Call From Iraq...

A US soldier from from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment scans a street during a patrol at a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images

Evening and happy Tuesday...

Our phone came alive about 1030pm Sunday night and yes, it was Chris! It was wonderful to hear his voice and he sounded good...strong and ready (it was morning in Iraq) to get started on the work 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment had in front of them this week.

We chatted about his health, which is good, things he needed, his team's morale and most of all what he wanted to do when he came home in May for R&R. He spoke of the packages he had received and his thankfulness for everyone's kindness and generosity. All in all Chris is well and staying strong...

I have been asked by some..."What did I see and sense during this phone call with Chris?"

I saw a young man who has matured beyond his 20 years...he knows he has experienced things that he will never forget, seared in his conscience forever...I saw a young man who is confident in what he does, enjoys life, considers it an honor to wear the uniform of the United States Army and believes in what he is doing in Iraq...all the while, never, ever complaining...I sensed from talking with him that he has his head in the fight everyday but during his down time his thoughts turn to his special lady who he is crazy about, his time at home during R&R and the warriors he serves with...

My conversation with Chris made me reflect on the words written by David Smith, The Guardian...

"The confidence of the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment platoon was infectious. If you had to trust your life to anyone, these professional men with their hi-tech weapons would be high on the list."

Call me crazy, but that is what I saw during this last phone call...confidence, commitment, loyalty and sacrifice...I would trust my life to him and the 2nd SCR...would you?

What have you seen while talking to your loved one?

A quick look through today's stream of news shows the 2nd SCR continuing to apply the pressure in the various areas they are operating in...

For example...

Richard Tompkins, Middle East Times wrote an article today called In Iraq fear still grips Diyala's people describing the challenges still confronting the 3-2 SCR as they operate in the Bread Basket...spend some time with it...

Also, this video from CNN's Michael Holmes, shows a part of Iraq where U.S. troops have never been before -- New Territory in Iraq -- it is a good look at the direction the fight in Iraq is headed...

Chris, I love you son and appreciate so much the time you spent with us on the phone. Thanks for the call! I remember your sacrifice everyday and we can't wait for your R&R...

Be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

Dealing in Diyala...

Drew Brown/S&S
Sunni tribal sheiks from Big Barwana sign a peace agreement ending two years of bloodshed with the nearby Shiite village of Little Barwana, as Hakim Zadah, left, an Iraqi translator now living in the United States looks on.

Drew Brown/S&S
A Shiite tribal sheik from Little Barwana, right, kisses his Sunni counterpart from Big Barwana on the cheek after a peace deal was signed Thursday between the two villages. The deal ended two years of bloodshed between the two villages and was brokered by troops of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment.

Evening...

LTC Coffey and his warriors in 3rd Squadron,2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (Wolfpack) continue to make a difference in their area of operations.

This article, courtesy of Drew Brown, Stars and Stripes, describes the efforts of LTC Coffey to bring together two Muslin sects and break their cycle of violence...

Enjoy the rest of your weekend...

Mideast edition, Sunday, January 27, 2008

LITTLE BARWANA, Iraq — After years of fighting, two villages in Diyala province — one Shiite, the other Sunni — have agreed to a U.S.-brokered peace deal.

The agreement took place Thursday between about 50 village elders from the Shiite village of Little Barwana and the Sunni village of Big Barwana. Although small in scope, the deal represents a significant step toward reconciling Iraq’s majority Shiites and minority Sunnis in Diyala province, according to U.S. military officers.

The two Muslim sects have been locked in a retaliatory cycle of killings across Iraq since al-Qaida insurgents bombed an important Shiite mosque in the city of Samarra in 2006. Diyala province has seen some of the worst of the violence, which has only begun to subside in the last year, after President Bush ordered another 30,000 U.S. troops into the country.

“I think this will be a great example for the rest of Iraq,” said Lt. Col. Rod Coffey, commander of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, who set the framework for the deal.

The two villages, which number about 1,000 residents each, had lived together for decades in peace, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials. But after the 2003 U.S. invasion, Ansar al-Sunna — a Sunni insurgent group affiliated with al-Qaida — gained a foothold in Big Barwana. Inhabitants of Little Barwana turned to Jaish al-Mahdi, a Shiite extremist group, for protection.

After fighting broke out, the fields and date palm groves separating the villages became a no-man’s land laced with land mines and booby traps. Shootings and killings became commonplace.

“Both sides want peace pretty bad,” said Capt. David Gohlich, a company commander whose troops oversee the area. “People on both sides were getting killed every day.”

The 3rd Squadron soldiers, based in Vilseck, Germany, moved into the area earlier this month. Last week, Coffey, the squadron commander, met with leaders from both villages and told them he would accept nothing less than reconciliation between the two sides.

With sheiks from the two villages seated across from one another in the courtyard of an empty school, Coffey said he believes that terrorists and extremists no longer have refuge anywhere in Barwana. He urged the sheiks to lay aside their differences and work together for peace.

“I would ask in the beginning that each town not blame the other for what has happened in the past,” he said.

Coffey said there had been enough suffering on both sides.

The truce, which was signed by six representatives of each side, commits both villages to peace and prohibits them from harboring terrorists, extremists, insurgents, foreigners or armed people of any type. The deal also requires both villages to report cases of infiltration or the discovery of hidden weapons and bombs to U.S. and Iraqi forces.

It also requires both sides to turn in some weapons to authorities. It prohibits further exchanges of gunfire.

The agreement also requires both sides to open all roads and paths leading into their villages and to allow displaced people to return home. Farmers can return to their fields and take crops to market. A commission representing both villages will monitor the agreement and meet periodically to discuss any violations.

Several village elders from Big Barwana spoke passionately about the need for relations between the two villages to return to normal.

“We are the same. We have the same religion,” said one white-bearded sheik in a red and white headdress. “We have a positive intention when we sign this agreement.”

However, one young man was kicked out of the meeting after he began talking loudly and insulting the Sunni village elders from Big Barwana. According to an interpreter for U.S. forces, he was apparently the brother of an Iraqi policeman killed by Sunni insurgents, and he spoke darkly of revenge.

Iraqi police escorted the man from the meeting, and Coffey warned the crowd that he would not tolerate such talk in his presence.

“Attitudes like that will send us back into a spiral of violence for which will have to answer on Judgment Day,” he said.

After the sheiks signed the agreement, the two sides shook hands and kissed. One sheik went to Coffey and thanked him for working out the deal.

“You are my friend,” the man said, in halting English. “Thank you. Thank you.”

“It is important for us, too,” Coffey said.

A column of Stryker vehicles then took the sheiks from Big Barwana back to their village, an indication, it seemed, that even with a new peace agreement, dangers still abound.

Drew Brown/S&S

Lt. Col. Rod Coffey, commander of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, based in Vilseck, Germany, listens to his translator as he waits for a meeting to begin that will close a peace deal between two warring Shiite and Sunni villages.

Drew Brown/S&S

An Iraqi provincial government official has just read out the terms of the peace deal.

Drew Brown / S&S
Shiite tribal sheiks of the village of Little Barwana in Iraq’s Diyala Province sign the peace agreement.

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We love you Chris - be safe!

I remember your sacrifice everyday...

v/r,
-Collabman

Powerful Words...

"If the enemy comes out to fight he will be met with a disciplined lethal ferocity he has never before endured. If he plays the sly game of intimidating, beheading and torturing the innocent people of Iraq when he thinks we’re not looking he will be met with a cunning, a sophistication and a relentlessness that will lead to his utter defeat.

This is my promise to you as your commander and from all of us to our honored dead."

LTC Rod Coffey
Commander
3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (Wolfpack)
22 January 2008

Tonights blog is a simple one, courtesy of Power Line.

As you begin your weekend reflect on the powerful words from the eulogy given by LTC Rod Coffey, Commander 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (Wolfpack), Diyala Province, Iraq, at the January 22, 2008 memorial ceremony for his six soldiers and one Iraqi interpreter.

These warriors were killed in a booby-trapped house in Sinsil, Iraq on January 9, 2008 during Operation Raider Harvest.

LTC Coffey spoke to honor the soldiers that died in the operation:

Specialist Todd E. Davis, 22, of Raymore, Mo.;
Staff Sgt. Jonathan K. Dozier, 30, of Rutherford, Tenn.;
Staff Sgt. Sean M. Gaul, 29, of Reno, Nev.;
Sgt. Zachary W. McBride, 20, of Bend, Ore.;
First Sgt. Matthew I. Pionk, 30, of Superior, Wis.; and
Sgt. Christopher A. Sanders, 22, of Roswell, N.M.

LTC Coffey spoke as follows:

Gen Petraus, LTG Odierno, Major General Hertling, BG Boozer, BG Thomas, COL Riscassi, fellow squadron and battalion commanders and command sergeants major;

On behalf of all the soldiers of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment we thank you for coming to pay tribute to our fallen brothers in arms.

We are here to honor the memory and service of seven men, seven of our brothers in arms.

There is a story about loss in war where one character comments to another, “We are ready for the occasional empty chair, the fond farewell for comrades lost. But we are never, never ready for so many.”

I cannot, as your commander, in anything I say today diminish the impact of losing these men all at once. In fact because we lost them so quickly, it all seems like a bad dream -- that we will wake up tomorrow and they will all be back again.

Each of us, whether present at the scene that day or not, will remember when we first found out. We will remember our inner anguish when we got up the nerve to ask, “Who was it?”

Others will recall the steeled strength it took to calmly and professionally report and verify the battle roster numbers, knowing full well we owed them this calmness and professionalism, so their families would be taken care of.

Others of us will never forget rescuing the four wounded that day and getting them to a helicopter as fast as we could. All these things are true. All these things will be seared in our memories. It was a terrible day and we cannot change that.

We are not alone in mere personal grief, or our desire to honor the fallen. The presence of the general officers here is their effort to acknowledge the sacrifice of this unit and the bravery of these men. Although I have not been able to access every news report, the ones I have read indicate the nation supports us, mourns with us and honors the men we have lost in the recon platoon.

The governors of the states of Virginia and Nevada and Wisconsin and Oregon and New Mexico have ordered the flag of the United States of America and the flags of their respective state flags be flown at half-mast on the day of our men’s funerals. We are not alone in honoring them. Again, I don’t have news stories for all of our men yet but those I have read indicate hundreds have attended their funerals.

And why this reaction? Why hundreds of people at funerals? Why governors issuing decrees for flags to be flown at half mast?

Because we are all in awe of their great sacrifice, courage and devotion to duty and each other. These men, our men, are fallen on the field of battle. Forever more that is their legacy. Their names are now enshrined on the scroll of America’s hallowed dead. And where they died, where they shed their blood, is sacred ground to us.

