U. S. Army Private Gets Hero's Welcome in Palestine

"On July 22, 2003, U. S. Army Private Jessica Lynch, a POW who was rescued from an Iraqi hospital, received a hero's welcome when she returned to her hometown of Palestine, WV. The story of the 19 YO supply clerk, who was captured by Iraqi forces in March, 2002, gripped America; however, it was later revealed that some details of Lynch's dramatic capture & rescue might have been exaggerated.

"Lynch, who was born on April 26, 1983, was part of the 507th Ordinance Maintenance Co. from Ft. Bliss, TX. On March 23, 2003, just days after the US invaded Iraq, Lynch was riding in a supply convoy when her unit took a wrong turn & was ambushed by Iraqi forces near Nasiriya. Eleven American soldiers died & 4 others besides Lynch were captured.

"Lynch, who sustained multiple broken bones & other injuries when her vehicle crashed during the ambush, was taken to an Iraqi hospital. On April 1, she was rescued by US Special Forces who raided the hospital where she was being held. They also recovered the bodies of 8 of Lynch's fellow soldiers. Lynch was taken to a military hospital in Germany for treatment & then returned to the US.

"Lynch's story garnered massive media attention & she became an overnight celebrity. Various reports emerged about Lynch's experience, with some news accounts indicating that even after Lynch was wounded during the ambush, she fought back against her captors. However, Lynch later stated that she had been knocked unconscious after her vehicle crashed & couldn't remember the details of what had happened to her. She also said she hadn't been mistreated by the staff at the Iraqi hospital, & they put up no resistance to her rescue. Critics--and Lynch herself--charged the US government with embellishing her story to boost patriotism & help promote the Iraqi war.

In August, 2003, Lynch received a medical honorable discharge. She collaborated on a book about her experience, I Am a Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story, which was released later that year. In April, 2007, Lynch testified before Congress that she had falsely been portrayed as a "little girl Rambo," and the US military had hyped her story for propaganda reasons.

"According to Lynch: 'I am still confused as to why they chose to lie & tried to make me a legend when the real heroics of my fellow soldiers that day were, in fact, legendary.' She added: 'The truth of war is not easy to hear but is always more heroic than the hype.'"

SOURCE: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/jessica-lynch-gets-heros-welcome

NOTE: As a footnote to this story, once Pvt. Lynch was rescued by US Special Forces, she was flown to the Landstuhl Army Medical Center in Germany by one of my own TN Air National Guard's 118th Airlift Wing's C-130H2 transport aircraft who med-evac'ed her to Ramstein Air Base--which is only a few miles from the Landstuhl Army Medical Center.

Although I took no personal role in her rescue because, as an avionics systems technician, I never left the Saudi Arabian Air Force base (King Faisal Royal Saudi AFB, located in NW SA just outside of the city of Tabuk [& only about 200 mi. SE of Jerusalem]).

Ironically, us maintenance troops shared a maintenance hangar with the 130th Airlift Wing that's based in Charleston, WV--only about 80 mi. from Lynch's hometown.

When the WV ANG troops protested that they should have been tasked to rescue "their girl" & fly her to Germany, I piped up & told the "Mountaineer" dudes that us "Volunteer State" troops were tasked with med-evac'ing "their girl" because they wanted to be sure that Pvt. Lynch got to Germany safe & sound....not in some haphazard way like she most likely would have been exposed to had her fellow WV buddies tried to fly her to Germany!!

Needless to say, after my remarks were made to their sullen faces, I didn't win over a whole new bunch of friends from the 130th Airlift Wing's maintenance personnel. Never could figure out why I was looked upon with distain by most of them after I made that statement! :smilewinkgrin: