The Army’s top civilian and enlisted leaders have awarded eight Meritorious Service Medals and two Purple Hearts to Old Dominion University ROTC cadets who stopped the March 12 gunman later identified by the FBI as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, a former National Guardsman convicted in a case tied to support for the Islamic State.

In a private ceremony this week, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael Weimer honored the cadets for their actions during the attack inside an ROTC classroom, according to U.S. Army Cadet Command on Facebook. The cadets’ names were withheld for privacy.

Federal authorities have said the cadets subdued and killed Jalloh after he opened fire, killing military science professor Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, 42, and wounding two others during an attack during their class at Old Dominion in Norfolk, Virginia.

One cadet was hospitalized in critical condition, while the other was treated and released after the deadly melee.

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Sergeant Major of the Army Michael R. Weimer and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll presented honors to Old Dominion University Army ROTC cadets, acknowledging their bravery and sacrifice during a classroom shooting earlier in the month. (Ian Ives / U.S. Army)

The Purple Heart is awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces who are wounded, killed or die from wounds received in combat, while a prisoner of war, or in action against an enemy force.

The Meritorious Service Medal is the noncombatant service equivalent honor to the Bronze Star.

It has not been made clear how many students were in the class at the time of the shooting, which the FBI has described as an act of terrorism, hailing the cadets’ intervention to prevent additional casualties.

“There were students that were in that room that subdued him, and, uh, rendered him no longer, uh, alive,” according to Dominique Evans, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Norfolk field office, in news conference remarks that raised outpouring of American pride on social media.

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Army Secretary Dan Driscoll honored eight cadets from Old Dominion University’s Army ROTC program with Meritorious Service Medals and two were awarded Purple Hearts for their courage, service and bravery for “terminating” an ISIS terrorist attacker. (Ian Ives / U.S. Army)

“I don’t know how else to say it,” Evans said. “They basically were able to terminate the threat.”

They heroically did so without guns.

Jalloh “was not shot,” she added, as reports indicated the cadets killed the ISIS-linked assassin by stabbing him to death.

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Jalloh’s ability to carry out an ISIS-inspired terrorist attack in the U.S. after President Donald Trump started the military strikes on Iran is a function of former President Joe Biden’s Justice Department releasing a terrorist.

Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll shakes the hands of Old Dominion University Army ROTC cadets after awarding eight Meritorious Service Medals and two Purple Hearts during a private ceremony Sunday. (Ian Ives / U.S. Army)

Jalloh had pleaded guilty in 2016 to attempting to provide material support to ISIS and had been released from federal custody in December 2024 to mere supervised probation, which failed to prevent the attack.

He was released about 2 1/2 years early after completing a drug treatment program, a person familiar with the matter told the AP. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity.

It was not clear how Jalloh qualified for the program, which allows inmates to shave up to a year off their sentences. Inmates serving sentences for terrorism-related offenses typically are not eligible for such programs or other sentence-reducing credits.

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Old Dominion University Police Chief Garrett Shelton said less than 10 minutes passed between when officers were called about a shooting in the university’s business school building and when responders determined the shooter was dead.

“The shooter is now deceased thanks to a group of brave students who stepped in and subdued him – actions that undoubtedly saved lives along with the quick response of law enforcement,” FBI Director Kash Patel wrote March 12 on X.

Three members of the U.S. Army ROTC program at Old Dominion were wounded, including one who died. Jalloh also had served. The naturalized U.S. citizen from Sierra Leone was a specialist with the Virginia Army National Guard from 2009 until 2015, when he was honorably discharged.

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Shah, 42, was the university’s professor of military science and a former ODU ROTC cadet who returned in 2022 to lead the program.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Seven Olympians from multiple countries, including three gold medalists, have condemned the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for its response to the execution of Iranian wrestler Saleh Mohammadi. 

After Mohammadi was reportedly hanged in public last week, the IOC released a statement that said, “It is very difficult to comment on situations of individuals during a conflict or unrest in a country without the IOC being able to verify the often contradicting information…

“The IOC, as a civil, non-governmental organization, has neither the remit nor the ability to change the laws or political system of a sovereign country.”

Now, the seven Olympians are sharing their objections to the IOC not condemning Iran for the execution. 

The IOC told Fox News Digital it stood by its original statement.  

Nancy Hogshead, three-time US Olympic gold medal swimmer

Nancy Hogshead attends an event celebrating the 40th anniversary of Title IX on June 21, 2012, in Washington, D.C. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for WICT)

“I’m flabbergasted that the IOC could not denounce the murder of a teenage wrestler in Iran. The governing organizations of the Olympics are non-political, but denouncing the murder of an athlete for political purposes is not political… it is just doing the right thing,” Hogshead told Fox News Digital. 

“Olympians deserve better. The IOC can and should stand against the execution of athletes by violent regimes for political purposes.”

Tyler Clary, US gold medal swimmer at London 2012

Tyler Clary celebrates winning gold in the men’s 200m backstroke final at the Olympic Games on Aug. 2, 2012, in London. (Christophe Simon/AFP via Getty Images)

“The IOC’s statement reads like corporate damage control, not moral leadership,” Clary told Fox News Digital. 

“Hiding behind neutrality and bureaucracy isn’t leadership, it’s avoidance. The IOC says it doesn’t have the authority to influence sovereign nations, but it has never hesitated to take strong positions when it suits its interests. To suddenly claim impartiality when an athlete is killed shows a lack of backbone and a failure to stand up for the very people who make the Olympic movement possible.”

