Soldiers of 1st Platoon, Alpha Company, enter and clear a building during heavy fighting, Nov. 9, 2004, in the Askari District of North Eastern Fallujah. Want to write for Task & Purpose? (Photo courtesy of Sgt. As we packed our belongings, we couldnt help but be hopeful for better living conditions, but were instead greeted with cots on the desert sand and our vehicles in a circular security formation. She knew what I did for a living when she married me, but I don't think she knew a part of that deal was that my sons would be deploying to combat as well. He left the Marine Corps as a sergeant in 2009. When I talk about Marines about Fallujah, I think about the individual actions. Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class James Pell was rushing toward a badly injured Marine on a Fallujah rooftop last fall when an insurgent popped out of a house and unloaded his AK47 in the doc's direction. The outcome: Both sides lost. House to house: An epic memoir of war. Retired Lt. Gen. John Sattler and Kent, who led I Marine Expeditionary Force in Iraq from 2004 to 2005, will also speak. On March 27, the commanders took the offensive. The bond between us, built and strengthened from our training and previous months of suboptimal conditions (embracing the suck), ultimately allowed every member of Death Platoon to walk out of the house that night alive and together. That force was fear. During a lull in the fire, Bellavia approached the house again and observed an insurgent loading a rocket-propelled grenade launcher. They're larger than life and in some cases seem unbelievable. Besides, as several Army officers have since noted, the CAP work only if the broader environment is fairly secure, which Iraq certainly isnt. U.S. Army Soldiers enter a building in Fallujah, Iraq, during Operation al Fajr (New Dawn) on Nov. 9, 2004. After that, Falluja became a safe haven for al-Qaeda. Falluja was Sunni - and it had done well under Saddam Hussein's Baath. Locking up one tread, the driver deliberately fishtailed the vehicle so it spun around and lined the ramp up with waiting medical personnel. A. The death of a leader can be devastating to a unit. Dan ran back up to that rooftop to see where the rounds were landing and call them off of us.". (Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker, who rose through the ranks of special-operations forces, is attempting to shift its focus to low-intensity conflicts, but such wholesale changes take time.) Years later, that is still one of my most memorable quotes of the Iraq war. Covered in dust, soot, and blood, the Marines stood among the debris and rubble of a city-turned warzone, looking rough and worn, just a few days into the fight. They were helping to rebuild Fallujah after so much devastation, and they got to see the first attempt at an Iraqi election in 2005. Move!" His plans to make a lateral career move and become a human intelligence Marine began to fade. Though the Marine Corps' birthday has landed on many the days of battles over time, Fallujah is the most recent and was called, "the biggest urban battle since the battle of Hue City in Vietnam.". We crawled off the roof and fell down the stairs, back into the noise and confusion of the building. That kicked off a yearslong effort to combat ISIS, which ended when the Iraqis retook the city in 2016. Making their way into the courtyard of a two-story building, they came under heavy attack. In early November, as the battalions two sniper teams met up in the evening at a six-story building in Fallujah dubbed the flower factory Sgt. Shortly after the CSM died, we completed night operations with the company and found ourselves surrounded by insurgents in an open city square, just steps away from our operating base. Instead of getting drunk and eating lobster and steak, we were doing the one thing every Marine trains for, thinks about, and begs to do. It seemed as if everyone was wounded from enemy small arms fire and indirect fire, like RPGs and mortars. "I think that that's the most important thing. Ten years on, Elliot Ackerman, deeply affected, still wears a wristband to remember Lt Malcolm. This article may not be republished, rebroadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without written permission. His Soldiers had searched nine houses along the street looking for six to eight insurgents that intelligence reports suggested were in the area. The Slate Group LLC. When a Marine was shot between the eyes on Nov. 14, there wasnt enough time to wait for a helicopter to arrive at his location, explained Lt. Col. Patrick Gallogly, who was the battalion air officer at the time and was on the radio calling for a casualty evacuation. Civilians were warned that they should leave. Some Jim Lovell spoke to the American Veterans Center about joining the Navy, becoming an astronaut and the rescue of the ill Command Sgt. