News and Personal dispatches from the front lines.
In their own words:
Iraq: The Purgatorium: The Yang - Talked with a Ugandan soldier during my four hour romance with complete boredom. I mentioned how our enemy is the good guy in their own eyes and WE'RE the bad guys and vice versa, and that America's Founding Fathers could have been considered terrorists by the British back then. Then this guy backhanded my statement with one simple clarification. The terrorists that we're up against target civilians, non-combatants. Oh yeah, forgot about that part. And they've had a personal impact on me numerous times, in different ways. This place gets you so fucked up that you lose sight of things like that. After all, we can't seem to find them to fight them. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Off the beating path - No, that's not a typo in the headline. We recently traveled to Jaghato and Rashidan, two of the bumpiest rides in Ghazni Province. The trip to Rashidan in particular is always a tough one, climbing nearly 10,000 feet over a very jarring mountain pass. After trips like this, you feel like you've been shaken inside a bag full of hammers. But you are also left with the images of the trip. It's hard to describe with words how long and arduous some of these travels are. In between, there are villages where you encounter nice people but you wonder how they survive so isolated from civilization. (READ MORE)
Kaboom: A Soldier's War Journal: iWar - Rumble young man, rumble. Make it more true than true is. As muddled as war appears on paper, it still has to make some sort of sense to survive the transformation into language. That is why I write. It makes more sense here than it does out there. If I ever make sense of it all, there won’t be a reason for these words anymore. I’ll finally fade into that proud sand castle defying the sea for the sake of defiance, then. Alone, under the red hot moon. Doomed to fail, blessed to try. That’s all I’ve really ever wanted out of life. To be left alone, to fight impossible on my own terms. The act of creation. Jimmy Rabbit on a bus. Pogues in a Port-a-John. Emily Dickinson locked away in an attic. God at a pub, liquored up in a dark corner, doodling on a napkin. (READ MORE)
LT Nixon: Iraq News (7 April) - The Good: A monster-sized EFP cache has been found by the Iraqi Security Forces, and they also released 42 kidnapped students up in Mosul. US and Iraqi forces are stomping the militia in Sadr City. Sadr City is a district in Northeastern Baghdad once called "Saddam City" and subsequently renamed for Muqtada's father. It's heavily Shi'ite, and has been known to be a homebase for the Mahdi Army and some of the Iranian-backed militias. This operation is ultimately necessary to bring security to Baghdad. The Prime Minister and every other political bloc (except Sadr Trend) has endorsed a move to disarm all politically-affiliated militias prior to Provincial elections. This has been a long time in coming, and it will ultimately be beneficial (I hope). (READ MORE)
LT Nixon: Deep-Seated Hatred of Yuppies - One bit of hatred I have fostered and have not been able to shake since adolescence is my scorn for yuppies. You know the type. The people founnd in urban and suburban dwellings with a foreign-made SUV sporting a camper attached to the roof, which is replete with bumper stickers about saving the environment and impeaching the president. Their endless quest to enhance their career, their wine and cheese parties, and their worship of their pets who get spa treatments all make me ill to my stomach. It's not so much an envy complex for what I don't possess, but rather a disgust for the entire culture. The fact that they attempt to "educate the public" for their paltry causes gives them moral justification to indulge themselves on an unsustainable lifestyle. (READ MORE)
The Angry American: A giant fucking Leap - Ohhhhh SHIT SON!!!! I just got done having DA DA DA DAAAAAAA...... BURGER KING!!!!!! and a nice cold monster. Thats right ladies and gender benders we have made it the fuck off of Rocketmiyah. Fuck Rocketmiyah you can have that shit. We made it off and trust me haaj gave us a pretty sweet send off. We had our CIB (Combat Infantry Badge) ceremony early on in the afternoon. The SGM and BC had just finished with my Squad and started on 3rd when I hear the faint but familiar screeching of a Rocket flying over head. The alarm failed to registar that one until it hit, and I laughed out loud and thought to myself, "Hell ya! Our platoon would get rocketed during the CIB ceremony." (READ MORE)
