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| Iraq | |
| The Mayor of Tall 'Afar Salutes the 3rd ACR | |
| 2006-02-14 | |
In the Name of God the Compassionate and Merciful To the Courageous Men and Women of the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment, who have changed the city of Tall’ Afar from a ghost town, in which terrorists spread death and destruction, to a secure city flourishing with life. To the lion-hearts who liberated our city from the grasp of terrorists who were beheading men, women and children in the streets for many months. To those who spread smiles on the faces of our children, and gave us restored hope, through their personal sacrifice and brave fighting, and gave new life to the city after hopelessness darkened our days, and stole our confidence in our ability to reestablish our city. Our city was the main base of operations for Abu Mousab Al Zarqawi. The city was completely held hostage in the hands of his henchmen. Our schools, governmental services, businesses and offices were closed. Our streets were silent, and no one dared to walk them. Our people were barricaded in their homes out of fear; death awaited them around every corner. Terrorists occupied and controlled the only hospital in the city. Their savagery reached such a level that they stuffed the corpses of children with explosives and tossed them into the streets in order to kill grieving parents attempting to retrieve the bodies of their young. This was the situation of our city until God prepared and delivered unto them the courageous soldiers of the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment, who liberated this city, ridding it of Zarqawi’s followers after harsh fighting, killing many terrorists, and forcing the remaining butchers to flee the city like rats to the surrounding areas, where the bravery of other 3d ACR soldiers in Sinjar, Rabiah, Zumar and Avgani finally destroyed them. I have met many soldiers of the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment; they are not only courageous men and women, but avenging angels sent by The God Himself to fight the evil of terrorism. The leaders of this Regiment; COL McMaster, COL Armstrong, LTC Hickey, LTC Gibson, and LTC Reilly embody courage, strength, vision and wisdom. Officers and soldiers alike bristle with the confidence and character of knights in a bygone era. The mission they have accomplished, by means of a unique military operation, stands among the finest military feats to date in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and truly deserves to be studied in military science. This military operation was clean, with little collateral damage, despite the ferocity of the enemy. With the skill and precision of surgeons they dealt with the terrorist cancers in the city without causing unnecessary damage. God bless this brave Regiment; God bless the families who dedicated these brave men and women. From the bottom of our hearts we thank the families. They have given us something we will never forget. To the families of those who have given their holy blood for our land, we all bow to you in reverence and to the souls of your loved ones. Their sacrifice was not in vain. They are not dead, but alive, and their souls hovering around us every second of every minute. They will never be forgotten for giving their precious lives. They have sacrificed that which is most valuable. We see them in the smile of every child, and in every flower growing in this land. Let America, their families, and the world be proud of their sacrifice for humanity and life. Finally, no matter how much I write or speak about this brave Regiment, I haven’t the words to describe the courage of its officers and soldiers. I pray to God to grant happiness and health to these legendary heroes and their brave families. NAJIM ABDULLAH ABID AL-JIBOURI Mayor of Tall ‘Afar, Ninewa, Iraq | |
| Posted by:lotp |
| #13 Shit. Snaish was right. Heal and protect this guy - this vector of sanity must be preserved. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-14 22:47 |
| #12 Correction: the mayor was wounded by the mortar attack, the others died in separate incidents. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-02-14 18:53 |
| #11 On 1/28/06, one day after the letter was written, three Iraqis were killed and the Mayor of Tal Afar, Najim Abdullah, was wounded as rebel gunmen stormed the mayors office. Najim was wounded when rebels fired a series of four mortar rounds into his office. Bahrain Tribune Daily Newspaper |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-02-14 18:49 |
| #10 Greyhawk vouches for it. As one of the pre-eminent milbloggers, himself active duty with service in Iraq recently, he's got all the creds he needs with me. |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-02-14 15:47 |
| #9 The 3rd ACR has been reassigned to Fort Carson, here in Colorado Springs. The troops began arriving home three days ago. The entire regiment will be home in a couple of weeks. The city has made plans for a hero's welcome. As for the authenticity of the letter, I can't vouch for it, but a couple of 3ACR folks said they were given a send-off by the local inhabitants that was "unusual". Colorado Springs is seriously considering adding Tal'Afar to its list of "sister-cities". |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2006-02-14 14:23 |
| #8 As much as I may like this, do we have real verification of this? |
| Posted by: Glolugum Unotle4665 2006-02-14 13:20 |
| #7 And we salute you Mr. Mayor! Make the most of your new freedom and we will be proud. |
| Posted by: mmurray821 2006-02-14 11:35 |
| #6 Al-Jibouri is obviously not a graduate of the Ray Nagin school of mayorly gratitude. Good on him! |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2006-02-14 08:12 |
| #5 Wow. That is truly touching and gracious. I am stunned as I've never seen the like of this from any Arab source. Yes, I've lived in the Middle East - a little over 10 yrs in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE. I will email the link out to many people, as I hope everyone will do, as this needs world-wide distribution. My experience over there makes me wonder if we should fear for the safety of the Tal Afar mayor and his family, somewhat? Again, wow. |
| Posted by: Snaish Flaving9011 2006-02-14 07:19 |
| #4 Well, I've heard nothing of this on the Beeb.. Good on the people of Tal 'Afar.. Good on the 3rd ACR and its Iraqi back-up.. I hope we'll get a book out of this one day.. it will make an interesting read.. I think there's an awful lot to come about the behaviour of Zarqawi's mob. |
| Posted by: Howard UK 2006-02-14 03:59 |
| #3 Great letter - and a classic of the Arab style of evoking visuals. Thank You, Mayor! Great post, lotp - Thx! |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-14 01:00 |
| #2 Powerline posted this as well - hopefully it gets out of the MSM blockade! Thks LOTP |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-02-14 00:51 |
| #1 I am moved by this display of Gratitude. Mr. Mayor, if you honor these men, sieze your freedom, love your children and live happy, peaceful lives. |
| Posted by: Robjack 2006-02-14 00:26 |