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Hunting drive-by killers on patrol in Baghdad

Aug-16-2006 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT

Finally some news from the 3/2 SBCT.

Link to Full Article
By Ross Colvin

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - "Take cover!" yelled Captain Ryan Nystrom as gunshots rang out.

The leader of the 14th U.S. Cavalry "Crazy Horse" platoon and his men crouched behind a low wall, trying to figure out where the two "pop pop" sounds had come from. A minute later, they heard the low boom of an explosion somewhere nearby.

They were hunting two cars that residents of the southern Baghdad district of al-Hadar had told them were responsible for a series of fatal drive-by shootings in the past few days.

Nystrom and his platoon are just one of the American units involved in a crackdown by U.S. and Iraqi forces on the Shi'ite-Sunni sectarian violence ravaging the capital that has pushed the country toward all-out civil war.

First Squadron of the 14th Cavalry, equipped with the U.S. military's latest armored vehicle, the eight-wheeled Stryker, was diverted from its deployment to Anbar province two weeks ago in preparation for the operation in Baghdad.

Army chiefs have also ordered other Stryker units to the capital, the vehicle's maneuverability, ability to deploy infantry squads quickly, and ability to survive against roadside bombs seen as ideal for the streets of Baghdad.

Nystrom and his men had been patrolling Abu-Disheer, a largely Shi'ite area, and al-Hadar, a mixed neighborhood, for two weeks without incident, although one night the platoon medic did help save the life of a baby who had swallowed oil.

When the Crazy Horse platoon set out from Forward Operating Base Falcon in southern Baghdad on Tuesday, their main mission was to catalog empty or abandoned houses that could be used as hideouts by insurgents or militias.

That is page one of a three page article.


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