the war on terror. This is one of the highest honors that can be awarded to an American soldier, second only to the Medal of Honor. It is the first time that the medal has been awarded since 15 Dec. 1973.

Mitchell led 15 men against 500 Taliban prisoners at the Qala-I-Jangi fortress outside of Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan, where they were able to help one CIA operative escape, recover the body of another, apprehended John Walker Lindh, and coordinated bombings that kept prisoners from escaping with arms and ammunition.

At the awards ceremony Mitchell said he did “no more and no less than my sworn duty” and “I’m unconvinced that my actions deserve this.” But a review of his actions reveals that this special ops soldier’s humility is misplaced:

With no body armor or helmet and vastly outnumbered, Mitchell led about 15 Special Forces and foreign allies as they sought to rescue another CIA agent, recover Spann’s body and prevent the Taliban from taking over the fortress.

During the three-day battle, Mitchell scaled a 30- to 35-foot-high fortress wall using the unwound turban of a Northern Alliance soldier.

From a vulnerable position on the wall, he directed air strikes that proved vital in defeating the Taliban fighters at the fortress. He saw the 2,000 pound bombs roar to their targets, looking like enormous white lawn darts, and felt the blast waves from the explosions.

Mitchell also braved enemy fire in his search for the second CIA agent, who was eventually able to escape over the fortress wall. Even when an errant bomb injured nine of his men – more than half – he was able to evacuate the injured and direct the remaining soldiers as they repelled the Taliban attacks.

Yet Mitchell considers the Special Forces patch on his shoulder “recognition enough” and told his wife and two daughters, “You’re the only people I ever hoped would consider me a hero.”

Accounts of the three-day battle can be found here and here.