Photo By Sgt. Johnnie French | Two militants sit behind the weapons they were captured with, while Paratroopers...... read more read more
Subscribe
By Sgt. J.H. French
4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division
KALSU, Iraq – Paratroopers captured nine suspected al-Qaida terrorists and an anti-aircraft gun in north Babil, Oct. 24.
Paratroopers with Company C, 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division captured the militants, 14.5 mm anti-aircraft gun and other weapons during Operation Waal, an early morning air assault and raid northwest of Diyarah.
"It was a three pronged operation," said Capt. Stew Lindsay, commander of Company C, from Freeport, Pa. "The main effort was the air assault, but we also conducted a mounted and a dismounted infiltration to reach the target locations."
According to Lindsay, the paratroopers have numerous contacts and informants in the area who were providing information on the whereabouts of terrorists, roadside bombs and weapons caches.
"We compiled all of the tips and information we had gathered and went after several different targets simultaneously," he continued. "While the air assault was going after a man wanted for an (improvised explosive device) attack that wounded five of our paratroopers, the mounted and dismounted elements were targeting the caches we knew about through tips from concerned local Iraqis."
In addition to the militants and anti-aircraft gun, the paratroopers also discovered two barrels and a receiver for another anti-aircraft gun, a crate of 14.5 mm ammunition, two 91 mm artillery rounds, pressure wire used to detonate roadside bombs, two grenades, several assault rifles and magazines, an ammunition vest and a sand table used to plan attacks in the area.
"We also discovered a bull dozer during the operation that had been stolen last month," Lindsay said. "The militants were using the bull dozer to construct small bridges in the area. They use the bridges to avoid main roads and checkpoints while transporting weapons and planting IEDs."
Taking the militants, weapons and equipment off the street has made the area a safer place, Lindsay noted.
"We definitely disrupted, if not destroyed, that IED cell," he continued. "It also decreases the risk to aircraft flying over the area."
The biggest benefactor of this find is the Iraqi security forces in the area though.
"The militants use the huge guns to shoot at the ISF and concerned citizens securing the area," said Lindsay. "Thanks to a tip from one of the local citizens, the area is now a much safer place."
| Date Taken: | 10.26.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 10.26.2007 10:57 |
| Story ID: | 13353 |
| Location: | ISKANDARIYAH, IQ |
| Web Views: | 935 |
| Downloads: | 911 |
This work, Nine militants, anti-aircraft gun captured, by SGT Johnnie French, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT