Lejeune Marines roll through Mahmudiyah with titans behind them

[thedrifter]

Lejeune Marines roll through Mahmudiyah with titans behind them
Submitted by: 1st Marine Division
Story Identification #: 200462943622
Story by Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes



CAMP MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq(June 27, 2004) -- Patrols are a dangerous business in Mahmudiyah, but they just got safer for Marines of 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, thanks to a whole lot of rolling steel.

When the Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based Marines moved back here, they brought with them the 70-ton titans of the battlefield - M-1A1 Abram tanks. A detachment from 1st Tank Battalion's Company B joined the infantry Marines for the move.

"If we can save a Marine's life by leveling a building so he doesn't have to go into it, we've done our job," said 1st Lt. Matthew A. Stiger, a 25-year-old tank platoon commander from Colorado Springs, Colo. "The Army had a lot of success with tanks here, so we're using them hoping to experience the same results."

Part of the success of using tanks in the area comes from the lasting effects of Saddam Hussein's regime, Stiger said. The regime used their tanks as symbols of power. They would often park a tank in the middle of a town as a symbol of Saddam's power. The tanks have a similar effect on Iraqi insurgents today.

"It's kind of a letdown when we get called to a firefight," Stiger said. "When (terrorists) see our tanks, they usually scatter."

Infantrymen are glad to have the tanks aboard. Bringing a 120-millimeter smoothbore cannon capable of striking the enemy at 4,000 meters makes the tank a "howitzer with treads."

"It's great having them out here," said Lance Cpl. Jaime A Hurtado, a 21-year-old Company G rifleman from Queens, N.Y. "Instead of waiting to go through all the channels to call for a fire mission, we've got the tanks right there with us. The bad guys know they're about to get (messed) up when they see the tanks rolling in. We're really glad they're here to help us."

The infantry is focused on keeping the major supply route near their camp open. This allows supplies to make their way into major cities like Baghdad and Fallujah. The tanks are key tools to the success of that mission because of their presence, their firepower and the punishment they can take.

"One day we were ambushed and insurgents shot thirteen rocket-propelled grenades at one tank," Stiger explained. "No one inside the tank was injured. That's our company's record for the fire a tank has taken."

The durability of the tanks is due to the thick sheet or armor surrounding the beast. This makes it a heavy and dangerous weapon, even from the inside.

"Anything you do wrong with a tank could kill you," explained Lance Cpl. Victor F. Lopez, a 21-year-old tank crewman from Seattle. "The gun has a 13-inch recoil on it, so if you're not in the right spot inside the tank when it fires it could take your head off. It's a big machine with a bunch of human parts operating it. We all have to be careful and act as a team at all times."

Lopez said he respects the tank he helps control and also enjoys his work. Although temperatures can reach more than 110 degrees on a hot day the Marines still wouldn't trade their jobs with the infantrymen on the ground.

"We have a saying: We don't carry our weapon. Our weapon carries us," Lopez said. "One of the best parts of our job is that we don't have to walk to battle."

Tank crewmen practice their trade repeatedly until they do their jobs in one smooth movement. Lopes said they can identify a target, load and fire a round in a matter of seconds.

Being quick and accurate is what the infantrymen count on the tanks to do. The tank crewmen work hard in order to be an asset to the battalion.

"With our heavy machine guns and tanks, the enemy would have to be stupid to mess with us," Hurtado said.


http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200462943921/$file/tanks1lr.jpg

An M-1A1 Abrams tank crew settles in for the evening during a patrol recently. Company B, 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division attached to 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment to provide security on a supply route. The 70-ton tank stands a vigil on the side of the road to guard against any terrorist activity on the road.
(USMC photo by Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes) Photo by: Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/15FEC1A4112E193285256EC2002F4696?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

MALS-16 ordnance outfits Marine aircraft in Iraq <br />
Submitted by: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing <br />
Story Identification #: 200462882732 <br />
Story by Lance Cpl. Matthew Rainey <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
AL ASAD, Iraq(June 28, 2004)...

[thedrifter]

Captive Marine's Pendleton connection unclear

By: DARRIN MORTENSON - Staff Writer

As the father of a U.S. Marine being held captive in Iraq issued a plea Monday for his son's safe release, Arab television reported that Iraqi militants killed another American soldier they had held hostage for nearly three months.

The report of the killing of Spc. Keith M. Maupin, 20, of Batavia, Ohio, came hours after the United States returned sovereignty in Iraq to an interim government. The report did not say when Maupin was killed.

Meanwhile, the father of Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun issued a plea for his son's release.


"I appeal to the kidnappers and to their conscience and faith to release my son," Ali Hassoun said in an interview with The Associated Press at his house in the northern Lebanese port city of Tripoli.

"He is not a fighter. I hope that they will respond favorably to my appeal. May God reward them."

Military officials declined Monday to say whether Hassoun is from Camp Pendleton, the sprawling Marine base north of Oceanside.

