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Iraqi Army, US Soldiers detain 67 terrorists
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi Army Soldiers teamed up with elements of 4th
Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division for Operation Vanguard
Tempest, an early-morning raid on the Baghdad neighborhood of Al-Dora
on April 11.
Their mission was to hunt down nearly 90 known terrorist ringleaders -
anti-Iraqi forces whose charges include donating money and supplies
for the building of improvised explosive devices - and bring them back
to Forward Operating Base Falcon to be detained and questioned. The
raid stood out as the first to name such a high number of targets as
its goal.
"We're going in to get these high-priority targets, and we're trying
to hit everyone at once," said Sgt. 1st Class Stephon Garrett, a
platoon sergeant with C Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment.
"If we get them, it'll be like finding the Holy Grail."
"These guys are trying to kill Americans, Iraqi Soldiers and Iraqi
Police," added Pfc. Richard Kasserman, a C Co., 3/7 tank loader from
Aiken, S.C. "It's best to get 'em off the streets as soon as
possible."
'As soon as possible,' was early Monday morning, when the Soldiers
began to move among the dimly-lit and nearly silent rows of houses,
taking care to stop only at those homes identified in the intelligence
they had been given. Upon entering the residences, they searched for
evidence of the hunted person, and if there was none, questioned the
occupants to glean any available information.
'So-and-so just moved away from here,' some would say, or, 'I don't
know where so-and-so could be.'
Even though not every team was able to locate its assigned targets, a
large majority of the suspected terrorists accompanied the Soldiers
back to Falcon by the time the operation was over a few hours later.
Garrett, from Talladega, Ala., said he would have been happy with the
capture of even one of the infamous criminals.
"Even if we just save one person from an IED, I'll feel it was a
success," he said. "We'll be taking a lot of money out of a lot of
terrorists' hands."
The operation's success far exceeded that, though. At last count, the
US and Iraqi Soldiers had detained at least 67 suspected terrorists,
making it one of the largest such operations conducted by Task Force
Baghdad since taking over from the 1st Cavalry Division in February.
"There are now criminals who are off the street for the time being,"
said Capt. Raymond Hill, 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment
battalion information operations officer. "It went well . (the
Soldiers) have been trained to do this and I know they executed the
missions well."
Iraqi Army elements who accompanied the Vanguard Soldiers played a
crucial role in the operation, according to 1st Lt. Bryan Bonnema, the
platoon leader of 3rd Platoon, C Co., 3/7.
"They are a great asset," the Clifton, Va., native said. "They know
the area and they know the culture. They are our intelligence on the
ground, and they are definitely important. I enjoy working with them."
Out of the hundreds of Soldiers, both US and Iraqi, who took part in
the raid, none were hurt during the mission.
Text for release and opsec review provided by the TASK FORCE BAGHDAD
Public Affairs Office. contact
david.abrams@id3.army.mil
Release #050413b |