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. The Army at the time was calling in airstrikes to suppress insurgencies in the Sunni triangle. It was strange to think this young captain had just promoted some of us only days prior to leaving FOB Normandy. And you're watching what's occurring and you're hearing from old friends and teammates and you're incredibly proud of what your team is accomplishing, even if you can't be a part of it. As insurgent activity increased throughout Iraq, we received orders to move to an undisclosed location to prevent potential uprisings. Thirty-five members of 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, have died by suicide since 2003. U.S. Marines continued to face isolated resistance from insurgents hidden throughout the city. A dozen civilians, men and women, were inching forward, waving a ragged white sheet. Running roughly one-sixteenth of an inch under the skin, the tracer round drew a vicious line directly underneath his Marine tattoo, perfectly underlining it. (Then again, it may have hampered or delayed the talks; the situation is not yet clear.) Members of the US-appointed Iraqi Governing Council threatened to walk out. Are walking blood banks coming to a field hospital near you? As the crisis unfolded, Mr West was at the headquarters of the marines' commander, Gen James "Mad Dog" Mattis. Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? When another insurgent began firing from a floor above, Bellavia returned fire and killed him. Death Platoon's sleeping arrangements in the desert of Iraq, 2004. The BBC's Paul Wood was embedded with Marines as they went into Falluja, Fighting took place house-to-house, incurring heavy casualties, Insurgents used mosques as bases, with snipers positioned on their minarets, Ten years after the battle, Falluja fell to the Sunni extremist group Islamic State, Most civilians had left Falluja before coalition forces attacked, The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. We knew early on. The city had been a stronghold for insurgent forces since the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Q. Attendees will range from four-star generals who led the battle to junior enlisted troops who cleared rooms. Q. But 3/1, along with other Marine and Army units who fought in Phantom Fury, faced significant loss. How was it that the biggest battle of the Iraq campaign was fought more than a year-and-a-half after the invasion - and after the now notorious declaration by President Bush of "Mission Accomplished"? I served in combat with both of my sons. Before they could go room by room clearing the structure, however, they were ordered to move out of the area because close air support had been called in by a nearby unit. He followed the wounded insurgent's bloody footprints to a room on the landing and threw in a fragmentation grenade. An official website of the United States government, New Extended Battlefield - Multi-Domain Operations, France 44: The Wet Gap Crossings at Nancy, Battles of the Korean War Virtual Staff Rides, https://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/31/international/worldspecial/enraged-mob-in-falluja-kills-4-american.html, https://history.army.mil/html/books/iraq/TotS/index.html, https://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/bellavia/, https://www.army.mil/article/178601/november_2004_into_the_hot_zone_at_the_second_battle_of_fallujah, Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. The United States wasnt the first country to develop a jet-powered fighter aircraft, but it was definitely the first in Before Dr. Ruth Westheimer began teaching couples how best to shoot their shot, she was taking some shots of her own. Kidnap victims - Iraqi and foreign - disappeared there. None of that would have been possible without taking Fallujah away from the enemy. he yelled. The effort was led by the U.S. Marine Corps and was the bloodiest battle of the Iraq war. The marines wanted journalists there to witness that. "Hey diddle-diddle, straight up the f-ing middle," one of the officers said to me quietly. The Marines are inherently oriented to lighter, lither modes of combat: In Vietnam, their combined-action platoonswhich lived among the people and trained them in self-defensewere widely considered more successful than the Armys search and destroy tactics. Once we entered the city, we turned our focus to urban warfare and house-to-house combat. Alternatively, if you are still experiencing problems please copy and paste this email address usarmy.leavenworth.tradoc.mbx.armyu-aup-nco-journal@mail.mil into the To: line of your email. The whole squad was very upset about that. The impetus for the battle began in March when four American private military contractors from Blackwater USA were ambushed and killed in Fallujah. The New York Times. When you went back, could you tell Fallujah was going to be so pivotal? Conner dove behind the dead body of an enemy insurgent as Hanks hurled himself behind a lone tree in the center of the yard. The platoon operated with little oversight or intrusion from outside elements as 2-2 Infantrys leadership allowed us to operate more independently than most traditional combat engineer platoons. Along with the Silver Star, Bellavia also was awarded the Bronze Star, three Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals and the New York State Conspicuous Service Cross. They were probably killed when their armoured four-wheel-drive vehicle was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade. "It was survivability," he said. Walter Jackson: Second Lieutenant: Distinguished Service Cross: 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry Regiment: September 27, 2006: Ramadi (Second