New graduates from the Iraq Military Academy embrace relatives and fellow new officers after their graduation ceremony in Baghdad August 28, 2006. (Faleh Kheiber/Reuters)
Posted on 08/28/2006 12:16:27 PM PDT by Gucho
Monday, August 28, 2006
Afghan 'suicide bombing kills 17'
By Gerry J. Gilmore - American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 28, 2006 – The Iraqi government is slated to assume control of its soldiers, sailors and airmen sometime next month, a senior U.S. military officer told reporters in Baghdad today.
The Iraqi Ministry of Defense, through its joint headquarters in Baghdad, will assume operational control of the Iraqi army, as well as the country’s air force and navy, in early September, Army Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, spokesman for Multinational Force Iraq, said at a news briefing.
“This is a significant step in the Iraqi path to self-reliance and security,” Caldwell said. “What this means is that the Iraqi Ministry of Defense is prepared to begin assuming direct operational control over Iraq’s armed forces.”
Iraq’s 3-year-old armed forces have “been rebuilt from the ground up as a modern and effective fighting force,” Caldwell said. Iraqi army divisions have fought alongside coalition forces under the commander of the Multinational Corps Iraq, he added. Coalition forces also have worked to train the new Iraqi army, which now stands at about 115,000 soldiers.
The transition of control of Iraq’s armed forces to the Iraqi government should take several months, Caldwell said.
The 10 Iraqi army divisions eventually will come under the direct operational control of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, commander in chief of Iraq’s armed forces, Caldwell said.
“The majority of Iraqi (army) divisions will remain under coalition forces initially,” Caldwell explained, “and then be gradually transitioned into the Iraqi ground forces command.”
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Awesome, they have tons of first hand experience.
Bump!
BIG Bump to this thread.
Thank you Gucho.
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 28, 2006 – Iraqi security forces captured a suspected bomb maker and cell leader yesterday near Mussayib, Iraq, U.S. military officials said.
The suspect is believed to have participated in multiple bomb attacks on coalition and Iraqi security forces, including one that killed four U.S. servicemembers May 5. This person is also believed to be a supplier of bombs to illegal armed groups inciting sectarian violence and government instability through kidnapping, murder and armed attacks, officials said.
The raid was conducted by Iraqi police and occurred without incident. No civilian, Iraqi or coalition forces casualties were reported.
One additional individual was detained in the operation, officials said.
Also in Iraq, Iraqi army and police forces fended off an attack by a large group of terrorists in Diwaniyah after a 12-hour battle today.
Coalition forces provided support to the Iraqi security forces by setting up blocking positions at several points on the outskirts of Diwaniyah to prevent additional terrorists from entering the city.
A Polish helicopter providing support to the Iraqi security forces was hit with seven rounds of small-arms fire, but was able to safely land at a nearby coalition base.
Casualties are still being assessed.
(Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq new releases.)
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(Thank you Cindy, for this news item.)
My pleasure, Gucho.
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By Jim Garamone - American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 28, 2006 – Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld will call upon Americans in a speech later today to “work hard to keep a ‘Blame America First’ mentality from undermining our efforts” in the global war on terror.
Pentagon officials released excerpts of a speech the secretary will deliver to the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Reno, Nev. Officials expect more than 2,300 veterans to attend the event.
Rumsfeld disputes critics who say the United States should not be in Iraq. “The extremists openly call Iraq the ‘epicenter’ in the war on terror,” his speech asserts. “And they mean it. Yet even today, so many seem to want to argue otherwise.”
The remarks indicate Rumsfeld’s concern about “the lack of perspective in our national dialogue today – the perspective of history, and an understanding of the new challenges and threats that free people face.”
The secretary also points out that the United States is held to a near-impossible standard, while the terrorists are not. “Our forces strive to protect civilians; the enemy uses civilians as shields. As our troops strive to obey the laws of warfare, the enemy uses those laws against us. As our troops are held to a standard of near perfection, the enemy is held to no standard at all,” he said.
“And while some argue for tossing in the towel, the enemy is waiting and hoping for us to do just that,” Rumsfeld will tell the VFW.
The speech will note that al Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden believes the United States is a paper tiger--ferocious on the outside, but actually toothless. Rumsfeld will evoke past events to show the veterans the danger in giving the enemy the idea that Americans cannot stomach a tough fight. “It was after U.S. forces left Somalia in 1994 that Osama bin Laden concluded that American forces were a ‘paper tiger,’” Rumsfeld will tell the VFW. “There are stories that Saddam Hussein gave copies of ‘Black Hawk Down’ – a film about U.S. difficulties in Somalia – to his commanders as an example of American weakness and faintheartedness.”
The secretary’s remarks will stress that Americans can handle the tough road and make the tough choices. “The great story of America is one of grit, of determination and victory,” the secretary will tell the veterans. “And that story is still unfolding. Americans didn’t cross oceans and settle a wilderness and build history’s greatest democracy, only to run away from murderers and extremists who try to kill everyone they cannot convert and try to tear down what they could never build.”
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U.S. Army Sgt. Andy Paparella, right, from Tactical Psychological Operations Team 1151, speaks with Iraqi policemen through an interpreter before heading out on a patrol in Baghdad, Iraq, Aug. 22, 2006. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Jonathan F. Doti)
Team Gator is tasked with keeping the main routes in the area open for Coalition and civilian traffic.
Traffic keeps back from an amphibious assault vehicle from "Team Gator," D Company, 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 5. Team Gator patrols the highways to keep them clear of improvised explosive devices and insurgent attackers. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Mark Oliva)
By U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Mark Oliva
CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq, Aug. 28, 2006 — Forget murky swamps or backyard swimming pools. Regimental Combat Team 5 (RCT-5) has “Gators” stalking the six-lane highways surrounding Fallujah.
Marines from D Company, 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, RCT-5, are skulking the main roads surrounding Fallujah. They’re on the hunt, looking to clamp down on anyone trying to shut down the well-traveled routes for Coalition Forces. Their favorite prey is improvised explosive device emplacers and the roadside bombs they employ.
Team Gator, built around D Company, is tasked with keeping the main routes in the area open for Coalition and civilian traffic. Marines drive their 27-ton amphibious assault vehicles constantly. Day and night, the amtracs, a holdover nickname when earlier generations of the vehicle were called amphibious tractors, keep the main routes clear. It’s a mission that’s taxing physically and mentally, and requires an alligator’s thick skin to endure.
“We’re out there looking for IEDs and possible ambush sites,” said Staff Sgt. Justin K. Mayville, a 28-year-old section leader from Killeen, Texas. “The ‘amtracs,’ are well-suited for this kind of mission. They’re good on open-terrain and highways and stand up well against IEDs. They just get hot in the daytime.”
Nighttime isn’t much better. On a recent patrol, Marines loaded their amtracs, or “hogs” as they affectionately call them, and churned off into the inky-black moonless night. It was a ritualistic hunt. The roads they haunt are their hunting grounds, and they know them well.
“If we’re not doing this, another section is doing it, every day,” Mayville explained. “Marines know this area well and they know what to look for.”
That’s because Team Gator creeps their beasts along the roads at a patient, persistent pace. Headlights on, the lumbering amtrac beasts chug down the road, bellowing diesel smoke in a throaty groan. Marines ride high, perched in their stations or stand in the back, heads and rifles poking out from the open hatches.
“We’re looking for anything out of the ordinary,” said Lance Cpl. John D. Darmody, a 20-year-old amtrac crewman from Allen Park, Mich. “We’re looking to see something new in the road that we haven’t seen before.”
Darmody explained Team Gator has traveled up and down the same stretches of highway so often, they know the identifying features. They can pinpoint patch jobs on the road surface from repairs to craters left from previous IEDs. Pieces of trash, canisters, even shrubs that didn’t seem to be there the day before are tell-tale signs that something is amiss. That’s when Team Gator gets ready to pounce.
“That’s one of the main things about patrolling,” explained Cpl. Manuel A. Castellanos, a 24-year-old crewman from New York City. “You get out there and mastermind you’re whole area and patrol your whole area. That’s how you know when something’s not right.”
The patrol of amtracs hefted their armored vehicles onto the highway and for hours scanned every possible spot to hide a roadside bomb. The pace was painstakingly slow, as they rumbled their way down the asphalt. Choking acrid diesel smoke mixed with the syrupy-sweet odor of transmission fluid and oil. The vibration was enough to shake loose dental fillings, and the heat wafted up from the belly of the machines to the point that the warm summer night breezes were a welcome escape.
"Team Gator" Marines manuever their amphibious assault vehicle around a corner as the start of a patrol down the highways surrounding Fallujah, Iraq. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Mark Oliva)
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. William D. Dycus keeps a steady eye ahead while he and his fellow "Team Gator" Marines patrol the highways near Fallujah, Iraq. Team Gator patrols the highways, searching for improvised explosive devices and insurgent attackers. They keep those highway open for Coalition and civilian traffic. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Mark Oliva)
“It wears a lot on the Marines,” Mayville explained. “I try to break the monotony of the road noise. I try not to take the same path. I change the routes.”
Marines steered their hulking amtracs in long, flowing loops. They traveled one side of the highway with their eyes glued to the roadside landscape under the dim headlights. The turned around and the metal tracks ground against the pavement, sometimes sending up tiny sparks as they headed back in the opposite direction.
Patrols like this seem to last forever. Darmody said he’s been on patrols such as this that lasted 12 hours.
“The patrols are pretty hard,” he said. “It’s the length and the heat that get to you.”
“It’s more than being awake,” Castellanos added. “You have to constantly be on guard. You can’t get complacent.”
Marines resorted to a few tried methods to keep aware when they’re on a Gator hunt. Darmody slipped below his turret to light cigarettes every so often, as much to keep himself awake as to pass the time. Occasionally, he smacked his helmet, jolting himself from the drowsiness that settled in.
For Castellanos, it was the radio that kept him focused. It maintained his awareness and the voice he heard in his ear was a reassurance he’s not on this hunt alone.
“We do a lot of talking over the radios,” he said. “Knowing you can talk to your guys on the ‘trac’ and in your section, you know you are going to make it through the night.”
Mayville said he’s got a simple solution. It’s a cooler packed with ice and water.
“It’s a big morale booster,” he said. “In the evening, it’s not so bad, but you can count on it being 20-30 degrees hotter inside the ‘trac.’ We push a lot of water.”
The glow of headlights filled the horizon several hours into the patrol. Marines edged their amtracs off the road to make room for the passing convoy. Nearly 70-vehicles large, the convoy rolled by. They carried everything from complete humvees loaded on flatbed trailers to fuel trucks and supplies.
The fact the convoy rolled through, unhindered and unscathed, was proof to Team Gator they made a difference.
“This job is very important,” Mayville said. “That’s a main supply route we’re on.”
“That let’s us know we’re doing our job when they can move freely,” Castellanos added.
Team Gator Marines nosed their vehicles back into Camp Fallujah after several hours and dozens of loops up and down the highway. Back inside the safety of the camp, they edged their hungry “hogs” to the camp’s fuel farm, where Army soldiers were refilling fuel bladders. They were likely the part of the same convoy they watched passed hours earlier.
“It makes you feel good knowing they’re replenishing everything from fuel to food for the chow hall,” Mayville explained. “We kept that road open for them so they could bring the stuff here that keeps Marines happy.”
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