Ramadi
On the fourth day of operation-no-name in Al Anbar's deadly provincial capital, Ramadi, an Iraqi infantry squad moves into a dingy alley on the eastern edge of the Mu'saab district. It's quiet. As their combat boots pick a trail along the garbage-strewn street, the crunch of glass can be heard. The operation is subdued, nameless by design. After two years and dozens of urban battles in Iraq announced with catchy titles, reverberating tank engines, and even rock music, this late-June operation is a slow squeeze. And Iraqis are leading.
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Their infantry skills aren't perfect. Iraqis carry their weapons every which way, and they enter buildings like horses out of the gate, often bumping into one another. American units drill urban movement to exhaustion; Iraqi squads may discuss it over sweet chai tea. Yet, when they search a building, they confidently rip detonation cords from under rugs and blasting caps from corners and belt-fed ammunition from hidden cupboards. Iraqis find in minutes all kinds of suspicious or incriminating items that even a polished American unit would have missed.
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On the Ramadi battlefield, the American military is torn between using firepower to destroy enemy strong points and befriending the family asleep next door. The Iraqi army has problems, but the perception of cultural destroyer isn't one.
As one American Army officer stated, "If the Iraqis want to enter a mosque that they believe is harboring the enemy, they can just do it. A U.S. soldier would need the approval of a three-star general to do the same thing."
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A sniper's bullet cracks. American troops working with the Iraqis begin shouting frantically. In the distance a Marine falls, mortally wounded. The announcement is an immediate emotional ratchet. The main threats in Ramadi are the sniper and the IED. Gone are the days when roving gangs of thugs had the assurance to ambush American patrols. Though demoralizing, the loss of soldiers to snipers or IEDs indicates a hit-and-run insurgency, rather than a city that will die fighting.
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...the Iraqi army has steadily gained in proficiency to the point where their bond with American soldiers is undeniable. Says First Sergeant Victor Lopez of Alexandria, Virginia, who runs the MiTT supply for the 1st Brigade, "It's like sometimes you don't notice your kids are changing when you are around them all the time. You tend to focus on the things they aren't good at and when you get away from them . . . only then do you see how far they've come."
Excerpts from article about the operations in Ramadi posted above with link to entire article.
Mailed July 17, 2006, to Bagram air base, Afghanistan
1 box, insured 99.70 (value #107.70), postage $10.40
2 boxes 24 travel toothpaste ColgateTotal
2 boxed sets DVD TV series:
The Cisco Kid, 10 episodes (Duncan Renaldo, Leo Carrillo)
Baa Baa Black Sheep, volume 1, 12 episodes (Robert Conrad, John Larroquette)
2 DVD movies:
Tombstone (Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer)
Dodgeball (Vince Vaughn)
3 butterfly refrigerator magnets
7 tiny samples of oil, lotion, soap
3 Magazines:
Reader’s Digest July 06
Army: Band of Brothers in Ramadi
Women’s NRA issue on duck hunting
Mailed July 17, 2006, to Camp Ramadi
1 box, insured $152.85, postage $11.45
3 DVD boxed sets TV series:
Smallville, Season 3 (Tom Welling, Kristin Kreuk)
Smallville, Season 4 (Tom Welling, Kristin Kreuk)
Stargate SG-1, Season 3 (Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks, Amanda Tapping)
2 DVD movies:
Superman, The Movie (Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman)
Superman II (Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman)
Box 12 indiv wrapped Chips Ahoy cookies
1 jar 18 oz Skippy roasted honey nut super chunk peanut butter
6 travel toothpaste, Colgate Total
6 Crest toothbrushes
4 pkgs 12 Eclipse sugarfree spearmint chicklets gum
1 magazine: Sports Illustrated Summer double issue with Golf on the cover
Mailed to SC, returned TV boxed set item not as advertised as given full refund via paypal.
postage $4.05, plus $.50 delivery confirmation