Hunting Down Saddam (22 page)

Wanting it all to be but a bad dream

She clutches her heart, an anguished scream

Her head in her hand and starts to cry

All the while wondering “Why?”

Facing an Army wife's worst fears

Shedding now the Widow's tears

—K
ATIE
M
ORRIS (2003)

Saddam's Hometown

[
LTC STEVE RUSSELL
]

JUNE 20, 2003

As most of you know, our soldiers operate in the city and surrounding villages of Tikrit, Iraq. The Tikrit area was the birthplace and hometown of Saddam Hussein. Needless to say, this has made it an interesting place to operate, as there are many “die-hard” loyalists to the old regime. Most are not, and there are even some who are welcoming our soldiers because they fear the local population will kill them for living privileged lives under Saddam.

Our operations target hostile forces trying to prevent the efforts of U.S. soldiers and the Iraqi local government and police. The local government is making great progress here. I cannot speak for the rest of Iraq, but if Tikrit is any indication, these people are well on their way to self-government. We have made great strides in working together and they continue to provide us valuable information on the activities of hostile elements within our sector.

This phase of the war in my mind seems to be one of insurgency. The Iraqi Army had no formal surrender and the soldiers were not formally processed anywhere. Instead the Iraqi soldiers simply dissolved into a hundred cities, towns, and villages. Most want simply to get on with their lives. A small minority appears to cling to the past. These are the ones that are attacking our soldiers. In the last few weeks, we have engaged them and recently we have hurt their local command and control structure in such a way as they cannot quickly recover.

RPG War

The first week of June saw our soldiers attacked in a series of small arms and RPG raids. The hostile elements were not afraid to engage our forces. On the 4th of June, hostile elements attacked a section of our B Company Bradleys (Bradley Fighting Vehicles) attached to 3-66 AR. Our Infantry avoided the initial strike but as they came around the village, they were ambushed from the rear. An RPG penetrated the rear ramp door of the lead Bradley.

Providentially, the penetrator warhead on the RPG had miraculously threaded the fire team of Infantry in the vehicle—missing them all. The warhead hit some electronic equipment near the turret wall and exploded. Although the five men suffered flash burns and shrapnel wounds, their body armor and Kevlar helmets saved their lives, and all escaped without severe life or limb injury. All are recovering well and a couple have now returned to duty.

On the night of June 5, a Bradley from the same company hit an antitank mine on the front left side of the vehicle. The blast ripped a hole through the driver's compartment and sent the front drive sprocket, a couple of road wheels, and the hull access covers flying. The resulting laceration in the hull was almost big enough for me to climb through.

The driver, a young private, endured the shock of the blast, instantly suffering two broken legs and a broken arm. His body armor and equipment saved him from more severe injuries. This brave young man kept his head and immediately hit the fuel shutoff valve and reached behind him to drop the ramp door, allowing his fellow Infantrymen to escape from the vehicle. His comrades came to his aid, as he was trapped in the vehicle. He is now recovering well from his wounds.

That same night, our C Company also had a Bradley hit by an RPG. The cone of the warhead hit a case of water, causing the warhead to malfunction. Miraculously, the warhead did not explode and we were able to render the explosive safe. Our men suffered no injuries. Our men also acted quickly on a mortar that was fired on U.S. forces, which we subsequently captured with fifteen rounds of ammunition. The soldiers continue to behave with amazing discipline and our nation should be very proud of them.

On the night of the 5th to 6th of June, hostile elements struck our civil-military coordination building. This is where local Iraqis come to work out issues with U.S. forces in our area. A volley of RPGs ripped the stale night air after plunging into the walled compound. Soldiers reacted immediately as hostile small arms fire peppered the compound. Our men gained a position behind walls, Hesco Bastions (concrete barriers brought in by Army Engineers), and windows as they returned fire. The initial volley wounded four of our men, but they continued to fight the assailants who had positioned themselves on the rooftops of homes across the main highway.

