Base patrol deters attacks

[thedrifter]

Base patrol deters attacks
Submitted by: 1st Marine Division
Story Identification #: 200471354032
Story by Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes



CAMP MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq(July 11, 2004) -- It's 9 a.m. and already peaking 90 degrees outside. Any normal person would be inside sucking up the air conditioning but for a group of Marines with 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, that's not an option.

They have to brave the heat to make sure no one can launch mortars or set up ambushes on their comrades.

The patrols that circle areas outside the base here are known as Zone Zulu patrols. The Marines who walk them every day know them as something else - six hours of dripping sweat.

"We rotate the times squads leave on patrol to always have a presence outside the gate," Sgt. Jonathan D. Calcamuggio, a 26-year-old squad leader with Company G, from Owatonna, Minn. "They only go for so many hours because it wouldn't be feasible to carry all the water we'd need for a longer patrol. On a mounted patrol where we drive everywhere we can go through 200 little bottles of water in a day."

The Marines left the base with a good supply of both water and ammunition. The sights and sounds of the busy highway near the base quickly faded into the quiet of the countryside. They dispersed themselves as they crossed fields and roads, circling around their base.

The group of Marines found a good place to oversee the highway in front of them and remain hidden. The sun was hidden behind a cover of clouds. It just caused weather to be hot and humid.

"This is one of the best days for weather we've seen since we got to Iraq," Calcamuggio said, looking up at the sky. "The only problem is we all look like we took a swim in a river, as wet as our cammies are."

The squad watched the road until it was time for them to move again. They walked along a canal road toward a large hill where they could overlook the ghetto of Mahmudiyah from where the camp had received mortar attacks. In order to get there they had to tackle the canal and there was no bridge to cross.

A metal pipe stretching from one end of the canal to other was the solution to their problem. It sat 20 feet above the water and was their only access to the other side so they began crossing it. Weighed down by their water, ammunition and protective gear the Marines did everything from stretch their arms out for balance to stopping to take a few breaths to cross it.

"With all the gear these guys have on, they'd sink like a stone if they fell in," Calcamuggio said. "It's a good thing we all made it across."

The squad took the hill by digging their boots into the soft dirt one step at a time, each boot sinking into the earth as the Marine inched higher.

"The thing going through everyone's mind right now is 'I hope they don't get a fix on our position and start dropping mortars on us,'" Calcamuggio said.

The Marines settled in under what shade they could in the middle of the day. The temperature was now past 115 degrees. The heat could take a Marine out the fight as fast as a bullet. The only comfort was the bottled water.

They remained unfazed as shots rang out inside the city. Every time they came near the ghetto they could hear rifle fire usually being shot for celebratory reasons.

"We keep an eye out for anything suspicious going on in the city but we're used to them firing weapons inside the ghetto," Calcamuggio explained. "It's just what they do."

After watching the city and the farms around them for an hour they moved on to their next position inside a date tree grove. Here, the land was wet and muddy, shaded by the trees and fed by the primitive farm irrigation systems. The mud clung to the Marines' boots in thick, heavy clumps, dragging grass with them as they trudged to their position.

The trees offered Marines shade but no relief from the heat.

"Being in this grove just makes the humidity worse," Calcamuggio said. "The wet mud and the heat combine to make it miserable. I think the thing we're all going to do when we get back is just stay in our hooch out of the sun for the rest of the day."

The few people the squad saw during their patrol had mixed reactions to their presence. Some of the children ran right up to the Marines and other were pulled inside by their parents.

"Some of the kids haven't seen Marines enough to be used to them," said Lance Cpl. Andre R. Daigle, a 30-year-old from Orlando, Fla. "It'll get better the more we're out here."

When the patrol was done, the Marines were soaked through with sweat and had an inch of mud on the soles of their boots but they were happy. Hot chow and rest beckoned them home. Their six hours of braving the summer weather in Iraq paid dividends they didn't see, however.

"If we didn't launch these patrols the frequency of indirect fire attacks would increase. Our presence on these patrols deters the bad guys," said Maj. Brian W. Neil, the battalion's operations officer, of Middletown, Conn. "The goal of the Zone Zulu patrols is to disrupt mortar fire positions and it does that. They deter and disrupt."

The patrols serve another purpose for the Marines on them, however.

"These patrols really make the time go by faster, even though they're tough," said Daigle.

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200471354414/$file/zulu1lr.jpg

Lance Cpl. Adam M. Groves, a squad automatic weapon gunner with Company G, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, peers from the bushes out at a field thought to be used for enemy activity. The 20-year-old from Deale, Md., participated with his squad in patrols which cirlce the perimeter of the base to deter mortar and ambush attacks.
(USMC photo by Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes) Photo by: Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200471354822/$file/zulu3lr.jpg

With no bridge, Marines from Company G, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment had to cross this steel pipe spannng the canal below. With over 40 pounds of gear on each of them, balance was key to not taking a swim.
(USMC photo by Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes) Photo by: Cpl. Shawn C. Rhodes

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/4B2A7AFE04E47DE985256ED00035268B?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marines give Iraqi man new spring in his step
Submitted by: 1st Marine Division
Story Identification #: 200471355416
Story by Cpl. Paula M. Fitzgerald



CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, Iraq(July 12, 2004) -- Mohammed Jadaam thought he'd never walk again after losing his leg following an improvised explosive device attack in Ramadi last year.

When Maj. Gen. James N. Mattis, commander of 1st Marine Division, heard of Mohammed's situation, he wanted medical personnel from the division to help the 25-year-old man.

Navy Capt. John M. Williams, public health officer for the division's civil affairs team, met with Mohammed in May and gave him a complete medical examination to see what kind of help he required.

"When I first met him, he was not very talkative and seemed depressed," Williams said. "There wasn't a whole lot of color in his face and he was about thirty pounds lighter."

Mohammed was driving a friend home one night in April 2003 when anti-Iraqi fighters detonated a homemade bomb near his car. The bomb sent razor-sharp shrapnel flying, which tore through Mohammed's car and severely injured him. After the bomb went off, the attackers fired machine guns at Mohammed and his friend.

"I remember the bomb going off and then when I woke up, I was in the hospital," said Mohammed, whose father is Gen. Hobaisy Jadaam, the chief of Iraqi police in the Al Anbar Province.

The general said an attack like this was nothing new to him or his family.

"We expect things like this to happen," Hobaisy added.

The Jadaam family has been the target of anti-Iraqi violence in the past. He told of an incident that occurred a few months ago. Several men fired rocket-propelled grenades at the general's house.

Still, the constant fear of being killed does not bother the Jadaams because he they put their faith in the hands of God.

"I am faithful to my God," the general said. "He gave my son to me and he can take him away. But as a father I felt very compassionate toward my son when he was injured."

Mohammed's right leg was amputated from above his knee; the bones in his left ankle were shattered; and shrapnel had ripped massive holes throughout his body.

"He's really lucky to be alive today," said Williams.

Following the attack, Mohammed was rushed to a nearby U.S. Army camp and stabilized. He was then evacuated to a hospital in Baghdad for emergency surgery.

He spent several weeks in the hospital before returning home.

"Mohammed was pretty much wheelchair bound at that time," Williams explained. "His father told me he used to sit around at home all day looking at the computer. He wasn't interested in doing anything."

Williams said in Iraqi culture, a disability is seen as weakness.

"If he was to stay in a wheelchair, he probably would not be able ever find a woman to marry him because there's no way he would be able to find a decent paying job to support a family," he added.

After their initial meeting in May, Williams knew the task at hand would prove to be a challenge.

Because Mohammed's leg was amputated above his knee, he needed a "complicated prosthesis" and Williams wasn't sure if he'd be able to find someone in the Middle East to provide the synthetic leg.

Several months of intensive searching ended in success when Williams talked to the doctors at a hospital in Amman, Jordan.

"I found out that they would be able to help Mohammed," he said.

So Mohammed and a family member were flown to Jordan with all expenses paid for by the 1st Marine Division.

He spent almost two months in Jordan while he recuperated and adjusted to his new leg.

With his new leg and his spirits lifted, Mohammed returned to Iraq a few weeks ago. He and his father dropped by the camp here to show Williams the prosthesis and thank him for his help.

Williams told Mohammed he looked much better than he did when they first met in May.

"You look like you've gained some weight back," the doctor said. "You look good."

Mohammed said he was very grateful to Williams for getting him up and walking again.

"I want to thank everyone who made me walk again," Mohammed said. "I will never forget this favor."

