LONG-RANGE TECHNIQUE - A U.S. Army soldier uses long-range marksmanship techniques to engage steel targets with an M-14 enhanced battle rifle during a four-day marksmanship course on Forward Operating Base Marez in Mosul, Iraq, April 13, 20009. The soldiers are assigned to 1st Cavalry Division's Company A, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Benjamin Fox

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, FOB Marez, Iraq, M-14, Mosul, photos, US Army

MOSUL GREETINGS - U.S. Army Capt. John Karcher shakes hands with an Iraqi civilian during a search for weapons and bomb paraphernalia in Mosul, Iraq, May 24, 2008. Karcher is assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Sarah De Boise

Labels: 2nd ID, Iraq, Mosul, photos, US Army

By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service


WASHINGTON, May 19, 2008 – More normalcy returns to northern Iraq every day, even as Iraqi and coalition forces continue to hunt down extremist groups, a senior military official said May 16.

Many areas in the region -- which stretches from Baghdad to Iraq’s border with Syria and Turkey -- continue to show signs of a return to normal life for the people who live there, Army Maj. Gen. Mark P. Hertling, who commands Multinational Division North and the Army’s 1st Armored Division, told online journalists and “bloggers” in a conference call.

In Iraq’s Diyala province, for example, very little enemy activity has been going on for more than 45 days, the general said. “I think that is a direct result of our continued pursuit operations in some of the outer boundaries in the main areas of that province,” the general explained.

Al-Qaida in Iraq is the main enemy in Diyala province, Hertling said, while in Kirkuk and Salahuddin provinces, Iraqi and coalition forces are pursuing a variety of enemies -- not only al-Qaida in Iraq, but also Ansar al-Sunnah and other extremist groups.

Hertling noted the region’s diverse population in explaining the challenges his soldiers face in their area of operations.

“In northern Iraq, we have 136 different tribes that we have counted. We have seven different religions, … and three different sects of Shiia, Kurds and Sunnis, plus we have Turkomans and the mix of Turkoman Shiia, Turkoman Sunni and Turkoman Kurd,” he said. “It is a very diverse cultural mix up here in the north, very different [from] Anbar, which is the Sunni heartland, with one tribal base down there.”

The Iraqi government has shifted its efforts in Minaya province, the general said. “We’ve continued to prepare with our Iraqi security partner counterparts, … specifically [in] the city of Mosul, and since the 10th of May there’s been an operation led by the Iraqis, supported by our forces, called Operation Lion’s Roar,” he said.

Hertling added that he and his Iraqi partner, Lt. Gen. Riyadh Jalal Tawfiq, commander of Ninewah Operations Command, began preparing for this operation in February.

“They rounded up about 800 targeted individuals. There have been a lot of [weapons] cache finds; the significant activities in Mosul have been significantly reduced,” Hertling said. He described some of those captured in Mosul as “Tier 1” al-Qaida in Iraq leaders.

Hertling said he’s encouraged by the successes in Mosul and the degree to which the credit belongs to Iraq’s own troops. “The Iraqi security forces are doing independent operations, and we’re supporting them,” he said, noting that their knowledge of the area and its people are a key element in their success. Having seen the earliest days of today’s Iraqi military, Hertling said, he’s impressed by how far they’ve come.

“The capability of the Iraqi army, especially since the last time I was here, since 2003-2004 when they were first standing up, has been significantly improved,” he said. “They are gradually improving their capability and their effectiveness.”

And as Iraqi and American forces continue to track enemy fighters in the northern region, they are finding out that many people carrying out attacks in the region do so for financial gain in struggling economy, not because they hold extremist views.

“About 50 percent of the people conducting attacks are not conducting attacks because they believe in the ideology; they’re conducting the attacks because they’re being paid by these groups, and the unemployment is so off the charts over here that this is the only way some of these guys can feed their children,” Hertling explained. “One of the points we continue to make with the prime minister is that we have to continue to get jobs for people.”

(Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg works for the Defense Media Activity.)


