Coalition begins 'Sweep' through Afghan mountains
Army News Service
Release Date: 7/30/2003
By Spc. Greg Heath July 30, 2003
AYUBKHEL VALLEY, Afghanistan (Army News Service, July 30, 2003) --Paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division began searching the mountains and villages of southern Afghanistan July 23 in Operation Warrior Sweep.
They joined 3,000 soldiers from Task Force Nibio from the Italian army and six companies of the newly formed Afghan National Army.
More than 600 soldiers from three companies of the 82nd's 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, and one company from the 3rd Battalion, 504th PIR, flew by helicopters into landing zones at altitudes of over 10,000 feet in the Ayubkhel Valley in the southeast part of the country.
The paratrooper's mission was to set up blocking positions to intercept any anti-coalition or anti-government forces that may have been traveling in the valley. The valley was the primary travel route used by the Taliban and al-Qaeda forces during Operation Anaconda last year.
They also searched Afghan homes and caves during their movement, but nothing was found.
For two days the paratroopers held their blocking positions but didn't encounter any enemy forces. On the third day of operation they were given a follow-on mission.
They received intelligence reports that there were al-Qaeda personnel within the valley at a nearby village and so they were sent to move in and intercept them or any military weapons and intelligence, said 2nd Lt. Che Atkinson, platoon leader, 2nd Bn., 505th PIR.
"The Taliban and al-Qaeda, they're cowards, and they're going to hit and run, and as long as they're running we're going to follow them," Atkinson said.
The soldiers moved six miles from their original landing zone through rugged terrain with heavy combat loads of equipment to search a nearby village July 26.
"The terrain was treacherous," said 1st Sgt. LaMarquis Knowles, the first sergeant for Co. B, 2nd, 505th PIR.
"I know they weren't designed for these 12 wides [boot size]," Knowles said referring to difficulty of soldiers walking on the narrow dirt goat trails that wind around the mountains. Some soldiers carried loads in excess of 100 pounds, Knowles added.
The search of the village proved to be their most successful one yet. Despite their success in finding a stockpile of ammunition and explosives in the village, no military rifles or weapon firing systems were found.
Along with finding the ammunition caches, the soldiers also took six local nationals into custody for further questioning at Bagram Air Base. The six Persons Under Control were taken into custody because ammunition or explosives were found in their homes, or based on assessments made by the Military Interrogation Team on site.
The soldiers worked in squads and methodically searched the houses of the first major village they encountered during the operation.
A squad from Co. B, 2nd Bn, 505th PIR, quickly uncovered grenades, blocks of C-4 plastic explosives and various types of ammunition in a locked storage room of one house.
"This wasn't too different from our other missions," said Staff Sgt. Brandon Gass, a squad leader in Co. B, 2nd Bn, 505th PIR. "We've cleared villages four times since we've been in country. We've been out a couple times and haven't found anything, but finding stuff gets everyone's adrenaline going and it makes the operation a whole lot more exciting."
In another house, another squad from Co. B, 2nd Bn., 505th PIR, uncovered a Russian military two-way radio, a 50 pounds of dynamite, a rocket propelled grenade round, a box of anti-aircraft rounds, and hundreds of 7.62 mm and handgun rounds.
Other paratroopers added to the growing list of confiscated ammunitions and explosives, finding more 20 RPG's, dozens of grenades, and scores of small arms ammunition.
A team from 82nd Airborne's 307th Engineer Battalion destroyed the ammunition and explosives found by the infantry soldiers later.
A platoon leader from Co. B, 2nd Bn, 505th PIR, believes the enemy forces may have known ahead of time about the soldiers' coming.
"The (Taliban and al-Qaeda) personnel knew we were coming so they packed up what (weapons) they could, but they left a lot of stuff behind," said platoon leader Atkinson. "And the more stuff we find, the less stuff they have to come back to."
Dealing with local population proved to be a difficult task for soldiers who can't easily differentiate regular citizens from enemy forces, said Spc. Edward Michel, a rifleman in Co. B, 2nd Bn, 505th PIR.
"They blend in with the local population and there's not really much we can do," said Michel. "You can't go in there and just rustle up a bunch of villagers because that's not the way we do business."
For Sgt. Nick Cameron, 2nd Squad, Co. B, 2-505 Inf. Reg., local national children actually helped his squad find a large ammunition cache.
"When we went to the house that we actually found the bad stuff in, the kids knew nothing about it but they were more than willing to help us with everything," Cameron said.
Although there was no contact with enemy forces, the 82nd Abn. Div.'s role in Operation Warrior Sweep was a great success, Knowles said.
"This has been the most successful mission we've been on, based on the fact that we've recovered so much ammunition and explosives," Knowles said. "This culminates everything we've done in six months."
The operation is currently ongoing.
No 82nd Abn. Div. soldiers have sustained major injuries during the operation.
The operation to root out elements of the Taliban and al-Qaeda is one of the largest such operations since Operation Anaconda ended in March 2002.
(Editor's note: Sgt. Gregory Heath is a journalist with the 4th Public Affairs Detachment in Afghanistan.)
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