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/20047135588/$file/amputee1lr.jpg

Navy Capt. John M. Williams, public health officer for the 1st Marine Division civil affairs team, looks at Mohammed Jadaam's prosthetic leg during a visit at Camp Blue Diamond July 12. Jadaam lost his leg following an improvised explosive device attack in Ar Ramadi last year. The 1st Marine Division provided funds for his new leg.
(USMC photo by Cpl. Paula M. Fitzgerald) Photo by: Cpl. Paula M. Fitzgerald

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/0B6B1728FD21732C85256ED00036686D?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Philippines Vows to Withdraw Iraq Troops

By PAUL ALEXANDER

MANILA, Philippines - Frantically trying to obtain the release of a captive Filipino truck driver with the clock ticking down, the Philippines said Tuesday it would withdraw its tiny peacekeeping force from Iraq as soon as it can.

However, the statement, which followed all-night Cabinet consultations, was unclear as to whether Manila was advancing the pullout as demanded by the Iraqi militant kidnappers, or was sticking by its commitment to bring its 51-strong force home on Aug. 20 as planned.

The confusion may have been deliberate as President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo seeks to maintain her staunch support of the U.S.-led war on terrorism while avoiding a possible domestic backlash if Angelo dela Cruz, a 46-year-old father of eight, is beheaded.

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"The Philippine government, consistent with its commitment, will withdraw its Philippine humanitarian contingent forces in Iraq as soon as preparations for their return to the Philippines are completed," Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael Seguis said in a statement to a Filipino reporter in Baghdad.

However, when the Arab television station Al-Jazeera aired the statement, Seguis was quoted as saying the withdrawal would be made "as soon as possible."

The Philippine government, which has imposed a news blackout on the crisis, did nothing to clarify the issue.

"Let us leave the government to do what is necessary to save the life of an innocent Filipino and to uphold our nation's interest," presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said.

"It is not for us to judge and raise our voices now that Angelo's life hangs in the balance. This is the most sensitive point in the hostage crisis. We must unite behind Angelo's family, keep our peace and pray hard."

Seguis' TV appearance came after the militant group, Iraqi Islamic Army-Khaled bin Al-Waleed Corps, issued a statement at midnight Monday Philippine time (11 a.m. EDT) that suddenly advanced a deadline for Philippine action on the group's demands and gave Manila only three hours to respond.

The deadline _ the third since dela Cruz was snatched last Wednesday _ passed with no indication on his fate. His kidnappers said he had been moved to the place where he would be killed, and Al-Jazeera aired a plea from the captive, asking Arroyo to yield to their demands.

Dela Cruz wore an orange garment similar to those worn by two other hostages who have been beheaded _ American Nicholas Berg and South Korean Kim Sun-il. He asked that his body be sent to the Philippines for burial should he be killed.

Feliciano dela Cruz Jr., brother of the captive, woke up to the news that the deadline had lapsed.

"We don't know anything," he said, complaining about a government-mandated news blackout on tense negotiations with the kidnappers. "We are asking our president where our brother is."

Military spokesman Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero said a plan was in place for a "phased pullout" from the three areas in central Iraq where the Filipinos are based.

"The troops have been pre-warned that they may be asked at any time to move out," he said. "That means they should pack up. But we have not gotten the final order to go."

In his televised statement, Seguis also made a heartfelt plea to the kidnappers.

On behalf of the Philippines and dela Cruz's family, Seguis said, "I appeal to your compassion and mercy for his release."

Seguis, who was in Baghdad working to get dela Cruz freed, said that Islam was a religion of peace and compassion.

"I appeal to you and to your kind hearts as Muslims to please release Angelo dela Cruz so that he can return to his family and children," he said.

Recognizing the fine line that Manila was taking to obtain dela Cruz's release while remaining one of Washington's closest supporters, Secretary of State Colin Powell called Arroyo.

"We applaud President Arroyo's decision not to give in to terrorists and not to agree to an early withdrawal of Filipino forces," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Monday.

But Arroyo's handling of the crisis has also drawn criticism. About 400 protesters marched to the presidential palace Monday to demand the withdrawal of Filipino troops from Iraq, but were turned back by riot police using truncheons and shields.

Iraqi militants have repeatedly used terrorist attacks to try to force governments to withdraw from the U.S.-led occupation force.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/07/13/ap/headlines/d83psbfg0.txt


Ellie

[thedrifter]

If Ramadi falls, 'province goes to hell'
By Gregg Zoroya, USA TODAY
RAMADI, Iraq — This may be the most dangerous city in Iraq.

By Cpl. Paula M. Fitzgerald, USMC, via The Orlando Sentinel and AP

Though battles in places such as Fallujah and Najaf have gotten far more attention, the Marine battalion in this provincial capital has encountered the most deadly combat fighting and logged the highest number of casualties of any U.S. battalion since the war in Iraq began.

In the past four months of fighting, the 2nd Battalion of the 4th Marine Regiment — nicknamed "The Magnificent Bastards" — has had 31 killed and 175 wounded, roughly 20% of its 1,000-man fighting strength.

Among the latest to die was Sgt. Kenneth Conde, 23, of Orlando. Conde had been wounded in fighting in April and recommended for a Silver Star. He was killed July 1. In an interview a few weeks before his death, Conde described the rebels Marines fight in Ramadi. "They were young just like me. Fighting for something different, something I don't understand, something they believe in," he said. "And that's the worst kind of enemy."

Little attention has been focused on Ramadi, despite its lethality to American troops. Instead, the focus has been on places such as Fallujah, 30 miles to the east, where Marines began and then halted an invasion of the city after insurgents murdered and mutilated four civilian contractors March 31.

But the importance of the fighting in this capital of Anbar province is not lost on the Marine high command. On a visit last month to Combat Outpost, an edgy exposed Marine base under frequent attack, the head of the 1st Marine Division, Maj. Gen. James Mattis, delivered a terse message to a chow hall full of men: "Ramadi must hold."

Security in Iraq, especially now that the U.S.-led coalition has handed sovereignty to Iraqis, is essential to creating a stable democracy. Militants are desperate to disrupt those efforts. Anbar province is the heart of the Sunni Arab culture that provided Saddam Hussein his power base. Ramadi, its capital, is home to the cream of Saddam's former military.

Marines say they feel certain that in the days and weeks ahead, rebels will try to disrupt the nascent provincial democracy in this region.

In his mess hall remarks, Mattis told Marines, "If we don't hold the government center, if we don't hold the provincial capital, the rest of the province goes to hell in a handbasket."

Strategic area

Anbar is geographically Iraq's largest province and among its most strategic. The province contains a crucial trade route to Jordan and Syria.

With a population of 500,000, roughly equal to Oklahoma City, Ramadi spans a stretch of the Euphrates River. The provincial capital was a stronghold of the ruling Baath Party under Saddam. Its chief export was military expertise.

Neighborhoods are filled with retired or former members of the Republican Guard and intelligence services. Marines say unemployment is about 60%. Paul Bremer, head of the U.S.-led civilian administration, disbanded the Iraqi army and until recently refused to assimilate members of Saddam's regime into the reconstituted Iraqi security services.

"They know how to fight and are doing so," says Lt. Col. Paul Kennedy, the battalion commander.

Weapon stockpiles are hidden everywhere. In an ambush April 6, rebels produced a heavy machine gun, similar to a .50-caliber, that shredded a Humvee and the Marines in it.

Combat Outpost, one of five Marine bases in and around Ramadi, is located deep inside the city. It is the most exposed Marine position here and arguably the most dangerous U.S. military camp in Iraq. Almost daily, rocket and mortar attacks hit the base or the observation posts that overlook a major highway and supply route bisecting Ramadi.

Face to face with the enemy

Kennedy says he is certain that during get-acquainted meetings with local city elders, he has sat down with men who are really the enemy, some of them former Iraqi intelligence officials. "They're smart guys," says Kennedy, 41, of Bloomfield, Conn. "You talk to these guys, and the light is on. You know that he knows that you know — that kind of thing."

Kennedy says veteran Iraqi officers are recruiting young local men and instructing them on attack procedures against U.S. forces. Two captured fighters said a former military officer drilled them about one assault plan using a so-called "sand table," a platform with miniature dirt terrain that replicated the ambush site.

"That's a pretty slick technique," Kennedy says.

In fighting here, the insurgents have plotted Marine troop movements, carefully laid ambushes, built increasingly lethal roadside bombs and demonstrated accurate sniper and rocket-propelled-grenade fire. "I wouldn't be telling the truth if I said I wasn't impressed," says Capt. Kelly Royer, 36, of Orangeville, Calif., commander of Echo Company, which has lost 18 men, more than any other battalion company.