Related Sites:
Multinational Corps Iraq
Defense Department Bloggers Roundtable

Labels: Diyala Province, Good News, Iraq, Iraqi Security Forces, Kirkuk Province, Minaya Province, Mosul, Multinational Division North, Ninewah Province, Operation Lion's Roar, Salahuddin Province

From FOX News:

Thursday, May 8, 2008

A joint Iraqi-American raid in the northern city of Mosul has resulted in the arrest of the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, a spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense told FOX News on Thursday, but U.S. officials aren't convinced yet of the suspect's identity.

DNA tests are being conducted to confirm the man captured is Abu Ayyub al-Masri. U.S. officials are cautious because al-Masri is an elusive figure and previous reports of his death or capture all turned out to be false.

One U.S. source tells FOX News that the intelligence community is "extremely skeptical" that al-Masri has been arrested.

If al-Masri's identity is confirmed, however, the arrest would be a significant blow to Al Qaeda in Iraq, not so much because of the disruption to its leadership but because of the information he may be able to provide.

Read the Rest

Labels: Abu Ayyub al-Masri, Al Qaeda, Good News, Iraq, Mosul, terrorists

Close Air Support
First Lt. Peter Cacossa directs an OH-58 Kiowa helicopter from a rooftop toward the sound of small-arms fire heard during a raid in Mosul, Iraq, April 17, 2008. Kiowas support troops on the ground in contact. Cacossa is a platoon leader in Heavy Company, 3rd Squadron, 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment from Fort Hood, Texas. Photo by Spc. John Crosby, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

Labels: 3-3 Armored Cavalry Regiment, helicopter, Iraq, Kiowa, Mosul, OH-58, photos, US Army

HOWITZER POWER - A Paladin fires its 155mm Howitzer from Badoush Prison near Mosul to expose enemy movement, March 29, 2008. The Howitzer belongs to Howitzer Battery, 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment from Fort Hood, Texas. U.S. Army Spc. John Crosby

Labels: 3rd ACR, Badoush Prison, Howitzer, Mosul, Paladin, US Army

US military kills al-Qaida leader

By PATRICK QUINN,
Associate Press Writer

BAGHDAD - A U.S. military helicopter fired a guided missile to kill a wanted al-Qaida in Iraq leader from Saudi Arabia who was responsible for the bombing deaths of five American soldiers, a spokesman said Sunday.

U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith said Jar Allah, also known as Abu Yasir al-Saudi, and another Saudi known only as Hamdan, were both killed Wednesday in Mosul.

According to the military, al-Saudi conducted numerous attacks against Iraqi and U.S. forces, including a Jan. 28 bomb attack that killed the five U.S. soldiers.


Read the Rest, at Yahoo! News

Labels: Good News, Iraq, Mosul, terrorists

Friday, February 29, 2008

BAGHDAD — Gunmen on Friday kidnapped Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, police and the church said.

The gunmen also killed three people who were with Rahho, 65, at the time of the kidnapping, which occurred after he ended a Mass in a nearby church, said Iraqi Brig. Gen. Khalid Abdul-Sattar, a spokesman for the Ninevah province police.

An aide to Iraq's Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, leader of the church, said he did not know who was behind the kidnapping.

Read the Rest at Fox News

Labels: Iraq, Mosul, Ninevah Province

ROOFTOP SECURITY - U.S. Army soldiers attached to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment provide security on a rooftop during a patrol in the Al-Risalla district of Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 21, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kieran Cuddihy

Labels: 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Al-Risalla District, Mosul, photos, US Army

From Multi-National Force-Iraq:


Sgt. Angela Mathern and her bomb-sniffing dog Vinny, both of the 51st Military Police Detachment, based out of Ft. Lewis, Wash., inspect a cart carrying propane tanks in downtown Mosul during a search of random vehicles for weapons and bomb-making materials, Feb. 14. Soldiers from the 552nd Military Police Company, based out of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, pull security. Photo by Sgt. Patrick Lair, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.


Wednesday, 27 February 2008

MOSUL — U.S. military police in northern Iraq are developing new tactics in an attempt to counter insurgent violence in the Ninewah provincial capital city of Mosul.

In February, the 552nd Military Police Company, based out of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, working with military canine handlers, began conducting a series of random traffic searches in downtown Mosul for vehicles transporting explosives.

