Black Watch Heads Home With Heads High
Forward Operating Base Kalsu, Iraq -- After a month of hunting insurgents with the U.S. Marines south of Baghdad, the Black Watch battle group is heading home to the United Kingdom.
Among the British army's most legendary units, the Scotland-based Black Watch capped a six-month tour in Iraq by redeploying from the southern city of Basra in late October and taking up positions alongside the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit in northern Babil province.
The jocks, as they're affectionately known to their countrymen, made an immediate impact in their new battlespace, occupying key terrain near the Euphrates River and playing a crucial role in cutting off enemy "rat lines" used by insurgents to scurry in and out of Baghdad and the terrorist den of Fallujah.
After Multi-National Forces reclaimed Fallujah in early November, the Black Watch, the 24th MEU and Iraqi Security Forces set their sights on insurgents who had slipped out of their sanctuary before it was cordoned off.
In late November, 5,000 Multi-National Forces -- including the 850 soldiers of the Black Watch battle group -- launched a nine-day offensive aimed at building on the momentum achieved in Fallujah by keeping a reeling enemy off balance.
The operation resulted in the capture of more than 200 anti-Iraqi militants and the discovery of 11 weapons caches, as pro-Iraqi forces continued to thin insurgent ranks and chip away at the supply of munitions used to foment chaos and violence.
The commander of the 24th MEU said the integration of the British forces into the MEU's area of operations was remarkably seamless.
"For a unit that hadn't trained with us to roll into a tough environment and begin combat operations immediately demonstrates just how well led and highly professional they are," said Col. Ron Johnson. "They proved as good as their reputation, and the Marines felt at home among them."
The Black Watch's rich heritage precedes the Marine Corps' by nearly a century. Formed in the late 1600s during England's Jacobite Rebellion -- a battle of succession for the British throne -- the Black Watch has helped defeat some of the country's most formidable foes, including Napoleon, the German Kaiser in World War I, and Adolph Hitler in World War II.
Led by Lt. Col. James Cowan, the unit spearheaded the British thrust into Iraq during last year's invasion, fighting its way into the southeastern city of Basra in April 2003. The bulk of the British force had been conducting security and stability operations there ever since. After a year-long respite, the Black Watch returned to Basra this past July.
Besides the Black Watch's distinctive red-feathered berets -- called tam-o'-shanters -- the armored unit brought plenty of combat power, including some 40 Warrior fighting vehicles. The Black Watch's 650 infantrymen were reinforced by a reconnaissance unit from the Queen's Dragoon Guards, a commando troop from the Royal Marines, and a host of support personnel including engineers, logisticians and medics.
Soon after the battlegroup's highly publicized movement into northern Babil, insurgents targeted the newcomers. Two attacks killed five Black Watch soldiers within days. Their mettle tested, the unit seemed to grow stronger. From their windswept, no-frills desert base -- dubbed Camp Dogwood -- on the west side of the Euphrates, the British soon punched across the river. With Marines to the south and east, the Black Watch squeezed the insurgents from the west and paved the way for nine days of successful precision raids.
Their mission accomplished, the soldiers have returned to Basra, where they'll make final preparations to return home in time for Christmas.
In a visit to Camp Dogwood Thursday morning to say goodbye, Johnson chatted up dozens of jocks, handed out cigars and mementos, and expressed his gratitude for their service.
His message echoed President George Bush's words to Prime Minister Tony Blair Sept. 20, 2001, as Blair sat in the gallery of the House of Representatives during Bush's speech to a joint session of Congress nine days after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11: "Thanks for coming, old friend."
While the operation is finished, the pursuit of insurgents south of Baghdad continues. Multi-National Force commanders have no intention of yielding the initiative. The Black Watch is set to be replaced in the coming days by U.S. forces.
Release #041206h
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