Officials at Camp Pendleton, the Pentagon and Coalition headquarters in Baghdad all refused to name the Marine unit that Hassoun was serving in when he was kidnapped by rebels. His captors on Sunday threatened to behead Hassoun and four other captives unless U.S. forces release detained Iraqis.

After Lebanese-born Hassoun was shown blindfolded in footage aired on Al-Jazeera on Sunday, Brig Gen. Mark Kimmett, deputy operations chief for Coalition forces in Iraq, identified him only as a member of the I Marine Expeditionary Force ---- the blanket command for all of the more than 25,000 Marines now in Iraq.

The distinction did little to clarify Hassoun's military affiliations, leaving television crews waiting for long hours outside the Marine base for details.

While the I Marine Expeditionary Force is headquartered at Camp Pendleton, Marines from the East Coast and reservists from around the country also are included in the force, and the force is broken down into sub units that are spread over nearly a third of the territory of Iraq. Officials would not narrow it down any further Monday.

While Hassoun's captors claimed that they lured him away from a Marine outpost and abducted him, U.S. officials would not say how, where or even when Hassoun ended up in rebel hands.

The U.S. military said Hassoun, 24, was last accounted for on June 19 and did not report for duty the next day.

He had gone on an "unauthorized absence," Kimmett said Monday. "Based on his personal situation, there was reason to suspect that he was heading over to Lebanon."

Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nick Blice, a spokesman from the U.S. Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Fla., said no more specific information was available to U.S.-based officials Monday.

Hassoun is originally from the northern Lebanese town of Al-Safira but lived in Tripoli until he emigrated in the early 1990s to the United States, where he gained citizenship. He lived with his eldest brother, Mohammad, in the Salt Lake City suburb of West Jordan and later joined the Marines.

House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-San Diego, who was with Marines in Iraq on Monday, said he received classified briefings on Hassoun's situation, but would not give details.

"He would not be able to comment on that," Hunter spokesman Ricardo Terazzas said late Monday afternoon, minutes after speaking with Hunter, who was then in Kuwait.

Hunter's son serves in the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, which often has been engaged in heavy fighting in and around Fallujah, Iraq ---- one of several of Hunter's stops Sunday and Monday.

Hunter said the troops there were holding up well as power was handed by U.S. officials to the new Iraqi government Monday.

"The 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Fallujah from Camp Pendleton is doing a heroic job," Hunter said in a statement issued late Monday. "The Marines are taking the fight to the thugs and murderers who would deny Iraq its freedom while at the same time they are helping Iraqis rebuild a country devastated by Saddam's tyranny."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact staff writer Darrin Mortenson at (760) 740-5442 or dmortenson@nctimes.com.


http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/06/29/news/top_stories/21_13_116_28_04.txt


Ellie

[thedrifter]

The New York Times <br />
June 27, 2004 <br />
Biggest Task for U.S. General Is Training Iraqis to Fight Iraqis <br />
By DEXTER FILKINS <br />
<br />
BAGHDAD, Iraq, June 26 — On a recent afternoon in his new office in the...

[thedrifter]

"These are all your new brothers," he said to another.

Yet for all the talk of encouraging the Iraqis to go their own way, General Petraeus has on occasion found it difficult to forget that he is after all an American general, whose every order is obeyed and whose very presence commands immediate respect.

On those occasions, the Iraqis have usually been happy to remind General Petraeus that, come June 30, Iraq will be their country again.

On recent visit to a police station in the southern Iraqi town of Hilla, General Petraeus strode in and offered his hand to the police chief there, Gen. Qais Mamoonia.

"Welcome to Hilla," General Mamoonia said to General Petraeus.

"Thank you, general, but I have actually been here before," General Petraeus said. "In April last year I came. We liberated Hilla."

General Qais paused for a long time, looking up at the ceiling.

"Welcome again, then," he said.

There was laughter all around, and the two men got down to work.

Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company



Ellie

[thedrifter]

3rd MAW participates in pre-Iraq exercise
Submitted by: MCAS Miramar
Story Identification #: 2004624171951
Story by Sgt. Valerie A. Martinez



MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif.(June 24, 2004) -- MARINE CORPS AIR STATION YUMA, Ariz. - Units from around the Corps flocked to Arizona's hot, sandy training areas recently for a two-week exercise designed to prepare the troops for war.

Dubbed Desert Talon 2-04, the exercise includes more than 2,500 participants and 80 aircraft from the 2nd and 3rd Marine Aircraft Wings and 1st Force Service Support Group.

Col. Stuart L. Knoll, commanding officer of Marine Aircraft Group 16, said the training is designed to prepare the aviation combat element "to deploy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom II."

"We will conduct rotary and fixed-wing operations, convoy operations, execute command, control and communications and integrate aviation ground support and logistics in a scenario that is similar to what troops may encounter in the Sunni Triangle," added Col. Raymond C. Fox, commanding officer of MCAS Yuma's Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1.

Beginning with an academic phase, aviation crews spent long days inside MAWTS-1 classrooms receiving current threat updates and lectures on, to name a few, convoy escorts, theater operations and aerial reconnaissance.

