LTC Erik Kurilla (front right), the moment the bullets strike.(2nd LT front-left; radioman near-left; "AH" the interpreter is near-right.)
Posted on 08/25/2005 10:35:17 AM PDT by saquin
[...]
About fifteen seconds later our ramp dropped. We ran into combat.
Folks who haven't done much urban fighting might take issue with the wild chases, and they might say that people should always "stack up" and do things this or that way, but men in Delta Force, SEALs and the like, all know that when chasing wild men into the labyrinth, soldiers enter the land of confusion. If soldiers don't go fast, the bad guys simply get away. Just a few minutes ago, these three guys were going "105 miles per hour," and outrunning a helicopter.
There were shops, alleys, doorways, windows . . .which to me screamed: death, death, death, death...
The soldiers with LTC Kurilla were searching fast, weapons at the ready, and they quickly flex-cuffed two men. But these were not the right guys. Meanwhile, SSG Konkol's men were clearing towards us, leaving the three bad-guys boxed, but free.
Shots were fired behind us but around a corner to the left.
Both the young 2nd lieutenant and the young specialist were inside a shop when a close-quarters firefight broke out, and they ran outside. Not knowing how many men they were fighting, they wanted backup. LTC Kurilla began running in the direction of the shooting. He passed by me and I chased, Kurilla leading the way.
There was a quick and heavy volume of fire. And then LTC Kurilla was shot.
LTC Erik Kurilla (front right), the moment the bullets strike.(2nd LT front-left; radioman near-left; "AH" the interpreter is near-right.)
Three bullets reach flesh: One snaps his thigh bone in half.
[...]
Kurilla was running when he was shot, but he didn't seem to miss a stride; he did a crazy judo roll and came up shooting.
The Commander fights...
BTTT. Contribute to Michael Yon and email your local paper!
Utterly gripping, intense reading!!!
Amen to that. Our troops deserve better. If they shoot someone, that person should stay shot.
Has Hannity gone to Iraq? I hear a former Marine, Drew Carey is going to Afghanistan. And Rush just got back from the there a few weeks ago.
This Michael Yon deserves some sort of medal and the rules that reporter can't be armed is another stupid rule out there that is slowing us down.
Tagline:
http://www.rogerclemensonline.com/nytimes.htm
this is from several years ago...funny, I didn't hear about this.../s
Hey Mr. President Bush. Read this Blog! Order the Pentagon, State Department whoever, to take the dam gloves off in Iraq!
Ask yourself..Who's winning....who's losing.
Agreed. The Reps need to go recruiting. Think of the House and Senate full of combat leader vets. Winning the war on the islamofascists would get done - and pretty damn quick.
That December day, Khalid Jasim Nohe and two compatriots tried to evade US soldiers from 2-8 FA, but the soldiers managed to stop the fleeing car. Then one of the suspects tried to wrestle a weapon from a soldier before all three were detained. They were armed with a sniper rifle, an AK, pistols, a silencer, explosives and other weapons, and had in their possession photographs of US bases, including a map of this base.
That was in December.
About two weeks ago, word came that Nohe's case had been dismissed by a judge on 7 August. The Coalition was livid. According to American officers, solid cases are continually dismissed without apparent cause. Whatever the reason, the result was that less than two weeks after his release from Abu Ghraib, Nohe was back in Mosul shooting at American soldiers.
LTC Kurilla repeatedly told me of--and I repeatedly wrote about--terrorists who get released only to cause more trouble. Kurilla talked about it almost daily. Apparently, the vigor of his protests had made him an opponent of some in the Army's Detention Facilities chain of command, but had otherwise not changed the policy. And now Kurilla lay shot and in surgery in the same operating room with one of the catch-and-release-terrorists he and other soldiers had been warning everyone about.
Update
Jefferson soldier injured
BY CARA HOST, Staff writer
http://www.observer-reporter.com/285923175250537.bsp
A soldier from Jefferson was shot in the neck last Friday while fighting near Mosul, Iraq.
Sgt. Daniel Lama, a member of the Army's 25th Infantry Division, Stryker Brigade, was hit by sniper fire while his unit was patrolling the area, according to the soldier's uncle, Carl Lama of Newell.
"It was a bad wound, but through the grace of God, he's still with us," Carl Lama said. "It's almost like a miracle."
Daniel Lama is now recovering in a military hospital in Fort Lewis, Wash., where his unit is headquartered. The bullet apparently missed major arteries as well as his spine, Carl Lama said.
The soldier's parents, Daniel and Connie Lama, traveled to visit their son and were not available for comment Wednesday and Thursday.
Carl Lama spoke with his nephew by telephone and said that Daniel Lama was in good spirits despite his injury.
"I'm so proud of him. In my eyes, he's my hero," Carl Lama said.
Daniel Lama graduated in 1999 from Waynesburg Central High School. He has been in Iraq since October and was due to be discharged from active duty last March, but the military extended his enlistment.
"He's a good kid. I think he feels it's his duty to serve," Carl Lama said.
Carl Lama did not know if any others were injuried or killed during the incident last Friday.
Because of medical privacy laws, the Army does not typically provide specific information about wounded service members.
But when these brave soldiers get home to the US they can get this kind of treatment:
http://www.kirotv.com/news/4893035/detail.html
the beating of soldiers in Seattle on the streets.
(once again) Ask yourself..Who's winning....who's losing.
Where are the terrorist succeeding?
The problem (IMO) is some people are looking at this war in the wrong way..think Cold War, not WWII.
I don't think it's a good idea to try to directly put public pressure on any leaders in the U.S. military. However, it's sometimes a great idea to put some indirect pressure by writing to your U.S. representative or senators.
I wrote to my representative yesterday on a related matter. If you want to express an opinion about the "catch and release" of deadly terrorists, I'd say 'Go for it!'
>>BTTT. Contribute to Michael Yon and email your local paper!
2nd that. I just ante'd up a $20 via Paypal. This guy is worth it.
No Iraqi's on patrol; a Kiowa chopper only firing warning shots allowing the perps to escape; a terrorist who was released from prison only to try to kill again; m-4 rifles that can't kill a man; first class medical aid for a terrorist.......
What's the point of having so many brave dudes on the front lines when the rules of engagement suck so bad?
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