Today's favorite news headline

Taliban flee U.S. Marines onslaught in Afghanistan

Found at The Long War Journal, which incidentally featured this headline yesterday: Iraqi Army interdicting Iranian operations in the South. Interesting, the Iranians having been so helpful and all.

Like when they manufactured the weapon that did this, something I've been unable to get out of my mind's eye since hearing about their supposed "goodwill" the other day.

PFC Ross Andrew McGinnis Awarded Medal of Honor

US Army photo.
President Bush:

When Ross McGinnis was in kindergarten, the teacher asked him to draw a picture of what he wanted to be when he grew up. He drew a soldier. Today our nation recognizing -- recognizes him as a soldier, and more than that -- because he did far more than his duty. In the words of one of our commanding generals, "Four men are alive because this soldier embodied our Army values and gave his life."

The day will come when the mission he served has been completed and the fighting is over, and freedom and security have prevailed. America will never forget those who came forward to bear the battle. America will always honor the name of this brave soldier who gave all for his country, and was taken to rest at age 19.

No one outside this man's family can know the true weight of their loss. But in words spoken long ago, we are told how to measure the kind of devotion that Ross McGinnis showed on his last day: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

PFC McGinnis in Iraq. Photo: S&S.

The members of PFC McGinnis's vehicle crew - whose lives he saved on December 4, 2006 in Adhamiyah, Iraq - were present at the ceremony: SFC Cedric Thomas, SSG Ian Newland, SGT Lyle Buehler, and SPC Sean Lawson. Ross was in 1st Platoon, C Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division (attached to 2nd BCT, 2ID).

Ross' Medal of Homor page can be found here, which includes the Citation, the President's full remarks, a video of the ceremony, and other video interviews.

Operation Rock Penetrator in Kunar Province

KUNAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan (May 30, 2008) – Afghan National Army soldiers and paratroopers from Able Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment air assaulted into the Narang Valley on the evening of May 16 for a scheduled 24-hour mission in Kunar province, Afghanistan.

A part of Operation Rock Penetrator, the ANA soldiers took the lead role in this mission, which was to search and clear Bidal Village, designated “Objective Grappa”, while Able Company Soldiers secured overwatch positions.

Under the moonlight, approximately 150 American and Afghan soldiers flew into Kunar’s Narang Valley aboard CH-47 Chinooks and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. The Soldiers, under the protection of Apache attack helicopters, were safely delivered from Camp Wright in Asadabad to five separate landing zones.

First platoon Soldiers were tasked with being the support element for the ANA soldiers. The paratroopers exited the Blackhawk helicopters in tall wheat fields west of Bidal.

Burdened with heavy equipment, the Sky Soldiers began moving upward with the help of their night vision devices. After several hours of climbing high stone terraces, crossing dangerous terrain with 10-15 feet drop offs, 1st platoon arrived at their position.

“We’ve had reports that rebels have been moving through this village intimidating people and keeping weapons and supplies there, so they can take them up into the Korengal and Shuryak Valleys,” said 1st Lt. Jason P. Levay, Platoon Leader for 1st Platoon. “I know this is not a peaceful area.”

At first light, from beneath camouflage netting, the paratroopers watched as ANA soldiers began moving in the valley toward objective Grappa. The ANA soldiers made their way through a mostly dry river bed and proceeded to search one side of the village and then the other looking for weapon caches, contraband and insurgent safe-havens.

“While the ANA were clearing a house, they found two anti-personnel mines and some explosives. We arrested the guy, and airlifted him out of there later on that day,” said Army Staff Sgt. Daniel C. Metcalfe, 25, from Rochester, N.Y., acting platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon.

In the afternoon, after the ANA soldiers had finished their search, an element of 1st platoon Soldiers led by Levay, climbed back down the mountainside and met up with the ANA soldiers in one of the village compounds. ...

Later in the evening, acting on intelligence that stated there were more enemy fighters in the area, the mission was extended 24 hours. Helicopters arrived and flew the Soldiers to 2nd Platoon’s position, where they were re-supplied.

Read about the rest of the mission here.


Click here for more 173rd ABCT Afghanistan posts.

David Bellavia on Pundit Review Radio

From Kevin at Pundit Review:

It was our honor to welcome back to the show retired Staff Sgt. David Bellavia. David is author of House to House: An Epic Memoir of War, co-founder of Vets for Freedom and now candidate for congress in the 26th district in New York.

You can listen to the interview here.

House to House is one of the best books about the Iraq war, and if you haven't read it yet you should. Here's the book video.



Congratulations to Kevin and Gregg at Pundit Review, who last night began their fourth year of broadcasting on Boston's 50,000 watt talk station WRKO. Thanks for your fine work, guys!

Give the Marines 96 hours...

...and they'll give you optimism.