The second phase incorporated the lessons learned in the classroom into practical application with daily flights of the UH-1N Huey, EA-6B Prowler, FA/18 Hornet and CH-53E Super Stallion with emphasis on aircrew competencies - all a work up for the grand finale, the Integration Exercise.

Beginning today, the elements deployed to Desert Talon will combine forces and execute casualty evacuations, Forward Arming and Refueling Point missions, urban training, threat reaction and, most importantly, rotary-wing escort and convoy operations.

"Training for convoy missions is critical. They distribute all the consumables we need while in the field - ammunition, food, water, you name it," said Fox. "We all understand the criticality of convoys. We have refined how we employ them and have learned to integrate the aviation element for protection and support."

Convoys are the Corps' lifeline, he added, "and without them we don't operate." The convoy mission will integrate into the greater Yuma community, into training areas at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground and west toward California to replicate the distances convoys may travel in Iraq.

"Later in the exercise we will use an urban close air support facility," said Fox, with the fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft providing aerial support during those convoys. "At some point during the convoy they will be attacked by aggressors, and they will be forced to respond. We will have simulated casualties and will set up an evacuation area for the helicopters to take the injured to."

Knoll, a veteran of the initial Operation Iraqi Freedom deployments and supporter of the Desert Talon training evolution, said the benefits of this exercise are "invaluable."

"When we deployed earlier this year we incorporated the tactics and procedures we came up with from the original Desert Talon into our planning and missions. The parameters we set in place last time paid off in dividends to us out there. The training helped us to successfully engage the enemy and save the lives of Marines in Iraq."

Another advantage of this predeployment training "is just getting everyone together and being able to discuss how we are going to operate out there. This also gives us a chance to refresh our maintenance Marines on a lot of special equipment on the aircraft that normally isn't used during peacetime," he added.

In addition, Knoll said, "the environment here is very similar to that of Iraq. Being here in Yuma with the 110-degree weather is very similar to what these Marines can expect once they deploy. This is definitely the best place Marines can train for what they will see in Iraq."

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/B1D15A0904891F7585256EBD00752C96?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Halbert brothers share special bond as U.S. Marines
By Jayson Larson




There's really nothing special about what the Halbert brothers are doing. It's not something worth talking about. They're just doing their duty.

That's what they insist, anyway.

Nevertheless, the U.S. Marine Corps has accepted each of Wayne and Diane Halbert's four sons. Though the oldest brother, 29-year-old Kevin, is out and now working as a sergeant at the Henderson County Sheriff's Department, his three younger brothers are still in.

And though being out physically separates Kevin from military life, the values, discipline and stability taught in the Corps are life lessons he says he will always live by -- not to mention the brotherhood he formed with men who were perfect strangers the day they walked into camp together.

Dusty, 22, was the second to enlist. He's in San Diego, waiting to get on an aircraft carrier headed for unnamed destinations.

Michael, 25, was the next to sign up. He's in Hawaii, but, like Dusty, is about to board a ship headed for somewhere in the Far East.

Then there's Jonathan, 18, who right now is going through something like hell. He recently joined and is at boot camp in San Diego. Jonathan has plans to eventually go to officer's school.

"He's just never had a second thought about (joining)," said Mrs. Halbert.

With Jonathan going in, things have changed somewhat around the Halbert household. Mrs. Halbert and her husband are now without a child in the house. That doesn't mean there isn't a family feud brewing. After all, there's been important discussion among the brothers with Mom about whose pictures will get top billing on the walls of the family's Carroll Springs home.

"It's nice to go home and see all those pictures on the wall," said Dusty, who is at home this weekend visiting.



There are other things to adapt to. "One of the big adjustments I have is that I'm not having to buy so many groceries," Mrs. Halbert said.

Reunions with all the brothers are rare. The last time they were together was February, when their father underwent surgery.

News of conflict in the world serves as a reminder for Mr. and Mrs. Halbert of what their sons are offering to the Marines: their lives, if necessary.

"We are really proud of them, so proud of them," she said. "It makes you a little nervous with what's going on in the world now."

None have seen combat in the latest conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Kevin knows some Marines who are there, and he thinks of those Marines who have given their lives. His respect for those Marines and their families is apparent. When asked to talk about his own time of service, he says he thinks any attention should go toward those who have made the greatest sacrifice. He cautiously measures his words, daring not say anything he thinks might put the focus on him rather than those who have lost a family member in conflict.

He acknowledges that his talking about being in the Marines probably influenced his brothers, but he's equally respectful to them. "They're all independent men, and they made their own decision."

Nevertheless, having blood brothers in the Corps has a special value to him.

"It's a source of pride," he said. "It makes me feel good."

----------

e-mail jlarson@athensreview.com

http://www.athensreview.com/articles/2004/06/28/news/news04.txt


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Judge: No delay in courts-martial <br />
<br />
By: DARRIN MORTENSON - Staff Writer <br />
<br />
CAMP PENDLETON ---- The military judge hearing the courts-martial of two Marines charged in the death of an Iraqi prisoner...

