Ambush!
An ambush last night south of Samarra, which is located along the avenue of approach to the southern city of Najaf, left one Soldier dead and another wounded.
At 11 p.m., the convoy arrived at Iskandariyah, near the Euphrates River. Groups of Iraqi men stood along the street, silently watching the vehicles pass, many of them with their arms crossed on their chests. No waving, no cheering.
As the rear of the convoy crossed the river, a parachute flare shot up across the moonless night sky. A minute later, two more arced up and then slowly descended. The Soldiers tensed: Flares are commonly used by Iraqi fighters to signal comrades lying in wait for the approach of U.S. troops.
Four minutes after the last flare, a ringing explosion resounded in the middle of the convoy. Sgt Major Fourhman, 47 years old, in charge of the convoy, calmly but quickly said over the radio: "IEDs, IEDs" -- the roadside bombs that the military calls improvised explosive devices. Red dots began zinging at the convoy - tracers, then other flashes and colors. "RPG, RPG," he radioed -- rocket-propelled grenades.
He looked up at the gunner on the .50-caliber. "Ratcliffe, aim for the base of fire."
Pfc. Steve Ratcliffe and the driver -- Spec. Sean Yebba, a 22-year-old from near Boston -- reacted calmly, doing their jobs. No one spoke unnecessarily. Ratcliffe, 19, who worked at a grocery store in Sacramento until he enlisted in the Army, swung the machine gun, searching for a target, his face illuminated only by the green glow of the night-vision scope atop his big weapon and opened fire.
The convoy kept moving, firing as they went. No vehicles were disabled and the machine gun fire quickly ended the threat
"I have one wounded," came a voice over the radio.
The nighttime ambush left one Soldier dead, another wounded. When it was over, a commander in a second Stryker calmly lit a cigarette, leaned over in his Stryker, and in a whisper jokingly said to his crew, "Don't be alarmed, but somebody here is trying to kill us." How true...
At 11 p.m., the convoy arrived at Iskandariyah, near the Euphrates River. Groups of Iraqi men stood along the street, silently watching the vehicles pass, many of them with their arms crossed on their chests. No waving, no cheering.
As the rear of the convoy crossed the river, a parachute flare shot up across the moonless night sky. A minute later, two more arced up and then slowly descended. The Soldiers tensed: Flares are commonly used by Iraqi fighters to signal comrades lying in wait for the approach of U.S. troops.
Four minutes after the last flare, a ringing explosion resounded in the middle of the convoy. Sgt Major Fourhman, 47 years old, in charge of the convoy, calmly but quickly said over the radio: "IEDs, IEDs" -- the roadside bombs that the military calls improvised explosive devices. Red dots began zinging at the convoy - tracers, then other flashes and colors. "RPG, RPG," he radioed -- rocket-propelled grenades.
He looked up at the gunner on the .50-caliber. "Ratcliffe, aim for the base of fire."
Pfc. Steve Ratcliffe and the driver -- Spec. Sean Yebba, a 22-year-old from near Boston -- reacted calmly, doing their jobs. No one spoke unnecessarily. Ratcliffe, 19, who worked at a grocery store in Sacramento until he enlisted in the Army, swung the machine gun, searching for a target, his face illuminated only by the green glow of the night-vision scope atop his big weapon and opened fire.
The convoy kept moving, firing as they went. No vehicles were disabled and the machine gun fire quickly ended the threat
"I have one wounded," came a voice over the radio.
The nighttime ambush left one Soldier dead, another wounded. When it was over, a commander in a second Stryker calmly lit a cigarette, leaned over in his Stryker, and in a whisper jokingly said to his crew, "Don't be alarmed, but somebody here is trying to kill us." How true...
posted by deesci | 10:46 PM
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