By Alex Cohen

The phrase “De Oppresso Liber” may not have much significance to students. The Latin adage translates as “To free the oppressed” and is the motto of the United States Army Special Forces, also known as the Green Berets.

On August 15, Green Beret Staff Sergeant Robert Pirelli, a Northeastern alumnus, attempted to clear out members of Al Qaeda in Iraq and was fatally wounded by small arms fire during an attack on an enemy position. Pirelli and his team were among 10,000 troops involved in a large-scale US military operation, “Operation Lightning Hammer,” conducted in the northwestern Iraqi province of Diyala.

Pirelli graduated from Franklin High School in 1996. While in high school, he played ice hockey for the Franklin Panthers. After graduation, Pirelli attended Northeastern where he continued to play hockey, and was goalie for the Huskies during his junior and senior years. In 2001, Pirelli graduated with a degree in criminal justice.

His father, also named Robert Pirelli, said that while studying criminal justice at Northeastern, Pirelli made it clear that his life ambition was to become a Special Agent in the US Secret Service. It was in the pursuit of this goal that Pirelli enlisted in the US Army in December 2003. Pirelli initially enlisted as an Infantryman and later attended Airborne school and the Special Forces Qualification Course. Following completion of the Qualification course, Pirelli, then a Green Beret, was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 10th Special Forces group based out of Fort Carson, Colo.

When news of Pirelli’s death was officially released by the Pentagon the following day, the Pirelli family and many local residents who had known the 29 year-old were stunned. Although the war in Iraq has been going on for some time, the town had remained largely immune from the casualties of the war. Up until Pirelli’s death, only one other soldier, a marine killed in 2003, from Franklin had been killed in Iraq.

“It’s a terrible tragedy,” said Jeffrey Nutting, Franklin’s town administrator.

Nutting and other town employees answered calls from residents about Pirelli’s death, including one from a local church member asking whether it was proper to lower the church’s American flag to half-staff in the soldier’s honor. In accordance with tradition, the town flag was flown at half mast to honor Pirelli.

Pirelli’s father, said his son had told him on many occasions that he “enjoyed what he was doing.” While in Iraq, Pirelli served as an Engineer Sergeant on a Special Forces A-Team. The older Pirelli said one of his son’s last accomplishments was the construction of a combat outpost in the Diyala Province. The outpost that Pirelli helped build has been renamed in his honor as “Outpost Pirelli.”

In March, Pirelli was deployed to Iraq. He was due to return home last month. While in Iraq, Pirelli was awarded the Combat Infantry Badge, which signified he had been engaged in combat with the enemy.

On Aug. 26, Staff Sergeant Robert R. Pirelli was buried in Franklin. The funeral service was conducted at St. Mary’s Church and was attended by many, including Gov. Deval Patrick. Following the funeral, Pirelli’s father was approached by three members of the US Secret Service who presented him with an honorary Secret Service badge in the name of his son. Pirelli’s father declined the presentation after consulting with members of his son’s Green Beret Team who attended the funeral. His teammates, who had spent the last six months with him believed he would have wanted to be remembered as a Green Beret.