[thedrifter]

Roadside Bomb Kills 3 U.S. Troops in Iraq <br />
<br />
Tue Jun 29, 8:49 AM ET <br />
<br />
By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer <br />
<br />
BAGHDAD, Iraq - A roadside bomb killed three U.S. Marines and wounded two...

[thedrifter]

Military Stands Its Ground
U.S. forces will remain autonomous but will consult and coordinate more with Iraqis.

By Mark Mazzetti and Patrick J. McDonnell, Times Staff Writers


BAGHDAD — With the stroke of a pen and an exchange of documents Monday, the 160,000 foreign troops in Iraq were transformed from occupiers into guests of a U.S.-backed government.

For all the political significance of the moment, the role of the U.S. military here will change very little immediately. Troops still will take orders from a U.S. general and still will have their hands full with an insurgent campaign of bombings, ambushes and assassinations. Not one fewer American soldier or Marine is on Iraqi soil today.

U.S. commanders on the ground say they plan to continue conducting patrols, raids and other operations unless the brass tells them otherwise. It is unlikely that the Americans will even consult the Iraqis if they have a chance to capture or kill major figures in the insurgency.

"Moving from an occupation force to a sovereign nation — we haven't done that very often," said Lt. Gen. Thomas F. Metz, operational chief of the U.S.-led foreign force in Iraq. "[There's] a whole lot of art involved with it.

"Each commander really likes his battle space to be his," Metz said. "And this is going to be really challenging because we're going to run a parallel effort [with Iraqis], and we've got to coordinate between the two."

Even if U.S. military officers are doing the same things now that Iraqi sovereignty has been restored, they might find it more complicated. Commanders who ran operations at will throughout the country now must navigate Iraqi political sensitivities, without the benefit of an agreement spelling out their rights and responsibilities.

In the longer term, Monday's events also underscore the importance of another U.S. effort, which has been lagging: properly training and equipping Iraqi security forces to take the place of Americans and other foreign troops. The success of that mission will help determine whether the interim government can organize elections early next year and pass power to a representative government.

Col. Robert B. Abrams, commander of the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the Army's 1st Cavalry Division, said he would continue coordinating with Iraqi forces as he battled Shiite Muslim fighters in Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood. But he did not plan to ask Iraqis for permission. "It's not going to cramp my style," he said.

The deputy chief of the U.S. Central Command, Air Force Lt. Gen. Lance Smith, said that if the Americans got an opportunity to hit insurgents such as Abu Musab Zarqawi, whom officials accuse of orchestrating a campaign of bombings and other attacks, they'd take it.

"In those instances where we want to go after Zarqawi or someone like that, then I think we're going to have to hold pretty firm," Smith said. "That's going to be the potential area where we might have some difficulty."

Unlike multitudes of U.S. troops in bases around the globe, those in Iraq will not operate under an accord with the host nation that defines their rights and responsibilities. Washington is relying on the current good relations between the U.S. and Iraq's interim government to continue. Washington also depends on the authority granted to the multinational forces by a June 8 United Nations resolution, which stated that foreign forces may "take all necessary measures" to keep the peace in Iraq.

U.S. officials say it is possible the Iraqis will ask American troops to carry out a mission the Pentagon deems risky or unjustified — such as enforcing martial law. Such a request would have to be negotiated between Iraqi and U.S. officials, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz said last week.

"If Prime Minister [Iyad] Allawi decides that it is appropriate to have martial law in some area, and we think not, it's going to be up to him with his own forces to be able to enforce that," Wolfowitz said.

U.S. forces no longer have formal operational control of the Iraqi military units that have been trained. From now on, commanders must request their participation — even though the Iraqi command structure is still fluid. Edgy U.S. officers and troops are anxiously waiting to see how well Iraqi police and security forces perform.

"Are they going to be able to step up and provide security for Iraqi cities and towns?" asked Col. G.L. Cooper, a 1st Marine Division officer who works with Iraqi police west of Baghdad. "It's going to take several months before we have measures of success, good or bad."

The U.S. military plans to increase joint patrols with Iraqi forces, but commanders hope to be able to send Iraqis out on their own in six months, using foreign troops only as a backup and quick-reaction force.

Building trust among Iraqis and Americans is crucial, said Col. John Toolan, commander of the 1st Marine Regiment, which led the assault on the tense western town of Fallouja in April. "We want them to be able to ask us: 'Hey, we're going to go in and take down this building where there are bandits. Can you back us up?' "

In part, this is a reflection of greater pragmatism among U.S. generals. After hundreds of combat deaths, speeding up the "Iraqification" process is likely to be the only way to curtail the violence that still pervades the most turbulent areas. U.S. officials have recognized that it is better to be in the background. With many Iraqis angry at the United States, a visible U.S. presence tends to undermine the government that was organized by Washington and the U.N.

Iraqi troops "will never be as assertive as Marines would like," said Lt. Col. Phil Skuta of the 7th Marines, Regimental Combat Team, whose battalion was on patrol west of Baghdad last week. But he said that with U.S. backing and the availability of U.S. military might, they should be able to take control.