ToySoldier: What's My Age Again? - And that's about the time she walked away from me Nobody likes you when you're 23 And are still more amused by TV shows What the hell is ADD, my friends say I should act my age What's my age again? What's my age again? Happy 23rd to me. A year ago today we landed in Kuwait. Yup, deployed on my birthday...let's recount my past few birthdays. (READ MORE)
In Iraq: Indiana's 76th takes control in Iraq - Indiana's 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team took over the day-to-day duties of running Camp Anaconda today. Anaconda is the "most critical logistics hub in Iraq," said Brigadier General Gregory Couch of the 316th Sustainment Command. It is also the largest logistics base in Iraq. Indiana Commander, Colonel Courtney Carr will assume responsiblities of "mayor" for over 30,000 Army, Air Force and civilian contractors living on base. It's like being mayor of a city that's frequently attacked, General Couch added. (READ MORE)
In Iraq: Family bonds tested over war - Many soldiers who are deployed to Iraq are fortunate. They have a family who support them as soldiers. Their loved ones believe their sons and daughters, brothers and sisters are defending democratic freedoms and protecting the U.S. from terrorists. Others have a more complicated situation. They support the family member who happen to be a soldier, but they are against the war. Specialist Anthony Lewis, 44, of Fort Wayne, a veteran of a 2003 tour to Iraq, is in such a bind. Lewis describes himself as a patriot who joined “The Fort Wayne Patriots,” a pro-soldier group, because he was bothered by Fort Wayne area anti-war protests. (READ MORE)
Back Stateside but still writing:
A Battlefield Tourist: Kapisa Province, 2004 - This slideshow was taken in Kapisa Province when I went out with the Bagram PRT for a humanitarian drop. What I did not capture with my still camera is the riot that would break out soon after the supplies began to be distributed. The Americans, trying to be respectful, allowed the women to go first. That may be a good thing in the west, but not so in Afghanistan. Within ten minutes, what was meant to be a celebration of religious attonement, turned into a free-for-all leaving the most in need with very little of the aid. (READ MORE)
Heading Out:
Big Tobacco: The Platoon Sergeant Diet - I did not smoke while composing this. "I could sell this diet," I think to myself as I stand on the scale. Do you have trouble losing weight? Get promoted to platoon sergeant and you are guaranteed to lose inches off of your belt. I'm in the post fitness center, wondering why my first sergeant wanted me to drive him to the gym. The first sergeant split off to play racquetball with the battalion sergeant major. I was left in the weight room where I did my standard back and shoulder routine that I normally do at home. For kicks, I get on the scale. I've lost 6 lbs in my time here. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Kidnapping a reminder of California case - The news was chilling, even by the standards of this brutalized country: a busload of 42 students kidnapped by masked gunmen Sunday and spirited away into the desert. For Californians, and for anyone obsessed with bizarre and horrible crimes from the past, it conjured up memories of the infamous Chowchilla school kidnapping case, when a busload of pupils from the Dairyland School were taken captive in the California town. According to a book written about the 1976 crime, the three kidnappers, young men from affluent San Francisco area families, drew inspiration from the 1971 movie "Dirty Harry," which has Clint Eastwood pursuing the maniacal killer Scorpio. Scorpio's heinous crimes include capturing a bus full of schoolchildren. (READ MORE)
Baghdad after the battles - It's not often we get the chance to drive through Baghdad at a slow enough speed to see much and take pictures, but the U.S. military recently offered a trip of several houyrs through Shiite areas that had seen fighting during recent battles between Shiite militiamen and Iraqi and U.S. forces. There were signs of normalcy on many streets -- a little girl dragging a comb through her doll's straw-colored hair, little boys sitting on the side of the road waiting for the convoy to pass so they could resume their soccer game, people shopping, schoolgirls walking home from class. (READ MORE)
MND-B Soldier attacked by small-arms fire - BAGHDAD – A Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldier was killed as the result of small-arms fire after the vehicle he was traveling in was struck by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in eastern Baghdad April 7. The Soldier’s name is being withheld pending notification of the next of kin and release by the Department of Defense. (READ MORE)
