Revealed: Medal of Honor hero's anger that his request for backup was denied TEN TIMES by officers sitting kilometers away from where he single-handedly fought for seven hours against 60 Taliban

Former Army captain, William Swenson, 34, received the nation's highest award the Medal of Honor at the White House on Tuesday



Rewarded for his selfless bravery in fighting more than 60 Taliban during an ambush in September, 2009

Risked his life three times returning to the 'kill zone' to recover injured comrades

His repeated calls for assistance were ignored by his commanders who feared involvement would lead to civilian causalities



In the aftermath, Swenson complained to more senior leaders in Afghanistan and he quit as a result

On Tuesday Swenson revealed that he now wants to return to the Army

The American hero awarded the Medal of Honor earlier this week for his bravery in fighting off 60 Taliban almost single-handedly for seven hours has spoken of his anger that repeated requests for backup during the ordeal were ignored by his commanders back at base.



Retired Captain William Swenson was awarded the nation's top military medal by President Obama at the White House on Tuesday. The President said that when Swenson’s comrades needed him, he 'was there for his brothers'...'we thank God he was there for us all.'



But now Swenson, 34, has spoken out about his frustration that his repeated – as many as ten - requests for backup were ignored by commanders who feared involvement would lead to civilian casualties.

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Retired Captain William Swenson has spoken of his anger that repeated requests for backup during his seven hour ordeal were ignored by his commanders back at base

Hero: Capt. William Swenson left the army in Feb 2011 but announced that Tuesday that he would like to return

Swenson was with a group of U.S. Marines and Afghan National Troops when they were ambushed from all sides outside the town of Ganjar on September 8, 2009, killing 10 Afghan and four American troops.



He called back to base for artillery fire which would have provided them with cover while they moved off the battlefield, but his request was repeatedly denied.



In an interview with David Martin of CBS News , Swenson was asked if the decision had left him bitter.



‘Was I bitter? I was angry,’ he replied.



'If I call for artillery support,' Swenson said, 'I do so understanding the possibility of civilian casualties. . . . But that's my decision. That's my responsibility, my call - by doctrine - not somebody who is sitting several kilometers away.'



The lack of artillery support left Swenson and his men surrounded by enemy on three sides.



Tenderness: The touching kiss that Captain Swenson laid on the forehead of Sgt. First Class Kenneth Westbrook after he was loaded onto the helicopter that had arrived to take him to safety in September 2009

Injured but saved: Some of the Afghan police forces that Captain Swenson saved through his selfless actions - which led to him being awarded the Medal of Honor at the White House last Tuesday

Swenson's sergeant and close friend, Kenneth Westbrook, was shot in the neck.



'He called out to me and said, "Will, I've been hit." I was pinned down at the time and I said, "All right, hang in there." He yelled out again, "Will, I'm losing it. I'm losing blood. Can't keep doing this.'"



A Medevac helicopter landed. Swenson and a crewman helped Westbrook to the helicopter.



Just before they took off, Swenson leaned in and gave Westbrook a kiss. He never saw him again as Westbrook died a month later from his injuries.



On Tuesday, Mr. Obama called that moment a 'simple act of compassion and loyalty to a brother in arms.'

Swenson went back into battle in search of four other Americans who had been cut off from the rest of the unit.



President Obama said that when his comrades needed him, Swenson 'was there for his brothers'...'we thank God he was there for us all'

Four Americans died in the ambush: 1st Lt. Michael Johnson, a 25-year-old from Virginia Beach; Staff Sgt. Aaron Kenefick, 30, of Roswell, Ga.; Corpsman James Layton, 22, of Riverbank, Calif.; and Edwin Wayne Johnson Jr., a 31-year-old gunnery sergeant from Columbus, Ga. A fifth man, Army Sgt. Kenneth W. Westbrook, 41, of Shiprock, N.M., later died from his wounds.

In the immediate aftermath of the attack, Swenson complained to military leaders in Afghanistan after that many of his calls for help were rejected by superior officers.



Two Army officers were reprimanded for being 'inadequate and ineffective' and for 'contributing directly to the loss of life' following an investigation into the day's events.

Swenson believed the judgment of the officers who denied his calls for fire support had been clouded by pressure from headquarters in Kabul, at the time headed by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, to restrict the use of artillery in an effort to reduce civilian casualties.

'From my foxhole, from my small perspective from a small province in Afghanistan, I determined that those restrictions were onerous and limited the capability of the warfighter on the ground,' he said.

After the incident, Swenson decided to leave the Army in February 2011.



Brother in arms: Sgt. First Class Kenneth Westbrook had been hit in the throat and was bleeding to death and was pulled to safety by Captain Swenson, but sadly died a month later from his injuries

US President Barack Obama recognizes the families of fallen US troops prior to awarding William Swenson, a former active duty Army captain, the Medal of Honor during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House last Tuesday

'It sounds fair to say you left the Army disillusioned?' asked CBS News' Martin.



‘Confused,’ replied Swenson, who it was announced on Tuesday has asked to return to active duty, something that the Army is currently working to allow.



Swenson, 34, took control when his superior officer was injured and he ran through gun fire to rescue his injured colleagues out in the exposed open - returning twice more to what the military dubs the 'kill zone' to recover the wounded and the dead.

Obama noted that although the honor has been bestowed nearly 3,500 times in U.S. history, never before had Americans been able to witness of a small part of the bravery that led to it.



Video captured from cameras mounted on the helmets of evacuation helicopter pilots showed Swenson delivering his good friend and partner, Sgt. First Class Kenneth Westbrook to the evacuation chopper and placing a kiss on his head as he placed him inside.