"The most important thing at the end of the day is that it has an Iraqi face on it," Skuta said.

This strategy has its critics in Washington. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), who met recently with generals in Iraq about plans after the hand-over, told reporters he feared that putting poorly equipped and trained Iraqis on the front lines of the counterinsurgency effort would "create a vacuum."

"I think that's a mistake," Biden said of the pullback strategy. "Security is actually worse than a year ago."

April uprisings by both Sunni Muslim insurgents north and west of Baghdad and Shiites in southern Iraq dramatized the ineffectiveness of Iraq's security services. But commanders said it was better to find that out earlier rather than after they had returned sovereignty to the Iraqis.

In the spring, U.S. officials predicted that violence would escalate until the hand-over at the end of June, then taper off. Now they say the violence is likely to last well into summer.

They hope that by the fall, Iraqis will be in control of much of the country. By then, registration should be well underway for watershed national elections planned for January. Officials want to avoid having to surround the 9,000-plus polling stations with blast walls, sandbags and U.S. troops.

Whether the baton can be successfully passed to an Iraqi security force that ultimately will grow to 250,000 members depends largely on a more coherent U.S. plan for training the nascent army.

"The training has not been as rapid as we had planned by now," Smith, the deputy Central Command chief, acknowledged. Yet the Pentagon hopes that by tapping Lt. Gen. David H. Petraeus, who commanded the 101st Airborne Division during the war last spring, to head the training, it can produce better results more quickly.

NATO has agreed in principle to help train Iraqi forces, but tensions remain over where and how to do it. France and Germany have said they will take part in such training only outside Iraq.

Deliveries of weapons, body armor, radios and other supplies have been slow as well. Setbacks in the arrival of equipment and reconstruction funds have been a major irritant for commanders on the ground.

"It's really very frustrating because you know that Iraqi and U.S. and coalition soldiers have been killed because we have a very slow process and bureaucracy," Metz said, adding that every man brought into the Iraqi forces is potentially one fewer insurgent.

"For every guy that I can employ … during the day, he's not going to pick up his AK-47 and fight me at night," Metz said.

The general is open to the idea, floated by the Iraqi leadership, of an amnesty or pardon for the Sunni fighters believed to be at the heart of the guerrilla war.

"I am very confident … that the new Iraqi government is going to make those overtures," Metz said. "And I think they can be very successful."

Such a plan would have to take into account the sensitivities of Iraq's Shiite majority and ethnic Kurdish minority, groups that suffered under Saddam Hussein and his Sunni-dominated government.

Metz said officials were not likely to cut more deals like the one in Fallouja, where U.S. forces agreed to pull out in April after days of bloody battles. They then turned the pro-Hussein town over to former Baath Party military officers with ties to insurgents. Fallouja has been mostly peaceful since, but commanders concede that the city has become a sanctuary for insurgents, and possibly Zarqawi himself.

continued...........

[thedrifter]

No senior commanders expect the new security arrangement to be free of conflict, and some even embrace a degree of tension between the Iraqi and U.S. chains of command.

"We should expect and we should want friction," said Metz, who will manage day-to-day U.S. military operations in Iraq. "Because without that friction, the international community, and especially the insurgents and the terrorists, are going to say, 'Well, they're just the lackeys of the coalition.' We don't want that."

As the Pentagon braces for a surge of violence after the restoration of sovereignty, top officers say it will be crucial how the new government handles the attacks. More than anything, this will determine whether the insurgency loses steam as the U.S. tries to diminish its military role.

In the wake of the political transition, Smith said, the insurgents will learn two things: "Is the government going to respond? And are the people of Iraq going to support the government's response?"


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mazzetti reported from Washington and McDonnell from Baghdad. Times staff writers John Balzar in western Iraq and Mary Curtius in Washington contributed to this report.

http://www.latimes.com/la-fg-military29jun29,1,779322.story


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marines, corpsmen hail sovereignty's arrival

But some question if Iraq is up to the task
By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
June 29, 2004

FALLUJAH, Iraq – Marines and Navy corpsmen here welcomed the early turnover of sovereignty to Iraq, but they wondered yesterday whether signatures on paper will stop the mortars, bullets and rockets they face daily.

"I think it was good that they did it early because it might have taken the wind out of the sails of insurgents who might have been planning attacks for June 30," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Thomas Riggs, 28, a corpsman with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment from Camp Pendleton.

"Now that the Iraqis are in control, I'll be interested to see what happens," Riggs said. "I'm curious whether this will cause the fighting to quiet down or kick back up."

As soon as he finished the thought, a rocket landed nearby, sending Riggs and several other corpsman running to see where it landed and if anyone was wounded.

"Maybe that's your answer," said Riggs of Anchorage, Alaska.

No one was wounded, but the rocket was an example of the random attacks the Marines want to stop. Some think the turnover is a step in that direction.

