Operation Gaugamela
Encyclopedia
Without a single shot being fired, more than 3,000 members of the Iraqi Security Forces
(ISF) and Bastogne Soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, detained 154 terror suspects and seized more than 350 semi-automatic and automatic rifles, a variety of pistols and mortar rounds, as well as a large number of materials used to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) during Operation Gaugamela (gaw'guh-MEE-luh), a search for suspected al-Qaeda
terrorists in the cities and areas surrounding Hawija
and Riyadh
, just west of Kirkuk
, Iraq
.
area, southwest of Kirkuk. Using their own intelligence information, soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division planned and conducted the missions, detaining nine terror suspects and seizing a cache of weapons.
“This was the first time the Iraqi’s in our area have self-sustained during an operation,” said Captain Krista Jekielek, the Bastogne Brigade’s logistics representative to the Iraqi Security Forces. “It was a significant validation, showing they are capable of moving the necessary personnel and supplies required to perform their mission.”
Once the Iraqis had completed their searches and attention was drawn to the areas southwest of Kirkuk, operations quickly shifted to the Hawija and Riyadh areas.
“It was my intent to disrupt insurgent operations and to deny them sanctuary in these communities,” explained Colonel David R. Gray, commander of the 1st Brigade Combat Team. “To do this, we made it look as though we were focused on the south, and then used the element of surprise to help us clear and control the areas to the north.”
A combined U.S. and Iraqi force simultaneously set a security perimeter on the city of Hawija, preventing escape, while more U.S. and Iraqi forces air assaulted from nine UH-60 Blackhawk and eight CH-47 Chinook
helicopters into the city and maneuvered quickly to the market at the city center. Once there, they immediately started a door-to-door search of every building in the city. Meanwhile, approximately 10 miles (16.1 km) away, another combined force set a security perimeter on the city of Riyadh and began searching every building in that city.
“The folks in Hawija were taken completely by surprise,” said Major Scott Jones, an operations officer for the Bastogne Brigade. “You could see them scattering in all directions. They were running to get inside buildings, and jumping in cars to try and get out of the city.”
As the combined teams of Iraqi soldiers and police searched alongside Bastogne Soldiers, AH-64 helicopters and coalition airpower provided cover from above. In all, more than 700 homes and buildings were searched.
“The Iraqi Security Forces were extremely proficient and professional,” said Captain Lyn Graves, an Army spokesman who patrolled Hawija with the ISF. “We moved quickly through several structures, and discovered an IED factory on the second floor of one building.”
In addition to taking terrorists and weapons off the street, the discipline of the Soldiers involved in the mission truly stands out, according to Maj. Greg Bishop, a 1st BCT spokesman.
“The Iraqi and coalition Soldiers went into the two most contentious cities in the Kirkuk province, searched hundreds of homes and buildings and detained more than 150 suspects with no violence what so ever,” Bishop said. “That’s an incredible success and true measure of the professionalism of everyone involved in this operation.”
Iraqi Security Forces
The Iraqi Armed Forces are the military forces of the Government of Iraq. They consist of the Iraqi Army, the Iraqi Air Force, and the Iraqi Navy....
(ISF) and Bastogne Soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, detained 154 terror suspects and seized more than 350 semi-automatic and automatic rifles, a variety of pistols and mortar rounds, as well as a large number of materials used to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) during Operation Gaugamela (gaw'guh-MEE-luh), a search for suspected al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
terrorists in the cities and areas surrounding Hawija
Hawija
Hawija is a town near Kirkuk north of Baghdad.Hawijah is in the Al-Tamim province of Iraq and approximately 30 miles south of Kirkuk. There are approximately 450,000 people in and around Hawijah with an estimated 80% Sunni Population. While the city itself has about 150.000 with 98% Sunni...
and Riyadh
Riyadh
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
, just west of Kirkuk
Kirkuk
Kirkuk is a city in Iraq and the capital of Kirkuk Governorate.It is located in the Iraqi governorate of Kirkuk, north of the capital, Baghdad...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
Operation Details
Following a request from local Sunni Arab leaders to rid the area outside of Kirkuk of terrorists, and as reports indicated a rise in the number of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQIZ) moving into the area, the 10 day operation, covering 25 cities and villages spanning more than 900 square miles (2,331 km²), began with a series of smaller Iraqi Army operations targeting 20 objectives with a history of terrorist activity in the RashadRashad
Rashad as a surname may refer to:* Ahmad Rashād, American sportcaster and former professional footballer* Phylicia Rashād, American actressPeople with the given name Rashad:* Rashad Evans, American mixed martial arts fighter...
area, southwest of Kirkuk. Using their own intelligence information, soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division planned and conducted the missions, detaining nine terror suspects and seizing a cache of weapons.
