Fort Bliss Monitor

Sgt. 1st Class Brian Sipp

Soldiers from the 4th Bde., 2nd Iraqi army div. teamed with Soldiers from the 4th Bde., 1st Cav. Div. in Operation Harpy, during a joint mission Jan. 12 highlighting the ability to project combat power away from Mosul into the surrounding towns and countryside.

Iraqi army, Cavalry exert
influence outside of city
2-7 Cavalry conducts first combat
air assault since Vietnam

Sgt. 1st Class Brian Sipp
4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div. Public Affairs

TALL ASWAD, Iraq – Soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 2nd Iraqi army division teamed with Soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division in a joint operation Jan. 12 that highlighted the ability to project combat power away from Mosul into the surrounding towns and countryside.

“The main purpose of this operation is to detain targeted personalities operating in the city of Tall Aswad that have ties to [anti-Iraqi forces] activities, capture weapons and [improvised explosive device] caches, and show those that may be operating in the “grey area” that we are observing their activities, and have the capability to act outside the city,” said Col. Stephen Twitty, commander of 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.

Operation Harpy began in the pre-dawn hours with the mobilization of a ground assault convoy made up of IA troops led by Brig. Gen. Noraddeen, commander of the 4-2 IAD and the main effort of the cordon and search phase of the mission.

Simultaneously, combat troops from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, boarded four UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and air assaulted in to set up four separate blocking positions on the north and south of Objective Beowulf, the operational term used for Tall Aswad, and target of the mission. Their focus was to form an outer cordon to block any anti-Iraqi forces trying to leave the city once the IA arrived and began moving through the town, according to the mission brief conducted at 2-7 Cavalry’s headquarters the day prior.

With a flurry of activity and precisely coordinated timelines, elements including Iraqi combat troops, 4th BCT Soldiers and U.S. Army helicopters. U.S. Air Force ground-air controllers and aircraft, explosive ordinance disposal specialists, military police and their working dogs, a civil affairs team, and a psychological operations team, converged on the city and began questioning locals and searching for any signs of insurgent activity.

“We will never cede the initiative to AIF. Having a flexible and adaptive plan that attacks the enemy inside and outside the city of Mosul will force the AIF to react to the CF,” said Lt. Col. Eric Welsh, commander of the 2-7 Cavalry and Coalition forces working with the Iraqi Army.

As the Coalition forces progressed through the city, the mission focus shifted from a display of combat power to an earnest effort to find out how they could help the residents of Tall Aswad, said Capt. Mark Harhai, 2-7 Cavalry civil affairs team leader. “Our mission today was one of consequence management,” explained Harhai. “Since that was not really necessary, as no insurgents put up a fight, we moved into handing out toys and candy to the children of the city to show goodwill and good intentions toward the residents.”

As children flocked to the 2IA soldiers and their Coalition CA counterparts for stuffed animals and candy, Noraddeen and Welsh took time to sit down with the leader of Tall Aswad and hear his concerns and assessment of the day’s events.

A little over two hours after the first helicopter landed, Tall Aswad was once again quiet and free of soldiers and helicopters as the last of the Coalition forces departed as quickly as they had arrived. The residents had seen the combat power of their Iraqi Army, supported by Coalition forces, and they had also seen the genuine concern for their well-being as evidenced by the reactions to the IA and civil affairs team’s outreach.

“The joint operation we conducted [Jan. 12] with the 4th Brigade IA was a great example of what the ISF is doing to make their country safe. We’ll continue to have a flexible, adaptive game plan that attacks the AIF across every line of operation inside our area of operation; and that includes lethal and non-lethal solutions,” added Welsh.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	Jan. 18, 2007

	Sgt. 1st Class Brian Sipp Soldiers from the 4th Bde., 2nd Iraqi army div. teamed with Soldiers from the 4th Bde., 1st Cav. Div. in Operation Harpy, during a joint mission Jan. 12 highlighting the ability to project combat power away from Mosul into the surrounding towns and countryside. Iraqi army, Cavalry exert influence outside of city 2-7 Cavalry conducts first combat air assault since Vietnam Sgt. 1st Class Brian Sipp 4th BCT, 1st Cav. Div. Public Affairs TALL ASWAD, Iraq – Soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 2nd Iraqi army division teamed with Soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division in a joint operation Jan. 12 that highlighted the ability to project combat power away from Mosul into the surrounding towns and countryside. “The main purpose of this operation is to detain targeted personalities operating in the city of Tall Aswad that have ties to [anti-Iraqi forces] activities, capture weapons and [improvised explosive device] caches, and show those that may be operating in the “grey area” that we are observing their activities, and have the capability to act outside the city,” said Col. Stephen Twitty, commander of 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. Operation Harpy began in the pre-dawn hours with the mobilization of a ground assault convoy made up of IA troops led by Brig. Gen. Noraddeen, commander of the 4-2 IAD and the main effort of the cordon and search phase of the mission. Simultaneously, combat troops from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, boarded four UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and air assaulted in to set up four separate blocking positions on the north and south of Objective Beowulf, the operational term used for Tall Aswad, and target of the mission. Their focus was to form an outer cordon to block any anti-Iraqi forces trying to leave the city once the IA arrived and began moving through the town, according to the mission brief conducted at 2-7 Cavalry’s headquarters the day prior. With a flurry of activity and precisely coordinated timelines, elements including Iraqi combat troops, 4th BCT Soldiers and U.S. Army helicopters. U.S. Air Force ground-air controllers and aircraft, explosive ordinance disposal specialists, military police and their working dogs, a civil affairs team, and a psychological operations team, converged on the city and began questioning locals and searching for any signs of insurgent activity. “We will never cede the initiative to AIF. Having a flexible and adaptive plan that attacks the enemy inside and outside the city of Mosul will force the AIF to react to the CF,” said Lt. Col. Eric Welsh, commander of the 2-7 Cavalry and Coalition forces working with the Iraqi Army. As the Coalition forces progressed through the city, the mission focus shifted from a display of combat power to an earnest effort to find out how they could help the residents of Tall Aswad, said Capt. Mark Harhai, 2-7 Cavalry civil affairs team leader. “Our mission today was one of consequence management,” explained Harhai. “Since that was not really necessary, as no insurgents put up a fight, we moved into handing out toys and candy to the children of the city to show goodwill and good intentions toward the residents.” As children flocked to the 2IA soldiers and their Coalition CA counterparts for stuffed animals and candy, Noraddeen and Welsh took time to sit down with the leader of Tall Aswad and hear his concerns and assessment of the day’s events. A little over two hours after the first helicopter landed, Tall Aswad was once again quiet and free of soldiers and helicopters as the last of the Coalition forces departed as quickly as they had arrived. The residents had seen the combat power of their Iraqi Army, supported by Coalition forces, and they had also seen the genuine concern for their well-being as evidenced by the reactions to the IA and civil affairs team’s outreach. “The joint operation we conducted [Jan. 12] with the 4th Brigade IA was a great example of what the ISF is doing to make their country safe. We’ll continue to have a flexible, adaptive game plan that attacks the AIF across every line of operation inside our area of operation; and that includes lethal and non-lethal solutions,” added Welsh.