Optimism Grows as Marines Push Against Taliban

GARMSER, Afghanistan — For two years British troops staked out a presence in this small district center in southern Afghanistan and fended off attacks from the Taliban. The constant firefights left it a ghost town, its bazaar broken and empty but for one baker, its houses and orchards reduced to rubble and weeds.

But it took the Marines, specifically the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, about 96 hours to clear out the Taliban in a fierce battle in the past month and push them back about 6 miles.

But... (this is the NYT, after all)

It was their first major combat operation since landing in March, and it stood in stark contrast to the events of a year earlier, when a Marine unit was removed in disgrace within weeks of arriving because its members shot and killed 19 civilians after a suicide bombing attack.

It was decided - after an inquiry and 3 days before this article was published - not to charge the Marines with any wrongdoing. The Times doesn't mention that until the 12th paragraph of the article, where they bring up the incident again adding the decision was "greeted with dismay in Afghanistan". (By whom? The Taliban?)

Anyway, back to the point of the story, if you can wade through the rest you'll find other unmistakable signs of progress like the one below, so it's worth a read.

“They [the Marines] have disrupted the Taliban’s freedom of movement and pushed them south, and that has created the grounds for us to develop the hospital and set the conditions for the government to come back,” said Maj. Neil Den-McKay, the officer commanding a company of the Royal Regiment of Scotland based here. People have already started coming back to villages north of the town, he said, adding, “There has been huge optimism from the people.”

The Marines were originally tasked with securing a single road through the district, but decided to change their plans after realizing how important the area was to the Taliban. The impact of their operations has been twofold - they've disrupted a major Taliban transportation artery and source of income, and the locals have been "unexpectedly welcoming to the American forces and eager for security and development."

Back in Germany

I can't get enough of this photo. I know I'm a dork.

Freedom

...and the price thereof.

Remember. And have a great Memorial Day weekend.

Purchase Green Beans coffee on May 26 and support TAPS and Soldiers' Angels

May 22, 2008 Pasadena, CA - Green Beans Coffee Company (GBCC) announces the “Memorial Day Green Beans Coffee Special.”

For every purchase made on May 26, 2008 at any location worldwide or online, Green Beans Coffee will donate $1 from your order to the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) and Soldier’s Angels.

Green Beans Coffee has made a name for itself providing top-of-the-line coffee for U.S. troops stationed in war zones across the globe. They have more than 55 frontline locations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Africa and other overseas locales. They have won the hearts and minds of the troops with quality coffee drinks and baked goods. Their cafés provide a safe, inviting respite for soldiers in dangerous lands.

Jason and Jon Araghi founded Green Beans Coffee in 1996. Its first store, Art Nouveau Café, was located in Saudi Arabia. The café became popular with local U.S. soldiers, who asked the brothers to open a café on a nearby military base. Green Beans Coffee grew with the U.S. military as its footprint expanded in Southwest Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Today, there are more than 55 Green Beans cafés worldwide. Green Beans Coffee Company believes in giving back to its customers that serve in the United States military.

The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) provides a wonderful support network for the surviving families of those who have died in service to America. For more information visit www.taps.org.

Soldiers’ Angels is a grassroots 501(c)(3) non-profit comprised of 200,000 volunteers in over twenty different teams and programs with unique and effective ways to support members of the U.S. military. Soldiers’ Angels operates internationally to provide letters, care packages, and comfort items to the deployed, and support for their families at home. They also provide assistance to the wounded, continuing support for veterans, remembrances and comfort for families of the fallen and immediate response to unique situations. For more information, see www.soldiersangels.org or call (615) 676-0239.

For more information, visit www.greenbeanscoffee.com
Contact: info@greenbeanscoffee.com
Phone: US (415) 461-4023
Phone: Intl: +965-697-2223

Crazy Horse Soldiers Conduct Route Clearance Mission

Soldiers of the Mortar Platoon, Company C, "Crazy Horse", 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, attached to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, enter the final leg of their route clearance mission May 2, conducting a dismounted patrol operation from their Combat Outpost in Baghdad al-Jidida along a major highway that runs to Forward Operating Base Rustamiyah.

The Soldiers conduct the route clearance mission from the COP daily to ensure that it remains free of improvised explosive devices and explosively formed projectiles. The 1st Bn., 66th Armor Regt. is part of the 1st BCT, 4th Infantry Division, stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, and deployed to Baghdad in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. (U.S. Army photo/Staff Sgt. Brent Williams)

Animals

Girl, 8, used as bomber kills Iraqi captain

Spokesmen for both the US and Iraqi military have confirmed that a girl strapped with explosives was the cause of a blast that killed an Iraqi captain and injured four soldiers south of Baghdad.

Iraqi Army Lt Ahmad Ali said the explosives were detonated yesterday as the girl approached the Iraqi commander in Youssifiyah.

Ali said from the scene that "the bomb was detonated by remote control, killing Capt Wassem Al Maamouri and injuring four soldiers."

And killing the girl, too, of course. Who was, I repeat, 8 years old.

This is why we fight.

h/t Bill at the Castle