News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.
In their own words:
Dena Yllescas: Veteran's Day - As it does for many of you, Veteran's Day takes on a different tune for me this year. Living the military life and being around military families constantly, it's easy to forget the danger and sacrifice the military endure. We live our lives day in and day out and chalk it up as "This is my husband's job." What you don't take into account (and maybe this is a coping mechanism) is that when they are on foreign soil, there are people out there who hate America and what we stand for. It's not until something like this affects our family directly do you truly realize how amazing and selfless our military men and women are. Rob would often tell me, "This is just my job. I chose to do this." This is true. He felt very strong about his reasons for being deployed. But, if it weren't for Rob and all those other men and women, I would not be able to so freely write about our experiences on this blog site. (READ MORE)
Embrace the Suck: Holy O' Shit, War Is Quite Boring... - So we got here to AssCrackIstan the other day, and it has been nothing but excitement. (Not really, I have been bored to tears for the most part). We have been sitting around Bagram waiting for a flight out to where we are going to spend the majority of our deployment here. Once again, I will eventually tell you where but for the time being I cannot. So it goes. We got here and had to go through some IED training which I can appreciate. If there is one thing that terrifies me it is the thought of being blown up by some random bomb placed in the road by one of these assholes. Other than that for like the past 3 days we have done really nothing but sleep and eat. And my good, good Lord do we get to eat. Bagram has chow halls that would put some restaurants to shame. (READ MORE)
Embrace the Suck: Operation Combat Blue Balls Is A Go... - Before I start today's tirade I'll let you know that since I am going to have a hard time getting on the internet for the remainder of this adventure I am just going to start every post with the time and date so you all can know when I am writing this... November 12, 0200 Operation Combat Blue Balls: Mission is stated as follows, commanders will continually raise their soldiers expectations of the importance and imminence of their mission only to bring them right to the cusp and force them to return to their tent. To continue sitting around doing nothing. Just a playful little name we came up with for this clusterfuck. Well where to begin. I am in someplace called Sharana or some shit like that, we just flew in about an hour ago. I am already missing Bagram. (READ MORE)
Lt. Col. Paul Fanning: Guardsmen receive Bronze Star at Veteran's Day ceremony - Two New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix received Bronze Star Medals with Valor during a Veterans Day ceremony at Camp Phoenix in Kabul on Tuesday. Capt. Joseph Merrill of Binghamton, commander of Ithaca-based Company D, 2nd Battalion 108th Infantry and 1st Sgt. James Meltz of Cropseyville, also assigned to Company D, were honored for combat actions on 25 and 26 May. The unit was providing security for a long-range convoy from Kabul to Kandahar when it was ambushed. Both leaders were credited for "direct actions that lead to the repulsion of enemy forces without the injury or death to U.S. forces." (READ MORE)
Free Range International: Veterans Day Video Tribute from a “Man on the Street” interview at the Torkham Border - We had the rare treat of accompanying some guys working for the U.S. Army to the Torkham border today. They went up to chat with the platoon of American MP’s who jointly man the border crossing with the Afghan Border Police (ABP). The MP’s have a very cool gig at the Torkham. They mentor their Afghan counterparts and also keep an eye on the large volume of human and vehicular traffic which flows between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Army guys who let us tag along were conducting some “man on the street” interviews and getting very encouraging remarks from the Afghans they talked with. The American soldier who did the interviewing was born in Pakistan and raised in Washington State. He talks Pashto with an eastern accent (taught to him by the military defense language school – a positive sign that we are developing the right skill sets) so the locals assume he is an Afghan. (READ MORE)
