Rosa Peralta, mother of Navy Cross recipient Sgt. Rafael Peralta, holds the photo of the new Navy ship named after her son after a ceremony aboard Naval Base San Diego, Calif., Sept. 20. Peralta, a Mexican immigrant who joioned the Marine Corps as soon as he obtained his green card in 2000, deployed to Iraq with 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment and soon found himself in urban warfare during the second battle of Fallujah. On Nov. 15, 2004, Peralta and his squad were clearning a house when he was fired upon. He fell to the floor fatally wounded. Despite those wounds, he noticed a grenade tosse
Rosa Peralta, mother of Navy Cross recipient Sgt. Rafael Peralta, holds the photo of the new Navy ship named after her son after a ceremony aboard Naval Base San Diego, Calif., Sept. 20. Peralta, a Mexican immigrant who joioned the Marine Corps as soon as he obtained his green card in 2000, deployed to Iraq with 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment and soon found himself in urban warfare during the second battle of Fallujah. On Nov. 15, 2004, Peralta and his squad were clearning a house when he was fired upon. He fell to the floor fatally wounded. Despite those wounds, he noticed a grenade tossed by an insurgent, grabbed it and pressed it against his body to absorb the impact. He subsequently saved the lives of the other Marines in his squad. Peralta legacy lives on, USS Rafael Peralta to carry tradition of heroism 130920-A-AL123-002-CC
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Photo credit: © PJF Military Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: armed, conflict, fallujah, forces, iraq, mef, military, peralta, rafael, states, united, war