On his third and final death-defying trip to pull-out the fallen, Swenson was accompanied by then-Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer, who also received the Medal of Honor for his actions on Tuesday.



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Humble: President Barack Obama shakes hands with former Army Captain William D. Swenson of Seattle, Wash., after he awarded him the Medal of Honor during a ceremony in the East Room at the White House in Washington

According to the official military records of the attack, as mortar and AK-47 fire reigned down, the roughly 106 men attached to Captain Swenson's group scattered as they were ambushed from all sides and surrounded.



The column consisted of 106 personnel, which included 60 Afghan National Army (ANA), 14 ANA mentors, 30 Afghan Border Police members, and U.S. Army Soldiers Capt. William Swenson and Sgt. 1st Class Kenneth Westbrook.



'Swenson observed enemy fighters to his east, swarming out from the high ground, attempting to flank his position. He immediately returned fire, and directed and coordinated the response of the ABP and ANA soldiers,' said the official narrative from the Department of Defense.



As the fierce firefight between the Coalitin forces and the Taliban raged, the calls of the wounded began to be heard as it became evident they were surrounded.

It was during the confused first hours of the battle that Swenson learned that his partner Sgt First Class Westbrook had been shot in the upper chest and was lying exposed under attack from the Taliban.



Rushing to aid his comrade without a second thought and coming under direct enemy fire, Swenson fired back and managed to fight his way to his friend who was lying near to an abandoned house.



Appreciation: US President Barack Obama shakes hands with William Swenson and presents him with the Medal of Honor, the highest military award

Accompanied by an interpreter, it was at this point, pinned down and under fire that the Taliban came close enough to Swenson to issue a demand to surrender.

'Outnumbered, flanked and facing enemy capture, Swenson put down his radio and halted his treatment of Westbrook long enough to reply to the enemy’s demands for surrender, by throwing a hand grenade,' says the official citation.



'Following his example, the members of the TAC rallied. Swenson’s example, and his element’s stout resistance, effectively disrupted the enemy attack and pushed them back.'

After evacuating his tragic friend, Swenson climbed into an unarmored vehicle and drove to the 'kill zone' twice more to collect the dead and wounded - bringing them to the medevac zone.



He did this under massive enemy fire and it was only after the battle had raged for seven hours that Swenson was able to leave the field.



'Swenson was the core of the initial defense and two subsequent rescue efforts,' reads the official narrative of the incident.



'In seven hours of continuous fighting, Swenson braved intense enemy fire, and willfully put his life in danger against the enemy’s main effort, multiple times in service of his fallen and wounded comrades, his unit, his country, and his endangered Afghan partners.'

The Pentagon said that if it wasn't for Swenson, 12 soldiers would have lost their lives that day.

Belated: The President personally told Capt Swenson he would be receiving the Medal of Honor after the original application was lost by officials

'In moments like this, Americans like Will remind us of what our country can be at its best, a nation of citizens who look out for one another, who meet our obligations to one another not just when it's easy, but also when it's hard - maybe especially when it's hard,' Obama said.



'And, Will, you're an example to everyone in this city and to our whole country of the professionalism and patriotism that we should strive for, whether we wear a uniform or not, not just on particular occasions but all the time.'

This is only the second time since the Vietnam War that a two surviving veterans have received the Medal of Honor for their actions in the same battle.

However, following Swenson's criticism of the chain of command that day, his petition for Medal of Honor became lost - leading to suggestions it was pay-back for his open questioning of the tactics that day. The award was not granted to Swenson without little controversy. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif, was critical of whether the Defense Department and the Pentagon purposely took their time in awarding the military's highest honor.

Highest Honor: Chart shows the number of Medals of Honor awarded by major war or conflict since the Civil War when the first medal was awarded in 1863

The internal investigation into the Ganjal battle showed up Swenson's deep criticism of the fight, during which he repeatedly called for air cover and was denied.



During this investigation the Army admitted they improperly denied the air support and two officers at the combat operations center who took those frantic calls were given reprimands.

Meanwhile, an ongoing journalistic investigation into the circumstances surrounding the ambush has questioned the version of events, at least of Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer - who received the Medal of Honor for his bravery that day.



McClatchy.Com has pointed out that the poignant headcam video from the medevac of Sgt. Westbrook, directly contradicts Meyer, who claims that a 'swarm' a Taliban was on top of Swenson and them.

The video shot by the helicopter crew show no Taliban in that vicinity or anywhere else on the floor of the Ganjgal Valley at the time, which conflicts with 25-year-old Meyer's claims.



Indeed, Meyer wrote a 2012 book, 'Into the Fire: A Firsthand Account of the Most Extraordinary Battle in the Afghan War.'

Proud: President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama, and retired Army Captain William D. Swenson of Seattle, Wash., walk back to the Blue Room after he was awarded the Medal of Honor at a ceremony in the East Room at the White House

However, Swenson seems to have had a change of heart and the Associated Press reported after his ceremony last Tuesday that he has asked to return to active duty in the Army.

Capt Swenson, who lives in Seattle, left the Army on February 1, 2011, after nearly nine years service.



In that time he was awarded the Bronze Star with two oak leaf clusters, the Purple Heart, the Army Commendation Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with one campaign star, the Iraq Campaign Medal with two campaign stars, the Combat Infantry Badge, the Ranger Tab and the Parachutists Badge.

In brief remarks to reporters following the ceremony, Swenson said the honor belongs not just to him, but all those who fought beside him.