Staff Sergeant Ayman A. Taha, age 31, of Vienna, Virginia, died near Balad, Iraq, on December 30, 2006 when he was preparing a munitions cache for demolition and the cache exploded.  Taha was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group as a Special Forces Engineer Sergeant.

He was a native of Sudan and a resident of Clarksville, Tennessee.  He attended the Kent Garden Elementary School in McLean, Virginia and secondary school in England and Kuwait.  He was very athletic and participated in baseball, basketball, and martial arts.  His hobbies included reading, guitar, and photography.

He received a Bachelors of Science in Economics from the University of California at Berkeley in 1997 and a Masters in Economics from the University of Massachusetts in 2001.  He was a doctoral candidate in economics at the University of Massachusetts but before completing the requirements decided to enter the Army and Special Forces.

He entered the Army in August 2002 under the 18X program and was an Arabic speaker.  He completed basic Infantry training and Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia.  In 2003 he graduated from the Special Forces Qualification Course, SERE, Primary Leadership Development Course and the Basic Non Commissioned Officers Course.  He spoke English, Arabic, Spanish, and Portuguese.

He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group in January 2005 where he served on an A-team.

His awards and decorations include the Special Forces Tab, Parachutist Badge, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and NCO Professional Development Ribbon.

Taha was buried at Arlington National Cemetery January 12, 2006, following a Muslim funeral service held at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center in Sterling, Virginia.

SSG Taha leaves behind a wife and daughter.  He is also survived by his parents and two sisters.

Memorials to SSG Taha.

Remembering Ayman Taha.

Legacy Guest Book for Ayman Taha.

Special Forces Memorial.

Arlington National Cemetery Website.

News Articles About SSG Taha.

January 3, 2006.  "DoD Identifies Army Casualty".  U.S. Department of Defense News Release.

January 3, 2006.  "Special Forces Soldier dies in Iraq".  USASOC News Service.

January 4, 2006.  "Defense Department Identifies U.S. Casualties in Iraq".  American Forces Information Service New Articles.

January 6, 2006.  "Serving Was Soldier's Mission: Sudan Native Killed in Iraq Did 'Good Deeds'".  Muslim Military Members.

January 6, 2006.  "UMass touched by death in Iraq".  The Republican.
 

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