Coalition Forces kill criminal, destroy vehicle used in rocket attack - BAGHDAD – A Multi-National Division – Baghdad aerial weapons team killed a criminal and destroyed a vehicle used in transporting rocket-launching rails in the eastern Baghdad district of New Baghdad at approximately 6 a.m. April 7. An MND-B aerial surveillance platform observed criminals launch four 107mm rockets from a known rocket launching site, targeting a forward operating base at approximately 5:30 a.m. (READ MORE)
ISF capture criminal element leader, suspected AQI terrorist in separate operations - BALAD, Iraq – Iraqi Security Forces, advised by U.S. Special Forces, captured a suspected criminal element leader and suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist in two separate operations April 6. In the Dhi Qar province, the Nasiriyah Iraqi Special Weapons and Tactics unit conducted an operation to capture a leader of a criminal network. He is linked to multiple assassination attempts against Iraqi and Coalition forces in the Dhi Qar province... (READ MORE)
Explosion in Basra - BASRA – Coalition forces surveillance indicates a large unknown explosion destroyed a house April 6 in the Hayy Al Asdiqa area of Basra City. Casualties are unknown at this time. Coalition forces and Iraqi Security Forces were not involved in the incident. (READ MORE)
Air Force dedicates combat clinic to fallen 1-10th Mtn. medic - KIRKUK, Iraq – The U.S. Air Force dedicated their new Davis Combat Clinic at Forward Operating Base Warrior to U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Carletta S. Davis during a ribbon cutting ceremony April 6. Davis was a combat medic with Charlie Company, 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, attached to the brigade commander’s personal support detachment. She was killed when her patrol struck an improvised explosive device during combat operations Nov. 5, 2007, south of Kirkuk. The IED also killed three other Soldiers with the 1st Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team. (READ MORE)
ISF detain one suspected criminal element leader, five others in separate operations - BALAD, Iraq – Iraqi Security Forces, advised by U.S. Special Forces, detain one suspected criminal element leader and five additional suspects in two separate operations April 4. In Baghdad, Iraqi Special Operations Forces captured one suspected criminal element leader suspected in attacks against Iraqi and Coalition forces. He is also believed to extort money from ISF and local nationals in the area. Another suspect is being held for questioning. During the operation, ISOF received small arms fire and returned fire killing one. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Army finds second cache in Shakariyah - CAMP STRIKER, Iraq – For the second time in a week, Iraqi Army soldiers from 22nd Brigade, 11th Iraqi Army Division uncovered a weapons cache in Shakariyah April 4. A local sheikh led the soldiers to the site where they found potential improvised explosive devices. The cache contained 120 mm mortar rounds, 57 mm rounds, more than 20 anti-personnel landmines, a propane tank and miscellaneous explosive materials. (READ MORE)
Bastogne Soldiers Remove Al-Qaida in Iraq Chokehold on Samarra Passageway - SAMARRA — After completion of a recent operation reconnecting old economic partners, the people of the northern-Iraqi city of Samarra can breathe again. The “Bastogne” Soldiers of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, recently finished conducting multiple operations that cleared al-Qaida fighters and other enemy extremist from the desert areas west and south of Samarra, including the southern portion of the city. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Security Forces Rescue 42 Kidnapped Students - MOSUL — The Iraqi Army rescued 42 college students after they were kidnapped by al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists in southwestern Mosul April 6. The AQI attacked two university buses with small-arms fire wounding three. The other 42 students were abducted. The three wounded students were taken to a local hospital while Iraqi Forces searched for the missing students. The soldiers identified a dump truck with a tarp over the back behaving suspiciously. The vehicle was stopped after warning shots were fired. The driver and passenger fled to a local residence. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Restore Honor to Old Glory - FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA — More than 150 U.S. Soldiers and civilians restored honor to a U.S. flag that lay lonely and forgotten on the grounds of a Georgia apartment complex for almost a week in February. The flag was retrieved by a passerby who could not stand seeing the flag treated in such a manner. Having passed the discarded flag twice, Dan Turner took the flag the third time he saw it lying on the ground and sent it to his friend Chief Warrant Officer 4 Thomas Golden of the Joint Forces Headquarters Forward, Georgia National Guard. (READ MORE)