"I think the turnover is going to help us," said Lance Cpl. Caleb Vermillion, 22, of Senica, Mo. "I think it shows the people of Iraq that we are sincere in trying to help their country. It is a potential turning point to change things here," said the combat engineer based at Camp Pendleton.

Others are not as optimistic.

One Marine said the attacks won't stop because the Iraqi people don't understand that the United States is here to help. He said the turnover date is irrelevant, though it might knock the rebels briefly off stride.

Another said that he didn't see much hope for peace until the rebels are cleared out of the city.

Fallujah was relatively quiet Monday after the announcement.

At a traffic checkpoint, which had seen two days of heavy fighting, only an occasional sniper's bullet broke the lull, though it was hardly noticed by Pvt. Jeremiah Sparks, 25, and Cpl. Chris Tutor as they stood guard.

"Do I think it will make a drastic difference?" Sparks asked. "No. We'll still have to stay here and help with the transition. But the smoother we can make the transition the better start the new Iraq will have."

An Iraqi who translates for the Marines said it will "take time for the Iraqi people to believe that the turnover is real."

"I think the attacks will go down once the Iraqi people believe that this (turnover) has really happened," said Omar, who, fearful of reprisals, asked that he not be identified by his last name.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Union-Tribune staff writer Rick Rogers and staff photographer Nelvin Cepeda are accompanying Camp Pendleton-based Marines in Iraq.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/20040629-9999-1n29marreact.html


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Militants reportedly kill U.S. soldier held since April


Three Turks freed
By Robert H. Reid
ASSOCIATED PRESS
6:39 a.m. June 29, 2004

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraqi militants released three Turkish hostages Tuesday, shortly after another group of kidnappers claimed to have executed an American soldier captured nearly three months ago.

The killing of Spc. Keith M. Maupin, 20, of Batavia, Ohio, was reported by Arab television, which aired a videotape showing a blindfolded man identified by his captors as Maupin sitting on the ground.

Al-Jazeera said that in the next scene, gunmen shoot the man in the back of the head, in front of a hole dug in the ground. The station did not broadcast the killing.

The U.S. military said it could not immediately confirm whether the man shown in the murky videotape was indeed Maupin. Maj. Willie Harris, spokesman for the Army's 88th Regional Readiness Command, said the videotape is being analyzed by the Defense Department.

Meanwhile, the father of a U.S. Marine who was reported kidnapped by militants issued a plea Monday for his release. The captors of Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun have threatened to behead him.

The three Turks also were threatened with beheading in the next two days. But the Turkish government said Tuesday the three had been freed.

"Our citizens have been released," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told state television. "We've struggled a lot for their release."

His comments came after a report on Al-Jazeera said the group holding the Turks announced that it would release the captives "for the sake of their Muslim brothers."

The Arab satellite station broadcast a videotape showing the three Turkish hostages, believed to be contractors, kneeling in front of three militants as one read a statement.

"For the sake of you, our brothers, and Muslims of the people of Turkey ... we will release these hostages and send them safely home," the statement said.

The abduction of the Turks was claimed by Jordanian terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, whose followers killed American Nicholas Berg last month and South Korean Kim Sun-Il last week.

Al-Jazeera said Maupin's captors issued a statement along with their video calling themselves "The Sharp Sword against the Enemies of God and His Prophet."

The militants said they killed the soldier because the United States did not change its policies in Iraq and to avenge "martyrs" in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Algeria.

Maupin was among nine Americans, seven of them contractors, who disappeared after an ambush on a convoy west of Baghdad on April 9.

The bodies of four civilian employees of Kellogg Brown & Root – a subsidiary of Vice President Dick Cheney's former company Halliburton – were later found in a shallow grave near the site of the attack. The body of Sgt. Elmer Krause, of Greensboro, N.C., was later found.

One civilian driver, Thomas Hamill of Macon, Miss., was kidnapped but escaped from his captors nearly a month later. The others are missing.

Maupin appeared days after the attack in a video showing him sitting on the ground in front of armed militants. There had been no word on his fate since.

Maupin's abduction came amid a wave of kidnappings in which dozens of foreigners were snatched. Most were later freed, though an Italian and a Lebanese man were killed.

More recently, the kidnappings have taken a more grisly turn with the kidnapping and subsequent beheadings of Berg and the South Korean.

Hassoun, an American Marine of Lebanese descent, was shown blindfolded, with a sword brandished over his head in a videotape aired Sunday on Al-Jazeera. The militants threatened to behead him unless all Iraqis "in occupation jails" are freed. They did not set a timeframe.

"I appeal to the kidnappers and to their conscience and faith to release my son," his father, Ali Hassoun, said in an interview with The Associated Press at his house in the northern Lebanese port city of Tripoli.

"He is not a fighter. I hope that they will respond favorably to my appeal. May God reward them," he said.

The U.S. military said Hassoun, 24, was last seen June 19 and did not report for duty the next day.

Hassoun had gone "on an unauthorized absence," said Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, the coalition deputy operations chief in Baghdad, giving few details.

He lived with his eldest brother, Mohammad, in the Salt Lake City suburb of West Jordan and later joined the Marines.

