Posted on 03/22/2006 10:07:12 PM PST by SandRat
CAMP AL QAIM, Iraq (March 22, 2006) -- After spending seven months of routing out insurgents and stabilizing the Al Qaim region in western Al Anbar Province, Marines from 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment say theyre leaving the region in better shape then when they arrived last year.
The Twentynine Palms, Calif.-based 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment will replace the Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based unit, commonly referred to as three, six, in the region as part of a regularly scheduled rotation of U.S. forces in Al Anbar Province.
Known as the Teufelhunden Battalion, 3rd Bn, 6th Marines have spent more than half a year providing stability to the people of western Iraq by training Iraqi Army soldiers and ridding the region of anti-Iraqi forces, thanks to an aggressive counterinsurgency campaign.
The Marines battle space here encompasses the Al Qaim region a once insurgent stronghold in the northwest region of Al Anbar. The region buttresses the Syrian Border at the Euphrates River, starting with the city of Husaybah and moving east to encompass Karabilah, Sadah and Ubaydi among other smaller towns.
The key to the Marines success in the region has been counterinsurgency operations and an increased presence of Coalition Forces here, according to 35-year-old Maj. Christopher P. OConnor, operations officer.
We needed to go after the enemy; we needed to take back the terrain, said OConnor, a native of Johnstown, Penn.
The results: a severe decrease of insurgent activity and a more secure area for local government to blossom.
Operation Iron Fist
Operation Iron Fist, which began Oct. 1, 2005, was the clearing, from east to west, of the cities of Sadah and Eastern Karabilah. Companies I, K, and L worked alongside each other, moving house-to-house through the cities, and drove the enemy from them. The week-long operation resulted in an estimated 51 insurgents killed.
We met some indirect and direct fire resistance initially, said OConnor. During the operation, sporadic hard-core fighters would stay and fight; otherwise it was a delaying action. The biggest challenge was finding the IEDs and mines that they had put out.
We thought we were going to get contact constantly, said Cpl. Benjamin S. Hanenkratt, an anti-tank assaultman for Company K, and Toledo, Ohio native.
Hanenkratt was one of dozens of Marines who led the sweep through region. To his surprise, Hanenkratt said the Marines ended up finding more weapons caches than involvement in actual fire-fights with insurgents.
Clearing houses, though, is intense, he said. You never know what is around each corner.
But where Operation Iron Fist ended, Operation Steel Curtain began. Another of the Marines major offensives to disrupt insurgent activity along the Syrian border, Steel Curtain put the Marines face-to-face with daily engagements with enemy forces. In the four weeks between the two operations, an estimated 154 insurgents were killed.
Upon clearing the area, the battalion built battle positions in Sadah just south of the Emerald Wadi, a natural dividing line between Eastern Karabilah and Karabilah. These battle positions served as the battalions foundation for future security operations.
The Emerald Wadi
Following the completion of Operation Iron Fist, the battalion positioned itself along the Emerald Wadi, which is about 1,400 meters long and 600 meters wide. The Wadi became, in sorts, a no-mans land reminiscent of World War I, where U.S. Marines are positioned on one side, insurgents on the other, with an open area in between.
Insurgents fired upon the Marines nearly daily, who responded with the combined arms of tanks, amphibious assault vehicles, snipers, dismounted infantry and airpower to eliminate scores of enemy.
Sgt. Scott M. Royal, one of the battalions scout-snipers, recalled the daily exchange of sniper fire between coalition and insurgent forces across the Wadi.
It seemed like every morning the insurgents would start off their attacks across the wadi with rockets, then snipers would shoot at us off-and-on all day whenever they saw movement, said Royal, a native of Rochester, N.Y.
Operation Steel Curtain
Due to the Marines consistent presence across the Wadi, insurgent forces reinforced their position along the Wadi. The move was a feint by the Marines they wanted the insurgents to believe they would simply move across the Wadi and into the enemys path.
We made them think we were coming across the wadi. Instead we moved through the desert, coming in behind them without them knowing it all, said OConnor.
On Nov. 5, 2005, with more than 150 insurgents dead as,a result of their first major offensive, the battalion launched Operation Steel Curtain perhaps the Marines largest offensive to date in the region. The Marines cleared the cities of Husaybah and Karabilah during the 18-day operation, working with several other Marine and U.S. Army units to sweep the cities clear of anti-Iraqi forces. Approximately 2,500 Marines, sailors, soldiers and Iraqi Army soldiers swept into the city, fighting insurgents house-to-house.
[Steel Curtain] was the coolest thing I ever did, said Hanenkratt. It was like a tidal wave, he added, referring to the numbers of Coalition personnel who overwhelmed insurgent forces.
We saw a lot of sniper and [rocket propelled grenade] fire, especially on the first day, said Chardon, Ohio, native Lance Cpl. Shane M. Cocchi, a 20-year-old rifleman with Company I, 3rd Bn., 6th Marines. It was fast, intense we kicked down a lot of doors. It was just awesome.
The operation saw an additional 250 suspected enemy dead and provided the Iraqi populous in the region an insurgent-free place to live and work, according to the Marines.
We're able to progress now with getting consistent (electrical) power, free and clean running water for all the villages up there, as well as starting to rebuild the hospitals and the schoolhouses that have suffered over the last three years, said Col. Stephen W. Davis, who commanded all Marine forces in western Al Anbar Province for the past year, during a Pentagon press briefing last month.
Bringing in the Security, Reconstruction
Upon clearing the major cities in the Al Qaim region and Ubaydi a town about 15 miles east of the Syrian Border last spring by the Camp Pendleton, Calif.-based 2nd Bn., 1st Marines, the Marines and sailors of 3/6, along with their Iraqi Army counterparts, were able to integrate themselves into the towns to interact with the local populous in order to keep insurgents from reentering the region, according to OConnor.
With the enemy removed from the cities in the region, key democracy-building events occurred, namely two elections that occurred in mid-October and again in mid-December.
The local elections contributed 500 votes in the first election and a larger 23,000 votes in the second, something that was not possible in the past. In addition to a democratic voting process, introductory humanitarian assistance and government infrastructure rebuilding has been possible with the help of the 6th Civil Affairs Group.
The 6th Civil Affairs Group was able, as a result of the towns being cleared, to come into the cities here and begin reconstruction efforts buildings damaged during fighting were repaired, basic utilities such as water and power were restored, and key government municipal buildings built. Schools were opened after nearly a year of inactivity.
Afghanistan experience paid off in Iraq
The battalions senior enlisted member, Sgt. Maj. Scott L. Theakston, summarized the Marines and Iraqi soldiers success in this region in one word: Professionalism.
Everything weve done over here weve prepared for, said Theakston, a 40-year-old Pittsburgh native. We trained for what we wanted to accomplish.
The Marines success in this western Al Anbar Province region stems from the lessons they learned during combat operations in Afghanistan, said OConnor. Many of the units Marines serving in Iraq deployed in 2004 during Operation Enduring Freedom. The battalion spent roughly seven months in Afghanistan, where they conducted operations against Taliban and Al Qaida forces, which gave the Marines an understanding of operating in a combat environment.
Our [noncommissioned officers] are smart and mature. Theyve seen operations in Afghanistan, they understood coming in overly aggressive [here would] have a detriment on success, said OConnor.
Nearly half of the battalions Marines about 500 - are Enduring Freedom veterans.
The insurgents in Afghanistan were tougher fighters than those here, said Hanenkratt, a veteran of Afghanistan combat operations. Out here its all [Military Operations in Urban Terrain] whereas in Afghanistan it wasnt. Out here, you have to beat the IED.
As the Marines prepare to redeploy to Camp Lejeune, N.C., theyre beginning to look back on their tour in Iraq and are realizing the impact they made here.
I feel a lot better about myself, said Cocchi, who is looking forward to visiting with family in Ohio after he returns to Camp Lejeune. I feel Ive done something important. I have a lot more pride in my country and in myself since coming here. But am I glad to be heading home soon? Oh yeah!
The battalions redeployment to the U.S. is part of a regularly scheduled rotation of forces in Al Anbar Province. More than 25,000 Marine and sailors from the Camp Pendleton, Calif.-based I Marine Expeditionary Force are replacing the Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based II MEF.
What are you doing online??!! Go be with your son!:-)
(but throw in a couple more hugs from me)
He's back in the USA but they only let us have him for 24 hours. They will all have a 30 day leave in a week or so after they re-orient and decompress.
I can see the need for that in a way. We were allowed to go into their quarters while they stowed their gear when they got back. His roommate was hurrying to leave with his parents and was searching all over for something. Suddenly he stopped and grinned sheepishly. He had been looking for his weapon to sling over his shoulder. They had turned them in as soon as they got of the bus.
Thank you for reminding me of Hospitalman Nathan Martens, who was attached to 3/6 India Company 1st Platoon. His Dad and Mom are on our Gold Star Families forum at www.marineparents.com Cpl. "Wally" Anderson's Mom is also a member.
"Teufelhunden"...German for devil dog (female)..."Devil Bitch PING!!
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