Stryker Brigade News

Task Force Tomahawk takes
Stryker Soldiers 500 kilometers
from thier area of operations to
the Al Wasit Province of Iraq.

AL KUT, Iraq — When radical Shia
cleric Muqtada al Sadr’s militia were
wreaking havoc on the citizens of southern
Iraq during the first weeks of
August, the militiamen did not expect a
visit from the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry
Division (Stryker Brigade Combat
Team).
On August 12, three companies –
Company A, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry
Regiment; Company C, 1st Battalion,
23rd Infantry Regiment and Company
A, 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment
– formed Task Force Tomahawk and
headed south to decrease enemy activity
in the Al Wasit Province. Before the
Stryker Soldiers traveled 500 kilometers
from their area of operations in the
Ninevah Province to Al Wasit, the anti-
Iraqi forces launched several large-scale,
organized attacks against the Iraqi security
forces and destroyed a slew of government
buildings.
When the task force arrived in Al Kut,
Al Wasit, there were no enemy forces in
sight.
“The anti-Iraqi forces have hid and
gone to ground,” said Brig. Gen.
Richard Formica, the commander of
Task Force Thunder, the command-andcontrol
element for Tomahawk.
All that was left of the militia were al
Sadr propaganda posters hanging on
street corners and a few weapons
caches. However, officials said the
potential for civil unrest and violence to
spread was still high. The majority of
the Al Wasit population is Shia and
many support al Sadr. Despite no obvious
enemy presence, Stryker Brigade
Soldiers continued to work with area
security forces to ensure peace.
“As soon as we arrived, we hit the
militia’s headquarters and found a lot of
bomb-making materials and ordnance,”
said Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Ward, a
platoon sergeant with Company A, 5th
Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment.
The three weeks they were in Al Kut,
the Stryker Soldiers continued to operate
as if they were under constant threat of
attack. They conducted daily patrols,
addressed concerns of the local population
and searched suspected militiamen’s
homes. Although they quickly adapted
to their new surroundings, the Soldiers
admitted it was challenging conducting
missions in towns they were unfamiliar
with.
“The terrain is a lot different in Al Kut
than Mosul. Mosul is mostly an urban
environment and we know the streets
pretty well there,” said Sgt. John
Bradyof Company C, 1st Battalion, 23rd
Infantry Regiment. “We had good maps
and reconnaissance photos before coming
to Al Kut, so once we were able to
see the places we’d been studying, it
wasn’t that difficult to get around. I
think it’s impressive that we were able
to move a battalion-size element down
here and immediately begin operating in
an area we’ve never been to before.”
Of all the combat units in Iraq, said
Lt. Col. Buck James of Task Force
Tomahawk, the Stryker Brigade Soldiers
were chosen to secure the Al Wasit
Province because of the Stryker vehicle’s
outstanding tactical mobility and
agility.
“With our tactical ability and combat
power, we have the capability to efficiently
cover a lot of ground quickly,”
said James, commander of the 1st
Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment. “Al
Wasit is a large area and is mostly made
of small towns and agricultural areas, so
it’s important that we can move quickly
to reach the objective.”
Ward said while they were in Al Kut,
the entire task force was given a mission
that required them to travel 260 kilometers
to a town near Baghdad.
“We are a self-sustaining unit,” he
said. “We carry everything we need.
There are not too many units that can
drive 260 kilometers, hit a target with
the type of firepower we have and come
back before daylight.”
Ward said al Sadr’s militia probably
packed their bags and left town after
they saw the first Stryker. “I think the
Stryker vehicle has a mystique to it,” he
said “The word is out in this country
about us.”