WASHINGTON — Navy SEAL Michael A. Monsoor had fast thinking to do when a live grenade came out of nowhere to bounce off his chest: Take the clear path to safety that he had but his comrades didn’t, try to toss it safely away, or throw himself on top of it.

Without hesitation on that Iraqi rooftop, Monsoor took the last course, sacrificing his life to save the men around him. For that, President Bush yesterday awarded him the Medal of Honor.

In an East Room ceremony, Mr. Bush presented the nation’s highest military honor to Monsoor’s still-grieving parents, Sally and George Monsoor. About 250 guests, including his sister and two brothers, fellow SEALS, other Medal winners, many friends, and Senator McCain and other members of Congress, looked on.

“The Medal of Honor is awarded for an act of such courage that no one could rightly be expected to undertake it,” Mr. Bush said. “Yet those who knew Michael Monsoor were not surprised when he did.” Mr. Bush has awarded the medals to 10 people during his presidency. Monsoor is only the third from the Iraq war, and Mr. Bush’s lip trembled and tears streamed down his cheeks as the official citation was read with the details of his bravery.

The emotional proceedings at the White House came as the top American general and diplomat in Iraq opened two days of testimony on Capitol Hill on the status of the war, which has killed more than 4,020 U.S. military personnel.

General David Petraeus said security in Iraq is still too fragile to allow announcements of troop levels going below 140,000 before September. Mr. Bush is giving a speech tomorrow to announce whether he accepts General Petraeus’s recommendation to suspend troop withdrawals for 45 days after the current round completes in July. He is expected to do so.