We still cannot help think why. Why do we have to lose such good men? Part of the answer is only good men like these volunteer to serve and defend their country. Here’s two brief examples of their motivations:

SPC Davis had his car packed and had been admitted to the University of Oklahoma when he changed his mind and decided to enlist in the army. His family believes he did so out of pride for his father who had served in the military and had passed away in 2003. There he was -- the excitement and opportunities of college life and getting a degree ahead of him -- and he heard that call, the call to defend and serve his country. At the last moment he could not go through with the easy choice. He chose the harder life of a soldier in a time of war.

Of SSG Gaul his stepmother noted, “Being a soldier was his life. It was what he truly wanted to do.”

I could mention every one of them and tell a similar story. I wish I knew more about Roy’s story, for the courage and guts displayed by our interpreters on a daily basis is an inspiration for us all.

It is still a natural human instinct to ask….But what did they die for? Wasn’t it a waste?

There are several answers to that question but the most basic and simple is they died for us. They entered that house so you and I wouldn’t have to. At that moment they saw it as their duty to clear that house and they acted with discipline courage and bravery. The character of our fallen heroes in the recon platoon is revealed by the actions of the living that day.

As many of you know they were essentially lured to the house by someone that we later discovered had ties to Al Qaida. One of the members of the platoon, on the roof when the blast occurred and the building collapsed -- and wounded himself -- ran down the local who had had lured them to the house ……And then when he found him, did nothing more than detain him.

That professionalism, that discipline, that honor and self-sacrifice speaks of extraordinary nobility of character in the entire platoon. Another soldier, the senior squad leader at the scene with calmness and strength took over the role of platoon sergeant as if he had been doing the job for months.

I could go on and on about the enormous character demonstrated by that entire platoon and entire company that day – a strength and determination that continues today.

And then there is the unfeigned determination of the recon platoon. It’s not put–on. It’s not fake. They are not trying to be something they are not and failing to express their emotions about this. But the speed with which they have rebounded and insisted to me that they go out on missions again is awe-inspiring.

I do not know where such men come from, except to say they are the kind of men who have made America great and will continue to preserve it.

The act of going in first, the act of willingly doing your duty in a dangerous environment, is by its very nature an act of heroic self-sacrifice for the sake of others. These men we honor today had that spirit of self-sacrifice and devotion to duty to an awe-inspiring degree.

And so I need to speak of what else they died for, and what I believe our honored dead would now expect of us.

I’ll begin by saying what they would not want. They would not wish to be seen as victims of a misguided war, victims of stop loss – or victims of anything else for that matter.

We know we are fighting extremism here in a thousand ways. And as the hometown news articles are getting written several of these fallen heroes are on record stating they believed the war in Iraq is a noble cause.

For those who want to support us by getting us out of Iraq as soon as possible, without a victory, I have but one comment. You’re too late. We have sacrificed too much and all we ask of you is the necessary time to finish the job.

Our children and yours, our grandchildren and yours will be safer for it.

This squadron and the formations on its left and right have in the balance sheet of history, already achieved far more than extremist reckless hatred will ever accomplish.

SSG Dozier once asked his father Carl, “Is it weird to really want to do this?”

His father Carl, filled with pride at what his son had become said "No," "This is what you're trained to do."

On another occasion this brave man, SSG Jonathan Dozier told his father he was prepared to die, “But,” he said, “I don’t want to die for nothing.”

So I ask you Wolfpack to make this promise with me: SSG Dozier, will not have died for nothing. We owe him a victory. We owe him a win. We owe him our own lives if necessary.

If the enemy comes out to fight he will be met with a disciplined lethal ferocity he has never before endured. If he plays the sly game of intimidating, beheading and torturing the innocent people of Iraq when he thinks we’re not looking he will be met with a cunning, a sophistication and a relentlessness that will lead to his utter defeat.

This is my promise to you as your commander and from all of us to our honored dead.

--------------------------------------------

We love you Chris - check in when you can - be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

Constantly Changing...

Everything is constantly shifting and changing...from location to the type of operations being conducted. The one thing that is constant is change...read on...

The info hounds pushed some interesting articles tonight. The first one shows a possible shift in location by the insurgency as they seek a new haven for operations -- Mosul attack points to insurgent shift. As the article points out - the stakes are high on both sides. The photo shows the carnage from today's attack...

Iraqi's tour the site where an explosion on Wednesday collapsed a three-story apartment building and ravaged adjacent houses just minutes after the Iraqi army arrived to investigate tips about a weapons cache in Mosul, Iraq Thursday, Jan. 24, 2008. Police on Thursday raised the casualty toll from that blast to at least 18 killed and 146 wounded.(AP Photo)

The next article is from the Middle East Times and shows the shift in the Bread Basket from kinetic operations to outreach efforts, a building phase -- U.S. begins outreach in 'liberated' areas. This is a look at the great work 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment has performed in the Diyala Province. The photo explains the importance of the outreach work in Diyala...

A U.S. Army medic treats a villager's leg infection during a patrol near Himbus, Iraq. The villager was later taken to a special medical clinic established in the town with U.S. and Iraqi Army doctors. (Middle East Times)

Finally, additional insight on Operation Phantom Phoenix and the role the 3-2 SCR played courtesy SPC John Crosby and posted on DVIDS.

Story by Spc. John Crosby
Posted on 01.24.2008 at 08:11AM

BAQUBAH, Iraq – Coalition and Iraqi army soldiers are focusing their combat strength on clearing al-Qaida from Diyala province, Iraq, in support of Operation Raider Harvest. The operation is a part of Operation Phantom Phoenix, an Iraq wide offensive to destroy AQI and provide stability to the Iraqi government.

Operation Raider Harvest, executed by the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division from Fort Lewis, Wash., is a complex mission with many moving parts and several phases.

