Second Lt Nathan P. Phan, Platoon Leader, 3d Plt, F/2/24, coordinates with the commander of the Sabbatine
Battalion during a July 14 meeting in Al Jazeera.
dent, successful, professional and capable battalions in the Iraqi forces,” said
Second Lieutenant Nathan P. Phan, Platoon Leader, 3d Plt, Company F, 2/24. “We
have [worked] with them on all different
levels, and they are just squared away.”
The Sabbatines have trained on a w
eekly basis with “Foxtrot” Co, honing their
tactical skills and learning the basics of
conducting counterinsurgency tactics.
“Training the [ISF] is our mission,”
Phan said. “We are accomplishing our
mission through [the Sabbatines]. We
train them on patrolling skills, compe-tency, weapons marksmanship and con-
ducting security.”
The Sabbatines had never worked with
coalition forces until 2/24 began their deployment in Iraq.
“We train them to improve their capabilities and make them a better counter-insurgency force,” said Phan. “We’re not
here to tell them what to do; we’re here to
give them advice, guidance and support.”
The Sabbatines and the IP had a diff
icult time working together in the beginning, but with the support of Co F, the
two ISF elements are now able to conduct
missions together.
“They had their differences, but we sat
down with them and worked it out,” said
Corporal Matt A. Johnson, a team leader,
3d Plt. “We didn’t make them do it; they
decided it within themselves.”
Since the two units of the ISF have
been working together, hostile incidents in
the area have become almost nonexistent.
“The reason insurgency has left the
area is because of the work of the IPs and
Sabbatines,” said Johnson. “When we go
out on foot patrols, they take the lead.”
When 2/24 transfers the authority of its
area of operations to its relieving unit, the
Sabbatines will continue to carry out the
mission of thwarting insurgency and providing the Iraqi people with a safe place
to live and work.
PFC Jerry Murphy
Combat Correspondent, RCT- 1
■ Fallujah
Combat Engineers Finding Fewer IEDs
Blinding lights pierce through the dar
k-ness on a long stretch of road exposing
unseen rusted metal objects and abandoned cars.
Behind the lights are Marines, part of a
route clearance team with 2d Combat Engineer Battalion, Regimental Combat
Team 1. They are tasked with locating
ordnance on or near roads traveled by
Iraqi citizens and coalition forces.
The Marines along with Company C
conducted an all-night street-sweeping
operation July 23 in the city of Karma. In
past years, the city and the surrounding
area have been a hotbed for insurgent activity, and many of the roads were heavily
laden with improvised explosive devices.
Now, the Marines find very few of the
deadly devices.
“The threat of IEDs has gone down so
much since I last deployed to Iraq. It used
to be a pretty regular thing to get hit,”
said Sergeant Jacob W. Verschage, vehicle commander. “We go out each night
and sweep different areas, but are not
turning up very much at all anymore.”
More than a year ago, units that were
deployed to the Anbar province were
finding one or more improvised explosive devices every night. Now, because of
improved security throughout the region,
2d CEB has uncovered only four in the
past four months.
“I would characterize the enemy in our
area as being neutralized. We still see occasional [al-Qaida in Iraq] violence in the
area, and we’revery watchfultoensure we
don’t allow a resurgence of AQI activity,”
said Colonel Lewis A. Craparotta, Commanding Officer, RCT- 1, in an April 21 Department of Defense news briefing. “Most
people believe that AQI has fled Al Anbar, at least for the time being, and it”s our
responsibility to make sure that they can’t
re-establish themselves back in our area.”
Although security in the region has improved, the combat engineers are still per-
forming their duties with state-of-the-art
equipment.
Engineers use Towing Mine Detection
vehicles, known as “Huskies,” to scan the
areaforexplosives. Theyalsoemploymine
resistant ambush protected (MRAP) vehicles called “Buffalos.”
The Buffalo is equipped with a mecha
n-ical arm that extends beyond the front of
the vehicle, allowing the Marines to examine and move potentially dangerous
objects to safe distances.
“We look for any suspicious-looking
LCpl Jeremy D. Mitz,
Co C, 2d CEB, RC T- 1,
uses the mechanical
arm on an MRAP to probe
for IEDs in the streets of
Karma during a July 23
night operation.
