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| Iraq |
| IA, MND open key route between Baghdad and Baqubah |
| 2008-01-24 |
| BAQUBAH, Iraq – Iraqi Army and Multi-National Division – North forces cleared a key route between Baghdad and Baqubah of improvised explosive devices this month in Iraq. This was done as part of the countrywide offensive Operation Phantom Phoenix, during the division’s Operation Blackhawk Harvest. Iraqi Soldiers from 2nd Brigade, 5th IA Division, supported by 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment cleared 30 IEDs on and around the road that Iraqis call Sabh Nissan. The area of the road between Khan Bani Sa’ad and Baqubah had been so heavily covered in IEDs that vehicles had to take other routes to get back and forth from Baghdad and Baqubah. Lt. Col. Marshall Dougherty, 2-1 Cav. commander, was impressed by the performance of the Iraqi Army during the operation. “This was a hugely successful brigade-level operation planned and led by the Iraqi Army,” Dougherty said. “The IA commander laid out his plan and asked us to provide assets to support his effort such as helicopters, close air support and artillery.” In addition to the route-clearance mission, IA and CF cleared al-Qaeda in Iraq from many of the route’s surrounding villages and engaged the enemy in Khan Bani Sa’ad. During Blackhawk Harvest, CF and IA killed an estimated 41 al-Qaeda in Iraq operatives. The exact number can not be confirmed because many of the enemy killed in action were due to bomb drops, and the bodies were cleared away before CF could evaluated the blast sites. In addition IA and CF found and cleared 12 booby-trapped houses, 11 vehicleborne IEDs, found six weapons caches and detained nine suspected AQI operatives. On Jan. 20, 2-1 Cav. Soldiers liberated two local Iraqis who had been kidnapped and tortured for 11 days. Ongoing operations in the area include continuing to clear AQI, crater repair on the highway and standing up Concerned Local Citizen groups to provide for their own security. “This is another example of the Iraqi Army increasing their capacity and taking the lead in making their country safer,” Dougherty concluded. |
| Posted by:Glenmore |
| #7 'moose, I suspect the dust etc. would make that hard to do in Iraq. Might work in many parts of the US tho. |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-01-24 21:34 |
| #6 And just HOW LONG will the road stay cleared? My bet is a few days, tops. Just an absolute fookin' ray of sunshine, aincha Redneck? |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-01-24 20:55 |
| #5 I still think that we could come up with some concentrated substance that could be mixed with a lot of water and a fine mist sprayed on asphalted roads. Once the water dried, it would be invisible to the eye, but if you were flying over the road in a helicopter and shined an IR or UV light on it, the sprayed areas would reflect. This means that any black holes on the road were places where the asphalt had been removed and replaced were a strong indicator that an IED had been emplaced there. Since the roads that are "IED alleys" are not terribly long, the dangerous stretch could be marked with as little as one water truck, once a week or until it was no longer a problem. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-01-24 20:38 |
| #4 Retrieving wounded and issuing paychecks to the troops are a big change from earlier practices, I understand. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-01-24 19:50 |
| #3 Could be. But the ability to plan and execute brigade-level operations is a huge milestone for this new army. I'm hearing good things about the way in which at least some of the IA commanders are coming to understand layered operations, use of air support assets effectively (and not indiscriminately) and their willingness to do things like retrieve wounded. |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-01-24 19:46 |
| #2 And just HOW LONG will the road stay cleared? My bet is a few days, tops. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2008-01-24 19:21 |
| #1 Go Iraqi Army! |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-01-24 16:39 |