IraqPundit: Scared of Democracy - The forces for democracy in Iraq focus on development and negotiations, and the forces against democracy choose destruction and violence. All the while civilians pay the price. Recently militants attacked the water supply in Adhamiya section of Baghdad. How depriving people of water is good, I don't know. Meanwhile, today Iraq reopened the historic A'imma bridge in Baghdad. The AP reports that the "bridge linking Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods that was barricaded shut three years ago reopened Tuesday, offering the latest sign of improving security in the Iraqi capital despite near-daily scattered attacks." Who benefits from the near-daily scattered attacks? (READ MORE)
Mohammed: U.S. Elections in Iraqis' Eyes - As an Iraqi I worry about the future of Iraq’s security and democracy. This simple fact has made me hope for an American leader who will perpetuate the strategy of supporting Iraq for the good of the two nations and for the world, in the war on terror. In spite of my Republican leanings, I view the result of the presidential election as a victory for the values of the American nation. I certainly have great trust in Republican leaders who liberated my people from tyranny. I trust the American nation as a whole even more. America has offered the world — through her pluralism and temporary divide — yet a new lesson in humanity. From my perspective, the result of the election was not a defeat for America but a victory. Americans have demonstrated that country matters more than party. (READ MORE)
Bill Roggio: Suicide bombing kills 3 in Peshawar - A Taliban suicide bomber has struck again in Pakistan's insurgency-wracked northwest. The latest attack occurred outside of a stadium in Peshawar, the capital of the Northwest Frontier Province. Three people were killed and several others were wounded after a suicide bomber detonated his vest at the main gate of the stadium, Geo TV reported. The targets of the attack appear to have been Bashir Ahmed Bilour, the provincial Chief Minister, and Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani. Bilour "narrowly escaped the suicide attack," sources told the news agency. Ghani left the stadium just 10 minutes prior to the attack. (READ MORE)
Photography, Software, and Sand: Touring Irbil - Being in Irbil is like an out-of-body experience for anyone thats spent time in the rest of Iraq. The people here are friendly and the security situation allows us to not have to wear body armor or helmets when traveling through the city. In fact, my day yesterday was pretty much like any day I would have spent in any other city in the world. The guys here asked if I wanted to see downtown Irbil on our lunch break, and I naturally had my boots on and camera in hand before the question was even finished. The first place we visited was the Citadel, which is a settlement in the center of the city. This settlement is one of the oldest continuously occupied in the world, with estimates of around 8,000 years. As I later found out, the buildings themselves are not actually that old - each group of people built on top of previous settlements, which is why the settlement is on top of a 100-foot hill. I found an interesting story online that his some great information about the citadel on MSN. (READ MORE)
Rocinante's Burdens: Day 145. Winning - More signs of winning are showing up. 1. US Forces have been directed to take the signs off of the backs of our vehicles. No longer do we say, "DANGER, STAY BACK 100M". No longer will we drive aggressively and hog the roads. Now we will share the roads and obey traffic signals. This is a big deal and demonstrates the real confidence senior army leaders (a real risk averse bunch of guys if ever there were any) have in the current security situation here in Iraq. 2. The Alquaida in Iraq leadership is whining about being betrayed by the Iraqi insurgent groups because they seem to be helping the coalition forces now. Evidently, the Home-grown insurgent fighters see the writing on the wall and know where they will be living when this is over. It is strange that Obama, having campaigned on getting us out of Iraq, wins the election just in time for us to declare victory, after which, we would have pulled out anyway. (READ MORE)
Up Country Iraq: Winding Down - Hello everyone, Things are winding down here in Multi-National Division-North (MND-N) for the 1st Armored Division (1AD) soldiers, which means that they (and I) will be heading home in the not too distant future. Meanwhile, the beat goes on. I finally spent some time with my Aviation compadres last week and was not surprised by the data that I collected. The Army Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) consists of the whole gamut of aircraft, including attack (Apache), cargo (Chinook), Scouts (Kiowa-Warrior), and utility (Blackhawk). The Cab also uses unmanned aviation systems (UAS). The CAB had aircraft in the air literally 24 hours a day somewhere in the division sector for its entire 15 month rotation. The CAB covered the largest division area in Iraq and they were in the fight during some of the roughest fighting over here, yet their safety record was phenomenal. If you are a pilot who likes to chalk up flight hours, this was the place to be. (READ MORE)
