Spc. Matthew Wester
100th MPAD
June 29, 2005
TAJI, Iraq -- An Estonian soldier raises his rifle to cover an American scout who is searching a house.
Their uniforms, weapons, and even languages are different, but their goals here are the same: find illegal weapons, munitions and disrupt insurgent activity.
Elements of 2nd Battalion, 70th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, teamed up with Soldiers from an Estonian army platoon to cordon and search an area northwest of Baghdad.
The Soldiers started the search before dawn and the raid stretched into the sweltering afternoon hours.
The operation was part of a transition for 2/70 Bn., who recently moved to a new area of operation northwest of Baghdad.
"We were just assigned to the area of operations here, so (the operation) gained us familiarization within the area," said Maj. Tony D. Forbes Jr., executive officer for the battalion. "It allowed the Soldiers to get their boots on the ground."
Forbes said the operation was the first time his battalion mobilized a large force of Soldiers to cordon and search in their new area, and it was valuable because the Soldiers got to know the terrain and interact with the residents.
"Basically we just get out in the area and do what we can to learn," said Capt. Anton W. Kemps, commander of the 2/70 Scout Platoon. "We do all sorts of patrols out there to get our leaders and our squads oriented to how the land works."
Kemps said unit assignments to different zones are very fluid and his battalion has done its best to adapt to the places where they have been assigned during this tour.
The search was also a chance for local citizens to see coalition forces actively engaged in protecting their neighborhood and rooting out insurgents.
"By doing an operation there, you get closer to the people, you let them know you are going after the bad guys, and hopefully you catch some of those bad guys," Kemps said.
Kemps platoon moved from building to building searching every room, every cabinet and even a chicken coop.
The Estonian soldiers were part of the effort, and although they have been in Iraq a short time during this tour, their history with 2/70 Bn. goes back to the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
"They came to us for a portion of Operation Iraqi Freedom," Kemps said. "The Estonians requested to come with the battalion just because of the impression we left on each other while working together during OIF 1."
"The Estonians are not new to us. We are honored to have them working with us again." Forbes said.
Forbes said the search operation was an opportunity for the leadership of the platoon-sized Estonian element to mesh with his battalion's leadership.
"We integrated the Estonians into the search, so that we could see how they did things and they could see how we did things," Kemps said.
The partnership was fruitful.
"Our finds were significant from the intelligence perspective," Forbes said. "We found some weapons that were not authorized, and we did have several detainees."
Forbes said the intelligence gathered from the detainees has already proven to be valuable.
The raid was the first of many operations the battalion and Estonian troops will plan and execute in their new sector.
"We are doing our best and we're learning," Kemps said. "I think we are doing pretty well."
| Date Taken: | 07.07.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 07.07.2005 15:14 |
| Story ID: | 2293 |
| Location: | TAJI, IQ |
| Web Views: | 154 |
| Downloads: | 15 |
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