25JAN2008: Serving as a Special Forces Weapons Sergeant, SSG Robert Miller and his team were conducting a patrol through the Gowardesh Valley in eastern Afghanistan when they came into contact with 15-20 Taliban fighters. Miller, manning a Mk-19 automatic grenade launcher, engaged the enemy forces and assisted in directing air strikes to eliminate the threat.
Following the engagement, Miller set off on foot as point man for a small element to conduct a battle damage assessment from the strike. As the group, moving through a deep valley, neared the strike location, enemy forces all along the hillside opened fire. Caught in an ambush from upwards of 100 Taliban fighters shooting down from covered positions, Miller and his team were stuck in the kill zone.
Without hesitation or regard for his own safety, SSG Miller moved to an exposed location to lay down suppressive fire, allowing his team to exit the ambush. Maneuvering to engage the dug-in enemy forces, Miller was hit in the torso but wouldn't stop. He continued firing and pushing forward, killing at least ten enemy fighters and drawing fire from the entire force. As US and Afghan forces moved to a more defensible position, SSG Robert Miller was struck and killed by enemy fire.
For sacrificing himself to allow his men to exit the kill zone, SSG Robert Miller would be awarded, posthumously, the Medal of Honor.