“Deny, hold and build,” said 4-2 SBCT Commander Col. Jon Lehr. “We must deny safe haven to al-Qaida and other insurgents throughout our area of responsibility wherever they hope to find it. We must set the conditions for Iraqi security forces to hold these hard fought areas so they don’t slip back into the enemy’s hands. And we must assist the government of Iraq to build the economic, governance and essential services infrastructures in these areas.”

The operation started with the 2-3rd ACR and the 2-23 Inf. Regt. clearing simultaneously around the Breadbasket into blocking positions and securing a route for the 3-2 Stryker Cavalry Regiment to move into position for the main push.

“Based on the geography of the Breadbasket, it was feasible to confront them on multiple axis all at once, simultaneously, with other forces isolating the area,” said Lt. Col. Rod Coffey, 3-2 SCR commander.

With the other battalions providing blocking positions, 3-2 SCR moved from northeast to southwest, clearing house to house searching for AQI operatives, weapons caches, improvised explosive devices, documents and training sites.

As of Jan. 21, coalition forces working in the Breadbasket found and cleared 29 IEDs, eight car bombs, seven booby-trapped houses, three of which were found thanks to tips from locals who lived in the area and 36 weapons caches. Four enemies were killed in action and another four wounded.

The successes were not without their cost. Coalition forces suffered 19 casualties during the first three days of the mission. Two Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3-2 SCR were wounded when their Stryker vehicle hit an IED as well as a Soldier from the 38th Engineers Company, Brigade Troops Battalion, Jan. 8. On Jan. 9, six Soldiers and one Iraqi interpreter of HHC, 3-2 SCR were killed in action after a house borne improvised explosive device detonated. Another nine were wounded as a result of the blast and were evacuated.

“We prepared for that,” said Coffey. “There are a number of things you do in making sure that you are mentally and physically tough, and although it hurts and you feel it, I would say the Soldiers are even more determined to achieve the mission and get these guys.”

After the clearing phase secured the Breadbasket, the holding phase began. Coalition forces working side-by-side with Iraqi army troops conducted humanitarian assistance missions to aid the people of the northern Diyala River Valley.

“Although decisive, the combat operations will likely not have as great of an effect as the next phases,” said Lt. Col. James Brown, executive officer of the 4-2. “The big part of it is that now the area will be tied to Muqdadiyah, its closest and largest urban center, and Maqdadiyah will be tied to the province, so the chain of communication between local villages and the Iraqi government will be established. That chain was not there before, so the local people were ripe for AQI to fill that need for them. Now that the link has been established, the government will be able to provide what the people need, which will end AQI’s foothold in the area.”

Food drops conducted by IA and CF supplied the people of the Breadbasket with rice and flour, and IA and CF medical personnel also conducted medical aid mission to provide care for minor illnesses, cuts and scrapes, treating more than 600 Iraqis as of Jan. 21.
Other projects aimed at helping the Iraqis to help themselves are on-going in the area.

“Soon we will provide 400 people here with jobs clearing the canals of vegetation to improve water flow through the area,” said Capt. Jonathon Norquist, a civil affairs officer in 2-3 ACR, 4-2 ID. “We want to improve our relations with the Iraqis here and build trust.”

On Jan. 17, the Diyala Provincial Government organized a fuel drop for the citizens of Mansuriyah, after they went months without. Hundreds of Iraqis lined up, fuel cans in hand to receive their rations.

This was one of the first steps in local district governments connecting the provincial government to address the needs of the people.

“Coalition forces, Iraqi security forces, and Muqdadiyah Iraqi police all helped achieve our goals in taking back the Breadbasket,” said Muqdadiyah Mayor Najem Abdulah Ahmed through an interpreter. “After clearing the area controlled by terrorists, we provide services, food and kerosene for villages that have been isolated.”

An Iraqi police station has been opened and is currently operating in the Breadbasket.

“As we transition into the next phase, you will essentially see a planting of the Iraqi flag in the northern DRV,” Brown said. “You will see Iraqi army and Iraqi police, which up until this point had not patrolled in this area, and here shortly you will see the linkage between the provincial leaders and the local leaders.”

Combat outposts in the Breadbasket are under construction, providing more security in the area. CLC groups are organizing and the Iraqi government is assuming responsibility for the area.

“We will set up some joint security stations and combat outposts,” Coffey said. “It’s getting the local government functioning again in these areas which creates a lot more cohesion between the people, the local police, the Iraqi Army and coalition forces. Part of that is raising Concerned Local Citizens groups because that dynamic of preventing al-Qaida from re-infiltrating your neighborhood is an important civic exercise.

“We’ve gone a long way in identifying local leaders we think will be important to the future or cooperative to us, and some people we should perhaps keep an eye on,” Coffey continued. “I think as everyday goes by the people in the Breadbasket are more assured that the security forces are going to stay. They are going to become more cooperative in giving up AQI that are still in their midst. The local Iraqi government is going to get in there more and more. The civil government needs to get in there and reassert its control and its normal functioning services in there.”

--------------------------------------------

Chris, you are constantly on our hearts and minds. I love you!

Be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

No Longer on the Street...

Half-way through the week...on we go...battle rhythm humming...

A fairly quiet news day for the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment. No photos to share tonight...

However, one article did catch my eye. It is a look at some outstanding work conducted by the 1st Squadron, 2nd SCR in concert with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

Tip of the hat to the 1-2 SCR! Nice job guys...keep the pressure on...

Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory
APO AE 09342

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20080124-01
January 24, 2008

MND-B Soldiers detain suspected extremist cell leader (Baghdad)

2nd BCT PAO, 82nd Abn. Div.

Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO

BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained a suspected extremist cell member for involvement in the detonation of an explosively formed penetrator device in northeast Baghdad Jan. 18.

The detonation occurred near a MND-Baghdad patrol in northeast Baghdad’s Ur neighborhood and killed a mother and her child.

Soldiers from 1st Squadron, 2nd Stryker Calvary Regiment, working with 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, received intelligence on an EFP cell and immediately responded to detain the individual responsible for the killings, along with five of his associates.

“We have evidence this individual has killed innocent women and children,” said Maj. Ed Brouse, effects coordinator for 2nd BCT. “Thanks to the hard work of the War Eagle Squadron, this killer and his fellow thugs are no longer on the street intimidating the Iraqi people.”

--------------------------

Chris, I love you buddy!

Be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

The Price of Progess...

Progress: Citizens of Taiha, a former Al Qaeda in Iraq stronghold, wait in line to receive kerosene from Iraqi Army soldiers on Jan. 21.

Staff Sgt. Russell Bassett / U.S. Army

Progress...the act of moving forward toward a goal

Here we are almost six months into this journey and I am interested to know...do you ever have days where you wonder about the progress being made in Iraq? Days where you question the price of this progress and if it's worth it? Days where you wonder if the Iraqi people, and for that matter the American public, truly understand the sacrifice that our warriors make everyday as they perform their mission? How our loved ones put their lives on the line for all of us...for progress? I had a day like that today...

A current article in Newsweek shows encouraging signs of the progress being made in a number of locations in the Bread Basket, thanks in large part to the outstanding efforts of the 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment and other US units.

Give it a read and when you finish...ask yourself, what's the price of this progress?

After Al Qaeda

The residents of small towns in Iraq's bread basket are cautiously venturing back into the streets—and normal life.

By Lennox Samuels Newsweek Web Exclusive
Jan 22, 2008 Updated: 3:34 p.m. ET Jan 22, 2008

This time the sound of Stryker personnel carriers rolling into the town of Himbus had a triumphal rumble to it. Two weeks after launching an offensive to drive Al Qaeda in Iraq from its stronghold in Diyala province, American soldiers were back, arriving in broad daylight in a trio of provincial towns to see townsfolk cautiously venturing into streets they had once avoided and interacting openly with Iraqi security forces.

Platoons watched as residents lined up for fleece jackets and rice being distributed by Iraqi soldiers in the hamlet of Abu Musa. Soldiers mingled with people receiving medical care for the first time in weeks at a clinic in Himbus. And they stood guard while men, women and children filled jugs of kerosene from a tanker truck in Taiha.

"Iraqi forces now have control of the bread basket, announced Lt. Col. Rod Coffey, commander of the 3rd Squadron of the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment. "The facts on the ground are we have freedom of movement and the insurgents do not."

The bread basket, an area of 45 square miles in northeastern Iraq, had been one of Al Qaeda in Iraq's few remaining "centers of gravity," as U.S. military commanders termed it—a place the group had fled to once it was forced from Anbar province. When American and Iraqi forces launched their campaign on Jan. 7-8, they estimated there were 200 Al Qaeda operatives holed up in the area, where much of the country's produce is grown. So far in the continuing operation, the coalition has captured 72 insurgents and killed at least four. The rest either have fled, again, or are hiding out in Diyala.

"We are cleaning up these towns," Iraqi 5th Division commander Gen. Salim al Mandalawi said in Abu Musa. "The next step is we're coordinating with residents now to set up Concerned Local Citizens groups." Setting up CLCs is the tactic coalition leaders now use once they have evicted Al Qaeda, to make sure the terrorists do not return. The CLCs are armed and typically man checkpoints and handle security.

Through much of Diyala, mounds of rubble and pocked buildings testify to the toughness of the battle to roust Al Qaeda in Iraq. Baqubah, the provincial capital and long a Qaeda headquarters, is now under Iraqi Army control but is not completely tamed. Two suicide bombings in the city Tuesday suggested the terrorists have not yet given up, and a vehicle ban in some suburbs makes it clear that coalition officials remain wary about the organization's facility with car bombs. "They get more inventive and we get more inventive and the circle continues," said Capt. Roland Minez, civil affairs officer with the 1st Battalion of the 38th Infantry Regiment.

The soldiers' drive back to Warhorse base after their visit to Himbus, Tahia and Abu Musa did offer one measure of Operation Bread Basket's success in rousting Al Qaeda cadres from their embeds. Three Strykers drove over an IED on a stretch of road the Americans call Route Ann. It did not go off. "There was no triggerman," said Coffey. "With our forces around, they cannot get into position [to detonate their bombs]."

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Again, what is the price of this progress?

The ultimate price is captured in this photo from today...

The parents of Army Staff Sgt. Jonathan Dozier, of Rutherford, Tenn., Carl Dozier and Martha Cabe, center, and widow Amy Dozier, second from left, receive flags from Brig. Gen. John Johnson, during a burial ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008, in Arlington, Va. He was assigned to 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Division, based in Vilseck, Germany.
AP Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta

I wonder if those standing in line in the photo at the top of this blog understand the price that was paid?

Regardless of whether they do or not, we must press on and stay in the fight...

Our warriors would expect nothing less from us...

Chris, I love you buddy and I remember your sacrifice, courage and commitment every day...I remember...

Be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

Clear, Hold, Build...

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment walks past a church as he patrols at a residential neighbourhood in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images

Evening...