“This was the first time the Iraqi’s in our area have self-sustained during an operation,” said Captain Krista Jekielek, the Bastogne Brigade’s logistics representative to the Iraqi Security Forces. “It was a significant validation, showing they are capable of moving the necessary personnel and supplies required to perform their mission.”
Once the Iraqis had completed their searches and attention was drawn to the areas southwest of Kirkuk, operations quickly shifted to the Hawija and Riyadh areas.
“It was my intent to disrupt insurgent operations and to deny them sanctuary in these communities,” explained Colonel David R. Gray, commander of the 1st Brigade Combat Team. “To do this, we made it look as though we were focused on the south, and then used the element of surprise to help us clear and control the areas to the north.”
A combined U.S. and Iraqi force simultaneously set a security perimeter on the city of Hawija, preventing escape, while more U.S. and Iraqi forces air assaulted from nine UH-60 Blackhawk and eight CH-47 Chinook
CH-47 Chinook
The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is an American twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter. Its top speed of 170 knots is faster than contemporary utility and attack helicopters of the 1960s...
helicopters into the city and maneuvered quickly to the market at the city center. Once there, they immediately started a door-to-door search of every building in the city. Meanwhile, approximately 10 miles (16.1 km) away, another combined force set a security perimeter on the city of Riyadh and began searching every building in that city.
“The folks in Hawija were taken completely by surprise,” said Major Scott Jones, an operations officer for the Bastogne Brigade. “You could see them scattering in all directions. They were running to get inside buildings, and jumping in cars to try and get out of the city.”
As the combined teams of Iraqi soldiers and police searched alongside Bastogne Soldiers, AH-64 helicopters and coalition airpower provided cover from above. In all, more than 700 homes and buildings were searched.
“The Iraqi Security Forces were extremely proficient and professional,” said Captain Lyn Graves, an Army spokesman who patrolled Hawija with the ISF. “We moved quickly through several structures, and discovered an IED factory on the second floor of one building.”
In addition to taking terrorists and weapons off the street, the discipline of the Soldiers involved in the mission truly stands out, according to Maj. Greg Bishop, a 1st BCT spokesman.
“The Iraqi and coalition Soldiers went into the two most contentious cities in the Kirkuk province, searched hundreds of homes and buildings and detained more than 150 suspects with no violence what so ever,” Bishop said. “That’s an incredible success and true measure of the professionalism of everyone involved in this operation.”
American Units
- 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division
Terrorism, Bombings and Insurgency Related
- TerrorismTerrorismTerrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
- Iraq Insurgency
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- Bombings and terrorist attacks of the Iraq War
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Casualties
- United States casualties of warUnited States casualties of warMilitary casualties suffered by the United States of America in war or deployments-Overview:- Wars ranked by total American deaths :"Deaths per day" are the total number of US military deaths, divided by the number of days between the dates of the commencement and end of hostilities, or until 25...
- Post-traumatic stress disorderPost-traumatic stress disorderPosttraumaticstress disorder is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,...
- Iraq Body Count projectIraq Body Count projectIraq Body Count project is a web-based effort to record civilian deaths resulting from the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq. Included are deaths attributable to coalition and insurgent military action, sectarian violence and criminal violence, which refers to excess civilian deaths caused by criminal...
- Violence against academics in post-invasion IraqViolence against academics in post-invasion IraqSince the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Iraqi academics have frequently been threatened with violence, kidnapped, or murdered. Although it is impossible to determine the exact scale of the violence and intimidation, the Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education reported that over 3,250 academics had fled the...