In street fighting, rebels have flanked Marine positions, stood and fought to the death in some instances, or made controlled, text-book withdrawals. In one street battle in April, at least five Marines — including a platoon commander, 2nd Lt. John Wroblewski, 25, of Oak Ridge, N.J. — were killed or badly wounded by single shots to the head.

In Ramadi, Marines have encountered even more skilled and deadly resistance than in Fallujah.

The hand-over of Fallujah to local forces in May ended major combat there and left the city largely under the control of Iraqi insurgents. And although kidnappings and killings in and around Fallujah have made it the symbol of rebellion, it is Ramadi where the resistance has been less reported but far more deadly to American troops.

Seven Marines were wounded in the roadside bomb explosion that killed Conde. On June 21, four Marines died defending an observation post in the city.

On June 24, four days before the transfer of sovereignty, Marines foiled an assault on the governor's mansion. They killed nine insurgents. Two Ramadi police stations also were attacked that day. At one, the local Iraqi officers abandoned the building without a fight. Rebels detonated explosives and destroyed the structure.

The death and destruction has made for an increasingly bitter struggle between Marines and rebel fighters.

"We will be attacked in Ramadi," says Marine Capt. Rob Weiler, Conde's company commander. "We just hope we have the opportunity to kill a great deal of them."

Marines in Ramadi are concerned that the local police and militia — numbering about 3,500, many of them trained by U.S. contractors in three-week courses — may be unprepared or unwilling to deal with insurgent violence.

The battalion stationed here is serving as backup to Iraqi police and militia. It has a combat lineage dating back to the Tet Offensive in 1968 in Vietnam, where communist fighters captured government centers and won a propaganda victory. The lessons of Tet are not lost on Marine officers here.

"It's almost like they (the rebels) read a book on how, during Vietnam, public opinion contributed to us pulling out of Vietnam. They probably figured they'd do the same thing here," Kennedy says.

As Marines in Ramadi prepare to help Iraqi forces defend the city against expected attacks, the war in Ramadi has become one of wills.

"It's almost like who can hold their breath longer," Kennedy says.

'Keep each other alive'

The Marines have killed an estimated 300 insurgents. The resistance went underground in May and June. Its tactics became more clandestine but no less deadly: roadside bombs, mortars and rocket-propelled-grenade fire and snipers.

"All we want is to keep each other alive and go home," says Echo Company's Lance Cpl. Jonathan Kaiser, 20, of Montezuma, Iowa, as he works in 130-degree heat to fill sandbags and harden a mortar-firing position inside Combat Outpost.

The battalion has spent $2 million on community projects, working hard to bring security and a semblance of responsive local government to the city under the Marine mantra, "No better friend, no worse enemy." But the slog is hard, and resistance continues.

"It's extremely difficult to maintain the 'no better friend' part of the deal," Royer says.

The deadline for establishing Iraq sovereignty forced the battalion to move more quickly than it would otherwise in turning over security in Ramadi to Iraqi police and militia.

With the transfer of power, Marines reduced patrols of troubled neighborhoods. There's a sense among some Marines that they have ceded these neighborhoods to insurgents. Some worry that rebels are gathering strength.

continued........

[thedrifter]

"They control the whole tempo of the battlefield," says Echo Company Gunnery Sgt. Bernard Coleman, 37, of Hampton, Va. "If they want to wait a month to attack, they can do that. While all that time, we're just waiting. There's always more people out there who hate us."

In his morale-building speech to the Marines recently, Mattis tried to make sense of a complicated mission and reassure his forces that the battle is winnable.

Victory can be achieved if the Marines support local security forces and shepherd Ramadi through the transition and toward local elections in the months ahead, he said — "if we can get the Iraqis to work with us."

"They don't have to love us," Mattis told the troops. "It will make it harder and harder for insurgents to attack when they see Iraqis take more and more control."

But victory seems distant for many of the Marines in Ramadi. "I've been here quite a while, I'm ready to go," says Echo Company Cpl. Ryan Pape, 22, of San Clemente, Calif.

Like other Marines here, he hopes to return to the USA in September. "But I don't want to leave this place where it's at," he said. "It kind of feels unfinished. And I know if we jet out of here, it's going to eat itself up."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-07-11-ramadi-usat_x.htm


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Chaplain, religious services help 24th MEU Marines stay focused
Submitted by: 24th MEU
Story Identification #: 2004712125246
Story by Sgt. Zachary A. Bathon



CAMP VIRGINIA, Kuwait (July 12, 2004) -- "The presence of the cross that the chaplain wears on the battlefield provides a sense of hope to the warrior spirit."

It is that warrior spirit that is fostered during field religious services and visits conducted by the chaplains of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit as its Marines and sailors prepare to move north into Iraq.

Cmdr. James M. Hightower, a Toccoa, Ga., native and chaplain for the 24th MEU, also says, "That cross serves as a reminder to them that regardless of the circumstances -- with God, you are never without hope."

And many of the leathernecks currently deployed with the MEU use that hope to help them remain focused on the task at hand - to make it home safely.

"I think religion plays a big role in a lot of these Marine's lives," said Petty Officer 1st Class Michael Beeler, a Beaufort, S.C., native and religious program specialist with the 24th MEU. "It gives them some relief from what is going on around them and allows them to have a clear conscience."

"It also gives them piece of mind and lets them have some security in their souls," he added.

According to Hightower, there has been a big demand for religious paraphernalia and literature.

"My [religious program specialist] has been busy keeping their hands full with all kinds of things," he said.

"On this deployment, I have given away more medals than any of the previous ones," said Beeler. A lot of the time they come up to me and ask for certain things as opposed to me just giving it to them."

Some of the items the Marines have been asking for have been religious medals depicting St. Michael, St. Christopher and St. Sebastian, field Bibles and dog tags inscribed with Psalm 91.

Psalm 91 says, "I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue them and honor them."

"One unique thing about the dog tags is that I offered them to family members before the Marines left," said Hightower. "That was the first time I had ever done that. It allows the family to form a spiritual connection with their Marine."

This spiritual connection seems to give the Marines strength and courage.
"I think [religion] reminds us that we know we will not be here forever and makes us do a gut check to measure who we are with God and where we stand with our families," said Hightower.

His favorite Bible verse to give to Marines is Proverbs 3: 5,6. It says, "Trust in the lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

"I like to share that with Marines and sailors because we need to all do as much as humanly possible to keep ourselves prepared, but at the end of our limitations God takes over and that where we trust him," said Hightower. "It reminds us that after we have done all that we can do, we can trust God because he doesn't make mistakes."

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200471213111/$file/040712-M-7371B-003lores.jpg

A few of the religious medals offered to the Marines and sailors of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit by their chaplains. Photo by: Sgt. Zachary A. Bathon


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Photo Essay: Marines in Iraq celebrate America's independence
Submitted by: I Marine Expeditionary Force
Story Identification #: 200471044747
Story by Sgt. Colin Wyers



CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq(July 4, 2004) -- In America, softball games were being held. Hamburgers and hot dogs were cooking out on the grill. The whiz of fireworks sang across the sky.

The Marines of the I Marine Expeditionary Force, deployed to the Al Anbar Province, were not able to join their families and friends in those celebrations. But many of them were able to take time away from helping the Iraqis safeguard their newfound freedom to celebrate over 200 years of their own nation's freedom.

Some came out to participate in intramural sporting events. Some stayed in, to watch DVDs or read a book in their living quarters. And some had to continue to carry on the mission they came out here to do.

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Sgt. Paul Porter, the Headquarters Platoon, 9th Communications Battalion platoon sergeant, from Iola, Kan., plays part of Train's "Meet Virginia" at the 9th Comm. Bn. motor-transportation bay July 4, 2004. The 9th Comm. Bn. talent show was one of several recreational events held on Independence Day. Photo by: Sgt. Colin Wyers

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A Marine scoops a spoonful of mixed fruit onto his plate July 4, 2004 at the Camp Fallujah, Iraq chow hall. Marines and Sailors were treated to steak, hamburgers, hot dogs and other traditional cookout foods for the holiday. Photo by: Sgt. Colin Wyers

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Sgt. Adrian E. Ron, the I Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group motor transportation operations chief, and an Orange County, Calif., native, drops down for a bump during a volleyball tournament July 2, 2004. The tournament was one of many events made available to Marines and Sailors to celebrate Independence Day. Photo by: Sgt. Colin Wyers

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/19950CF24C7CD7A485256ECD0030523E?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Graduates pull rank

Master's program at USD caters to military officers
By Jordan Robertson
UNION-TRIBUNE
July 10, 2004


Imagine studying for a master's degree in a war zone.

