Altamirano, Estevan

Staff Sergeant Estevan Altamirano was a 30-year-old soldier from Edcouch, Texas, serving with Company D, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, based at Fort Hood, Texas. He was deployed to Iraq as part of the U.S. military's final mission there.

Altamirano died on September 18, 2011, in Tikrit, Iraq. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, he was killed by enemy small-arms fire while on patrol. He was one of the last American service members to die in combat in Iraq.

His death occurred during Operation New Dawn, the successor mission to Operation Iraqi Freedom. Beginning on September 1, 2010, the operation formally shifted the U.S. role from combat to advising and assisting Iraqi security forces, though troops remained engaged in dangerous stability operations.

Following his death, Altamirano's body was returned to the United States. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, and Meritorious Service Medal. His funeral was held in his hometown in Texas's Rio Grande Valley.

Altamirano is memorialized on the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America's casualty list and by his unit. His death, near the end of the U.S. military presence, is cited in historical accounts marking the conclusion of the Iraq War for American forces.

SSG Altamirano was killed during Operation New Dawn (2010?2011). The conflict concluded in December 2011. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Jenkins, Phillip Chad, Mcclamrock, James Fleet, Hansen, James Arthur, Burner, John Franklin Iii.

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