When I arrived home this afternoon and opened one of my many email accounts, I had a note from a wonderful lady who shared with me that her husband was the soldier in front of the church in the last photo at the bottom of my blog, On the Move - how cool is that? It made my day - thanks for sharing the information ma'am.

Above is another snap of him from a different angle...

Tonight's blog...

From yesterday's reporting...another article on the great work our warriors from 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment are conducting in the Bread Basket as part of Operation Phantom Phoenix.

This appears to me to all be part of the US political-military strategy described as clear, hold, and build: to clear areas from insurgent control, to hold them securely, and to build durable, national Iraqi institutions.

No question in my mind that the 2nd SCR is right in the middle of executing this strategy in the Bread Basket and throughout the Baghdad area...

Sunday, 20 January 2008

Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory APO AE 09342

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20080120-01
January 20, 2008

Tips lead to detention of 10 AQI during Operation Phantom Phoenix

Multi-National Division – North PAO

TIKRIT, Iraq – Coalition Forces detained 10 suspected al Qaeda in Iraq operatives during a raid in an Al Ali village, in the northern Diyala River Valley area, known as the bread basket, Jan. 17.

The successful raid was part of Operation Raider Harvest, which is part of Operation Phantom Phoenix – a countrywide operation to eliminate AQI and other extremists in Iraq.

Working off tips from local Iraqis, Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment detained the suspects at seven different locations in the village.

One of the detainees is a suspected AQI company commander, four are suspected AQI fighters, two are suspected improvised-explosive-device emplacers and three are suspected AQI informants.

“With the detainment of this cell, the residents within this area will be more inclined to help Coalition Forces and Iraqi Security Forces in identifying remaining AQI,” said Capt. Samuel Davis, 3/2 SCR Intelligence officer. “With the detention of the majority of the members of this cell, insurgent activities within the area will be severely decreased, and increase the likelihood of being able to establish a Concerned Local Citizen group or neighborhood security.”

Since Jan. 8, with the start of the clearing phase of Raider Harvest, CF and ISF have detained 70 suspected AQI in the AO, killed four and wounded four more. In addition, 25 IEDs have been found and cleared, along with eight vehicle-borne IEDs, six house-borne IEDs and 30 weapon caches.

At the same time as the ongoing mission of clearing AQI from the bread basket, CF, ISF and Concerned Local Citizens are also conducting humanitarian aid drops, providing medical aid, delivering fuel, establishing security checkpoints and building Joint Combat outposts. Operation Raider Harvest is not only designed to clear AQI from the bread basket , a former AQI stronghold and safe haven, but also ensure that they are unable to return.

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Chris, I love you son. Stay strong and be safe...our prayers are covering you and the rest of the 2nd SCR....

v/r,
- Collabman

On the Move...

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment runs to his position during a patrol in a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. Syria and Saudi Arabia have reduced the flow of foreign insurgents crossing their borders to fight in Iraq, a US military spokesman said today. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

Afternoon...enjoying your Sunday?

As I work through the flow of information today, once again there are current photos of the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment working their Area of Operations in Baghdad, courtesy of Jewel Samad, AFP. Some of these photos are just hours old...gotta love the technology that exists today, eh? A look at those photos in a moment...

From a news perspective, I am encouraged somewhat by the headline today indicating armor-piercing bomb attacks are down. I say somewhat because I wonder if this diminished flow of explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs is short-lived? Why do we care? Its no secret that EFPs are a real threat to our warriors on the ground in Iraq and elsewhere. IED's are still a nasty threat...I guess time will tell.

Photos...

I really enjoy scanning through the photos of our warriors from the 2nd SCR. It doesn't matter which squadron - I look at them all. The only thing better is steaming video. I try to share photos that show faces...so that someone, somewhere may say "hey, that is my warrior!"

Take a moment and look closely at today's photos...what do you see? My favorites are the first photo above...and the very last photo. I wonder what the signs on the wall in front of the church say? Would we want to know?

Enjoy!

Chris, I love you buddy. Oh, Mike A. was in our class today as he is home for R&R. As you probably know, this is Mike's 3rd tour in Iraq. Talk about commitment! Also, he indicated he just re-enlisted...

I am so proud of all you guys. Stay strong and be encouraged son...we are praying for you!

v/r,
- Collabman

US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment patrol a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment secures an area during a patrol in a market while a laborer paints a building in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment patrol a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

An Iraqi woman and boy walk past a US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment on patrol in a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment scans the area by an Iraqi clothing vendor (R) and another boy on a bicycle as they patrol at a residential neighborhood in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

An Iraqi man sits in a chair next to a US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment as he patrols a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment patrols a market area in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment walks past a church as he patrols a residential neighbourhood in Baghdad, 20 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

Eyes On...

SPC Chris Stevenson, Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment provides security during a patrol in a Baghdad neighborhood.

There is nothing like a quiet Saturday in the Rockies. Hopefully, your weekend is going well. I think we all need a little downtime to recharge before we plunge into another work week. Battle rhythm - easy to say, tough to maintain...

A quick look at the news about the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment in Baghdad seems to show the same thing...at least for now. Not a lot of info out today...I will take quiet...

My wife and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch today with a great couple whose son (SPC Kellen B.) is assigned to the 2-2 SCR, the same unit as our son Chris. We hooked up via the virtual world a while back and found out we lived just a few miles from each other. Small world, eh?

It is such an encouragement for us to sit and talk with those who can identify first hand with the emotions we are experiencing. This is a strong couple who have such a passion and heart for our warriors. They are a real role model for all of us...we are blessed to have crossed paths with them.

