BLT 1/6 tightens grip on Taliban

HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan (May 24, 2008) – Since men first wielded weapons against one another, all fighting forces have shared one universal weakness, stop resupply lines and your enemy becomes defenseless. 

 

 Just days after engaging Taliban forces in an intense firefight and gaining valuable positions, the Marines of Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, International Security Assistance Force, tightened their grip on insurgents with the exploitation of this weakness in mind.

 

On the outskirt of the District of Garmsir a platoon of armored humvees rolled into place.  To the untrained eye this rugged trail looks like a hundred others, any expanse of desert marked with tire tracks qualifies as a road in these parts, but this one is the insurgent’s lifeblood.

 

“They (villagers) are saying that this area is where insurgents are getting re-supplied from so we established a vehicle control point here, a route leading into the city,” said Cpl. Brian Floyd, vehicle commander, 1st Combined Arms Platoon, Weapons Co., BLT 1/6, 24th MEU, ISAF. “

 

For days, Floyd and his Marines stop cars overflowing with people, men on motorcycles, cargo trucks, and most often tractors pulling trailers filled with people.

 

“We set up this entry control point to establish a presence so they (insurgents) think twice about coming in, let them know, ‘hey, we are trying to keep a lot of the stuff out of the city that’s been getting in,’ because they were able to re-supply through here the past week,” said the 22-year-old who is on his third deployment.

 

This is the thinking man’s part of war that isn’t exciting enough to show in movies, but just as important as the fighting – cutting off the enemy’s ability to fight. In two days of checking vehicles there was no grand cache of weapons discovered, or arrest of suspected Taliban fighters, but the fact that nothing happened actually meant the Marines were successful.

 

“Just having a presence, being out here, is a big thing. They’re scared; they’re scared of big trucks (armored, heavy-machine gun equipped, humvees). They won’t come around here,” explained Floyd. “We haven’t found anything really, weapons and stuff. They don’t want a direct engagement with us.”

 

The random nature of such checkpoints should make any more Taliban fighters wary of trying to enter the city, said 2nd Lieutenant Clint Harris, platoon commander, 1st CAP, Weapons Co., BLT 1/6, 24th MEU, ISAF.

 

“It just denies the enemy that avenue of approach, that ability to move in and out. For us being out there, we didn’t feel like we accomplished anything, but not by not getting into contact, we were accomplishing the mission of safeguarding that flank,” said Harris.

 

For the Marines stopping and checking the vehicles, it was an odd juxtaposition from their heavy-fought battle just days prior.

 

“It’s real weird, because that’s like the most adrenaline rush I’ve had in my whole life,” said Lance Cpl. Joshua Sepanski, turret gunner, 1st CAP, Weapons Co., BLT 1/6, 24th MEU, ISAF,  of his first combat action. “At first I was asking, ‘what are we checking for? Are we assuming they all are the enemy?’ It was weird when you first get there because you try to be nice to them, but at the same time you look at them and think, ‘are these people going to try to kill me?’”

 

Sepanski remembered his command’s ethos.

 

“One of our ethos is, ‘the Afghan people are not our enemy, the enemy lives among them,” he said.

 

So Sepanski cleared the thought from his mind and began interacting with travelers.

 

“After I got out and made contact and started talking to the people, they were normal nice people. They were willing to cooperate. If you found something in their pockets and asked to see it they would take it out and show you,” said the 27-year-old.

 

Harris credits his core of veteran Marines with allowing his men to transition from firefight to traffic stops without missing a beat. 

 

“Our platoon is pretty senior. A lot of the Marines were in Ramadi last year and a lot of the new Marines came in and got taught the Ramadi mindset of dealing with the local population,” he said.

 

The checkpoint displayed another asset the Marines of Weapons Company brings to the battle space.

 

“They are usually a forward line of reconnaissance for a battalion. So we would establish either a screen line or a guard line to a flank or in front of a battalion if it is moving. That’s where we are looking to make contact, gain intelligence, find a route, or something like today, guarding a flank. That’s a doctrinal action for us,” Harris explained.