His kidnappers identified themselves as part of "Islamic Response," the security wing of the "National Islamic Resistance – 1920 Revolution Brigades." The name refers to the uprising against the British after World War I.

Other kidnappers have threatened to behead Pakistani driver, Amjad Hafeez, by Wednesday.

The Turkish news agency Ilhas reported Monday that two other Turks missing since June 1 have been kidnapped, producing photos of the men in custody.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/20040629-0639-iraq-hostages.html


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Seabees, Marines still have duties

By PATRICK PETERSON

THE SUN HERALD


CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq - Word quickly passed through the camp that the terrorists had been tricked.

Seabees and Marines enjoyed the joke on their attackers, who were denied the chance to disrupt the handover of authority to the new Iraqi government.

Two days early, Iraq's new government accepted responsibility for their country.

"It was a brilliant move to keep the terrorists guessing," said Lt. Col. Charles Schaupp, 49, staff member for the commanding general, Lt. Gen. James T. Conway.

"It put them off guard, in my view," he said. "It made no difference (politically) because we're going to hand over authority anyway."

While the hurried handover denied terrorists a target, the event likely will have little benefit for the Iraqis' effort to establish a government. Nor will it affect the duties of Marines and Seabees: Marines are providing security, and Seabees are trying to help rebuild the war-torn country.

"I hope it means we go home soon," said Lance Cpl. Paul Adams, 28, of Miami. "I miss my family."

Adams watched news reports about the change in the Camp Fallujah mess hall with Lance Cpl. Justin Murphy, 20, of Hannibal, Mo., who admitted he wasn't really sure what effect the early handover would have on his military duties, which he could not discuss.

"I've been everywhere," he said. "But I think it's a good thing for the Iraqi people."

Iraqis did not seem jubilant about the handover, possibly because they know they have only the promise of democracy, not an elected government. The government now in place was installed by the U.S. to create a constitution and a western-style government in a country where many want a religious government or chaos.

"We want American forces to stay," said Iraqi barber Ben Daniel, 34, who lives in Baghdad but works at Camp Fallujah. "Now we have freedom. No Saddam Hussein. No jail. No one being killed."

Daniel hopes the governmental change, largely symbolic, will foreshadow peace and prosperity.

"Of course, the terrorists would kill everyone," he said. "We challenge them. We stay working."

Another barber, Zahir Hezakaha, 40, of Baghdad said American forces should leave only "when the security situation will be OK. If they stay for five years, that's better."

Daniel added that average Iraqis don't support terrorists.

"No one wants this situation," he said. "We want all foreign companies to come rebuild Iraq. All Iraqi people have a chance to work."

While there was little celebration Monday, one event in Fallujah marked the installation of the new government. An Iraqi flag was raised at the Fallujah Liaison Center, where Seabee officers and Marine civil affairs teams have issued $100 million in contracts to Iraqi companies who will rebuild schools, roads and utilities.

Those rebuilding efforts won't stop, though U.S. military engineers will have a relationship with the new government.

"We'll be plowing ahead," said Lt. Col. Colin McNease, a civil affairs officer and Jackson, Miss., native. "We'll be working with and supporting the interim Iraqi government if they want something done."

Iraqi contractors have become comfortable dealing with American military engineers, who award contracts based on ability and credentials. McNease said some of them are nervous about working with the untested government.

"Instead of coming to us, they've got to go to their own ministries," McNease said. "They know how corrupt it was."

Since the fighting around Fallujah calmed in mid-April, Marines and Seabees from Gulfport have worked to improve living conditions and security for Iraqis. Many troops hope to help the Iraqis develop a democracy.

"If they're willing to fix their government, we're willing to stick around," said Seabee Constructionman Troy Pearson, 21, of Danville, Ill. "We've had a couple of projects that were delayed or canceled because of them not wanting us to be around."

The new Iraqi government, with its fledgling police force and army, cannot yet control insurgents, who thrive on chaos. Despite the handover, tight security conditions around Fallujah won't relax, since terrorists still might launch the attacks expected to disrupt the hand over of authority, originally planned for June 30.

"I'm just ready to go," said Storekeeper Second Class Danielle Crable, 22, of St. Louis. Her unit, NMCB 74 of Gulfport, prepares to leave Camp Fallujah in August.

"I think there will be more trouble," she said. "I just hope everybody makes it back."

http://www.sunherald.com/mld/thesunherald/9035854.htm


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Iraq Update(email)


I'm here with the Marines at Fallujah. It's not as bad as I thought it would be. I'm at the internet cafe and we only get 30 minutes time.

We had a mortar round land here this morning. One marine injured and one flown out for surgery. People here are great. I wish all Americans were as cool as these Marines. OOHRAH!

We fly out to Al Ramadi tonight and then to Al Asad. I guess you heard about the turnover. It caught the bad guys off guard by doing it 2 days early. There is really no more activity than usual, but you can never afford to let your guard down for a minute.

