Nickname(s) "Nathan" Unit Marine Security Guard Name Jesse Aliganga | Rank Sergeant Years of service 1995-1998 | |
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Birth name Jesse Nathanael Aliganga Born October 17, 1976
Oakland, California, U.S. ( 1976-10-17 ) Buried at Arlington National Cemetery Allegiance United States of America Died August 7, 1998, Nairobi, Kenya Place of burial Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, United States Battles and wars 1998 United States embassy bombings Service/branch United States Marine Corps | ||
Jesse Nathanael "Nathan" Aliganga (October 17, 1976 – August 7, 1998) was a United States Marine Corps security guard who was killed in the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Nairobi, Kenya. He was the only U.S. Marine killed in the bombings.
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Aliganga was working at the American embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. On August 7, 1998, at the age of 21, Aliganga was killed by a car-bomb explosion, along with eleven fellow Americans, in the suicide bomb attack. Aliganga was the only U.S. Marine who was killed in the attack in Kenya. This was part of a simultaneous suicide bomb attack in which car bombs were exploded at U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, killing 257 people and wounding over 4,000. The attack was later determined to be conducted by the al-Qaeda network and Osama bin Laden.
Early life and education
Aliganga, of Philippine descent, was born on October 17, 1976 in Oakland, California and attended high school in Tallahassee, Florida, graduating in 1994.
Career
In January 1995, Aliganga enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. Aliganga attended U.S. Marine Corps recruit training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, in South Carolina. Thereafter, he trained as a communication specialist at the Marine Air Ground Combat Center in 29 Palms, California and at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. After training, he was stationed with the 3rd Marine Division at the Marine Corps Base in Okinawa, Japan, followed by service with the 1st Force Service Support Group, 1st Landing Support Battalion, H&S Company, Communications Platoon at Camp Pendleton.
In early January 1998, based on recommendations from his superiors, Aliganga was sent to the elite Marine Security Guard School, in MCB Quantico, Virginia. Upon completing the rigorous training, Aliganga requested the American embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. In late February 1998, his request was approved and he was assigned to one tour of special duty at the U.S. embassy in Kenya, where he worked until his death on August 7, 1998, when the embassy was attacked by Islamist terrorists.
Legacy
Aliganga was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.