For many of the 23 University of San Diego students who graduated yesterday from an MBA-style distance learning program designed for active military members, their daily concerns went way beyond keeping a high grade point average.

Most of the students are Navy and Marine Corps members. A quarter of them were deployed and redeployed all over the world during the 15-month program, which is offered by USD's School of Business Administration.

The courses range from ethical leadership to international negotiations to financial management strategy.

The trick to graduating, the students say, is finding the energy after 14-hour days of fighting the war on terror to read business textbooks, complete online assignments and arrange conference calls with classmates in different time zones.

"It's not your typical master's education," said Navy Lt. Matt Frauenzimmer, who spent time in more than eight countries while he was completing the program.

The students earned a master of science in global leadership, a 30-unit degree that program director Bob Martin describes as "the human half of an MBA." The skills are not only applicable to military positions, he said, but are also useful in the business world.

The program was established five years ago after senior Navy officers complained to university officials about a lack of a flexible graduate programs for their subordinates.

By focusing largely on classes that develop management skills, the degree is less inclusive than a 48-unit MBA but nonetheless aims to teach military officers important team leadership qualities. Martin says a longer program was not possible because of the short period – 18 or 24 months – the typical students have to complete a graduate degree.

The university invested in distance learning software to allow deployed students to access a university server to complete assignments. The school also had to stagger start dates and plan to teach each class three times a year to accommodate students whose service interrupted their studies.

Sixteen of this year's 23 graduates are military – with the balance having some kind of military connection – and some of them spent as little as two weeks total on campus.

Professors essentially teach two versions of the same class – one for resident students and another with modified assignments for distance learners. Because of the students' commitment and discipline, Martin said, the average GPA is higher than that of the traditional MBA program.

The program seeks midlevel career officers, most with an average of 10 years experience, who need a master's degree to get promoted. The program costs $27,000, but many students get military or other scholarships.

Distance learning programs have become increasingly popular for universities looking to broaden their student base, and Martin said it made sense for USD to design a program for military members.

"It's frankly good business. It's an untapped market," he said. "The military officers were largely being ignored as a group, and we felt we could get high-quality, top-notch students that wanted to do well in the program, that needed the degree, and of course had the ability to pay. The university is a business like any other, and of course there's always a concern for the bottom line."

Many of the students have stories like Frauenzimmer, a reconnaissance operations officer.

From Tokyo to San Diego to London to Bahrain, Iraq, Afghanistan and Qatar, his deployments allowed only 15 days on campus – including graduation.

Students are organized into groups of five, and Frauenzimmer's partners were often spread out all over the world. Assignments were interrupted by attacks or heightened threat levels.

He recalls a particularly harrowing incident in which a suspected homemade chemical bomb went off outside his base in Bahrain. He cut short a conference call – his groupmates were in Italy, Washington state, California and Japan – and threw on his biowarfare protection suit.

He had to get the notes later.

"It was sometimes like building an airplane in flight – you have to put everything together in the air or you crash," he said.

Marine Capt. Brett Winslow, 31, is based at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station but flew half a dozen times to and from Afghanistan before completing the degree.

He recalled studying a project management textbook and working on his laptop – while in the back of a plane flying over the pyramids in Egypt on his way into Saudi Arabia.

He said he didn't seriously investigate other master's programs after learning about USD's curriculum.

"There is no other program like this," he said. "Not only because it focuses on moral and ethical leadership, but there's nothing else that allows you to maintain your job and learn in a group environment like this."

Most students said they wanted to use their degree to advance within the military, rather than to take a job in the civilian world.

Navy Lt. Wilmer Gange, 29, acknowledged the business degree doesn't apply directly to his job as a helicopter instructor pilot.

"It doesn't have anything to do with teaching a student a proper landing," he said with a laugh. "But in the grand scheme of things, in future jobs, I'm confident that it will be extremely valuable."



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jordan Robertson is a
Union-Tribune intern:
(619) 293-2621
jordan.robertson@uniontrib.com


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/military/20040710-9999-1b10usd.html

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040710/images/2004-07-10business_grads.jpg

Earnie Grafton / Union-Tribune
New graduates of USD's master of science in global leadership program, which caters to military officers, included Kevin Popp, Jennifer Carney, Sarah and Matt Frauenzimmer, Keith Galloway, Tim Symons and Steve Barr.



Ellie

[thedrifter]

War still a reality for Marines near Fallujah

By Matthew McAllester
Staff Correspondent


AL-KARMAH, Iraq -- It was silent on Chicago, apart from the rustle that the baked wind made in the bullrushes next to the road and the sound of one Marine's boots stepping carefully on the grit next to the asphalt. As he walked, pace by pace, Brandon Webb's ears were interested in hearing only one sound.

There it was. The whine of the metal detector. It was low and only he could hear it. The other Marines were keeping their distance, holding back the Iraqi trucks and cars, scanning the palm trees and cinderblock shacks for gunmen or, worse, triggermen. Those are the ones they feared, the ones who put positive to negative and send an electric signal to the roadside bombs at just the right moment. That left 21-year-old Cpl. Webb on his own, as usual.











He had heard the high-pitched beep numerous times before and knew it was the sound that separated him and his fellow Marines from death and disfigurement. Below the dirt was a bomb.

"Oh God, I'm going to blow up," he thought to himself. "Oh God, please don't let it blow up."

When he joined the Marines, Webb wasn't planning on becoming an engineer. He trained as an electrician, but when a medic tested his eyesight and found he was partially color-blind -- you need to know your yellow from your brown from your red if you're an electrician -- he switched to engineering. He's with the 1st Combat Engineer Battalion.

His hearing was just fine, though. So the metal detector, much the same as those used by treasure hunters on beaches, became his constant companion.

Webb stopped walking next to the road that the Marines have renamed after the Midwestern city and wafted the green sensor over the ground. Then, with his sand-colored boot, he scraped some dirt away. Metal appeared. Even if there was a triggerman sitting out there with his hand on a remote control, there would be no point in Webb running. He could never make it away in time and besides, running away is not part of his job description.

Bending down, he brushed aside a lot more of the topsoil with his hands and exposed the body of a 155-mm shell. He found an empty water bottle, filled it with sand and placed it next to the shell to mark it.

Manning the 'Alley'

The 200 men of India Company of the 3rd Battalion, First Marines, call this stretch of Chicago IED Alley. IEDs are improvised explosive devices, roadside bombs that erupt and kill passing American and coalition soldiers all over Iraq. Mostly, they are laid at night and detonated during the day. IED Alley is just north of the schoolhouse that India Company calls home. The company's First Platoon had only driven a few hundred yards up Chicago on Tuesday afternoon when they stopped to check for freshly laid IEDs.

The other Marines had stopped the traffic up ahead to leave Webb undisturbed. "I just wanted to keep looking," he would say later, "because other Marines were in the danger zone." Twenty-five yards up the road, in the patched-up crater of an earlier roadside bomb, Webb found another one. His detector squealed again, he scuffed away the dirt with the sole of his boot and, once more, he scraped the rest away with his hands to reveal another 155 mm, at least two feet long. This time, he used an empty Pepsi can to mark the spot.

Then he came back down the road to explain the way things stood to Lt. Tim Strabbing, commander of the first of India Company's four platoons. Webb looked down with modesty and described how he had exposed the bombs.

"You're crazy, man," said Strabbing, 25, who has a master's degree in Russian and Eastern European studies from Oxford University and is unusual among Marines in his disinclination to punctuate nearly every sentence with obscenities. "I hope you have nine lives."

Strabbing smiled and shook his head as he walked beside the engineer back down Chicago to wait for the bomb disposal squad.

On Friday afternoon, three days later, Webb lay in his hospital bed in Baghdad, a hole an inch wide in the back of his skull, a piece of metal buried in his neck, probably forever.

"I wanna go home and be able to move around better by myself," he told a reporter, deliberately and quietly. "I wanna be normal again."

You don't feel normal?

"No. I feel incapable of taking care of myself. I can't take care of myself."

Webb's chest, on which his dog tags lay and dotted with sensors attached to beeping monitors, began to heave. His face crumpled and he started to cry.

Next to his bed, in a transparent bag, were the pieces of paper he had scribbled on when he first came to the hospital, when he found it hard to speak.

"An I Okay?" he had written, misspelling in a child's handwriting.

"Terminal damage" was another message to the doctors attending him. No question mark, but there was no doubt that it was a question.

"Thank You!" he had written.

