Criteria

a. Authorized to be awarded to soldiers who deploy to Afghanistan in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) on or after 24 October 2001 to a date to be determined or the cessation of OEF. The area of eligibility encompasses all land area of the country of Afghanistan and all air spaces above the land.

b. To be eligible for the award, a soldier must be assigned or attached to a unit participating in OEF for 30 consecutive days or for 60 nonconsecutive days in Afghanistan or meet one of the following criteria: 1) Be engaged in actual combat against the enemy and under circumstances involving grave danger of death or serious bodily injury from enemy action, regardless, of time in the Afghanistan. 2) While participating in OEF or on official duties, regardless of time, is killed or wounded/injured requiring medical evacuation from Afghanistan. 3) While participating as a regularly assigned air crew member flying sorties into, out of, within, or over Afghanistan in direct support of OEF; each day that one or more sorties are flown in accordance with the criteria shall count as one day towards the 30 consecutive or 60 nonconsecutive day requirement.

c. The medal may be awarded posthumously to any soldier who lost his/her life while, or as a direct result of, participating in qualifying operations, without regard to length of such service, if otherwise eligible.

A bronze service star is worn on the suspension and campaign ribbon for one or more days of participation in each designated campaign phase.

The Arrowhead device is a decoration of the U.S. Army issued as an attachment to certain service medals awarded to any service member who participates in an amphibious assault, combat parachute drop, helicopter assault landing, or a combat glider attack. No more than one arrowhead device may be authorized per campaign medal.