U.S. Army Under Mortar, Grenade Attacks in Iraq

yahoo ^

[chance33_98]

U.S. Army Under Mortar, Grenade Attacks in Iraq

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Guerrillas in Iraq (news - web sites) fired mortars or rocket-propelled grenades at U.S. occupation forces overnight in four towns, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.

A U.S. military spokesman said on Thursday three mortar attacks took place in Ramadi.

Rocket-propelled grenades were fired at the U.S. 4th Infantry Division in Tikrit, the home town of former president Saddam Hussein (news - web sites).

A mortar was launched at a U.S. logistics base near Balad, the spokesman said.

Gunmen have recently resorted to heavier weapons in attacks against U.S. troops, which along with British forces launched the war against Saddam in March and have occupied Iraq since they ended his rule in April.

Iraqi witnesses said rocket-propelled grenades were fired at a station for U.S.-backed Iraqi police and a municipality building in Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad.

Falluja and Ramadi, 100 km (60 miles) west of Baghdad, are emerging as hotbeds of Iraqi opposition to the presence of U.S. forces. Iraqis said U.S. forces killed an Iraqi man in Ramadi earlier this week and vowed to avenge his death.

Twenty-nine U.S. soldiers have been killed by hostile fire since President Bush (news - web sites) declared major combat over in Iraq on May 1. An audio tape message purportedly by Saddam Hussein has called on Iraqis to fight the occupation.

[Support Free Republic]

We're On A Mission From God

Help us make our 3rd quarter fundraising goal in record time!

[donmeaker]

To get a hit with mortars you need either forward observers, or the ability to adjust rounds from the gun position. Most arab armies use the drop and run technique, so they are less efficient with mortars than one would otherwise expect, despite the mortars theoretical power and high rate of fire.

The RPG is another matter. Though it has a slow rate of fire, in low wind conditions it can get a first round hit from 300 meters away, and its firing signature can be hidden behind the shooter. It is a Soviet design, much improved from the old WWII panzerfaust, a disposable antitank weapon developed by the Wehrmacht. It's sole disadvantage is its low rate of fire, and the bulk of its reloads. Usually it is deployed by a two man team, one to carry the launcher and one round, the other to carry 3 more rounds and a bullet launcher.

The RPG has an odd characteristic in side winds: its fins have more cross section than the front, so it weathercocks into the wind, striking upwind from the aim point. This is not linear with range, so at 300 meters in 2o knot wind it is really hard to hit a house sized target.

[max_rpf]

Do these convoys have helicopter escorts? If not, maybe they should be less frequent and carry more fire power.

I am so angry right now.

[taxed2death]

When they (US troops) catch / capture these guys, are they going to tell them to lay down their weapons and go home (again)?

What a dumb-ass policy that was in the beginning of the war.

[leftiesareloonie]

At whom are you angry?

I'm more sad than angry.

[max_rpf]

I am pissed off that we trashed our chance to reorganize the globe after the cold war, and sat on our hands and spent the dividends of a trillion+/50y struggle on 10 years of top-down imposed ignorant bliss.

None of this had to happen. I am sad, but I know exactly who/what is to blame for this -- that is what makes me angry. For some reason the public is generally happy to sit by and let the media use the "new-history" to gloss over it and find a new way to blame America.

The media made fun of GHB's "New World Order". The liberals had sooo much fun talking about what an 'ignorant simpleton he was', with no understanding of how the 'real world' works. He was EXACTLY RIGHT. And the country followed his advice, they elected BJ Bill to do exactly that, and he worked very hard to help implement a new world order, just not one that anyone would have agreed with if he had ever voiced his intention. How many treaties/policies did he entertain that would have actually helped this country. How often was he willing to look the other way when the deck was being stacked against us.

Liberals should have to pay for his failed presidency, not our soldiers.

[Prodigal Son]

Wonder what the deal is with our counter battery radar? Although, I realize it can't be everywhere, eventually you'd think they'd pick up this mortar fire.

[Prodigal Son]

Well, I hear ya, but what are we supposed to be doing now?

[kjam22]

When they (US troops) catch / capture these guys, are they going to tell them to lay down their weapons and go home (again)? What a dumb-ass policy that was in the beginning of the war.

HOLD ALL CALLS......... WE HAVE A WINNER

[Redleg Duke]

"A mortar was launched at a U.S. logistics base near Balad, the spokesman said."

This is great news...they are so short of mortar ammunition that they are launching the mortars at them!

This is typical of ignorant, agenda-driven media whores. When you remove the totalitarian rule from a country like Iraq, this can be expected. Nobody ever said it would be easy and terrorism is easy to commit and hard to stop.

[max_rpf]

Write letters, support conservative media, but the most important is "Educate a Liberal a day"

Especially new imigrants. I take a taxi every day, every time I get in I ask them a question, and then walk them through the logic of why the canned response they get from the news is wrong. I take care that they understand that I am unashamedly conservative and since I take the time to actually reason with them, rather than assuming that they will go along with anything I tell them to, I think that they actually listen. I always tip well even if we end up arguing heatedly in the car.

I also never let a liberal spout off without getting a response from me. If it is a strange situation, and confronting them might be harmful to my career, I pretend like I haven't made up my mind and ask them to walk me through their logic. They always get trapped up. While I will never convince them, others around hear the discussion as well -- and perhaps walk away with a more complete picture of what it is to be a canned liberal.

One of the reasons I get mad is I feel that I have no power to do anything. E-mail and mail get tossed, and the media refuses to point out the obvious (or hold our government / politics to an honorable and honest standard). Buy you can touch people. One person at a time.

[Prodigal Son]

What has this to do with the war? I'm not dogging you or anything. I just thought earlier when you said you were angry, it had something to do with the article- ie what's happening in Iraq.