When ISIS swept across Syria and Iraq in 2014, seizing cities and terrorizing civilians, an unlikely coalition formed to stop its advance. The United States and its Western allies, together with Iraq, Kurdish forces, and other regional powers, joined in a grinding campaign that became known as Operation Inherent Resolve.
At its height, ISIS controlled vast territory and ruled millions of people through fear. By 2019, however, the group had lost almost all of its self-declared caliphate. A key part of that success came from the bravery of Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and U.S. special operations forces working side by side on the ground.
One operation in particular stands out.
U.S. intelligence discovered an ISIS prison complex near Hawija, where dozens of hostages were believed to be facing imminent execution. Newly dug graves appeared around the site — a chilling sign that time had nearly run out. A joint force of U.S. Army Delta operators and Kurdish counterterrorism troops launched a nighttime raid to save them.
They flew in under fire. As soon as the helicopters landed, a fierce battle erupted. Sergeant Major Thomas Payne led one of the assault teams. While clearing one of the prison buildings, his team rescued 38 hostages — even as they learned fellow team member Master Sgt. Josh Wheeler had been mortally wounded elsewhere in the compound.
The fight wasn’t over.
Another building was burning, filled with smoke, and still packed with captives. Its doors were locked with heavy chains, and gunfire poured in from multiple directions. Payne repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire, cutting through the locks while flames spread and ammunition exploded. When an evacuation order came because the building was close to collapse, Payne went back inside again and again to pull prisoners to safety.
In total, more than 70 hostages were rescued during the raid. Operators and Peshmerga fighters formed a human shield around the survivors as they raced to the evacuation helicopters.
Afterward, the cost of the mission became clear. Master Sgt. Wheeler had died of his wounds and was later awarded the Silver Star.
For his extraordinary bravery under fire, Thomas Payne received the Medal of Honor — the first awarded during Operation Inherent Resolve, and the first ever given to a living member of Delta Force. The medal was presented at the White House in 2020.
The war against ISIS reshaped the region. But moments like Hawija highlight something universal: in chaos and smoke, when buildings burn and time runs out, individual acts of courage can change the ending of the story for dozens of people.