And the name of his wife. "Erin."

Danger zone

Al-Karmah is a town of about 100,000 people in the Sunni Triangle, a few miles to the northwest of the troubled town of Fallujah. It's a frontier post for the Marines, who constitute the coalition presence between Fallujah and Baghdad, probably the most dangerous part of Iraq. The battle of Fallujah that waged between the Marines and insurgents in April is long over and, by agreement with Fallujah's elders, the town is a no-go area for coalition forces. But the towns and roads around and beyond the city are the scene of an ongoing, daily war between insurgents and Marines. Al-Karmah erupted in violence around the same time as Fallujah, and officers know the town is full of weapons and men willing to use them.

This low-level conflict doesn't grab the headlines much these days, given the recent handover of sovereignty to the interim Iraqi government and the appearance in court of former president Saddam Hussein, but the loss of life to Marines and Iraqis continues.

There are the occasional gun battles captured by TV journalists, but the daily military struggle in places like Al-Karmah is messier, and yet simple. It goes like this: The Marines of India Company go out on patrol to find improvised explosive devices and the men who set them. The insurgents set the devices and try to blow up the Marines when they're out on patrol.

"Because we're here, they shoot at us and harm U.S. troops," Strabbing said. "Because they do that, we stay here. So we get a bit of a negative cycle."

The Marines move in large, slow and often stationary convoys. Or they hike along roads and through unfamiliar fields, weighed down by up to 80 pounds of gear, sometimes vomiting through dehydration and heat exhaustion, sometimes needing intravenous drips strapped to their helmets and leading to their arms.

The insurgents have lived with the land and the weather all their lives and they travel light. They strike from a distance with their remote controls, mortars or rocket-propelled grenade launchers and disappear before the Marines can begin to look for them.

http://www.newsday.com/media/thumbnails/photo/2004-07/13370820.jpg

A losing battle

India Company has been in Al-Karmah since June 26. So far, they say they have not killed or injured a single insurgent. Three of their men, plus two attached engineers, have been hospitalized.

Statistically, the insurgents of Al-Karmah are winning against India Company, five to nothing.

"Let them celebrate," said Capt. Brett Clark, 31, the company's commanding officer. "They still can't face us ... It's just a matter of time before we catch them in the act and kill them."

Clark stood in what was probably the main hall of the schoolhouse. It's the largest, tallest building in town and allows the guards on the roof a view over Al-Karmah's rooftops, minarets and fields. That doesn't stop insurgents from firing rockets at the building, though. So far, only one has hit and, fortunately, struck a balcony, injuring no one.

The Marines sleep on fold-up khaki cots in classrooms without air conditioners or, for the most part, fans. Even at night, sweat pours off their bodies. The sergeants order them to drink liters of water before going to sleep, even if it means waking up in the darkness, putting on their flak jackets and helmets, strapping on their M-16 rifles and walking across an exposed yard just to go to the bathroom. Water is as key to survival in Al-Karmah in the summer as weaponry, vigilance and luck.

There is no fresh food, just boxes and boxes of Meals, Ready-to-Eat -- or MREs -- that fill the stomach but leave the Marines lusting for flavor. There are mountains of water bottles and a freezer whose contents are strictly reserved for returning patrols in need of cold water. Electricity in the schoolhouse, as in the rest of town, is intermittent.

Entertainment comes in the form of DVDs played on a television screen in the main hall, or books. Among the thrillers and combat novels lying around the hall last week was Joseph Heller's classic anti-war novel, "Catch-22."

There is a touch of literature elsewhere in the building, too. Written on a piece of cardboard taped to a wall is a soliloquy from "Henry V." "Whoever does not have the stomach for this fight, let him depart," it begins.

Soldiers' observations

The Marines of India Company are, in spite of their crew cuts and ripped, tattooed torsos, unfailingly polite and considerate to visitors. "Excuse me, sir," they will say as they navigate the stairwell of the schoolhouse. With each other, they curse so often that the seemingly aggressive words have lost any notes of hostility, becoming just a private language among friends. In that private language is sharp observation and deep curiosity about the alien world they see through their blast-proof goggles when on patrol.

continued..

[thedrifter]

&quot;Is anyone else besides me surprised to see doves and geese in Iraq?&quot; wondered one Marine rhetorically as he drove through farmland last week. <br />
<br />
&quot;Did anyone notice that guy welding without even a...

[thedrifter]

On the ride back from the bombing, his "neck and head were hurting really bad." His friends "kept telling me I had to stay awake. I would try to fall asleep because I was tired. They made me look at them."

He called his parents, who live in Inkster, Mich., from his hospital bed. The staff had called his wife in San Clemente, Calif., when he first got to the Ibn Sina Hospital in the protected Green Zone in the center of Baghdad. He didn't feel strong enough to speak to her then, so someone held the phone to his ear.

"She said everything's going to be OK and that she loves me," he said, beginning to sob at the memory.

Did he regret joining the Marines, coming to Iraq?

"Never," he said, in the quietest voice. "If I could, I'd do it all over again. I would."

But he's had enough.

"I don't wanna come over and do combat no more," he said.

Another memory appeared randomly: the orange juice served by the Iraqi family with the Mercedes. "Yeah, it was good juice. And it was cold."

He had two wishes. He wanted to be back home on July 19 for his second wedding anniversary. He missed the last one because he was in Iraq. And he wants to be at the Marine ball in November at Camp Pendleton in California.

The neurosurgeon who operated on him stood next to his bed on Friday afternoon, only hours before Webb began his journey back to California via a military hospital in Germany. Webb will be fine in a month, said the doctor, Maj. Richard Gullick. Denton will also make a full recovery, he said, although the sergeant could be at risk of developing a seizure disorder. Another medical staff member said she believed Stedman, whom the Marines in Al-Karmah had heard might lose an eye, was also going to be fine. Rios and Everett were expected back on duty soon.

A metal fragment had sliced through Webb's skin and muscle, Gullick said, hitting his skull before deflecting down about an inch and a half into his neck muscles, where it will stay unless it bothers him. The shrapnel punched a hole in the skull and sent pieces of bone three-quarters of an inch to a little more than an inch into Webb's brain. Gullick took them out in surgery.

Webb will be able to attend the ball, he said.

"They might make fun of the little scar in the back of your head," he told the Marine.

In a quiet, drained voice, without turning to look at the doctor, Webb said, "I'll knock 'em out if they make fun of me."

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/ny-fall0711,0,1033789.story?coll=ny-world-big-pix


http://www.newsday.com/media/thumbnails/photogallery/2004-07/13370971.jpg

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Coalition of the Compassionate
Military joins 'do-gooders' on the front lines in aiding world's needy

By Rye Barcott, Rye Barcott is a first lieutenant in the Marine Corps and president of Carolina for Kibera Inc.


It's not going to be easy: As a salty Marine Corps sergeant reminded me in a recent training exercise, "Sir, how the hell am I going to make liaison with some long-haired, holier-than-thou hippie in Birkenstocks?"

The sergeant, a veteran of both Iraq wars, is preparing to return to Baghdad this summer. He doesn't speak Arabic but is learning the language of the nongovernmental organizations, or NGOs, that drive international development.

In a world where peacekeeping has become as crucial a military function as fighting wars, military personnel are having to learn a new vocabulary. And, in the end, that may be a good thing for both the "do-gooders" and the armed forces.

For the last three years, I've had a foot in both worlds as an active duty Marine officer and head of an NGO that serves Kibera, East Africa's largest slum, on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya. When I'm deployed in far-off Bosnia or nearby Djibouti, I carry the lessons learned in a place that still calls me to duty on my annual leaves from the military.

By some estimates, more than a million people live in Kibera, an area about the size of Los Angeles International Airport. Hunger, disease, illiteracy, violence and sexual abuse abound. About 20% of the residents are HIV-positive, and more than 80% of those ages 15 to 30 are unemployed.

Carolina for Kibera, the NGO I founded as a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, offers small-scale solutions to these overwhelming problems, including a medical clinic, reproductive health center and youth sports association with more than 6,000 members. It all runs on an annual budget of $60,000, roughly the salary of a mid-level military officer.

There are certain things from the Marine Corps I take with me, and certain things I leave behind when I travel to Kibera. I take basic leadership principles instilled since my first days in training: Judge people by their actions, reward loyalty and achievement, focus on mission accomplishment and build relationships based on integrity. But I leave my unquestioning faith in a chain of command, a demand for precision and a considerable amount of pride and self-assurance.