John Hutton: Values we defended in two World Wars are attacked in Afghanistan - I want to address directly those critics who claim our presence in Afghanistan is in neither our national interest nor that of the Afghans. The critics who doubt we can achieve our objectives. Who say the best thing we can do is to get out. September 11 2001, lest we ever forget, was a crime by al-Qa'eda against the civilised world. It was the largest and most spectacular in a series of attacks on embassies to night clubs, from Kenya to Bali; a worldwide campaign of terror. The attacks possessed a common thread: indiscriminate violence. A total disregard for the innocent, for race, nationality, and religion. In 2001, the most important direct threat to Britain and the civilised world was Afghanistan. It was there that 9/11 was planned and facilitated. It was there that al-Qa'eda had a secure refuge for its franchise of indiscriminate violence. It is a mistake to believe that we should switch to an exclusively political focus in Afghanistan. There is little point in building schools and medical clinics only to find a resurgent Taliban bulldozing them a few weeks later. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Payday for some impatient sons - As a member of the paramilitary force known as the Sons of Iraq, whose foot soldiers man checkpoints and work alongside U.S. and Iraqi troops across Iraq, Surmad Mahmoud Jundi earns $300 a month. As a full-fledged member of the Iraqi police or military, he would get at least twice that, along with extra money for hazardous duty. It's no wonder, then, that Jundi is impatient to make the leap from being a Son of Iraq to being a cop of Iraq... (READ MORE)
AQI targets sports complex, injures 15 civilians - MOSUL, Iraq – Al-Qaeda in Iraq injured 15 Iraqi civilians during a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attack on the Ministry of Sports complex in Mosul Nov. 11. At approximately 12:54 p.m., a white car loaded with explosives detonated near the building, deliberately targeting the innocent Iraqi civilians. (READ MORE)
Kirkuk senior leaders interact with local shop owners - KIRKUK CITY, Iraq – Kirkuk leaders, the commander of 18th Engineer Brigade, Col. Matthew Russell, and the Kirkuk Provincial Reconstruction Team Leader Howard Keegan spent time at the Maiedja Market in downtown Kirkuk City, Iraq, to talk with local business owners, Nov. 9. Local leaders including PRT and Coalition forces visit the the local markets and businessed in the Kirkuk Province to get feedback on the economy and the security situation on an almost weekly basis. (READ MORE)
Sustainment brigade takes on Iraqi water issues - AL-QAYARRAH, Iraq – The 16th Sustainment Brigade took a major step in its effort to get water to the drought-prone Ninawa province in northern Iraq Nov. 5. Soldiers and contractors from Contingency Operating Base Q-West began installation of a second high-capacity, multi-stage centrifugal water-pump at the Al-Qayyarah pump house at the Tigris River. (READ MORE)
IA seizes weapon caches in Amarah - CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq – Iraqi Army soldiers seized a weapons cache while on a combined patrol in the southeastern portion of Amarah Nov 8. The Iraqi soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 38th IA Brigade with Soldiers from the 2nd Bn., 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division found 100 12.7 mm rounds, 250 7.62 linked ammo, 13 rifle propelled grenades with one launcher, one AK47, 12 AK 47 magazines, two-mortar tubes and an unknown number of mortar rounds. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Help Treat Ailing Iraqis, Set Up Clinic for Long-term Success - Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, first arrived in Iraq in November 2007 they had many things in mind to help better the lives of the local Iraqi citizens in Rathwaniyah, just on the outskirts of Baghdad. One of their main focuses would be to help aid many of Iraqis ailing from an assortment of illnesses. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Government Pays Its 'Sons' in West Rashid, Takes Step Toward Transition - BAGHDAD — The Sons of Iraq in the West Rashid District of southern Baghdad received their first Government of Iraq paycheck at Joint Security Station Jihad Nov. 10, 2008. This is the first large-scale SoI payday conducted by the Government of Iraq and marks a landmark achievement in the SoI transition from Coalition forces control to GoI control. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Army trains staff officers on operational planning - Mosul, Iraq – Staff officers from the 2nd Iraqi Army Division participated in a training event Monday to improve their ability to coordinate and plan military operations. The training is part of an ongoing program the 2nd IA Div. Military Transition Team and the IA unit started last month. The MiTT Soldiers and Iraqi National Military Advisors are working with the division’s staff officers to improve their ability to develop courses of action, plan and produce warning orders and detailed operations orders. (READ MORE)
Armistice Day observed at ceremony in Umm Qasr - UMM QASR, Iraq – On Sunday, Nov. 9, British and American personnel of the Umm Qasr-based Naval Transition Team, Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq, paid their respects to fallen comrades from past and present conflicts. They were joined at the Armistice Day service by their Iraqi Navy counterparts, led by their Operational Commander. In keeping with tradition, the service, held outside the Iraqi Naval School, was marked with a two-minute silence at 1100 local time. (READ MORE)
Coalition forces strike AQI networks: two terrorists killed, 16 suspects detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces continued to thwart al-Qaeda in Iraq’s ability to conduct terrorist operations Tuesday and Wednesday, killing two armed terrorists and detaining 16 additional suspects. Coalition forces dealt multiple blows to AQI leadership networks in Baghdad Tuesday. Two terrorists were killed and five other suspects were detained during an operation targeting one of the city’s terrorist leaders. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Investigation into incident in Kandahar province - KABUL, Afghanistan (Nov. 5, 2008) – U.S. Forces Afghanistan and the Afghan Ministry of Interior have initiated an investigation into an incident in the Shah Wali Kott district, Kandahar province, Nov. 3. “The coalition and Afghan authorities are investigating reports of non-combatant casualties in the village of Wech Baghtu,” said Cmdr. Jeff Bender, Deputy Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Forces Afghanistan. (READ MORE)
Insurgents killed in Helmand province - KABUL, Afghanistan (Oct. 4, 2008) – Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition forces killed five insurgents during a combat security patrol in Nahr Surkh district, Helmand province, Nov. 3. Insurgents engaged the patrol with rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire. The combined forces responded with small-arms fire killing five discovered. (READ MORE)
Local National killed, U.S. Civilian Burned in Southern Afghanistan - KABUL, Afghanistan (Oct. 4, 2008) – A U.S. civilian shot and killed a local national in an altercation that took place in southern Afghanistan this morning. Reports indicate the local national was shot after pouring and igniting a flammable liquid on another U.S. civilian. (READ MORE)
ANSF, Coalition forces destroy 40 metric-tons of drugs in Spin Buldak - KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Afghan Commandos from the 205th Commando Kandak and Coalition forces dismantled a drug-making facility and destroyed more than 40 metric-tons of hashish in Spin Buldak district, Kandahar province, Nov. 3. The combined forces were conducting a search of an area known for insurgent activities when the facility was discovered. (READ MORE)
Petraeus visits Bagram Air Field - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (Nov. 6, 2008) – The top U.S. Commander for Iraq and Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus, visited Bagram Air Field Thursday to talk with commanders and get an updated assessment of the war on terror. During his first visit to Afghanistan since becoming the commander of U.S. Central Command, Petraeus talked about the issues that Coalition forces are facing. (READ MORE)
101st Soldiers conduct air assault in eastern Afghanistan - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (Nov. 4, 2008) – Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company and Alpha Company, 101st Division Special Troops Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, conducted an air assault mission in Bamyan province, eastern Afghanistan Nov. 4. It was suspected that a small village in a narrow valley in Bamyan province was facilitating IED cells. (READ MORE)
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