President Obama awards Medal of Honor to captain who tackled a suicide bomber

last updated 12 November 2015

In August 2012, while on patrol in Afghanistan, Capt. Florent Groberg realized something wasn't right. A man he spotted out of the corner of his eye had the tell-tale bulge under his shirt of a suicide bomb vest.

"The only thing I could think of was, 'I have to get him away. I have to get him away from the boss. I have to get him away from everybody," Groberg told Army Times.

Groberg began pushing the man away, eventually throwing him to the ground — only to have the bomb detonate at his feet. The blast killed four Americans and caused a second suicide bomber to detonate prematurely. Groberg himself suffered a severe leg injury that required 33 surgeries to save it; it took him three years to fully recover. However, his quick thinking is believed to have potentially saved dozens of lives — most of the patrol.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.

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