Salvadoran Battalion Delivers Medical Supplies in Kut - FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA — The Salvadoran Cuscatlán Battalion delivered $4 million in medical supplies to the al Kut Director General of Health Warehouse April 1. “It is very important to provide more resources to the people of Iraq. We want to provide supplies to those who need it,” said Col. Walter Arevalo, commander of Cuscatlán Battalion X. Even though there is a heightened security risk, Arevalo said he felt honored that his Soldiers were called upon to fulfill this mission. (READ MORE)
King of Battle Still Reigns - MOSUL — The urban terrain of Operation Iraqi Freedom limits the use of large cannons and field artillery units. The days of all out destruction and artillery raining down from the skies seem to be over. But there are still uses for these Soldiers and instances in which destruction with precision accuracy is vital to the U.S. Army’s mission success. The Redleg Soldiers of Howitzer Battery, 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment are one of the few field artillery units executing their area of expertise in Iraq today. (READ MORE)
Adwaniyah Opens School, Health Clinic - FORWARD OPRATING BASE KALSU — Adwaniyah citizens who were once afraid to leave their homes because of al-Qaeda in Iraq, freely gathered last week to celebrate the grand opening of a middle school and health clinic. Much of the work was done using Commander’s Emergency Response Program funds. Coalition forces assisted in rebuilding the school and clinic but the Government of Iraq was key to the projects’ success. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Build Hope in Assriya - ASSRIYA — The Soldiers of Battery A, 1st Battalion, 143rd Field Artillery, a California National Guard unit attached to the 1103rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 1st Sustainment Brigade, spend most of their nights conducting convoy security missions. Although they have a job that requires them to be nocturnal, a few of the Soldiers have chosen to use their daylight hours to work in a village located outside of Camp Taji. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Lieutenant Syed I. Hussain - At the opening of the new emergency room at the Khost Provincial Hospital, Lieutenant Hussain saved his teammates, the provincial governor, and many innocent bystanders from a suicide bomber. Lieutenant Hussain maneuvered on the assailant and engaged him at close range with his 9mm pistol, in accordance with the Rules of Engagement regarding escalation of force, preventing the bomber from inflicting catastrophic casualties. Lieutenant Hussain’s gallant actions, taken without regard for his own safety, allowed the provincial governor and bystanders to escape without injury and represent the finest traditions of heroic actions in combat. (READ MORE)
ANSF, Coalition inflict significant insurgent losses - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – Afghan National Commandos from 1st Company, 201st Kandak and members of the Afghan National Police, advised by Coalition forces, conducted a deliberate operation today eliminating several insurgents in Nuristan Province. The Afghan National Security Forces, along with Coalition forces, conducted a cordon-and-search in Kendal and Shok villages in an effort to clear the area of insurgents when several groups of enemy fighters engaged friendly forces from several compounds and multiple fighting positions around and within the villages. (READ MORE)
Suspected militants detained during Khowst Province operation - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – Two suspected militants were detained April 6 during a joint Afghan National Police and Coalition forces operation disrupting militant Improvised Explosive Device networks in Khowst Province. ANP and Coalition forces searched compounds in Sabari district targeting a Haqqani network sub-commander responsible for conducting IED-facilitation operations as well as several attacks in the area. (READ MORE)
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