In case you missed it, the photo above - of the soldier with his back to the camera - is Chris. My mind can devise a number of scenarios playing out in this picture but I won't put em in print. I will wait and ask in person when he gets home in May for R&R...but I know that his buddies have his six...they always do.

Let me leave you on this Saturday afternoon with one article that shows the work the 2-2 SCR is doing in Rashid continues to pay dividends...

Saturday, 19 January 2008

Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory APO AE 09342

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20080119-13
January 19, 2008

MND-B Forces seize enemy rockets
4IBCT, 1ID Public Affairs
Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO

BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldiers, acting on a tip from a local national, seized a cache of rockets during a combat patrol in the western Rashid District of the Iraqi capital Jan. 10

“Black Lions,” of Company B, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., raided a house and found 10 107mm rockets.

The northwestern part of the district has historically been the origin of indirect fire on the International Zone and other Coalition Forces bases in the southern part of the city.

The rockets were taken to a Coalition Forces base for disposal.

“This greatly diminishes the enemy’s ability to target Iraqi and Coalition (Forces) bases throughout the southwest part of the city,” said Maj. Kirk Luedeke, Task Force Dragon spokesman.

Soldiers of 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, attached to TF Dragon, detained two suspected insurgents in Rashid Jan. 10. One of the suspected insurgents is believed to be a known extremist in Hadar.

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Chris, thanks for the photo and continue to keep eyes on...we love you with all our heart...be safe!

Our prayers continue to surround you and the entire 2nd SCR...

v/r,
- Collabman

Stars in the House...

US Army Europe commander General David McKiernan (C) visits an outpost of US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, in Baghdad, 17 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

Ready for the weekend? I am...I hope your week has been a good one. For me, well, lets just say life is always interesting - and never predictable.

There are lots of pictures flooding the web showing the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment in action and receiving awards. So many, I have to pick and choose what I use. I love to see our warriors in action and also being recognized for their sacrifice and service.

Before we talk photos, I have watched with interest the ongoing discussion on the possibility that deployments could be reduced from 15 to 12 months. Haven't seen the articles? Here are a few:

Casey: 12-month tours possible by this summer

Army May Move to 12-Month Tours Soon

US military chiefs weigh Iraq deployments' strain on force

I think the most important statement in all of this is...Casey cautioned that he is "not going public with that until I'm sure we're not going back" on it.

For those who have pinged me about this reporting...I wouldn't be making any plans just yet...

Photos...

The first two show General David McKiernan, US Army Europe commander, and his visit with 2nd Squadron, 2nd SCR on 17 January. The rest of them are from the AFP embed with the 2-2 SCR as they operate in the Baghdad area. I think they provide us all a feel for the operations our warriors are conducting most every day.

Maybe your loved one is in the eye of the camera? If so, tell us about it by leaving a comment on the blog.

Enjoy!

Chris, we love you son and look forward to your next call. Be safe!

v/r,
- Collabman

US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, make a formation at their base in Baghdad, 17 January 2008, during a visit by US Army Europe commander General David McKiernan. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

US Army Europe commander General David McKiernan (L) congratulates SGT Brian Glena after awarding him a medal at the base of US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, in Baghdad, 17 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.


A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment walks past an Ashura banner picturing Imam Hussein as they patrol along a Shiite neighbourhood in Baghdad. Clashes between a Shiite messianic sect and security forces in two southern Iraqi cities on Friday killed dozens of cult members, policemen and civilians, marring Ashura religious rituals, officials said. (AFP/Jewel Samad)

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment kneels under an Iraqi national flag as he secures an area during a patrolling in a neighborhood in Baghdad, 18 January 2008. The US military said today that it had renewed its air blitz on Al-Qaeda targets south of Baghdad, dropping bombs on sites it said were training camps for the jihadist network. The air strikes were part of Operation Phantom Phoenix, a major assault launched on January 8 by US and Iraqi forces on Al-Qaeda, considered by US commanders to be the greatest threat to stability in Iraq. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment gives a hand to Shiite Muslims cooking large pots of food during a patrol of a Baghdad neighborhood under curfew, 18 January 2008. A curfew is on Baghdad and 10 Iraqi provinces during the three-day peak of Shiite Islam's festival of Ashura. Clashes between a Shiite messianic sect and security forces in two Iraq cities marred annual Ashura rituals today as radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr issued a sharp warning to the government. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

An Iraqi boy greets US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment guarding an area as they patrol a Shiite neighbourhood during a curfew in Baghdad, 18 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

An Iraqi boy walks past US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment guards as they patrol a Shiite neighborhood during a curfew in Baghdad, 18 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment inspects an abandoned house in an abandoned Sunni neighborhood during a curfew in Baghdad, 18 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

An elderly Iraqi man looks on as a US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment patrols along a Shiite neighborhood during a curfew in Baghdad, 18 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.


US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, search an area as they investigate news regarding bombs found in a residential neighborhood in Baghdad, 16 January 2008. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

Cream of the Crop...

Michael Abrams / S&S

Sgt. Joseph Goins of the Mannheim, Germany-based 76th Army Band plays taps at the conclusion of the memorial ceremony for six 3rd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry (Stryker) Regiment soldiers killed in a booby-trapped house in Iraq last week.

Davis	Dozier	Gaul
McBride	Pionk	Sanders

I started to blog about a number of different items tonight but this caught my eye first. What could be more important? So, tonights blog will honor our six fallen angels from the 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment. No words are needed...