“If we get detection dogs and start actively seeking them out, it denies the enemy the capability of bringing them out,” said Sgt. 1st Class Michael Ford, platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon, speaking of the explosive materials often used by insurgents to create improvised bombs in houses and roadways.

On Jan. 24, the issue was brought to a head when an estimated 20,000 tons of insurgent explosives detonated in a three-story building in downtown Mosul, resulting in death and injury to multiple Iraqi civilians.

“The goal here is to deny the enemy that availability of supplies,” said Ford, now on his third combat deployment to the city.

On a recent outing, Sgt. Angela Mathern, a canine handler with the 501st Military Police Detachment, based out of Fort Lewis, Wash., accompanied Vinnie, an explosives dog, in his search of vehicles at downtown intersections.

“I let Vinnie do his thing. He’s the expert on it all,” she said of the three-year-old black lab she’s trained with for nearly a year. “I’m the expert on handling him. My eyes are always on my dog.”
Both Mathern and Ford said the searches are just another way Coalition troops are working to bring security to the city of nearly 1.7 million residents.

“This is just something else we can do to help out in our area,” Ford said.

“Our basic mission here is to save lives,” Mathern said. “Whenever people ask me why I do this job, I tell them I’m saving lives every time I go out.”

(Story by Sgt. Patrick Lair, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)


In Other Recent Developments Here:

TIKRIT — Multi-National Division – North Soldiers killed seven terrorists during a firefight east of Khan Bani Sa’ad in the early morning hours of Feb. 25.

BAGHDAD — Coalition forces captured four suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq leaders in Baghdad, Feb 24.

Labels: 51st Military Police Detachment, 552nd Military Police Company, Iraq, military working dog, Mosul, Ninewah Province, photos

TWILIGHT CONSTRUCTION
U.S. Army soldiers assemble traffic impediments at an Iraqi police checkpoint in the Abu Nouri area of Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 12, 2008. The checkpoint will provide security in an area with high levels of insurgent activity. The soldiers are assigned to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment's 3rd Squadron, Headquarters Troop. Patrick Lair, U.S. Army

Labels: 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Abu Nouri, Iraq, Mosul, photos, US Army

POWER PLANT VISIT - U.S. Army soldiers attached to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment meet with the manager of a power plant in Mosul, Iraq, Dec. 27, 2007. The soldiers are assessing how they can assist with bringing the plant to operational capability. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kieran Cuddihy

Labels: 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, infrastructure, Iraq, Mosul, photos, US Army

MOSUL PATROL
U.S. Army soldiers attached to the 2nd Iraqi Army Division Military Transition Team patrol a neighborhood in Mosul, Iraq, Dec. 1, 2007. The U.S. soldiers work side-by-side with Iraqi soldiers in an advisory capacity. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kieran Cuddihy

Labels: Iraq, Mosul, photos, US Army

MOSUL OPERATIONS — U.S. Army Maj. Kevin Speilman, of Headquarters Company, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, listens to a translation while speaking with village leadership during operations on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq, Sept. 17, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Christopher Hubenthal

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, Iraq, Mosul, photos, US Army

U.S. Army Sgt. Blake Cirks places an identification poster up of possible vehicle-borne improvised explosive device makers during operations in Mosul, Iraq, June 5, 2007. Cirks is assigned to Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kristina Columbus and her military working dog Anna search a garage suspected of being used to make vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices, June 5, 2007, in Mosul, Iraq. Columbus is assigned to the 25th Infantry Division. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Scott McKissen prepares to test a piece of cloth for explosives residue after wiping a suspect's hands in Mosul, Iraq, June 5, 2007. McKissen is assigned to Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Scott McKissen wipes a suspect's hands to test for explosives residue during an operation being conducted in Mosul, Iraq, June 5, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Scott McKissen sparays a piece of cloth to test for explosives residue after wiping a suspect's hands in Mosul, Iraq, June 5, 2007. McKissen is assigned to Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ


U.S. Army Spc. Colby Richardson flexi cuffs an Iraqi man after he is identified as a possible vehicle-borne improvised explosive device maker during operations in Mosul, Iraq, June 5, 2007. Richardson is assigned to Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ



More photo essays at DefendAmerica

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, 2-7 Cavalry, 2BCT, Iraq, Mosul, photo essays, photos, US Army

Unit supply specialist Pfc. Alice Stokes, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, watches as Spc. Dwayne Jones, automated supply specialist, A Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div., moves Stokes’ unit supplies to her vehicle April 12 on Forward Operating Base Marez, Mosul, Iraq. Stokes makes the journey to the Supply Support Activity warehouse daily to pick up valuable supplies for her unit. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Bradley J. Clark, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SR# 041507- 52
April 15, 2007


By Pfc. Bradley J. Clark
4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs


FORWARD OPERATING BASE MAREZ, Iraq— The Soldiers of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, are always in need of supplies to make their jobs run smoothly. It’s the job of the automated logistical specialists of A Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion to make sure the Soldiers get the supplies they need in a timely manner.

Company commander, Capt. Courtney Sugai, is in charge of the Supply Support Activities warehouse here and says the almost 4,400 items that the SSA stocks regularly, helps provide direct support to the 230 Department of Defense Activity Address Codes in the 4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div. area of operations.

The 230 different DODAACs each represent a different company’s supply sergeant or motor pool.

“After a soldier has requested something from their supply sergeant, the supply sergeant puts the order in the SARSS (Standard Army Retail Supply System),” said Sugai. “Once the order is in the SARSS, we check to see if it’s one of the items that we stock, if it is, then the storage section takes it over to the issue section and they put it in the unit’s pick-up box. If we don’t stock the item, then the SARSS system sends out the order to the company to have it shipped,” said Sugai.
Once an item has been ordered, it gets shipped to the SSA warehouse and the Soldiers in the receiving section are the first to see it.

“We wait for the trucks to come in,” said Spc. Margot Sinti, who works in the receiving section. “After the trucks come in, we pull the pallets down and sort through everything. After we sort through it all, we take it to where it needs to go, the storage section, the issue section, or the turn-in section. We do this pretty quickly. Sometimes it only takes us 30 minutes.”

“We have 24 hours to get everything to the different sections, but normally it only takes us a few hours,” said Pvt. Andre Barbosa, who also works in the receiving section, “We try to have everything ready the same day it comes in because we have customers that come in everyday. We get five to six trucks a day, seven days-a-week, at any time of the day. When the trucks come in, we have to check everything to make sure it’s accurate. If a box says it has 100 screws in it, then we have to count all 100 of them.”

After an Item has made its way through the receiving section, if it is something that the SSA warehouse stocks, it heads over to the storage section.

“When we get an item, we find out what it is and stock it in its proper location,” said Sgt. Theresa Sutton, storage section noncommissioned officer-in-charge. “If an item doesn’t have a certain location, then we create one for it, put the location in the SARSS, and then put the item in that location. After we see that a supply sergeant has placed an order for something that we stock, we send it over to the issue section so they can pick it up. We used to get 97 percent of the items that the receiving section would process, but now we only get about 5 percent of the items that come in due to authorized stock increases.”

The final stop an item makes before a supply sergeant can pick it up, is the issue section.

“After items have been received and checked in, they get brought to us,” said Spc. Dwayne Jones, who works in the issue section. “When we get the items, we sort them and put them in the proper customer pick-up areas. We have customers that come in everyday and then we have some that come only once a month because they are always in the field.”

When it comes to items that stand out in the SSA warehouse, the crew has thousands to choose from.

“We get anything from nuts that cost 1 cent to circuit cards that cost $20,000,” said Pfc. Ivan Martinez, also a member of the issue section. “Those circuit cards come in small boxes and you don’t think it’s anything, but it’s something.”
Even though the little items make a big impression in the storage and issue sections of the SSA warehouse, it’s the big stuff that stands out in the receiving section.
“We get everything from pens to engines,” said Barbosa. “The thing that amazed me the most was a tank engine that took up a whole pallet.”

Whatever it is that Soldiers need, the SSA warehouse makes sure that they get it as quickly as possible.