An MP from our task force a few buildings down at the Iraqi police station opened up with .50 cal fire on the rooftops. His suppressive fire allowed the men at the other building to deploy a Bradley at the enemy element. An enemy element from a different direction then opened up on the MP with an RPG, severely wounding the young soldier. Our Bradley opened up with machine gun and 25mm fire along the rooftops, effectively deciding the contest.

All firing at this point ceased. The brave MP had emptied a can of .50 cal ammunition before falling unconscious from his wounds. We were able to evacuate and stabilize him at our aid station. He later died from his wounds and loss of blood. Our other soldiers suffered mostly shrapnel wounds. The enemy paid dearly. While we did not realize it at the time, we wounded at least four and were later able to capture four others involved in the attack along with 2 × RPG launchers. Information on other enemy wounded or killed remains unknown, although reports from locals say we caused a great deal of damage to him.

The Big Stick

From this point, we acted quickly. The curfew was strictly enforced in Tikrit—a city of approximately seventy-five thousand. Those caught out after curfew were rounded up in the local soccer stadium, where we employed them as a trash detail the next morning to help keep Tikrit beautiful (an optimistic task at best). The effect was immediate, as the locals had no desire for such work and the streets were eerily empty during subsequent nights.

We then focused our efforts to grab the initiative like a stick and beat the enemy with it. For the last week, we have had great cooperation from the local government and police. Our own efforts have focused on hostile activities. Using multiple, simultaneous raids, we have captured a number of important individuals that led us to bigger fish. By now you all have heard that High Value Target (HVT) #4 [Abid Hamid Mahmud al-Tikriti, Presidential Secretary and cousin to Saddam] was captured here in Tikrit on the night of June 16. Our men performed superbly and worked in cooperation with Special Forces.

We also spoiled an attack on our market, and our flash checkpoints from C Company captured fourteen armed men with AK-47s in the space of an hour and a half. Information from raids and pressure on people we detained led us to the info for HVT #4's capture and culminated this week with the raids on the Hadooshi farm on the night of the 17th. The Hadooshis were believed to be personal bodyguards of Saddam Hussein. It was here TF 1-22 Infantry seized AK-47s, night vision and surveillance equipment, sniper weapons, global position equipment, and large amounts of ammunition—not your typical farm implements.

But the biggest catch of all at the farm was $8,303,000 in U.S. cash and another $1 million worth of Iraqi currency. We also found an estimated $2 million worth of jewelry that belonged to Sajida Khairallah Telfah, better known as the wife of Saddam Hussein and mother of Uday and Qusay.

I had never seen such cash or treasure in my life. It simply boggles the mind. Our men performed magnificently and our recon platoon leader, 1LT (First Lieutenant) Chris Morris, ensured our great success with his quick actions at the farm. He decided to take the farm with his scouts even though we intended to maneuver additional force there. The activity at the farm called for immediate action, however, and the element of surprise and the discipline of our men carried the day.

CPT Mark Stouffer's A Company also struck gold with a captured top-ranking Republican Guard officer and also one of Saddam's bodyguards. The noose is tightening. Now the enemy is scattered and on the run. The next morning after these operations, our men captured a man at a checkpoint attempting to flee with $800,000 U.S. cash in a gym bag. C Company, 3-66 AR has been a big help as well with our flash checkpoints.

Local authorities report we have hurt the subversive elements severely. Even the Muslim Imams have expressed an appreciation for our efforts. But our work is far from being over. The hostile elements remain and attempt to strike back with indirect-fire attacks or attacks on our convoys. We remain vigilant.

The men have good morale and are flushed with the recent successes. We are living well for the most part, billeted as we are in former palace compounds. The weather remains oppressive and all we generally do is soak our uniforms with our own sweat in the 115-degree heat. But we are eating well and have generally good hygiene. Our equipment is holding up relatively well, given the operations and environment. The robust Bradleys and body armor have earned the absolute respect of our men as they have repeatedly shown that they will save lives.

