Pongo, Diego Daniel

Also known as: GYSGT, 2D MAR RDR BN, MRR, MARFORSOC, CAMP LEJEUNE, NC

Combatant

Male Verified

DiedMarch 8, 2020

Age34 years old

Location of DeathQARAH CHAWQ, IRAQ

Cause of DeathKilled by hostile fire during a ground combat mission.

Conflict Operation Inherent Resolve

Gunnery Sergeant Diego Daniel Pongo, 34, of Simi Valley, California, was a U.S. Marine assigned to the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion. He was killed during a mission in Qarah Chawq, Iraq, on March 8, 2020.

Their Story

Gunnery Sergeant Diego Daniel Pongo was a Raider with the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion, Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC), based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. A native of Simi Valley, California, he was 34 years old at the time of his death.

Pongo was killed on March 8, 2020, during a joint mission with Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the mountainous Qarah Chawq area of northern Iraq, near the city of Makhmur. According to U.S. Central Command, the mission was to clear a complex of ISIS cave and tunnel systems. The unit came under fire, resulting in the deaths of Pongo and another Marine, Captain Moises A. Navas.

Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S.-led coalition campaign against the Islamic State (ISIS), began in August 2014 after the group seized large territories in Iraq and Syria. By 2020, ISIS had lost its territorial caliphate but continued to wage an insurgency from remote hideouts, including in Iraq's rugged northern regions where clearing operations were regularly conducted.

The Department of Defense announced the casualties on March 9, 2020. Pongo's death was reported by major news outlets, including The New York Times and Military Times, which detailed the nature of the high-risk counter-terrorism mission.

Gunnery Sergeant Pongo was posthumously promoted from Staff Sergeant. He was remembered by his command as a dedicated Marine. His awards included the Purple Heart and the Combat Action Ribbon.