“Consistent with long-standing practice, we do not comment on who may or may not have been honored anonymously with a star on the agency’s Memorial Wall.”
Todd Ebitz
CIA spokesman
May 11, 2024 — Zembiec was serving in the Ground Branch of the CIA’s Special Activities Division in Iraq when he was killed by small arms fire while leading a raid in Sadr City, a neighborhood of Baghdad, on May 11, 2007. His CIA employment was confirmed by his widow and former U.S. intelligence officials. Intel Today concluded that he was honored by a star on the CIA wall during the June 7, 2010 ceremony. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
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“Never forget those that were killed.
And never let rest those that killed them.”
Marine Major Douglas Alexander Zembiec
aka
The Lion of Fallujah
Michael R. Gordon and Gen. Bernard E. Trainor first reported in their book, “The Endgame: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Iraq, from George W. Bush to Barack Obama,” that Zembiec was working for the CIA when he was killed in Baghdad in 2007.
In July 2014, The Washington Post confirmed that information:
“Weeks after his death and his burial in Arlington National Cemetery, Pam and the rest of Doug Zembiec’s family were invited to a private ceremony in then-CIA Director Michael V. Hayden’s office on the seventh floor of headquarters in Langley. Hayden quietly thanked them for Zembiec’s service.”
According to Wikipedia:
“Shortly after his death, he was honored with a star on the CIA Memorial Wall, which remembers CIA employees who died while in service.”
Thomas Gibbons-Neff wrote:
“For 2007, there is a single, anonymous star. It belongs to Marine Maj. Douglas Alexander Zembiec.”
I never doubted that information. Nevertheless, no one ever stated when he was honored with a star? I came to the logical conclusion that Zembiec was honored during the June 7, 2010 ceremony. Let me explain.
During the 2007 CIA Memorial Ceremony, 4 new stars were added to the wall, bringing the total number to 87.
RELATED POST: The CIA Book of Honor — Star 84 : James McGrath (October 24, 1927 – January 1957)
RELATED POST: The CIA Book of Honor — Star 85 : Stephen Kasarda (c. 1930 – May 1 1960)
RELATED POST: The CIA Book of Honor — Star 86 : Gregory R. Wright (June 29 1973 – December 7 2005)
RELATED POST: The CIA Book of Honor — Star 87 : Rachel A. Dean (April 10 1981 – September 30 2006)
According to people interviewed:
“Later, the CIA’s next director, Leon E. Panetta, presented Pam Zembiec with the anonymous star that was subsequently chiseled into the Memorial Wall and inscribed into the Book of Honor.”
Leon Panetta served as the 3rd Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from February 13, 2009 to June 30, 2011.
If Leon E. Panetta indeed presented Pam Zembiec with the anonymous star, Zembiec cannot be one of the two stars added in 2008. [I believe that the two stars added in 2008 honor CIA employees who had died in 2008. I will explain why in a short update to this post.]
But Zembiec cannot be star 90 either as the 2009 CIA Press Release states that Star 90 is an employee killed in the line of duty last year, thus 2008. And Zembiec was killed on May 11, 2007. [I have already independently concluded that the sole star added in 2009 honors a CIA employee who had died in 2008. I will explain why in another short update to this post.]
The last ceremony attended by Director Panetta was held on May 23, 2011. No new star was added to the Wall.
On June 7, 2010, the CIA held its annual ceremony. Twelve stars were added to its Memorial Wall, which at the time commemorated the lives of 102 employees.
Seven of the 12 new stars honor those killed during the previous December in eastern Afghanistan.
The identity of the five other stars were not revealed. The 2010 Press Release reads:
“Five of the (12) new stars honor those who have died in recent years while engaged in clandestine assignments. Continuing operational sensitivities require that the details of their work remain classified.”
We therefore conclude that the only logical possibility is that Zembiec was honored by a star at the 2010 ceremony.
Indeed, the only 2007 star was added in 2010. Star 91 must be Zembiec’s star!
PS — Relying on this new piece of information, it becomes straightforward to solve the mystery of the four CIA operators who died on a spy mission during Tropical Storm Higos [September 2008].
Stay tuned!
“The agency’s unwillingness to inscribe the names of its anonymous stars in the Book of Honor, particularly those dead 20, 30, even 40 years, contributes to a perception, among some family members, that the CIA is an institution mired in bureaucracy, a vast machinery that finds it easiest to classify first and ask questions later — if ever.”
