Captain William Swenson awarded Medal of Honor

At the White House today, retired US army captain William Swenson received the Medal of Honor for risking his life to save his fellow troops during a firefight in eastern Afghanistan in 2009.

Two years ago a US Marine was given the nation's highest military honour for his bravery in the same battle.

Jonathan Landay of McClatchy Newspapers was embedded with coalition troops at the time. He spoke to the BBC about Captain Swenson's actions on the battlefield and the controversy over the delay in awarding him the Medal of Honor.

Produced and edited by Bill McKenna