Published: October 06, 2005
Iraqi, Coalition Forces September Weapons Haul in Baghdad Biggest Since May
BAGHDAD, Iraq - During combat operations to crack down on terrorist cells and their support networks in and around Baghdad, Iraqi and Coalition Forces seized 31 weapons caches in September, making it the largest monthly haul since 54 caches were seized in May.
On one occasion, Iraqi Police and Task Force Baghdad Soldiers patrolling together in the Mansour district of central Baghdad came under machine gun fire from terrorists hiding in a building Sept. 21.
Iraqi Soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, also working in the area, went to assist the combined patrol while U.S. attack helicopters flew in to provide air support. When the firing stopped, the Iraqi Soldiers stormed inside the building and found a weapons cache containing rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms ammunition.
The Soldiers found 35 mortar rounds and rockets, one mortar tube, 27 RPGs, three roadside bombs, and five cell phones. Five terrorists were killed by Iraqi Forces during the firefight.
Soldiers often discovered the caches after local residents, weary of terrorist violence in their neighborhoods, told them where weapons were hidden. An Iraqi citizen's tip helped Iraqi Army Soldiers seize two terror suspects and an Anti-Iraqi Forces weapons cache in an operation Sept. 24.
Iraqi Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division planned and conducted the entire mission. The weapons cache the Iraqi Soldiers discovered consisted of 84 mortar rounds and one mortar tube, five rockets, six anti-rockets, three RPG launchers with 18 RPGs, and a bag of small-arms ammunition.
A few days earlier on Sept. 17, Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 130th Infantry Regiment, 48th Brigade Combat Team patrolling in the Radwiniyah area of west Baghdad found one of the larger caches of the month after local citizens told them about a field of buried weapons. The unit uncovered the cache, then expanded the search and found two more stockpiles of weapons and ammunition in the same area.
The two caches contained 63 RPG rounds, 23 RPG motors, 904 RPG fuses and primers, 33 rockets, 35 mortar rounds, two mortar firing tubes, 80 mortar fuses and five crates of TNT. One terror suspect was captured at the site and taken into custody for questioning.
Just over a week later, on Sept. 25, Task Force Baghdad Soldiers, acting on another tip from an Iraqi citizen, seized an even larger weapons cache hidden in west Baghdad.
Soldiers from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, discovered 85 mortar rounds, 14 rockets, two artillery rounds and three mortar tubes at the cache site. The cache also contained eight RPG launchers with 144 RPGs and 30 RPG chargers, three anti-tank weapons, 20 hand grenades, bomb-making materials, two machine guns, two assault rifles and 75 pounds of ammunition.
On another occasion, Coalition Forces patrolling on foot in the Radwiniyah district Sept. 28 were approached by an Iraqi citizen who told the unit about another large weapons cache. When the Soldiers investigated, they found 175 sticks of dynamite, 109 grenades, 149 rockets, mortar and artillery rounds, two rocket launchers, 46 anti-personnel mines and 20 pounds of TNT.
Source: Multi-National Force-Iraq
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