It's still hot as hell, so you are drinking water constantly. You remember when you were in Bahrain how hot it can get. The flak vests and helmets make it worse. I like to fly with the doors wide open so you get the wind in your face.

Well the clock is ticking so I better get off so a young Marine can get on line to his family. Talk to you soon

Your friend Bruce

[thedrifter]

Despite Milestone, Troops Gird for Test of New Order
Marines 'don't think a lot about geopolitics' on patrol, a sergeant says, but they wonder how the transition will affect them personally.


By John Balzar, Times Staff Writer


AL ASAD, Iraq — For the 138,000 Americans in uniform and thousands of civilians under contract here, it was personal.

Troops such as Rick Smith, a Phoenix homicide detective on reserve duty in the Marines, felt their chests tighten Monday as word of the early transfer of authority spread across bases and outposts. They looked across a hazy, sand-swept horizon. Americans shed blood here. And sweat and money.

Now they gazed out … to behold what?

In Baghdad, the U.S. did as it promised and proclaimed its hand-molded version of Iraq a sovereign member of the community of nations. For men in suits and ties, it was a moment of history, if not high ceremony. For those in dirty combat fatigues, history would still have to prove itself.

Not since Vietnam had American fighting men and women been asked to shoulder the burden of trying to shape a far-off nation in their own country's image, by force and persuasion. Monday, these soldiers found themselves still ensnared in the gunfire and passions tearing through this troubled landscape.

"Marines have sacrificed their lives to get where we are now," Smith said. "Now that we're here, it's finally sinking in. After months of small steps, we've taken a big one. Probably the biggest of this war."

Smith described his mood as a mix of "anticipation about the next few months" and "high expectations" about the long run. He was not alone here in expressing such sentiments.

In the post-invasion campaign to create a self-governing Iraq, Smith, a Marine major and former infantry commander, manned the front lines not as a warrior but as an ambassador.

He was the point man for the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines in the fight for Iraqi hearts and minds. With responsibilities encompassing six cities and towns along the Euphrates River west of Baghdad, Smith helped set up councils for municipal and regional self-governance.

He distributed about $3 million to Iraqi contractors for the rebuilding of this region. Schools along the river now have playground equipment built at a factory that Smith helped establish.

"Some of these things are going to endure — for months and for years," he said confidently.

Stabilization and progress in Iraq still depend on achieving security in Iraq, and vice versa. In the battle for hearts and minds, many Iraqis aren't showing theirs for fear it would make them someone's target.

Thus, Marines in the vast western spread of the nation also intensified their patrols along Euphrates Valley supply routes Monday in response to the hand-over. They hoped to dampen insurgent violence, or at least discourage restless young men who enlist as supporters of militants for a few dollars. But the military's official policy on Monday followed plan: The first line of defense in Iraq fell to Iraqi police and national guardsmen — forces trained, paid for and partially equipped by the U.S.

By advancing the turnover by two days, U.S. and Iraqi officials hoped to catch insurgents off guard and spoil any plans for an uprising. But both American and Iraqi commanders said they expected the new government to be tested quickly, with Marines again pledging to back up local authorities.

As a practical consequence for U.S. troops at the platoon and company level, the change in administration had the chief effect of heightening anxieties and pushing them harder still in the scalding summer sun.

"These are Marines. They don't think a lot about geopolitics when they are out on patrol," said Gunnery Sgt. Brad Everett, of Toledo, Ohio. "They're thinking about survival. And when they do have a chance to ponder events, they're just like people back home. They're asking themselves, 'How is this going to hit me?' If it's not done properly, they're wondering if they will still be here in five years. Or will we have to come back in 10 years and do it again?"

Marines lamented the highly publicized capture of one of their own from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. At the same time, they claimed victories against insurgents with the seizure of a large cache of weapons in the vicinity of Ramadi, including an antiaircraft gun and 50 rocket-propelled grenade launchers, plus a smaller hoard farther west near the city of Hit.

Baghdad's quiet hand-over was followed by an equally low-key ceremony at the headquarters compound of the 2nd Battalion. Lt. Col. Phil Skuta, of Williamsport, Pa., presented a brief letter and a new Iraqi flag to his counterpart, Lt. Col. Fahad Abdal Aziz, commander of the 503rd Battalion of the new Iraqi National Guard.

"I know this day means a lot to you. It's the day we've all waited for," Skuta said.

Abdal Aziz stood at attention, kissed the flag and fought back tears. "Please send greetings to all the Americans, especially the families of the Marines," he said. "Marines sacrificed their lives here for the sake of freedom. We respect them very much. Their work here was very tough."

Over tea and tobacco, the Iraqi commander described the mood of his own troops as they face Iraqi insurgents head-on. "Some of them still need the Marines to support them. But I told them, 'The Marines are not forever.' Now the National Guard has to do the best it can do."

For his part, Skuta professed confidence in the Iraqi troops, many of them former soldiers in the Iraqi army. But he added, "We're not going anywhere."


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Balzar is traveling with the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines in Iraq.

http://www.latimes.com/la-fg-troops29jun29,1,4932134.story


Ellie