Maciej Czyzowicz, Poland Olympic gold medal pentathlete at Barcelona 1992

Poland Pentathalon gold medalist Maciej Czyzowicz (Courtesy of Maciej Czyzowicz)

“The International Olympic Committee’s lack of action and resolve is outrageous. Iran should be banned from the Olympic Games for its behavior, unless the regime is overthrown and a new leadership comes to power,” Czyzowicz told Fox News Digital. 

“If the IOC is unable to stand up for the life of an innocent teenage athlete, it has completely lost all moral credibility. With this statement they showed that they don’t care if any of Olympic movement countries break human and civil rights.”

Keith Sanderson, US Olympic shooter, four-time Olympian

Keith Sanderson during the Olympic Games at The Royal Artillery Barracks on Aug. 3, 2012, in London. (Lars Baron/Getty Images)

“This is sort of par for the course with the IOC. They enrich themselves at the expense of athletes and cannot even stand up and say that any regime, including Iran, murdering a teenage athlete is categorically wrong,” Sanderson told Fox News Digital. 

“The IOC has been known to be corrupt for years, but this is beyond the pale. If the IOC wants to show any shred of morality or credibility, they should denounce this murder and impose sanctions on Iran until their leadership changes or they apologize for this brutal execution.”

Ruben Gonzalez, Argentina Olympic luge athlete, four-time Olympian

Ruben Gonzalez of Argentina finishes the final run of the men’s luge singles at the Winter Olympics on Feb. 14, 2010, in Whistler, Canada. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)

“The IOC’s refusal to speak out against Iran for killing the teenage wrestler is shameful. But that’s how they’ve always been. All they care is about themselves,” Gonzalez told Fox News Digital. “As far as the IOC’s concerned, the athletes are simply pawns that allow them to profit. Time and again, it has put its own interests ahead of the athletes it claims to represent. If the IOC has any integrity left, it should publicly condemn the act and take decisive action against Iran.”

Katie Uhlaender, US skeleton athlete, five-time Olympian

Katie Uhlaender poses for a photo during the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team media summit on Sept. 25, 2017. (Kevin Jairaj/USA Today Sports)

“The IOC’s claim that they are just a ‘civil organization’ is a convenient excuse for inaction. They used it to dodge accountability for the Russian state-sponsored doping crisis, and they are using it now regarding the safety of Iranian athletes. Whether it’s doping in China, competition manipulation in Canada, or the stolen moments of U.S. skaters in 2022, the pattern is the same: the IOC cannot or will not protect the people who make the Games possible,” Uhlaender told Fox News Digital. 

“If the IOC insists that athlete protection is a state responsibility, then the United States has an opportunity to lead by example as it heads into LA 2028. It’s time to stop waiting and start setting the standard for athlete safety and integrity ourselves.”

Eli Bremer, US modern pentathlete at Beijing 2008

Eli Bremer celebrates at the Olympic Games on Aug. 21, 2008, in Beijing, China. (Nick Laham/Getty Images)

“I’ve believed IOC has been morally bankrupt for years and thus not had particularly high expectations for them. That said, I assumed the murder of a teenage athlete by his own country would be something even the IOC could figure out and denounce,” Bremer told Fox News Digital. 

“The fact that they cannot come out and say that Iran’s murder of this teenager who had become a national icon is wrong simply confirms how completely out of touch this organization is. I believe sports organizations generally should stay out of politics. But they can and should stand on basic humanity and say that murdering athletes is wrong. The fact that the IOC cannot do this speaks volumes about them.”

Afsoon Roshanzamir Johnston, Iranian-born Team USA Olympic women’s wrestling coach at Rio 2016

“As an Iranian-born world-class athlete, coach, and trailblazer for women in wrestling, I am profoundly disappointed by the International Olympic Committee’s recent statement regarding the execution of 19-year-old young wrestler, Saleh Mohammadi,” Johnston told Fox News Digital.

“By framing its role as a ‘non-governmental organization’ without the remit to influence national affairs, the IOC is stepping away from the very principles of the Olympic charter. The charter aims to promote a ‘peaceful society, concerned with the preservation of human dignity,’ yet when a young champion is barbarically and publicly hanged by a state-sanctioned execution, ‘quiet diplomacy’ feels painfully inadequate. 

“Political neutrality should not result in passivity when athletes face terrorist state-sanctioned brutality. Such a ‘safe’ response sends a troubling message to athletes in Iran and elsewhere; that the life and safety of the athlete is secondary to organizational protocol.

“We don’t need the IOC to change a country‘s laws, we need them to stand up and use their immense platform to support and help protect athletes.”

What happened to Saleh Mohammadi?

Mohammadi was killed in a public hanging Thursday, according to Iranian American human rights activists and dissidents. 

Iran International reported that Iran’s regime hanged Mohammadi and two additional Iranian men, Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi, “after being accused of killing two police officers during nationwide protests earlier this year,” the judiciary-linked Mizan news agency reported.

Mohammadi previously told Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting that his dream was to be an Olympic champion. 

Mohammadi won a bronze medal in September 2024 for Iran’s national freestyle wrestling at the Saytiyev International Cup in Krasnoyarsk, Russia.

Fox News Digital’s Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report. 

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