By Seth Robson, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Thursday, January 17, 2008

VILSECK, Germany — Their families and most of their friends were thousands of miles away, but hundreds of comrades packed Vilseck Chapel on Wednesday for a ceremony to honor six 3rd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry (Stryker) Regiment soldiers killed in a booby-trapped house in Iraq last week.

Second Cav Rear Detachment commander Lt. Col. Tom Rickard told those assembled that the soldiers were victims of a desperate act by a retreating enemy blowing up its own safe houses.

“The brave men we honor today will be forever remembered for their accomplishments. Iraqis will tell this story to generations. Foreigners who removed a dictator … Americans who never quit month after month … never claimed Iraqi soil for their own … and stood shoulder to shoulder with their Iraqi brothers in arms,” he said.

The soldiers, who died Jan. 9 in Sinsil, Iraq, after entering a booby-trapped home, were Spc. Todd E. Davis, 22, of Raymore, Mo.; Staff Sgt. Jonathan K. Dozier, 30, of Rutherford, Tenn.; Staff Sgt. Sean M. Gaul, 29, of Reno, Nev.; Sgt. Zachary W. McBride, 20, of Bend, Ore.; Sgt. 1st Class Matthew I. Pionk, 30, of Superior, Wis.; and Sgt. Christopher A. Sanders, 22, of Roswell, N.M.

Third Squadron (Wolfpack) Rear Detachment commander Capt. David Dykema spoke of the fallen soldiers’ love for their families.

“These scouts were among the best the Army had to offer. They continued to fight this cowardly enemy even after seeing other Wolfpack brothers fall,” he said.

Third Squadron had already lost six soldiers fighting in southern Baghdad since deploying to Iraq in August.

Dykema described Pionk as a leader who worked well with soldiers and who was able to fix a bad situation.

“He was laid-back with a Midwest attitude and could get any soldier or leader to laugh,” he said.

Gaul wanted nothing more than to lead at the tip of the spear, said Dykema.

“He’d wake soldiers up with a coffee mug in one hand and a triathlon magazine in the other,” he recalled.

Dozier was a quiet professional and a patriot, he said.

“He loved the outdoors and his father. He knew his role as a sniper well and always had time to share his knowledge with soldiers,” he said.

Sanders loved being an infantryman, Dykema said.

“He liked to study the history and theory of war. He was a gun enthusiast who loved to talk about weapons to anyone who would listen,” he said.

McBride had a GT (Army IQ test) score of 134, the highest Dykema had seen, he said.

“With his intellect he could have gotten scholarships to go anywhere, but his desire was to serve his country,” he said.

Davis was immensely strong and decisively won the squadron combatives competition, he said.

“On Jan. 9, the Army lost great warriors. I’ve not known a group of more professional soldiers than those scouts. The Wolfpack is a better organization for having you with us. We will miss you and we will remember you,” Dykema said.

Army Chaplain Glenn Woodson said the sense of loss felt by people at Vilseck was nothing compared to that suffered by the families of the six soldiers who would watch the ceremony by video.

“Today we see the ugly and inevitable reality of war. I hope the families can find some consolation that these six soldiers were the finest our country has. The cream of the crop,” Woodson said. “They wanted to be and deserved to be on the tip of the Army’s spear in this war on terror,” he said.

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v/r,
- Collabman

The Difference is You...

Searching a house : A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment searches an abandoned house in Baghdad. (AFP/Jewel Samad)

Evening - happy Wednesday! I hope your week is going well. First off, I am so happy to see some of our warriors in our support group home on US soil and ready to relax during their much-deserved R&R period. That is so encouraging. To their loved ones, soak in every moment and enjoy your time together. We all look forward to hearing how it went...my wife and I can't wait for Chris' turn in May.

Not much to share tonight - seems quiet to me. I will take quiet...won't you?

There was one interesting article from Bill Roggio, The Long War Journal - Senior al Qaeda in Iraq leader killed in Miqdadiyah. Give it a read if you have time...this is related to ops in the Bread Basket.

We picked up on a photo from Chris showing the snow in Baghdad. I also had the info hounds push more images from today of the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment as they continue to work the Baghdad area. I am not a smart guy but I would guess there is a photographer from AFP embedded with the 2-2 SCR...how else would you explain the wonderful photos of this squadron coming in on a daily basis?

Check out this photo Chris provided of the snow in Baghdad that occurred on Friday, 11 January 2008.

What next? Will Pigs Fly?

Before you take a look at today's photos of the 2-2 SCR, let me leave you with a favorite quote that Chris has posted on one of his social networking sites...

There's a difference between weakness and passion
Between fear and bravery
Between cowardice and heroism
The difference is you...

As I watch and pray for our warriors with the 2nd SCR, I think this quote is descriptive of every one of them who get up, gear up and get in the fight to make a difference.

I love this photo of the 2-2 SCR soldier reflected in the mirror...so, what difference are you and I making? What do we see when we look in the mirror?

A US soldier from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, searches a house looking for suspected militants during a raid in Baghdad, 16 January 2008. A female suicide bomber blew herself up in a marketplace in a small town north of Baghdad today, killing at least eight people, a local military commander said. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images.

Chris, I love you son - I am so very proud of you. Be safe buddy!

v/r,
- Collabman

Securing Baghdad : US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, secure an area in Baghdad. (AFP/Jewel Samad)

US soldiers from the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, storm into a house in a residential neighbourhood. The commander of US forces in Iraq said on Wednesday that Iran was continuing to train militants despite Tehran's pledge to cut all support for the insurgency. (AFP/Jewel Samad )