Lt. Gen. John Mulholland, commander of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command and former commander of Task Force Dagger, addresses the audience during the dedication and unveiling ceremony for the De Oppresso Liber statue at the Winter Garden Hall in Two World Financial Center near Ground Zero, Nov. 11, 2011. Members of Task Force Dagger, a Special Operations team made up Green Berets from 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), aircrew members from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), and combat controllers from Air Force Special Operations Command; joined Vice President Joseph Biden and business leaders and veterans support organizations to unveil the statue.(Photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Jacob)
Courtesy Story
NEW YORK, N.Y. - "It was as if the Jetsons had met the Flintstones," stated Capt. Will Summers, former Special Forces team sergeant for the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), as his team linked up and operated with members of the Afghan Northern Alliance just weeks after the 9/11 attacks.
A decade later those same words would resonate throughout the Winter Garden Hall in Two World Financial Center near Ground Zero as Vice President Joseph Biden, standing before the Ground Zero flag, spoke to the audience assembled for the dedication of a larger than life bronze statue depicting those same Green Berets.
Members of Task Force Dagger - a joint Special Operations team consisting mostly of Green Berets from the 5th SFG (A), aircrew members from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), and Air Force Combat Controllers - gathered with the Vice President and various New York business leaders and veteran support groups as they unveiled and dedicated an 18-foot statue, entitled De Oppresso Liber.
De Oppresso Liber, which in Latin means 'to liberate the oppressed', depicts a Special Forces Green Beret on horseback leading the invasion into Afghanistan in the weeks that followed the World Trade Center attacks. It captures the iconic image of adaptability, skill, and courage that characterized the mission and quality of U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers.
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Tina Fineberg for The New York Times
A statue memorializing soldiers who rode into battle in Afghanistan after 9/11 has been placed in front of the World Trade Center PATH station and will be formally dedicated on Friday.
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