The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918 (amended by an act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Captain Peter Anton Lind, United States Army, for exceptional valor and gallantry in action from 31 March to 2 April 2003 in An Najaf, Iraq. On 31 March 2003 Captain Peter Lind gallantly led Charlie Company “Cold Steel,” 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry in seizing the military training complex in An Najaf, Iraq. With only 4 hours notice, Captain Lind developed an exceptionally well-synchronized plan to assault a 32-building fortified enemy military training compound. He clearly articulated this plan to his subordinates, including an attached tank platoon and Air Cavalry assets. Everyone’s understanding of this clear and simple plan resulted in its flawless execution. During the execution of the assault Captain Lind was under constant enemy direct and indirect fire as he maneuvered his platoons and an attached tank platoon to seize their objective and defend against an enemy counterattack. Captain Lind moved under direct fire to assist the engineer squad at the intended breach when the first attempts to penetrate the compound walls failed. He then expertly requested and adjusted artillery and directed OH-58D aircraft to isolate their objective. Captain Lind constantly repositioned under direct fire to control clearance operations of the first 22 buildings and placed himself in the best vantage point to assist one of his platoons defeat a heavily-fortified building that had them pinned down by machinegun, small arms, and RPG fire. Captain Lind requested US Air Force close air support into the enemy position approximately 100 meters from his own position to suppress the small arms and RPG fire, ensuring his unit’s success. That action completed the destruction of enemy forces and ended the enemy fire directed against his soldiers. His valor and decisive leadership resulted in his unit seizing their objective, killing 44 enemy soldiers, destroying 15 vehicles, and capturing over 3000 weapons. Following this action, Captain Lind again commanded an attack on an enemy position as enemy forces attempted to envelop Alpha Company as they executed their attack across An Najaf. Captain Lind again expertly directed long-range precision sniper fire against the enemy, and at one point personally interdicted multiple targets when one of the teams became combat ineffective, followed by highly accurate mortar fire and culminating in a hasty platoon attack to seize the enemy position. During this action Captain Lind’s troops captured a ZPU 23-4, killed 16 enemy soldiers, and captured a cache of mortar systems and over 2500 rounds. Captain Lind’s unit also discovered an enemy C2 node that provided critical maps, sand tables, documentation, and other exploitable information for use in developing follow-on operations in An Najaf. Captain Lind proved over the course of these combat actions his ability to motivate and inspire his soldiers to accomplish any task in the face of daunting enemy fire and adversity. His personal actions and leadership directly influenced the liberation of An Najaf and further contributed to the Brigade’s success in the entire Central Iraq area of operations. His courage, valor, and leadership bring great credit upon himself, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), and the United States Army.