A new wave of training in "security and stabilization operations" is teaching us to cope with such trade-offs. Today's U.S. military stands at the intersection of hard and soft power. That means "capacity building" with local leaders one minute and "sighting in" with your M-16 the next. Security and stabilization training is aimed at bridging this divide, and an important part of it involves developing relationships with NGOs, whose group cultures often clash with the Marine Corps structure.

Some Marines explain their distrust by pointing to insurgent and terrorist organizations, such as Hamas, which has used NGOs as fronts to smuggle weapons, recruit operatives and conduct surveillance.

Similarly, legitimate NGOs often fear that any kind of partnership with a military or government will compromise their work. But we're going to have to learn to get along, because the military is emerging as a front-line provider of aid.

U.S. Special Forces and military civil affairs units are involved in work traditionally reserved for NGOs, such as World Vision and CARE. Provincial Reconstruction Teams, led largely by U.S. Special Forces, build trust with local communities in Afghanistan by drilling wells, constructing schools and medical clinics and resurfacing roads. The Marine Corps conducted dozens of humanitarian assistance missions in Haiti, Afghanistan and Iraq and throughout the Horn of Africa last month alone.

My colleagues are often surprised by how much can be accomplished with a relatively minuscule investment. In Kibera, a $26 grant helped a widowed and unemployed nurse with three children establish our medical clinic several years ago. Her clinic treated 5,422 patients in 2003.

Regardless of the size of the investment, military units are learning that development is an art that has the greatest returns when communities themselves embrace and lead it. When aid is directed in a top-down fashion, it becomes a source of conflict in the community, especially when residents feel excluded from the planning and decision-making process.

Military leaders speak of aid as a counterterrorist strategy, helping people whose poverty and isolation makes them "vulnerable to terrorist groups seeking to exploit the situation," as one retired general said. Community consent can make or break what military planners call the "war of ideas."

I did not create Carolina for Kibera to influence Kenyans' image of America. The organization exists to serve Kibera, where people are living in some of the most wretched conditions imaginable.

But I've always been interested in how its residents view the United States, and I'm surprised at how few anti-Western sentiments I hear.

After all, our country concentrates nearly half the world's wealth in the hands of less than 5% of the world's population, and Kibera's residents are constantly exposed to a reflection of this reality through ever-present American popular culture.

When visitors come to Kibera, I send them on their first tour with Hussein, a charismatic Muslim youth leader with an imposing physical stature, a hard-boiled reputation and a slick (ganja) ghetto gait — long, slow steps, exaggerated arm swings, unbridled confidence.

Hussein knows almost every thug in Kibera, and many residents respect him as a former hell-raiser turned community organizer. I send visitors out with Hussein because I think he has something to teach them. He has picked up some things from us too.

A few years ago, Hussein visited me in a small shack I had rented in Kibera. He borrowed one of the books I had brought with me, "The Marine Officer's Guide," which he read cover to cover and then quoted enthusiastically at random moments.

One chilly night over hot chai and mandazi, I asked why he liked the book and if he made any connections to Kibera. He smiled and rocked backward, gripping his knee with both hands.

" 'Always faithful,' " he recited. "I like that, because imagine a world where everybody's always faithful, everybody's devoted…. One of the strangest things here is that under these adverse circumstances, people are living. They can still say 'How are you?' while they are standing in sewage."

I asked him if he made any connections between the Marine homilies and development work in Kibera. "What drives Carolina for Kibera?" he asked rhetorically. "I think it is to make this place more humane, and I don't just mean Kibera. If that is the driving force, then we still have a lot of horsepower. Together we can push this thing to the end of the world."


http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-op-barcott11jul11,1,4379778.story


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marines, families endure horror of bloody firefight
"He said your husband has been injured ... "


By Wes Johnson
News-Leader Staff

EDITOR'S NOTE: This account of a battle in Iraq, for which all of the Marines mentioned received medals, was compiled through interviews with local Marine reservists and their families, as well as an official Marine Corps account of the firefight.
It started as a routine road patrol that hot April 30 day in Iraq.

Members of the Springfield-based 3rd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment's Weapons Company worked their way east of Camp Taqaddum, their armed Humvees keeping a secure buffer between the U.S. base west of Baghdad and Iraqi insurgents.

The Marines had been down that same road many times before, without incident.

On this day, that would change.

Without warning a homemade roadside bomb exploded next to the lead Humvee, slinging dirt and shrapnel through the air.

Springfield reservist Cpl. Billy Wallis, manning the Humvee's roof-mounted grenade launcher, was hurled back inside the vehicle by the bomb's shock wave.

Shrapnel ripped into his right arm and neck and pierced his right eardrum, temporarily deafening him.

More than 400 yards away, insurgents hiding in two houses opened fire on the Marines, raking their position with .30-caliber bullets, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades.

Wallis, 22, returned to his grenade launcher and began lobbing explosive shells at the enemy.

Fellow Marines warned him that he was losing blood, but he continued to blast away.

The battle was on.

Fending off the enemy

The Marines reported the ambush by radio, and reinforcements began heading to the scene in 7-ton trucks.

Lance Cpl. Curtis "Glenn" Hensley, a Marine reservist from Aurora, was among them.

"We heard them firing," he recalled. "We came up close to a building with no roof, got out of the truck and started running to get cover."

Seeing a dirt berm not too far away, Hensley raced for shelter.

"I put a couple shots down range then it was over," he said. "All of a sudden it was just a lot of noise."

An Iraqi bullet found its mark, hitting Hensley in the right side of his head.

It angled downward, destroying his right eye and lacing his brain with fragments of metal.

Instantly in shock, Hensley said he remembered nothing after the bullet struck.

"They said I was conscious and talking when they took me back, but I don't remember," he said.

With enemy bullets striking nearby, Petty Officer 2nd Class Greg Cinelli, a medic from Haverhill, Mass., reached Hensley and bandaged his wound.

"If it had been one inch lower, there would have been nothing I could do about it," Cinelli said in the official account of the incident.

He and two others rushed Hensley back to Camp Taqaddum, then returned to join the fight.

Heat of battle

According to the Marine account, Cpl. Zachary Smith of Springfield led a four-man team across 500 meters of open farmland — with practically no cover — to attack the insurgents firing at them from a house.

"The whole way across the field, my team took small-arms fire," said Smith, 26. "We tried using some of the dirt mounds for cover, but there was a limited amount of cover. It was weird seeing rounds impact right next to you, knowing that those bullets were meant for you."

Another Springfield Marine, Lance Cpl. Buckley Cain, said this was his first combat situation.

"We didn't have time to get butterflies," Cain said. "Our instincts went back to our training, so we took cover and re-evaluated the situation. It made me a little mad to have rounds hitting so close, but that gave me more of a reason to take those bad guys out.

"The firefight then got personal."

Cain said his sense of hearing faded during the firefight, but his vision became sharper. "This is a defensive mechanism of the body, but you have to keep your eyes moving so you don't get tunnel vision."

The Marines coordinated their fire, zeroing in on insurgents they could see and the muzzle flashes from their guns.

"I believe we took out all the insurgents that were in the open until the rest retreated to the house in the thick brush," Cain said.

The soldiers passed within a few feet of a dead body, Cain recalled. The fire team killed three or four more before two Cobra helicopters and a Bradley tank took out the remaining insurgents.

The hourlong firefight ended when the attack helicopters demolished the two houses from which the insurgents were firing.

When the dust settled, 14 Iraqi insurgents were killed. Though four U.S. Marines were injured, all survived.

"I was so proud of my guys," Smith said. "They did exactly what they were supposed to do. It was perfect."

On the home front

Back in Springfield, Kelly Wallis had no idea her husband and other Marine reservists were fighting for their lives.

Married a year ago, they had to put their honeymoon on hold when he got the call to duty.

When he returns, Kelly said, they're heading to the Virgin Islands for a long-overdue vacation.

"It's hard to watch the news," she said. "You want to know as much about his unit as you can, but you worry if something bad happens over there, whether it might be his unit."

As she was getting ready for church on April 30, a call came in. A major from her husband's unit needed to talk to her.

"He said your husband has been injured. He was OK, but he had been injured," Kelly recalled. "He had to repeat it because I was so scared and nervous. He tried to reassure me that Billy was OK. He'd been injured but was doing better.

"Even though they told me he was OK, I mean, what does that mean, that he's OK?"

She called Billy's brother, Chad. With all her tears, she thought it'd be better to call him than Billy's parents.

"It would probably be too upsetting to hear me like that," she said.

Wallis finally reached his wife by phone at 1 a.m. May 1.

"It took hearing his voice before I calmed down," Kelly said.