Ted Gup
Washington Post
(September 6, 1997)
UPDATE I : The 2008 Memorial Ceremony (May 14, 2024)
As I wrote in this post, the two stars added in 2008 honor CIA employees who had died in 2008. Here is the explanation.
On June 2, 2008, the CIA held its annual ceremony. The Press Release reads:
“The Central Intelligence Agency this morning paid tribute to 89 colleagues lost in the line of duty. (…) Two employees represented by new stars were killed in the past year while conducting missions in the war zones.
Given the sensitivity of those operations, neither their names nor the details of their work can be made public. Hayden lauded the two as heroes who accepted great risk to bring peace and freedom to those who have seen far too little of either.
[They] are models of integrity, leadership, and patriotism… joined now with 87 others who embraced CIA’s mission and lived those same values.”
Although the CIA does not disclose the identities of the two new stars, the Press Release provides some information about the time of their death.
“Two employees represented by new stars were killed in the past year while conducting missions in the war zones.”
Traditionally, the expression ‘in the past year’ refers to the last twelve months. So, these two CIA employees were probably paramilitary officers or contractors who died in the period going from May 2007 to May 2008.
Indeed, a picture taken on February 19, 2009 — thus after the 2008 ceremony but before the 2009 ceremony — indicates that employees had died in 2008.
[The last name is Rachel A. Dean. During the May 21 2007 ceremony, CIA Director General Michael V. Hayden stated: “Rachel was a warm and compassionate young woman, and an officer of unbounded potential. We miss her still and will remember her always. She is our 87th star.”]
According to CIA historian Nicholas Dujmovic:
“Two stars were added in late May 2008. They represent operations officers who lost their lives in the line of duty this year.”
Amnesia to Anamnesis.
Commemoration of the Dead at CIA.
UPDATE II : The 2009 Memorial Ceremony (May 15, 2024)
On June 1, 2009, the CIA held its annual ceremony. One star was added to the wall, bringing the total to 90. The identity of the star, the time and circumstances of the death were not revealed.
The Press Release reads:
“The Central Intelligence Agency, which recently added a 90th star to the Memorial Wall in its headquarters building, today commemorated the exceptional service and ultimate sacrifice of all employees lost in the line of duty.
Director Leon Panetta also paid tribute to an employee killed in the line of duty last year — CIA’s 90th star. Due to continuing operational sensitivities, neither the name of the employee nor details of his work can be made public.”
Since we know that the employee was killed in the last year, the time of death is restricted to the 2008 and 2009 years.
However, a picture of the Book of Honor taken after the 2010 ceremony indicates that all 2009 stars are named. Thus, we conclude that the 90th star honors an employee who died in 2008.
Donald A. Barger was killed in Afghanistan on May 10, 2008. Barger was a retired Master Sergeant, former US Army Ranger and Special Forces soldier. He served with 1st Ranger Battalion and Army 3rd Special Forces Group.
END of UPDATE
“The men and women memorialized here came from all walks of life, and they were joined together by the same demanding mission that we pursue today. They held different jobs in different places, but they were motivated by the same sense of duty, the same sense of purpose that are the heart and soul of the CIA.”
CIA Director Leon Panetta
(June 1, 2009)
REFERENCES
Douglas A. Zembiec — Wikipedia
Legendary Marine Maj. Zembiec, the ‘Lion of Fallujah,’ died in the service of the CIA By Thomas Gibbons-Neff – Washington Post (July 15, 2014)
CIA Honors Fallen Colleagues – CIA Press Release (June 7, 2010)
==
The CIA Book of Honor — Star 91 : Douglas Alexander Zembiec (April 14, 1973 — KIA May 11, 2007)
“Be a man of principle. Fight for what you believe in. Keep your word. Live with integrity. Be brave. Believe in something bigger than yourself. Serve your country. Teach. Mentor. Give something back to society. Lead from the front. Conquer your fears. Be a good friend. Be humble and be self-confident. Appreciate your friends and family. Be a leader and not a follower. Be valorous on the field of battle. And take responsibility for your actions. Never forget those that were killed. And never let rest those that killed them.”
Douglas Alexander Zembiec
Intel Today 