Gifford, Jonathan William

Jonathan William Gifford was a Gunnery Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps, assigned to the 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force Forward, based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. A native of Palm Bay, Florida, he was 34 years old at the time of his deployment to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.

According to U.S. Department of Defense casualty reports, Gifford died on July 29, 2012, in Baghdis Province, Afghanistan. The official cause was listed as hostile. Specific details of the incident were not publicly released by the military, but it occurred during a period of sustained combat operations in Afghanistan's northwestern provinces.

Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, began in October 2001 following the September 11 attacks. By 2012, the conflict was in its eleventh year, with U.S. and allied forces engaged in counterinsurgency operations and training Afghan national security forces. The war saw intense fighting in provinces like Baghdis, Helmand, and Kandahar.

Gifford's death was announced by the Department of Defense. He was one of 2356 American service members killed during Operation Enduring Freedom. His remains were returned to the United States, and he was buried with full military honors.

Gunnery Sergeant Gifford is remembered on memorial walls and in rolls of honor dedicated to those who died in the Afghanistan War. His name is inscribed on the Afghanistan War Memorial at the Museum of the Marine Corps and is included in the online casualty lists maintained by the Department of Defense.

Gunnery Sergeant Gifford was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.

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