COALITION, IRAQIS COMPLETE OPERATION VIPER PURSUIT
Soldiers with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry teamed up with 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain’s VIPER Military Transition Team and elements of the Iraqi Army, conducted Operation Viper Pursuit to disrupt local terrorist cells within the Sulayman Bak area August 1-30. Operation Viper Pursuit combined air and ground assaults to cordon and search specific parts of local villages. Because of these combined efforts, more than 30 terrorists were detained during the month-long operation. “We really took them by surprise by establishing an extended presence in Sulyman Bak, that’s something we’ve never tried before,” said Spc. Sean Bizarres, a radio telephone operator with Headquarters Platoon, Bravo Company.
The joint effort has helped in paving a way for the ISF to eventually take over operations in the area. Bravo Company has worked especially close with the Iraqi 4th Division, Quick Reaction Force, by conducting numerous joint operations in the area ranging from cache searches, cordon and searches of urban areas, to air assaults and raids. “They are the best group of Iraqi soldiers I’ve worked with during my two deployments to Iraq,” said Sgt. Jeremy Walker, a squad leader in 3rd Platoon, Bravo Co. During the operation, Viper MiTT and Bravo Co., also conducted a reconciliation screening, which allowed local Iraqis an opportunity to clear their name of being involved with insurgent activity. At the conclusion of Operation Viper Pursuit, the Provincial Governor, Hamad Hammoud Shekti, visited the town to meet with local leaders and members as well as several sites in the town to demonstrate the strength of the security in Sulyman Bak. Though his visit was brief, it represented the dawn of a new opportunity for Sulyman Bak as Iraqi government officials demonstrated their care for the residents and progress of the village.
MULTI-NATIONAL SOLDIERS FIND ORDINANCE, DETAIN 4
Multi-National Soldiers found unexploded ordnance and detained four Special Groups criminals in Baghdad’s Rashid district on September 13-14. At approximately 8:15 p.m., on September 13th, Soldiers from Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, found an 82 mm mortar round in the Jihad community. An explosives ordnance disposal unit took the mortar round to a forward operating base for analysis and destruction. At approximately 10 p.m. on September 13th, Soldiers from Company C also detained a Special Groups criminal allegedly responsible for recent sectarian attacks in the Jihad and Furat communities.
At approximately 12:30 a.m. on September 14th, Soldiers from Troop A, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st BCT, 4th ID, detained a suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq associate in the Hadar community. Approximately 20 minutes later, National Policemen from the 3rd Battalion, 7th Brigade, 2nd Iraqi National Police Division, detained two suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq members in the Masafee community. “The 1st “Raider” Brigade continues to pursue criminals in the Rashid district, working shoulder-to-shoulder with their counterparts, the Iraqi Security Forces, to keep the people of the Rashid district safe and provide the Government of Iraq the freedom to operate,” said Lt. Col. Paul Hossenlopp, deputy commander, 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div. “With the cooperation of Iraqi citizens, our Soldiers can rid the streets of criminals and violence.”
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2 comments:
As a former Military Transition Team (MiTT) member, I'm really pleased to see articles such as this and others posted on this site which highlight the emergence of a competent and confident Iraqi Security Force (ISF).
For many of us who worked with the Iraqi Army (IA), the National Police (NP), or the Department of Border Enforcement (DBE), seeing a capable ISF was a question of "when", not "if".
I worked with an Iraqi Army infantry brigade from 2006 to 2007. It had been formed barely one year prior to my arrival, and was trained and mentored by a preceding MiTT. At the brigade level, they were challenged. Their subordinate battalions were notably better coordinated, and rifle companies even better yet.
Through the course of a year, the IA brigade made remarkable progress in many areas--leader development, staff coordination, effects integration, and resource management.
My MiTT was replaced last year with a third and final team. That team departed earlier this year after the IA brigade assumed sole responsibility for it's area of operations.
The point is, as the ISF-related articles here have indicated, that developing a capable security force takes time, leadership, and focused effort.
The author of the article entitled Iraqi Troops Show Increased Self Sufficiency summarized it perfectly by stating "their successes make way for major improvements in the economy, infrastructure, and future of Iraq."
Tracy L. Barker
Major, United States Army
U.S. Army Command and General Staff College
Ft. Leavenworth, KS
Major Barker,
First of all, thank you for service to our country. And thank you for helping the people of Iraq. I'm glad that you are pleased with the site. It is a response to those in the mainstream media who seem to only report the negative while ignoring the positive. Again, thank you for your service and for providing us with plenty of good news in the War on Terror.
Best regards...
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