Marines observe Georgian’s Charlie Company 23rd LIB raid enemy insurgents at rehearsal exercise

Photo By Gunnery Sgt. Alexis Mulero | Georgian soldiers from Charlie Company, 23rd Light Infantry Battalion, meet up with local authorities and village elders to discuss the unit’s earlier operation and the villager’s overall reaction and sentiments in regards to the events transpired during a mission rehearsal exercise at Joint Multinational Readiness Center Hohenfels, Germany, Feb. 20. The 23rd Georgian Light Infantry Battalion is preparing to support counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan as part of Georgia Deployment Program - International Security Assistance Force.  

HOHENFELS, BY, GERMANY

02.21.2012

Story by Gunnery Sgt. Alexis Mulero 

Fleet Marine Force Atlantic, Marine Forces Command, Marine Forces Northern Command

HOHENFELS, Germany - Republic of Georgia soldiers from Charlie Company, 23rd Light Infantry Battalion, conducted a cordon and search operation on a suspected enemy cell at a local village aboard Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels, Germany, Feb. 20.

This operation is part of the unit’s mission rehearsal exercise in preparation for their upcoming deployment to Afghanistan in support of International Security Assistance Force – Georgia Deployment Program II.

According to Gunnery Sgt. Brian Whittaker, U.S. Marine observer controllers for Charlie Company, 23rd LIB, the Georgians started preparing for this operation more than 48 hours ago, when local villagers tipped them off on a possible enemy improvised explosive device distribution site.

“After receiving the intelligence from local villagers while on a patrol, the Georgians set-up an OP [observation post] to confirm the validity of this information,” said Whittaker. “The Georgian soldiers on the OP confirmed the information and the Charlie Company commander gave the operational order and platoon-level rehearsals for the operation commenced.”

At 6 a.m. on the day of the operation, Charlie Company set up inner and outer cordons and at approximately 6:30 a.m., the company’s assault element linked up with members of the Afghan National Army [portrayed by Moldavian soldiers] and the village police to execute the mission.

“It is important for coalition forces to work together with local police in Afghanistan when conducting an operation like this,” added Whittaker, who is a native of Panama City, Fla. “This partnership [coalition forces with local police] gives locals a greater sense of comfort, and they tend to cooperate more during the operation.”

The assault portion of the operation lasted no more than three minutes but resulted in the apprehension of eight suspected insurgents, two which were positively confirmed as insurgents utilizing past biometric data collection, and a handful of AK-47 assault rifles.

“The Georgians were successful conducting today’s raid,” said Whittaker. “They collected the evidence, the detainees and conducted effective tactical site exploitation on the building.”

Unfortunately, the operation also produced a total of nine deaths [six suspected insurgents, two ANA [portrayed by Moldavian soldiers] and one Georgian soldier], and one Georgian soldier wounded in action.

“One of the items that we [observer controllers] are working with the Georgians is refining the proper use of force and the Rules of Engagement when conducting operations,” added Whittaker. “They are a very aggressive and capable force. We want to make sure to temper that when engaging the villagers. Some of their actions today may have an effect on their area of operation tomorrow.”

Later in the day, after processing all the detainees, the Georgian soldiers continued their patrols of the local village and participated in a “Shura” [Arabic word meaning consultation] with village elders and local police representatives to discuss the unit’s earlier operation and the villager’s overall reaction and sentiments in regards to the events transpired.

“We are preparing the Georgians for kinetic and non-kinetic counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan, said 1st Lt. Robert Gervasio, an observer controller with Charlie Company. “During the coming days, the Georgians will increase their security presence in the area to ensure they address any problems that may arise in the aftermath of this kinetic operation.”

“In a counterinsurgency environment such as Afghanistan, the Georgians must win over the local population by building trust and developing rapport,” added Whittaker.

The MRE is the culminating event for the Republic of Georgia’s 23rd Light Infantry Battalion prior to deploying to Afghanistan to conduct counterinsurgency operations in support of the Georgia Deployment Program – International Security Assistance Force. The total training exercise runs Feb. 1-24.

U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Europe (MARFOREUR) is the lead component for planning, coordination and execution of the GDP-ISAF program and Marine Corps Security Cooperation Group is the lead command with direct responsibility for training the Georgian battalions with support from Training and Education Command (TECOM) and multiple Operating Force units. The Marine Corps Security Cooperation Group coordinates, manages, executes, and evaluates Marine Corps Security Cooperation programs and activities in order to facilitate service and regional component support to combatant commanders’ objectives.

“Our intention is to give the Georgians soldiers the essential training and preparation to operate with Marines and the Afghan National Army in stabilizing the security environment in Afghanistan," said Marine Lt. Col. Christopher Brown, officer-in-charge of the rehearsal exercise. “This MRE has been designed to replicate the RC(SW) area of operations and provide a scenario that evaluates the 23rd Georgian Light Infantry Battalion’s ability to operate within a counter-insurgency [COIN] environment."

Over the coming days, the Georgian soldiers will continue to patrol the JMRC training area seeking insurgents, weapons caches, and improvised explosive device factories in partnership with a simulated Afghan partner force as well as engaging and working to influence Afghan civilian role players. The Georgian soldiers will be tested with a full-spectrum of challenges from kinetic attacks to meetings with local civilians to gain information and negotiate differences.

“Overall, this exercise is giving the Georgians an opportunity to work alongside Marines to develop and refine their tactics, techniques and procedures in accordance with Marine Corps doctrine,” said Gervasio, who is a native of Lindenhurst, N.Y. “We [Marine observer controllers] did not know what to expect from the Georgians when we first got here [MRE]. They have proven to be a highly capable force with decisive leadership and aggressive but disciplined soldiers. Anyone of us would be honored to fight alongside them in the future.”

The original GDP-ISAF program was a two-year train and equip mission designed to prepare four Georgian infantry battalions in sequence for operations in Afghanistan with Regional Command Southwest - RC(SW). As of May 2011, the program is now GDP-ISAF II, a subsequent extension of the original program for training and deploying nine additional Georgian infantry battalions over three-years.

“GDP-ISAF is a very unique mission – it shows how adaptive the Marine Corps can be when we applied to building the capacity of partner nations,” said Brown, who is a native of the Silicon Valley in California. “The mission also demonstrates how building partner capacity can have a significant impact on assisting the U.S. with confronting challenges around the globe – Afghanistan in this case.”

• Date Taken: 02.21.2012
• Date Posted: 02.21.2012 17:34
• Story ID: 84129
• Location: HOHENFELS, BY, DE