[La Enchiladita]

Marines from the 1,500-strong 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, moved methodically through an insurgent warren, picking their way through homemade mines and ending the day in control of about one third of the neighborhood of low homes surrounded by cracked mud-brick walls.

At one point in a nearby bazaar, a lieutenant noticed new wire on an old pole. Further investigation revealed it was connected to eight mortar shells buried beneath 100 yards of road, intended to destroy multiple vehicles in a military convoy. Explosives teams detonated the booby-trap safely.

Just a day earlier, the area, called the Pork Chop [heh] for its shape on the map, had been a haven for insurgents, who used positions there to pepper the Marine outpost with sniper fire and rocket-propelled grenades. Since the offensive began on Saturday, insurgents had been moving each morning to fighting positions in the Pork Chop.

On Tuesday, it appeared that the large number of coalition troops and vehicles with heavy weapons prevented the insurgents from making their way there.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Adding this from ABC...very positive video report...02/16/2010

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American military enters fourth day of intense battle in Marja, Afghanistan.

Marines are winning.

[1COUNTER-MORTER-68]

Prayers Up...

[Jabba the Nutt]

Yeah, to the progressive media, the only Afghans we kill are civilians. And they are NOT “homemade bombs”. They are improvised explosive devices, many of which are made in Iran and many are made in jihadi bomb factories.