Automated supply specialist Spc. Dwayne Jones, A Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, moves a pallet of supplies to a customer’s vehicle, April 12. Jones works in the issue section of the Supply Support Activity warehouse on Forward Operating Base Marez, Mosul, Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Bradley J. Clark, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)


Specialist Dwayne Jones, automated supply specialist, in the issue section of the Supply Support Activity warehouse, loads a pallet of supplies onto a vehicle for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, April 12. Jones is just one of the many Soldiers from A Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div. who run the SSA warehouse on Forward Operating Base Marez, Mosul, Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Bradley J. Clark, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)


Soldiers from A Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, like Spc. Dwayne Jones, who is loading a pallet of supplies onto a customer’s vehicle April 12, work in the Supply Support Activity warehouse on Forward Operating Base Marez, Mosul, Iraq. The SSA warehouse provides direct supply support to the 230 different companies in the 4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div. area of operations. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Bradley J. Clark, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs)

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division photos, 2-7 Cavalry, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4BCT, FOB Marez, heroes, Iraq, Mosul

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Adam Johnson provides security over workers from a flour factory during a raid, Feb. 27, 2007, in Mosul, Iraq. Johnson is with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, out of Fort Bliss, Texas. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Vanessa Valentine


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mike Rice looks through personal belongings of workers from a flour factory, Feb. 27, 2007, during a raid in Mosul, Iraq. Rice is with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, out of Fort Bliss, Texas. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Vanessa Valentine


A U.S. Army soldier provides security over workers from a flour factory, Feb. 27, 2007, during a raid in Mosul, Iraq. The soldier is with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, out of Fort Bliss, Texas. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Vanessa Valentine


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Adam Johnson clears a staircase during a raid on a flour factory in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 27, 2007. Johnson is with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, out of Fort Bliss, Texas. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Vanessa Valentine


U.S. Army Staff Sgts. Adam Johnson and William Johnson discuss the location of a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device that exploded nearby during a raid on a flour factory in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 27, 2007. The soldiers are with Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, out of Fort Bliss, Texas. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Vanessa Valentine



More photo essays at DefenseLink

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, 2-7 Cavalry, 4BCT, Fort Bliss, Iraq, Mosul, photo essay, photos, US Army

Iraqi Army soldiers assist Coalition Forces, assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, in the removal of hundreds of items found stashed underground during a search of an abandoned compound in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 9. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ryan Kennedy, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment)


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SR# 030107-34
March 1, 2007

By Sgt. Paula Taylor
4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs

MOSUL, Iraq— Two Garryowen troops assigned to Ghost Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, each received a brigade coin March 1 for a raid conducted Feb. 9 that netted one of the largest weapons caches in the Ninewa Province.

The cache, which was located in a walled-off compound, was discovered by Pfc. Ryan Kennedy and Spc. Isaiah Johnson, both infantrymen assigned to A Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment.

“Our battalion got [information] that there was a weapons cache in one of the lots [in the city],” said Kennedy, a Pequannock Township, N.J. native. “They called us up. We actually didn’t think we were rolling out until later that day.”

Kennedy’s platoon arrived in the suspected area and began taking small arms fire from a mosque across the street, he said. After they secured the area, they, with the help of Iraqi Army troops, were able to find and detain 10 suspects before moving into the actual compound where the cache was believed to be located.

“We pushed forward to continue searching another lot after another platoon moved up to secure the detainees,” he said. “There were four garages and a small building with two rooms in it; one was like a tool room and the other was like a living area. We cleared the building and the garages.”

After a brief search by 1st Squad, 1st Platoon Soldiers of the immediate area, their supervisor, Sgt. Shen O, split his team up for a more comprehensive search.
“Me and Specialist Johnson went back to the room that was like a living area and started busting all the floor tiles,” Kennedy said.

“We saw a sink and tried turning it on,” Johnson, a Chicago native, explained. “It didn’t turn on. There was a stove next to it. At the time, we didn’t think anything of it.”

The two continued busting floor tiles to see if the ground would give way.
“Once we busted all the tiles, we started getting frustrated that we weren’t finding anything,” Kennedy said. “We went and got Lieutenant Miller, our executive officer, and asked him if he had any ideas. I busted the sink that was in there and Lieutenant Miller kicked over the sink base.”

After the sink was knocked out of the way, the three began taking a closer look at the possibilities.