JULY 3, 2003

Wanted to drop another note to let you all know how things are going with the “Regulars” of TF 1-22 Infantry.

The pace of operations since my last update on 20 June has been brisk. Our A Company along with a platoon from C Company flew by CH-47 (Chinook helicopter) in support of operations along the Syrian border.

Our task force was given about forty-five minutes' notice from alert to liftoff. The men operated out of rucksacks for about five days and performed superbly. The heat there was oppressive like the rest of the country, but there was a little greener vegetation and the temperatures were actually quite cool to the men at night.

When our battalion reassembled, we operated in farmland vicinity of the Tigris River. The Bradley Fighting Vehicle smashed through the gate, removing wrought iron, concrete, and mortar in a cloud of dust and was quickly followed by our Infantry shuffling down the ramp of the vehicle to secure the area. I must admit it was a wonderful thing and something we never get to do in training.

Fedayeen Funk

The health of the men has remained good but the “Feda-yeen Funk” personally struck me one morning. Dizziness, vomiting, and diarrhea combined to overwhelm me for about a twenty-four-hour period. Fortunately, the battalion has an ample roster of talent and they allowed me the rest I needed. Our men see bouts of this type on occasion and the soldiers have coined several entertaining terms to describe the maladies: “Saddam's revenge,” “The two-cheek sneak,” and as already mentioned, the “Fedayeen Funk.” Fortunately, our medics and docs attack these with medications that “shock and awe” the viruses into submission within a day.

We had the privilege to brief Administrator Bremer and Acting Secretary Brownlee recently and they were very complimentary of our soldiers and the success of our operations. We maintain the initiative and refuse to hunker down. Some BBC reporters interviewed me recently with a story already written and they needed the sound bites to support it. But we could not agree with their estimation that operations had somehow turned for the worse for us in Tikrit. I explained to them that the acts of violence we had seen represented the actions of a desperate and losing foe.

Our cooperation with the locals continues to improve and the Iraqi government and police officials have joined our forces in their own future. I cannot speak for all of Iraq, but we have the upper hand in Tikrit and make it a heavy hand only for those who do not comply.

The command sergeant major and I went to Mosul to visit part of our A Company troops attached to the 101st Airborne there. The town is on the site of the ancient city of Ninevah. Its hills, taller trees, and greenery were a pleasant contrast to our area of operations. The men there are doing well and are making the best of the situation there. They are not as heavily engaged there and generally are performing duties guarding the airfield.

Our C Company will change commanders soon as CPT Randy Taylor departs to be a comptroller and CPT Brad Boyd takes over the fighting soldiers of “Cold Steel.” We also sent home our first group of soldiers released by the Army's removal of
stop loss
and
stop move
policies. Our strength remains robust and I was very happy to send these men home after their great service to our nation. They can be very proud of their accomplishments.

We continue the fight as if we are here until the job is done, and I am convinced we will get the big boys eventually. We have already gotten #4 and continue to erode the support base of people harboring them. The fact that they remain on the run and uncoordinated gives me great satisfaction.

We see the concern in the American press and the angst from the people at home but what we truly need is for the nation to continue to stand behind us. Every reason that brought us here is still as valid as it was in March. If not us, then who? Who will step up for these 26 million people? Our resolve remains clear.

Creatures of Combat

1ST BATTALION, 22ND INFANTRY,
TIKRIT, IRAQ—JULY 26, 2003
“REGULARS, BY GOD!”

Long hot days have greeted us but not necessarily in the morning. Our men conduct operations at all hours and the average soldier is active sixteen to twenty hours a day. Sometimes we get more rest but nothing can be scheduled. Our operations drive our activities and soldiers get snatches of rest when they can. They need not be told.

The sun bores into our vehicles, our clothing, and eventually us, compensated by our profuse sweating that soaks our uniforms literally from shoulder blades to kneecaps. Our equipment absorbs even more sweat as it pinches and encases us like an exoskeleton, transforming us into stinky, sour, salty, and drenched creatures of combat.