Battle) Insurgents were killed and their hideouts were destroyed, but so were civilians and their homes. The US Marines wanted to move into Falluja "like a soft mist" and quietly arrest the guilty, said the military historian Bing West, a former Marine Corps officer in Vietnam. Death Platoon before invading Fallujah, Iraq, 2004. The US Armys premier multimedia organization that focuses on advancing the ideas and insights military professionals need to lead and succeed. A second insurgent fired at him, and Bellavia wounded him in the shoulder. Click the buttons below to read articles about the Second Battle of Fallujah - Operation Phantom Fury and its implication on the Corps, yesterday and today. That's when many of us suddenly realized was it was the Marine Corps Birthday, "OUR" birthday. Retired Lt. Gen. Richard Natonski, who as a two-star led 1st Marine Division and the ground-maneuver element in Fallujah, will provide a declassified battle brief. For most of them, any kind of wound could end their major-league dreams forever. So out came the sledgehammers that Conway and other Marine generals had recently chided their Army counterparts for employinga crude siege of the city, followed by gunships firing howitzers, and fighter jets dropping 500- to 1,000pound bombs. A corporal at the time, Workman led his team into the house where Marines were pinned down by insurgents. My oldest son was in Fallujah during my second tour, and my youngest son was in Afghanistan during my tour there. Marine snipers using thermal imagers could see the insurgents and shot them through the wall. Read about our approach to external linking. "The enemy has got a face," he said. Years Later, Some Are Saddled With Debt. It would be tested and strengthened during the Battle of Fallujah. (Marco Di Lauro/Getty Images) To make sure they returned home to their families. By the time of the battle, a city of normally 400,000 people was just 10 percent of that, determined to be the elderly, the infirm and the enemy. At FOB Normandy, we were housed on the second floor of a two-story building. On Sept. 24, 2004, a senior U.S. official told ABC News that catching Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was said to be operating in the city, was "the highest priority.". When he entered a bedroom, the wounded insurgent followed, forcing Bellavia to shoot him. Baseball players enlisted in droves. Task & Purpose spoke with six Marines who served with 3/1 during the battle and asked them to share the most unbelievable things they witnessed during the operation. As the fighting intensified, platoons from the company conducted house-to-house operations to clear out the city. In a race to get the wounded man to the care he needed, an Army National Guard unit loaded the Marine into a M113 armored personnel carrier they were using as an armored ambulance. The plan was for Death Platoon to breach one side of the city while the Marines breached the opposite simultaneously, but like most things in war, things did not go according to plan. We would sporadically get news from command of the casualties they sustained and friends we would never see again. The situation was indicative of the challenge troops faced in Fallujah, where enemy fighters -- with caches of weapons -- hid among civilians. After being evacuated, his ring was eventually found and returned to him. And I'm a beneficiary of it still today. "I had a period of, like, a year or two when I just had zero cares about anything in the world.". That was Lt Dan Malcolm. His family found him in time to stop it. Some joined the "resistance". Their attack in April 2004 - the first battle of Falluja - quickly got bogged down. Even tremendously, egregiously wounded Marines laying in a bed at hospital without a limb will say, "Sir, I want to get back in the fight." Marines doctrine was naval centric and flawed They wanted to frontal assault and end fighting quickly so fleet could leave and not be tied down as a sitting duck off . But he also had a lot of time to think about what he'd seen there. November then came, and the Marines were sent in again to liberate the city and eliminate the enemy from of every inch of it. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness.". A roadside bombing outside Fallujah, about 25 miles west of Baghdad, kills 10 U.S. Marines and wounds 11 others. to where I am today. Sporadic fighting continued until Dec. 23. Tip of the spear: U.S. Army small-unit action in Iraq, 2004-2007. https://history.army.mil/html/books/iraq/TotS/index.html, Medal of Honor: Staff Sgt. While the Americans took fire from various vantage points inside the house, Bellavia called in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle to shell the houses. I can appreciate now the lessons They had interpreters, combat cameramen and were well-trained. The event will give Marines and other Fallujah veterans a chance to share what's on their minds or ask questions of leadership about what happened there, he said. James Phillips, were killed inside the house. This is the real meaning of being What was this like for you, following the battle as you recovered in Bethesda? Explore in 3D: The dazzling crown that makes a king. As we continued our house-to house-clearing objective, we found a small closed door. Seeing that Smith was