Stryker Brigade News

Iraqi Soldiers found a large weapons cache south of Baqubah May 21 consisting of 307 mortar rounds, 4 boxes of mortar fuses, 11 boxes of Dishka rounds, 24 mine fuses and AK-47 magazines. The weapons cache was confirmed by members of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. The cache was discovered after Soldiers had found an additional 12 caches while clearing the towns of Al Bazania, Mula Eead, Ibrahem Al Mathkor, Al Naqib, Saed Mustafa, Al Bya’a, Saisbana, Al Gabaat, Old Saysabani, Kanbaru, Karim Al Nassir, Qaryat Al Hadaf, Ali Salem, Al Anbar, Nahar Ibrahem and Mahdi Alasward over the past two weeks.

During the major operation both ISF and Peshmerga forces worked together to clear areas in Diyala and to bring humanitarian aid to the people of the region.

On May 22, 100 families in the town of Horea received large bags of rice and other items during one of the many humanitarian aid missions that have taken place over the past three weeks throughout the province.

“Glad Tidings of Benevolence II” has been a very successful operation,” said Col. Burt Thompson, commander of Coalition Forces in Diyala, “With more than 26, 000 combined Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces, some from outside the province, the ISF have cleared Diyala and are working hard to ensure they hold their gains.”

They have planned for and distributed humanitarian assistance packages and worked closely with Coalition Forces, the Provincial Reconstruction Team and the newly elected Government of Diyala on essential service and infrastructure improvement projects throughout the Province. “We still have a lot of work to do in Diyala, but we are making gains every day,” said Thompson.

Iraqi and Coalition leadership met on May 23 to receive a briefing on the status of operation “Glad Tidings of Benevolence II” in the Diyala province. Attending were the Iraqi Minister of Defense, Multi-National Forces-Iraq Commander Gen. Raymond Odierno.