 

As the checkpoints continued the heavy flow of traffic dwindled until cars were few and far between. The word was getting out; the Marines are here.

 

“They travel that route; the people who supply the Taliban travel that route. Those people are going to go back and say, ‘the Marines are sitting on that road, so you might not want to take that road,” Sepanski said.

 

For more photos visit www.flickr.com/24meu

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24th MEU exploits success in Garmsir

HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan (May 17, 2008) – Marines with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit and the British forces of Task Force Helmand launched an operation to enhance security for the citizens of the Garmsir District in Southern Helmand Province April 28.  

 

    By engaging with the leaders of Garmsir to determine what is required to bring stability to their district – a district which has seen little International Security Assistance Force presence in the recent past, these forces will help facilitate long-term change and improvement. 

 

     Garmsir has long been used as a planning, staging and logistics hub by the neo-Taliban.  Through capturing identified enemy strong points and defensive positions south of Task Force Helmand forward operating bases, Marines opened previously denied routes through the Garmsir District to the economically vital Helmand green zone, while simultaneously disrupting insurgent activities in the area. 

 

     “The Marines gain ground every day and secure more of the routes through the district.  The support we have received from our allied partners has contributed to our many successes thus far,” said Col Peter Petronzio, commanding officer, 24^th Marine Expeditionary Unit, International Security Assistance Force

 

     In contrast to recent tactics, insurgents have demonstrated a persistent and concerted effort to resist the advancement of troops and hold ground.  Marines consistently encounter disorganized resistance in the form of small arms, indirect fire, and rocket propelled grenades. Despite stouter than expected resistance, Marines have succeeded in a region that was previously unsecured.    

 

     “The number of fighters that stood and fought is kind of surprising to me, but obviously they’re fighting for something,” Maj. Tom Clinton, executive officer, 1^st Battalion, 6^th Marine Regiment, 24^th MEU, said.  “They’re flowing in; guys are going south and picking up arms. We have an opportunity to really clear them out, cripple them, so I think we’re exploiting the success we’re finding.”

 

     The effectiveness of the Marine’s approach is already evident on the ground.

 

     “We have seen that they are starting to have trouble reinforcing and getting arms, said Lt Col. Kent Hayes, executive officer, 24^th MEU.”  “Because we’ve seen fighters coming in from other areas, the rest of Helmand, rather than from just around Garmsir, that is telling us about the success we’re having, that we are affecting and disrupting them.  We are defeating the enemy when they oppose us and, when they reinforce, we’re defeating them as well.”

 

     Success in the region is complex, not defined merely by defeating insurgents, but also by the manner in which you aid the people who live there.

 

     During lulls in the fighting, Afghan citizens began brining children to the Marines for medical treatment, including an 11 year-old boy with abdominal wounds, which his father said was inflicted by insurgents.  He, as well as one baby, have been treated and returned safely to their families.

   

     “I think the most telling aspect is that, an Afghan citizen of Garmsir had no qualms about bringing his wounded child to a newly established Marine position where Marines were heavily armed,” said Petronzio.  “Here is a man who has first-hand experience of life under the Taliban.  He knows that with them there is no offer of hope, no plan and no future. He knows we are here to help.”

 

     As the fighting stabilized in areas, Marines also were able to find and meet with village leaders.  In meetings with Afghan elders, the sun-aged, bearded men said that the two sides could “join together” to fight the Taliban. “When you protect us, we will be able to protect you.”

 

     As for how long this operation will last or how far south the Marines will pursue insurgents, it is to be determined.

 

“This is the start,” said Hayes. “We started in Garmsir. As far as ending it, I will tell you that it’s not time-driven. We will leave Garmsir at the time and place of our choosing.”

 

 

As of May 17, 2008 the Marines have discovered 10 caches.  The caches contained variations of mines, rocket propelled grenades, mortars, and IED making materials. They also identified and control detonated 6 IEDs and discovered and destroyed several fortified enemy positions.

 

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