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| Iraq |
| Operation Final Cut |
| 2004-02-02 |
| Soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division raided 16 locations throughout Bayji in search of former regime elements who are suspected in anti-Coalition activities including bomb making and financing, planning and executing attacks against U.S. soldiers and Iraqis. The operation, dubbed Operation Final Cut, began in the morning of Jan. 28 and continued through the afternoon of Jan. 31. Information from Iraqi citizens brought Coalition soldiers to Bayji to capture individuals who were suspected of attacking Coalition forces and intimidating the local population. The operation was planned so the intimidation and the attacks would end. During the three-day operation, soldiers from 4th Infantry Division’s 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, Iraqi Civil Defense Corps and Iraqi police targeted people for capture. The soldiers captured 26 individuals and confiscated 219 AK-47 assault rifles, 16 shotguns, three SKS automatic weapons, one RPD machine gun, one RPK machine gun, 23 pistols, 25 rifles, two SVD automatic weapons, one 82mm mortar tube, two pounds of plastic explosives and 90 pounds of artillery propellant. The soldiers also found material commonly used to make improvised explosive devices, including 900 feet of electrical wire, 13 car-alarm mechanisms and six circuit boards. In one of the raids, three armed enemy, including one individual specifically targeted for involvement in anti-Coalition activities, were killed in the morning of Jan. 28 when they leveled AK-47 assault rifles at soldiers as they entered the building the attackers were in. No Coalition soldiers were injured in the clash. In addition to conducting raids with Coalition soldiers, Bayji police officers manned traffic-control points and detained individuals for weapons violations, confiscating ammunition and weapons in the process. The confiscated weapons include two rocket-propelled-grenade launchers, two rocket-propelled grenades, 28 rocket-propelled-grenade propellant charges, 12 pounds of TNT, 90 detonators, 1,000 feet of detonation cord, 75 pounds of artillery propellant and one .50 caliber heavy machine gun. When asked how he will build on the operation’s momentum and success, the commander of 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, Lt. Col. Pepper Jackson, said, "The most important thing we can do is continue to focus on elements attempting to hold back the progress and future of this country." Operation Final Cut Update BAYJI, Iraq - In phase IV of Operation Final Cut, a joint operation with Iraqi Civil Defense Corps and Iraqi police, soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division’s 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment raided five locations in Bayji during the late evening of Jan. 31, in an attempt to capture specifically targeted individuals who are suspected of anti-Coalition activities including bomb making and involvement in attacks on Coalition forces. The soldiers captured nine individuals, seven of whom were targets of the raids. They also located and confiscated five AK-47 assault rifles, one RPK machine gun, 200 containers of artillery propellant and material used in making improvised explosive devices. Soldiers seized more than $5,000 in U.S. currency, 650 Syrian pounds, two million new Iraq dinars, 4,000 in old Iraqi dinar and 350,000 in Turkish lira. |
| Posted by:Chuck Simmins |