IED ring broken by Operation Bastogne

Photo By Ernest Henry | Capt. Stew Lindsay, commander of Company C, 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, checks his units position as they move toward their target houses during Operation Bastogne.  

ISKANDARIYAH, IRAQ

07.06.2007

Story by Sgt. Ernest Henry 

2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division Public Affairs

4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division Public Affairs

KALSU, Iraq – Speed, stealth and surprise are key ingredients in any successful combat operation and the Soldiers from Task Force Steel are perfecting that recipe day in and day out in North Babil.

The Steel task force of the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division put those ingredients together in the early morning hours of July 1 during Operation Bastogne, a raid near the Chaka III area of North Babil.

"Operation Bastogne was designed to capture members of an improvised explosive device cell operating along Highway 1 and other roads in the north Babil province," said Capt. Stew Lindsay, a native of Freeport Penn., and commander of Company C, 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment.

"This particular area was plagued by improvised explosive devices," said Capt. James Browning, a native of Waynesboro, N.C. and commander of Company A, 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment. "There were four or five IEDs within a kilometer of our objective. We have to operate in this area day in and day out so we definitely wanted to clean out the area."

As the operation began, Task Force Steel started their movement toward Chaka III. Approximately two kilometers away, they dismounted their vehicles and began moving in on foot to maximize the element of surprise.

Once the task force reached their targets, they began a simultaneous raid on several houses in the area.

"We captured 10 personnel at the objectives," said Lindsay. "After questioning, we decided we were only going to detain the four men we captured at the main objective."

In addition to capturing the IED cell members, the operation captured hundreds of rounds of 7.62mm sniper ammunition, IED making materials and an instruction manual on how to construct IEDs.

Following the operation, the effects on Chaka III were instantly noticeable.

"The immediate impact on the area was quite apparent. In the last 24 hours, where we generally have four to five IEDs and several indicators of insurgent activity, there have been absolutely none," said Browning. "There might be attempts at reprisal attacks, but I think we have crippled the IED cells in our area."

• Date Taken: 07.06.2007
• Date Posted: 07.06.2007 09:58
• Story ID: 11148
• Location: ISKANDARIYAH, IQ