The Marines may return home sometime in October, though Kelly wishes it were sooner.

"I miss him. I wish he was here, but I understand why he's there and I support him," she said.

Scared but proud

Springfield resident Leah Smith had no idea her husband, Cpl. Zachary Smith, had been involved in the firefight until nearly six weeks later.

A Marine Corps press release detailed her husband's actions.

"I was kind of shocked when I read the article," said Leah, cradling their 10-month-old twin daughters, Brookelyn and Meygan, on the couch. "I was scared for him, but I'm also proud of him for what he's doing."

She pulled out a photo her husband sent from Iraq, the photo with "I (HEART) Leah" scrawled on the wall of an Iraqi building.

Smith's graffiti made Leah smile.

"I just want him home," she said. "What scares me the most is those guys getting their heads cut off. I don't want that to happen to any of our guys."

Hensley recently returned to Aurora, where he received a hero's welcome from his hometown.

More than 400 people lined the streets as he arrived, his healing wounds plainly visible.

People lined up by the dozens to shake his hand or give him a hug. Arm-in-arm with fiancȥ Valeska Woodruff, Hensley thanked them all for the welcome home.

Peggy Smith, Zachary's mom, said she is proud of her son and what the troops are doing to try to bring peace to Iraq.

In civilian life Smith loads trucks at Willowbrook Foods. But he thrives in his Marine reserve role.

"I really feel like this is his thing, even though it's got us sitting on pins and needles until he gets home," Peggy said. "He feels like it's his duty to be there."

http://www.news-leader.com/today/0711-Marines,fa_1.jpg

Cpl. Billy B. Wallis was manning a Humvee's roof-mounted grenade launcher when the attack began. He was thrown back into the vehicle and suffered shrapnel wounds in his arm, neck and eardrum, but he continued to fight.
Family Photo


http://www.news-leader.com/today/0711-Marines,fa_2.jpg

Cpl. Zachary Smith patrols in Iraq. During the battle, Smith (left), the father of twin baby girls, led a four-man team across 500 meters of open farmland to attack insurgents firing at them from two houses.
Family Photo


http://www.news-leader.com/today/0711-Marines,fa_3.jpg

Lance Cpl. Curtis "Glenn" Hensley talks with the media at his June welcome in Aurora. Hensley was seriously injured in an April 30 firefight in Iraq.
News-Leader File Photo


continued..........

[thedrifter]

Awards for action on the battlefield
Several soldiers engaged in the April 30 firefight received medals after the battle was over.

Here is a list of their awards:

• Lance Cpl. Buckley Cain, 22, Springfield: Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Petty Officer 2nd Class Greg Cinelli, 33, Haverhill, Mass.: Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, with combat V (earned in combat), Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Lance Cpl. Patrick Henderson, 24, Kansas City: Purple Heart, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Lance Cpl. Curtis "Glenn" Hensley, 20, Aurora: Purple Heart, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Cpl. Zachary Smith, 26, Springfield: Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, with combat V, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Lance Cpl. John Tinsley Jr., 19, Fayetteville, Ark.: Purple Heart, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Cpl. Billy Wallis, 22, Springfield: Purple Heart, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with combat V, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Lance Cpl. Cody Wilson, 19, hometown unavailable: Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, with combat V, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

• Sgt. Jason Woodward, 25, Neosho: Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, with combat V, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

http://www.news-leader.com/today/0711-Marines,fa-131134.html


Ellie

http://www.news-leader.com/today/0711-Marines,fa_6.jpg

Kelly Wallis was getting ready for church when she got the call that her husband, Cpl. Billy Wallis, had been injured. Her husband may return sometime in October, but Kelly wishes it were sooner.
Family Photo

[thedrifter]

Lejeune Soldier Fights For Life After Being Wounded

POSTED: 1:21 pm EDT July 13, 2004

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK -- A U.S. Marine is fighting for his life in a Texas hospital after being severely wounded in Iraq.

Sgt. Jake Rhinehart, who's based at Camp Lejeune, was injured when a homemade bomb exploded on a road in Fallujah. Another Marine was killed by the blast and two others are wounded.

Rhinehart is listed in stable condition at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.

The 25-year-old Rhinehart is listed in stable condition at Brooke Army Medical Center. He was serving his second tour in Iraq when he was wounded.

Rhinehart's wife says he was hit by shrapnel in his abdomen and legs. She says both his legs were fractured and he lost a kidney and suffered burns.

http://www.wral.com/news/3524876/detail.html]


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marine loses possessions in firebombing
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By: KATHY HEMSWORTH
The Newport (Tenn.) Plain Talk
07-13-2004

A local man who is a corporal in the United States Marine Corps lost all of his belongings in a firebombing in Iraq last week.

Cpl. Luke A. Davy, the 21-year-old son of Robert and Kate Davy, of 816 Highway 73, arrived in Iraq just last week. He and his unit of 20 men were put up in tents to better facilitate the movements of the Engineer Corps.

Kate Davy said her son and his unit were asleep in the middle of the night when they were firebombed, along with several other units.

"Their tent and all of their possessions—such as clothes, pictures, Bibles, electronic equipment, everything—were lost. Everything was instantly consumed in the blaze," she said. "They only had time to grab their weapons and escape the confines of their tent."

She said she was told the Marines suffered small burns as they escaped only in their underwear.

Her son told her that he waited in line for three and a half hours to use the phone so he could call her to let her know that he is all right. He asked her to contact Sabrina Williams, a family friend and American Red Cross volunteer, to see if the Red Cross could offer assistance to him and his men.

"In his conversation he emphasized that I shouldn’t worry, he was fine. He said he was okay, but his main concern was his men," said Davy.

"They do not even have the barest needs. They were to be issued a camouflage uniform each on that first day, but right now, they don’t even have clean underwear," she said.

"He asked that we send him more photos because all of his were lost in the fire," she added.

"Although they will have to pay for the replacement of any uniforms and equipment as well as any pdasand laptops, this attack was widespread and was well directed at newly-arrived troops," said Davy.

"He has many friends here he would appreciate hearing from, but he can no longer keep in touch with them using e-mail," she explained. "He would like for them to write to him."

Davy said her son is not asking for things for himself, but instead, is more concerned that the 20 other men in his unit get items to replace those they lost.

"The only thing he asks for is letters. He also said some of the men in his unit never get any mail, so he shares his mail with them. All of them in his unit welcome correspondence," she said.

Having served three years in the Marine Corps, Cpl. Davy is expected to attain the rank of Sgt. in August, according to his mother. The Cocke County High School graduate was previously stationed in Okinawa, Japan.

"No one in his unit was killed. Fortunately, they heard someone scream ‘fire’ and they all jumped up and ran," she said. "His unit was not the only one involved. He said the firebombing effected other units and destroyed their possessions as well."

"He was in the process of buying a house in Morristown and all of the paperwork was destroyed in the fire," she added. "We hope we can work things out so he can still buy the house."

"Everyone in his unit needs a Bible. All of their Bibles were destroyed. They do need small Bibles, though," she explained.

Sabrina Williams said the local Red Cross is organizing shoebox size packages to send to Davy’s unit.

According to Williams, the local Red Cross is not able to pay for the items being sent to Davy’s unit, and therefore, will be relying on donations from the community.

“The local Red Cross is just organizing and sending everything,” said Williams. Donations to cover the cost of postage to send the packages are also needed.

According to Kate Davy, her son’s unit needs white socks, black boot socks, boxer shorts from sizes small through large, hard candies, sunscreen, lip balm with sunscreen, drink mix powders such as Crystal Light and Gatorade, playing cards, soap, letter writing materials—except postage which is supplied, disposable cameras, and similar small items.

An e-mail from Cpl. Davy said, “Whatever they want to put in them (the packages) is fine, as long as it doesn’t include weapons or more than two packs of cigarettes, which I don’t think they need anyway.”

To contact Davy, or someone in his unit, write to: Luke A. Davy, 1st BN 8th Marines, CEB Platoon, Unit 73195, FPO AE 09509-3195.

To contact Sabrina Williams about donating items or helping pay for postage for packages to be sent, call her at (423) 625-9315 or email Smokymtdancer@hotmail.com or call the American Red Cross Cocke County office at (423) 623-6133.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Dutch marine faces trial for Iraqi's death <br />
<br />
13 July 2004 <br />
<br />
AMSTERDAM − The Public Prosecutor's Office (OM) in Arnhem is to take a Dutch marine to trial for the shooting death of an Iraqi in...

[thedrifter]

THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ
Resentment Is Festering in 'Little Falloujas'

By Patrick J. McDonnell and Suhail Ahmed, Special to The Times


BUHRIZ, Iraq — His Charlie Battery was dug in against as many as 50 insurgents, Capt. Matt Davenport remembers, and the volleys of rocket-propelled grenades and bursts of machine-gun fire were nonstop. At one point in the two-day firefight, he recalls, "there was an explosion every five seconds."

The battle was fierce enough that it could have occurred at the height of this spring's siege of Fallouja, a city that has become notorious worldwide as a hub of resistance to American and allied forces. But the fight came just a few weeks ago, in this agricultural town northeast of Baghdad.

There is only one Fallouja, but, unfortunately for U.S. forces and their allies, seething towns such as Buhriz dot Iraq's vast "Sunni Triangle." They are home to traditional tribal populations embittered by the U.S.-led forces in their country — and suspicious of an Iraqi government installed by foreigners.

Harnessing these "little Falloujas" back into the fold of civil Iraqi society is one of the great challenges facing the new government and its U.S. allies.

A cycle of violence, distrust and radicalization has festered for a year in Sunni Iraq and will not go away easily.

The U.S. strategy has followed a variant of the carrot-and-stick approach — crushing armed opposition but also offering millions in development funds to cooperative local governments.

"There's an inverse relationship between successful projects and American casualties," said Col. Dana Pittard, who heads the 1st Infantry Division brigade that patrols Buhriz and the rest of Diyala province. "We're going to be fighting our way out of here if that money dries up."

In the case of Buhriz and other troubled Sunni towns, town leaders call U.S. troops a provocation and demand that they stay away.

"That is exactly what should be done here," Buhriz Mayor Awf Abdul Rida Ahmad said when asked if the Americans should stay away and leave matters to town police. "The people here are very peaceful, and all they want is stability and peace of mind."

But American officials have already rejected the possibility of more security arrangements like those in Fallouja, where U.S. forces agreed to pull out of the city in April and turn it over to a collection of former Iraqi army officers with close ties to the insurgents. Fallouja has since become a no-go zone for U.S. Marines and a sanctuary for insurgent militancy, commanders acknowledge.

"One thing is for sure: It's not a template for the future," Lt. Gen. Thomas F. Metz, operational chief of U.S.-led troops in Iraq, said of the Fallouja blueprint. "It's disappointing."

It is no coincidence that the most problematic towns are those where the Sunni-dominated Baath Party of former dictator Saddam Hussein is still held in high esteem and where many people prospered under Hussein. In insulated towns such as Buhriz, many regard the now-dissolved Baath structure as a kind of benevolent dictatorship that protected the interests of the minority Sunni Muslim population against rival Shiites and others.

"The old Baathists are everywhere in Iraq …. What do the Americans want to do with them?" said Ahmad, a 44-year-old agricultural engineer who was manager of Buhriz's irrigation plant during Hussein's regime.

"The Baathists here are very good people. They managed to maintain security and order right after the fall of the regime. They organized checkpoints in the town and prevented any theft or crime."

The mayor doesn't say so, but the former Baathists of Iraq helped organize something else: an anti-occupation rebellion that has fought the U.S. military to a standstill and thwarted the Bush administration's ambitious plans for rebuilding the country. Black-clad Fedayeen Saddam militiamen were the fanatical regime enforcers — and the early foot soldiers of the armed opposition.

The insurgency has found fertile ground in places such as Buhriz, a town of 40,000 or so. Here, as elsewhere, armed resistance has become entangled with anti-American nationalism, religious militancy and, in some cases, U.S. officials say, fighters from other Arab nations.

U.S. Army sweeps that have resulted in tens of thousands of arrests nationwide — including more than 200 in Buhriz, the mayor said — have fanned the resentment.

One especially disturbing trend, from the U.S. standpoint, is the intermingling of conservative religious ideology with the insurgency. Fighters are regularly acclaimed as mujahedin, or holy warriors, their exploits celebrated in teahouses, living rooms and mosques.

The conservative Salafi, Wahhabi and Sufi teachings that have proliferated in Sunni Iraq since the fall of the regime last year provide a moral basis for the armed opposition.

"Yes, people's commitment to religion has increased, since religious scholars are so often condemning the occupiers as being the cause of all our troubles," a bearded man in tribal garb, who gave his name as Abu Mohammed, said as he walked near one of the main mosques here. "Our religious teachings call for fighting the occupiers, especially when they are non-Muslim."

In hard-core Sunni enclaves such as Buhriz — riverside towns of palm groves, mud huts, concrete-block houses and the ubiquitous minarets of mosques — there often appears to be absolutely no meeting of the minds between the Americans and the Iraqis.

Take, for instance, the running battles here in the middle of June. There is one point of accord — it was a vicious confrontation that caused massive damage to Buhriz and left more than a dozen Iraqis dead and scores injured. One U.S. soldier was killed in the fighting.

Among the dead was Ali Hussein Septi, a man whom the U.S. Army labeled a dangerous insurgent cell leader. The Army said he was shot in the abdomen during a predawn raid on his house June 17, an incident that apparently ignited the tensions. Septi fired an AK-47 at U.S. troops, medical efforts failed to save him, and he died in U.S. custody, the Army said.

"Septi was one of two insurgent cell leaders in Buhriz," Pittard said.

Residents said Septi was a harmless lunatic and former prisoner of war in Iran.

The other purported resistance leader, known by U.S. forces as Abu Zooz, is described here as an unemployed grocer who stopped by City Hall recently looking for work as a night guard.

Mayor Ahmad said he recently summoned Abu Zooz and other alleged insurgent chiefs to his office to inform them of the Army's allegations, which have also circulated in press accounts in nearby Baqubah.

"I told them … 'The newspapers have made terrorist leaders out of you,' " the mayor said. "They had tears in their eyes when they heard about that."

The day after Septi's arrest, U.S. forces visited City Hall to talk of much-needed water and redevelopment projects.

"We were very delighted and happy, and the rest of Buhriz people were similarly happy to hear the good news," Ahmad recalled. He complained that "not a penny" had been invested in the town despite many needs, especially potable water.

But reconciliation wasn't in the cards on this day.

The Army said its forces were attacked with rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire. Witnesses in Buhriz said U.S. forces withdrew suddenly after discovering a suspected car bomb. It was later determined that it contained no explosives, said the mayor, who added that the car belonged to a nephew of his who was a police officer.

At any rate, the Army later returned in force to positions in town, and fierce fighting soon erupted.

"They were launching RPGs at us all day," Davenport recalled. "It was continuous fire."

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

[thedrifter]

Residents said U.S. forces opened fire without provocation, causing extensive damage in the town and killing more than a dozen civilians.

Sheik Mehdi Salih Jeghaidi, a 52-year-old town council member, accused U.S. forces of using "human shields" as they took position in civilian houses.

"They were keeping families inside their houses … just to make sure that the attackers might not fire at them when they were with Iraqi families," Jeghaidi said.

The Americans said their fire was precise and the Army avoided use of artillery to prevent collateral damage. Most of the destruction evident in the town came from badly aimed insurgent mortar rounds and grenades, the Army said. "The insurgents are completely irresponsible with their fire," Pittard said.

According to the mayor, 13 residents were killed and 57 were injured in June's battles. The Army did not dispute those numbers but blamed the deaths on enemy fire and said 19 insurgents were killed and scores wounded.

U.S. commanders cite indications that word of the fighting in Buhriz may have attracted foreign militants, including followers of Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born terrorist chief said to be operating in Iraq. But locals say the only foreigners evident were the Americans.

"Our mujahedin have no relation whatsoever with anybody from outside the town," said Muthanna Azzawi, a 40-year-old retired corporal in the defunct Iraqi army.

Things have calmed somewhat in Buhriz. An Army reconstruction team returned in late June and was not attacked — a promising sign, all agree.

The Army has agreed to let Iraqi forces police the town, but — unlike the security arrangement in Fallouja — soldiers have maintained the right to enter whenever it is deemed necessary.

In Baqubah on June 22, officers of the 1st Infantry Division paid tribute to Pfc. Jason Nathanial Lynch, a 21-year-old gunner from St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, who was killed in a firefight four days earlier in Buhriz. A somber Davenport accepted condolences for his "best gunner" but sounded a pessimistic note about the town.

"If we go in there right now, it would be the same thing," he said as he stared toward the rifle and boots arrayed around the private's memorial. "Buhriz is just a tough place."


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Times staff writer McDonnell reported from Baqubah and special correspondent Ahmed from Buhriz.


http://www.latimes.com/la-fg-town13jul13,1,2330094.story


Ellie