The Pentagon is preparing to nominate a living soldier for the Medal of Honor — the military's highest distinction — for the first time since the Vietnam War, the Washington Post reports Thursday. The Pentagon has not released the nominee's name while the award is under consideration, but the Post reports that he ran through a wall of enemy fire in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley, saving the lives of several comrades. Military officials told Post reporters Greg Jaffe and Craig Whitlock that even the soldier's own family does not know how far his nomination has gone: all the way to the White House (which must review the nomination).

The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an enemy force which can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services of the United States. Generally presented to its recipient by the President of the United States of America in the name of Congress.