being crushed under the incredible weight of the up-armored Humvee, 1st Sgt. Seven Marines died in their first 10 days of deployment. He started giving up on his career. The owners had left behind Baath party membership cards and pictures of Saddam Hussein. The Navy Cross recipient recalled drinking heavily and suffering nightmares about that stairway he kept running up in that house. There was unrest among the Shia majority, not just among Sunnis. Now the black flag of jihad flies over Falluja once again, the Islamic State in control. Its sons joined the army and the police. There was no Iraqi government, no police this was a terrorist stronghold. Additionally, more than 250 awards. Gettleman, J. The first Battle of Fallujah took place in April of 2004 when insurgents killed and mangled the bodies of four Blackwater contractors, capturing the events on video. The commanding officer was killed when he entered a house where insurgents sat in ambush. Excerpts, edited for space and clarity: Q. Some of the Marine Corps greatest heroes and most recent legends emerged from the battle. The only civilians we saw were on the first day, from the roof of the building where Lt Malcolm was killed. A Marine Corp major showing us around stood embarrassed as a woman in black niqab screamed at him that her husband had been shot dead at a checkpoint. The sound of battle was all around us but the roof seemed awfully still and quiet. Fifteen years later, not a day goes by that he doesn't think of the Marines they lost, he said. First Battle of Fallujah, (April 4-May 1, 2004), also called "Operation Valiant Resolve," U.S. military campaign during the Iraq War to pacify the Iraq city of Fallujah, rid it of extremists and insurgents, and find those responsible for the March 31 ambush and killing of four American military contractors. As Mardan and the others yelled over the radio for a ceasefire, there was a sudden thump which he remembers to this day as a TOW missile burst through the wall and skidded to a halt, sputtering feet away from the radio and right in the center of the Marines. When I was a young specialist, I was a combat engineer in a unit known as Death Platoon. My platoon was attached to an infantry unit and deployed for a year with Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, in 2004. Disabled Veterans Sign up for a Career Change. Now a crisis trainer for a Virginia school district, Edwards has been on a mission to bring Phantom Fury vets back together. Hanks was killed a week later on Nov. 17 while providing security and was posthumously awarded a Silver Star for valor. That's what won that battle. Nicholson, now the commanding general of 1st Marine Division, planned a reunion and commemoration here for Marines who fought in the deadly battles in Fallujah. On the third day of the battle, Gunnery Sgt. Iraq was boiling over. A third Marine, Lance Cpl. The interesting thing here is that my squad leader and I crossfired and shot the insurgent diagonal from our respective positions we were more concerned with saving each other rather than protecting ourselves. November, 2004 - Into the hot zone at the Second Battle of Fallujah. They were being used as insurgent bases, the minarets sniper positions. On March 31, the same day when insurgents mutilated the four American private security guards, they also killed five Marines. CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. It has been a decade since Marines fought for their lives and their brothers-in-arms in Iraq's bloodiest battles, which would spark a turning point in the eight-year war. "There's so much that lives with us 15 years later," he said. The city became the scene of brutal urban combat when American, Iraqi, and British forces launched an all out assault on Nov. 7, 2004, to seize it from Iraqi insurgent hands. Learn more here and be sure to check out more great stories on our homepage. This immediate isolation forced us into a tight-knit group, allowing us to build the bonds that ultimately saved our lives. Marines hugged and shook hands, while others tore into MREs to pull out pound cakes, which they stuck matches in as if they were candles. It was Nov. 10, 2004, Bellavia's 29th birthday. All these years later, Kent is one of the Marines with whom Workman stays in touch. Operation Phantom Fury, the second chapter of the fight to retake Fallujah from Iraqi insurgents, will forever be known to Marines. Q. The ranks of the 1st MEF were ordered not to curse, wear sunglasses, or wave with their left hands (all considered offensive in the local culture). But that was exactly what the US Marines were ordered to do. Marines patrol the streets of Fallujah, Iraq during Operation Phantom Fury November, 2004. Video, The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, Trump rape accuser says her generation stayed quiet, MasterChef Australia host Jock Zonfrillo dies, More than 100 police hurt in French May Day protests, Father tells how gunman opened fire on Texas home, US rock band Aerosmith announce farewell tour, Disney faces countersuit in feud with Florida, Explosion derails train in Russian border region, Street piano confiscated as public 'break rules', NFL player's daughter, aged two, drowns in pool. It facilitated elections in Fallujah, and also in Ramadi and all over Anbar province.