CALIFORNIA BRIEFING / CAMP PENDLETON
Marine Sgt. Michael W. Heede Jr. has become the first Marine from Camp Pendleton killed in Afghanistan during the current offensive to oust the Taliban from key areas of Helmand province.
Heede, 22, of Delta, Pa., was killed Monday during combat operations, the Marine Corps announced Wednesday. He was a combat engineer with the 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division based at Camp Pendleton.
Heede enlisted in 2005 and served in Iraq from November 2006 to April 2007. Among his citations was the Combat Action Ribbon, awarded only to Marines who have come under enemy fire.
-- Tony Perry
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