Butler, Aaron Rhett

Aaron Rhett Butler was a Staff Sergeant assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne), a Utah Army National Guard unit based at Camp Williams. He was a Green Beret, a member of an Operational Detachment-Alpha team, and a native of Monticello, a small town in southeastern Utah.

On August 16, 2017, Butler was part of a U.S. and Afghan commando force clearing a booby-trapped building complex in the village of Sayyd Alma Kalay, Nangarhar Province. According to U.S. military reports, an improvised explosive device detonated during the operation. The blast killed Butler and wounded 11 other U.S. and Afghan personnel. The mission was targeting an Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K) network in the area.

The incident occurred under Operation Freedom's Sentinel, the official name for the U.S. counterterrorism mission in Afghanistan that succeeded Operation Enduring Freedom in 2015. In 2017, Nangarhar Province was a primary stronghold for the Islamic State's regional affiliate, ISIS-K, leading to intense clearance operations by U.S. and Afghan forces.

Butler's death was announced by the Department of Defense. Utah Governor Gary Herbert ordered flags to be flown at half-staff. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, and Meritorious Service Medal. His body was returned to Utah, where a funeral was held in Monticello.

Butler was remembered by his unit and community as a dedicated soldier. A memorial run is held annually in Blanding, Utah, in his honor. His name is inscribed on the Utah Veterans Memorial Park monument in West Valley City.

Butler, Aaron Rhett was killed during Operation Freedom's Sentinel (ongoing since January 2015). The conflict is ongoing. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Golden, Jonathan Joseph, Gonzalez, Jose Juan, Sanchez, Maria Victoria, Dawson, John Michael.

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