“Once we broke the sink, we saw there weren’t any pipes under it,” Johnson explained. “The XO noticed there was no grout between the tiles.”

“We could tell something was wrong with it because the tiles under it were real loose,” Kennedy added. “I hit it with a sledgehammer and it fell through. You could clearly see some [rocket-propelled grenades], some bags and different types of munitions. The opening was only about one foot by one foot. You had to squeeze in, and then there was a narrow crawl space that you could barely kneel in. That led to an open room that was about seven foot, by seven foot, by seven foot. We were overjoyed (to find the cache). All these months we weren’t finding anything. We were going on raids, searching vehicles. We were all so excited. When we saw it, we just started yelling out, ‘Hey, we found it, we found the cache!’”

After discovering the secret room beneath the sink, a member of the explosive ordnance disposal team, who was waiting nearby, was called into the compound to check the hole and cache room for dangers. Once he deemed it was safe to enter, other troops began arriving to assist in the removal of the items.

“There was everything you could name in there,” Johnson excitedly recalled. “Missiles you shoot helicopters with, grenades, mines, wiring, cell phones, tons of AK-47s and ammo. It took us several hours to get it all out. It made us feel happy finding that stuff, knowing they can’t use the weapons against us. It was sneaky how they had it set up, with the sink and the stove. They tried to make it look like it was a kitchen. We put the clues together and we figured it out. It made us really happy. We were proud to have found all this stuff and help get it all out,” Johnson bragged.

Some of the items included in the day’s find were 30 blasting caps, about 250,000 rounds of small arms ammunition, 25 grenade fuses, 37 high-explosive anti-tank weapons, 100 unfused grenades, one Iranian PG-7 grenade rocket, six Chinese 75mm APERS rocket fuses, 13 French 68mm SPAMV rockets, 72 rocket motors, 10 Iraqi 40mm rockets, 221 mortars, 300 various fuses, 40 pounds of propellant, 50 pounds of detonation cord, 13 PG-7 launchers, 17 AK-47 assault rifles, one Russian machine gun, two sniper rifles, one PKC machine gun, 40 million Iraqi Dinar, more than 400 fake identification cards, and various Motorola radios, including one Iraqi police radio believed to have belonged to an IP who had been previously kidnapped and subsequently killed.

“People can say I found it, but everyone was searching that day,” Kennedy modestly admitted. “We were all working really hard. Everyone was covered in sweat even though it wasn’t that hot. It was back-breaking labor. There were other finds, too. They found Iraqi Dinar and fake IDs in another area. Everyone worked hard that day, it wasn’t just me and Johnson.”

In recognition for their part in the discovery, Johnson and Kennedy were given a 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Coin of Excellence, which was presented to them by their first sergeant.

“It was a large cache,” Said 1st Sgt. Eric Volk. “They knew it had to be right under their feet. These guys are very determined to have a positive impact in this area. You could see it in their faces afterward. They knew they finally made a difference. These troops had just recently lost their platoon sergeant (Sgt. 1st Class Russell Borea). This is one big thing they have done since then. They’ve got a lot of pride, they’re very strong guys and I think they feel like they’ve finally achieved that big step against the insurgency. I couldn’t ask for any better troops than what I’ve got.”



Garryowen troopers Pfc. Ryan Kennedy and Pfc. Raul Alderete, infantrymen, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, kneel above the hole leading to one of the largest weapons caches discovered in Mosul, Iraq, since the arrival of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division in November 2006. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Shen O, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment)


Executive officer 1st Lt. Michael Miller, A Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, crawls down into the small hole that leads to a weapons cache he and two of his troops, Pfc. Ryan Kennedy and Spc. Isaiah Johnson, discovered during a raid on an abandoned compound in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 9. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ryan Kennedy, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment)


Garryowen troops Spc. Isaiah Johnson and Pfc. Ryan Kennedy, infantrymen, A Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, are presented with 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Coins of Excellence March 1 by 1st Sgt. Eric Volk for their part in the discovery of a large weapons cache in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 9. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Thomas Christian, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment)

Labels: 1st Cavalry Division, 2-7 Cavalry, 4BCT, Good News, Iraq, Mosul, Operation Iraqi Freedom, photos, US Army