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Saddam ‘Caught Like a Rat,’
4th Infantry Commander Says |
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| By Kathleen T. Rhem / American Forces Press Service |
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 WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2003 – Saddam Hussein was “caught like a rat” and offered no resistance when U.S. soldiers captured him near Tikrit Dec. 13, the U.S. general in charge of the operation said today.
Saddam was found hiding at the bottom of a hole hidden on a farm near his hometown. Roughly 600 U.S. soldiers were involved in the operation, but no shots were fired. Two other men were captured in the compound, Maj. Gen Raymond T. Odierno, commander of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division, said during a press briefing in Iraq. The 4th Infantry Division is responsible for coalition operations in the Tikrit area.
Odierno surmised the pressure on Saddam had become so tight that he couldn’t risk traveling with a large entourage, and therefore had no bodyguards with him. “It was him and just a couple other people with him, so he really didn’t have much of a security force,” the general said. “And he was in the bottom of a hole, so there was no way he could fight back, so he was just caught like a rat.” More |
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| 'WE GOT HIM' |
| 4th Infantry Captures Saddam In Remote Village Near Tikrit |
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| By Jim Garamone / American Forces Press Service |
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WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2003 —With three words –"We got him" –Ambassador L. Paul Bremer III announced at a press briefing in Baghdad today that U.S. forces had captured Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein near his hometown of Tikrit.
Saddam was taken into custody at a small mud-walled compound outside the village of Ad Dwar at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 13.
About 600 members of the 1st Brigade, 4 th Infantry Division, along with special operations forces, launched Operation Red Dawn after receiving intelligence that Saddam was in the area, said Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of coalition forces in the country. More
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| 'Task Force All American' Continues Operations in Anbar |
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| American Forces Press Service |
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WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2003 — The Army's 82nd Airborne Division and attached units, known collectively as "Task Force All American," is enjoying increased cooperation with the Iraqi people as the task force continues security operations to improve safety within the Anbar Province, according to U.S. Central Command officials.
During the past 24 hours, the task force conducted 25 tactical checkpoints and eight cordon-and-search operations, Central Command reported. Units also performed 169 patrols, including 13 joint patrols with the Iraqi Border Guard and Iraqi police. These operations resulted in the killing of three and capture of 16 enemy personnel. One U.S. soldier died as well. More |
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| Army Ocularist Restores Eyes, Provides
Renewed Confidence |
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| WASHINGTON,
Dec. 12, 2003 — Officials at Walter Reed Army Medical Center
in Washington, D.C., report that four to five of the wounded
troops returning to the center from Iraq each month for medical
care suffer from eye injuries. Among them are Sgt. Gary Boss
and Spc. Eric Lanstrum; both soldiers lost an eye during attacks
by insurgents. Aiding in their recovery at the medical center
is Vince Przybyla, the only ocularist in the Defense Department
and one of fewer than 100 in the country who can make prosthetic
eyes. He's using his unique skills to restore these soldiers'
appearance and confidence – and in many cases, preparing them
to return to full duty. |
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Mail Call
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Airman Terra Mason, a U.S. Air Force postal
worker, opens her own package that arrived
by mail at Baghdad International Airport,
December 11, 2003. U.S. Air Force
photo by Tech. Sgt. Lisa M. Zunzanyika |
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| U.S. Army Reserve Troops Help Renovate
Iraqi Elementary School |
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| By U.S. Army Maj. Bobby Hart / 143rd Transportation
Command |
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AN NASIRIYAH,
Dec. 11, 2003 — The good feeling may not last forever once school-aged
children near Tallil Air Base in southern Iraq figure out what
U.S. soldiers have done for them, but on Dec. 7, it was all smiles
as a group of more than two dozen children joined soldiers and
community leaders as they opened the renovated Zahour Elementary
School.
Soldiers from the Army Reserve’s 486th Civil
Affairs Battalion and 171st Area Support Group teamed up to rebuild the school
that had fallen into disrepair near the city of An Nasiriyah-site of some of
Operation Iraqi Freedom’s most fierce fighting and where 17 Italian peacekeepers
were killed recently. More |
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Gamble's
Deployment Journal
First Few Days at Fort Bliss |
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Army Staff Sgt.
Zeno Gamble, a Gulf War veteran, is
one of
the thousands of reservists who have
been called to active duty during Operation
Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom. Gamble
left his civilian job at the Pentagon
Dec. 7. Gamble
plans to share some of his deployment journal entries
with DefendAmerica.mil.
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Dec.
11, 2003 — Part three of the
Code of Conduct states: "I will accept
neither parole nor special favors from
the enemy."
