Michael Patrick Murphy (1976 - 2005)

Born 7 May 1976 in Smithtown, Suffolk, New York, United States

Died 28 Jun 2005 at age 29 in Kunar Province, Afghanistan

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Biography

Michael Murphy is Notable.

Michael Patrick "Murph" Murphy was a United States Navy SEAL.

When he was in 8th grade, he protected a special needs child. Some boys were trying to shove him in a locker, and Michael protected him. After that he was known as "The Protector", and the nickname stuck with him all his life.

He was a part of "Operation Red Wings" in 2005, along with Navy SEALS Marcus Luttrell, Matthew Axelson, and Danny Dietz, This Operation was a counter-insurgent mission in the Kunar Province in Afghanistan.

Murphy led his four man reconnaissance team on a mission to capture or kill Ahmad Shah, a top Taliban leader. Shah commanded a group of insurgents, which were located west of Asadabad. After successfully infiltrating in the mountainous terrain, a group of local goat herders came upon the SEAL's covert hiding place. After Murphy's men were unable to verify possible hostile intent from the herders, they cut the herders loose. They had also tied them up to try to communicate. It is unknown if the goat herders they let go or local hostiles alerted the nearby Taliban insurgents. They hurried up the steep terrain to obtain a vantage point for combat. The insurgents surrounded and attacked the four man team.

He left his position of cover, and knowingly exposed himself to enemy fire. He did this in order to get a clear signal in order to communicate with headquarters. He successfully provided his unit's location and requested immediate support for their location. After he did this, he returned to his position of cover and kept fighting, until he eventually died from his wounds.

He was awarded the U.S. Military's highest decoration, The Medal Of Honor. Since The Vietnam War, he was the only member of the U.S. Navy to receive this prestigious award. He received posthumously The Silver Star Medal, which was later upgraded to another Medal Of Honor. He was also awarded The Purple Heart, which is awarded to those injured or killed. All these Medals were awarded by President George W. Bush.

Marcus Luttrell was the lone survivor of Operation Red Wings. Luttrell's book "Lone Survivor" recalls his account of events that occurred during Operation Red Wings. A movie with the same name called "Lone Survivor" is based on Luttrell's book. The movie stars Mark Wahlberg, which whom portrayed Marcus Luttrell, Taylor Kitsch portrayed Michael Murphy, Emile Hirsch portrayed Danny Dietz, and Ben Foster portrayed Matt Axelson. Lone Survivor was produced in 2013. [4]

There is also a documentary about Michael Murphy named "Murph: The Protector" which was also produced in 2013. [5]

Sources

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Murphy

[2] http://navyseals.com/ns-overview/notable-seals/michael-p-murphy/

[3] http://www.navy.mil/moh/mpmurphy/bio.html

[4] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091191/

[5] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1790825/?ref_=ttfc_fc_tt