Part II of Death or Glory is up on Michael Yon's site:

The intended target in an ambush never knows when it’s over. Yesterday’s
ambush, which killed two soldiers and wounded three others, is a case in point. Once the Brits had dealt with the immediate aftermath of the ambush—setting up security, calling in air support, tending to the wounded and getting EOD in to deal with the remaining dozens of bombs—our convoy still had its mission objective. So we put the disabled vehicles in tow and continued our journey deeper into the desert.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - Michael is one of the best there is.

Also up are these posts you'll want to check out:

"Seeing" by Chris Muir of the "Day by Day" cartoon, includes audio files of interviews he conducted (including one with a local radio station manager who is sleeping at the station due to threats on his life), and an exerpt from Lt. Scott Beals's journal, covering his experiences in Mosul.

Update on the Books of Salah al Din is an update to his 2005 post about the US medical community's efforts to resupply Iraqi medical libraries. The project is still going strong.

Labels: Blogwatch, British troops, Coalition Forces, Iraq, Michael Yon

“Yeah, breaker one-nine, this here’s the Rubber Duck, you got a copy on me Big Ben? C’mon.”
“Ah yeah, ten-four Big Ben, for sure, for sure. By golly it’s clean clear to Flagtown. C’mon.”
“Yeah, it’s a big ten-four there Big Ben. Yeah, we definitely got the front door good buddy. Mercy sakes alive, looks like we got us a convoy.”

A young British soldier named Simon expected to be driving logistics trucks into Iraq, and so adopted the dusty old hit “Convoy” as his fight-song and personal anthem. A man doesn’t have to wait long to hear Simon play it again, yet instead of barreling up Iraqi highways, Simon finds himself at Basra Air Station, shuttling occasional journalists, and performing base duties, including escorting Iraqis hired for manual labor. Asked for his take on that task, Simon opined with tones of befuddlement and wonder, as when a person sees what appears to be intensely conflicting signals....

So starts Michael Yon's latest dispatch, Rattlesnake. If you haven't checked it out yet, make the time. Lots of great pictures, and a rare look at British forces in Basra. Well worth the stop.

Labels: Basra, British troops, Coalition Forces, Iraq, Michael Yon

Michael Yon sends word that at about 10 a.m. today, he will be posting a dispatch about a firefight he witnessed while embedded with British troops.

The dispatch describes a large firefight the Brits had on Monday. They fought very well, and allowed me to get as close as I dare. I got right in the middle and took photos...

He says that the Brits he's with are "an excellent group of infantry soldiers."

He sends these photos, which are some of those that will be in the dispatch:





Make sure you check it out!!


Michael Yon's photos are posted with permission, and should not be reposted or published without same.


UPDATE: The post is up at Michael's site:

Greetings:

I am in Basra, with our British Coalition partners, who this week launched a clever operation that lured enemy fighters into combat, a decision that proved fatal for more than two dozen of militia members and terrorists. Please click the link to read about Operation Arezzo.

New readers will find the dispatch Tabula Rasa gives context to my work from Iraq.

Another dispatch, with more than 100 photos of the 1-4 Cav at work in Baghdad, is nearly ready. What an excellent bunch of soldiers! I'll send out an announcement when "Desires of the Human Heart" is published and folks at home can see and read about things rarely reported.

I am energized by this embed with British soldiers, which has me in the thick of things with their soldiers who are engaged with the enemy. I broke yet another lens in combat with the British on Tuesday.

Before it got smashed, the lens was taking great photos, some of which you'll see in the latest dispatch, and others will be published in the coming days.

This site is wholly contingent on reader support, for which I'm truly grateful. In addition to keeping me in camera lenses, reader support is the best indication I have of how important it is for me to continue this work.

Respectfully,

Michael

Labels: Blogwatch, British troops, Coalition Forces, Iraq, Michael Yon