FOB BRASSFIELD-MORA — Iraqi Army soldiers discovered multiple weapons caches during joint patrols with U.S. Army Paratroopers Oct. 21-22 in a village north of Samarra.Iraqi Army soldiers from 2nd Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division, were patrolling fields outside of the village with the Company D, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division Paratroopers when they came across five 130mm artillery rounds hidden in a hole. The Iraqis reported the find to their Paratrooper counterparts, which lead to a second, more thorough, search of the area.
They discovered one cache after another — each containing an assortment of munitions — throughout the countryside surrounding the village, said Capt. Brian Roeder, Company D commander. The weapons caches included 60 and 80mm mortar rounds, 130 and 155mm artillery rounds, grenades and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
Spc. Joshua T. Pervis, infantryman, Company D, described the cache sites as a “Toys 'R Us” for terrorists.
Additionally, four of the 155mm mortar rounds were found rigged to explosives and ready for emplacement and detonation.
Approximately 240 mortar turned up during the searches, leading Sgt. 1st Class Miguel Antonio Ramirez, 4th platoonÂ’s sergeant, and his troops to believe that his men have put a significant dent in the production of Improvised Explosive Devices in the area.
After finding the surplus of weaponry, troops questioned nearby villagers, which led to the detainment of three individuals, including one bomb maker. Credit to the detainment of the bomb maker belongs to his own brother, an Iraqi Soldier who serves with 2nd Company. The Iraqi Soldier informed the Paratroopers of his crooked brotherÂ’s profession as a bomb maker.
Arab saying: When Death knocks at your door, introduce him to your brother.
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Being the smallest company in the battalion, Roeder says it feels good to be producing the greatest results. “We have had success as a company. We went beyond catching the trigger man and going straight to the source. These guys are going to have a hard time replacing the rounds we pulled,” said Roeder.
Ramirez added that if it were not for the intelligence received from the Iraqi Forces, discovery of munitions caches and the detainment of suspected insurgents would be more difficult.
When Roeder and his men first arrived to support joint-combat operations in the Salah ad Din Province, he noticed Iraqi Forces were struggling to overcome the challenges of being a new fighting force. However, over the past two months their Iraqi Army partners made drastic improvements and successfully handle combat operations in their sector, said 1st Lt. Zachary Kaye, platoon leader. “They’re definitely starting to hold their own in this area,” said Kaye. “You see them actively patrolling at least two to three times a day; they’re setting up check points on their own; they’re getting information from the local population on improvised-explosive device positions and information on the location of suspected insurgents.”
“I have a feeling that it won’t be long before the Iraqi Army assumes full responsibility of the area between Samarra and Tikrit,” said Ramirez.