By Lt. Gennaro Buonocore, Public Affairs Officer, SEAL Team 17.
Lt. Edward Crawford, an intelligence officer in the Naval Reserve currently assigned to Special Operations Command South, Detachment 108 at Homestead Air Force Base, Florida, was awarded a Bronze Star, Oct. 27. Crawford earned the award for meritorious service in connection with combat operations against the enemy while serving as a tribal engagement officer, Special Operations Command Task Force Southeast.
While deployed to Afghanistan in 2012-2013, Crawford served with SEAL Team 2 and SEAL Team 4 as their tribal engagement officer. Throughout the deployment, he operated as the Teams’ lead military advisor for key leader engagements with Afghan tribal leaders in Zabul and Uruzgan provinces, the birthplace of the Taliban. In the course of his deployment, Crawford participated in more than 100 missions. Crawford’s background, strong education and professional experience (in his civilian job, Crawford works as a vice president at a large investment bank) all allowed him to interact successfully with tribal leaders.