I
find special meaning in this part of
the code. I have never been in a position
to be captured nor held hostage. I
certainly do not know what it is like
to be held against my will, and I doubt
that I ever will. However, I do know
that I feel an obligation to my countrymen
never to betray them. To accept any
sort of bribe from a captor while your
fellow men suffer is not an honorable
thing. There are bonds formed between
soldiers that should never be broken. More |
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| Global War on Terrorism |
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| On Iraq |
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| On Afghanistan |
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| Military News |
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Defense Officials
Identify Army Casualties |
WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2003 — Defense Department officials have announced the identities of two soldiers who died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spec. Marshall L. Edgerton, 27, of Rocky Face, Ga., was killed Dec. 11 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq. Edgerton was killed when his camp was attacked with an improvised explosive device. He died of his injuries. Edgerton was assigned to Company A, 82nd Signal Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division, based in Fort Bragg, N.C.
Pfc. Jeffrey F. Braun, 19, of Stafford, Conn., died Dec. 12, 2003, in Baghdad, Iraq. Braun died from a non-hostile gunshot wound. Braun was assigned to Battery B, 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division based in Fort Bragg, N.C.
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| Remembering the Fallen |
Troops Mourn Soldier
Killed After Returning Home |
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MOSUL, Iraq, Dec. 15, 2003 — After seeing eight months of violence in Iraq, Sgt. 1st Class Eduard Fico returned to his home in Georgia, where violence lurked in his shadow.
The soldier with the 501st Signal Battalion, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), went uninjured throughout the war and peacekeeping missions in Iraq only to lose his life at an auto repair shop in Augusta, Ga., after returning home to enroll in the Senior Non-commissioned Officer Course at Fort Gordon, the nearby Army base and home to the Signal Corps. More |
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U.S. Soldier Dies from
Non-hostile Gunshot Wound |
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 15, 2003 A Coalition Joint Task Force soldier died at about 7:30 a.m. today from a non-hostile gunshot wound. The soldier was transported to the 28th Combat Support Hospital. The soldier’s name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The incident is under investigation.
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Secretary of Defense
Donald H. Rumsfeld
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"In the last analysis, here's a man (Saddam Hussein) who has killed so many tens of thousands of people, who will have to be held accountable and brought to justice in some form, in some way." |
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Remarks during 60 Minutes
interview, Dec. 14, 2003
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Preliminary Court Proceedings
For Travis Airman Delayed |
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, ILL., Dec. 15, 2003 — The military judge appointed to preside over the court martial case involving Senior Airman Ahmad I. Al Halabi, Travis Air Force Base, Calif., has delayed the court martial's initial session, originally set for Dec. 15 at Travis, until mid-January.
The judge postponed the session until Jan. 13 to allow resolution of questions raised by defense counsel related to the ongoing investigation involving Senior Airman Al Halabi. The military judge, Colonel Barbara G. Brand of the Central Circuit Judiciary, Randolph AFB, Texas, is expected to arraign Al Halabi and hear motions at the session on Jan. 13.
The date of the proceedings before the court members detailed to hear this case, also to be held at Travis AFB, remains tentatively set for Apr. 20.
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Georgia Train and Equip Program
Graduates Forth Battalion |
TBILISI, Georgia, Dec. 13, 2003 — The fourth phase of tactical training for Task Force Georgia Train and Equip Program ended Dec. 13 with a downtown graduation ceremony for the 111th Light Infantry Battalion.
The 100-day training cycle, which focused mainly on company-level infantry tactics and maneuver warfare doctrine, was designed to professionalize selected units of the Georgian armed forces in order to provide security and stability to this troubled region. More
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BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, Dec . 15, 2003 -- The coalition in Afghanistan remembers what we are fighting for; we remember the thousands of victims of terrorism, here and abroad.
In coordination with the Islamic Transitional Government of Afghanistan, Combined Joint Task Force 180 continues to train the Afghan National Army, provide civil affairs support, and disrupt, deny, and destroy terrorist and anti-ITGA forces in order to establish a stable and secure Afghanistan. More |
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| Profile |
U.S. Army
Staff Sgt. Shon Lewis |
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| ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Army News Service, Dec. 10, 2003) — Staff Sgt. Shon Lewis, coach of the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program wrestlers at Fort Carson, Colo., has been selected as one of three coaches to lead Team USAs Greco-Roman wrestlers in the 2004 Olympic Games at Athens, Greece. More |
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Eleventh-Grade
Winners
Offer Their Insights |
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| WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2003 — America’s right to freedom “did not come easy for this country, and many lives were lost fighting for it,” wrote Senya Waas from Port Orchard, Wash., in the Weekly Reader’s Operation Tribute to Freedom essay contest. More |
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essays |
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"Today
is a great day for the Iraqi people and for the Coalition.
Last night at approximately 8:00 p.m. local, forces from
the 4th Infantry Division commanded by Major General Ray
Odierno together with Coalition Special Operations Forces
conducted Operation Red Dawn to capture the former Iraqi
dictator Saddam Hussein. This was done during a cordon and
search operation at a remote farmhouse near the city of Tikrit. 
WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2003 —President Bush praised the “superb skill and precision by a brave fighting force”that led to the 4th Infantry Division’s Dec. 13 capture of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, which Bush said “marks the end of the road for him, and for all who bullied and killed in his name.“
