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Posted on: Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Charlie Company goes on a raid
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Soldiers from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment wait in the back of a Humvee before leaving on a night raid to pick up suspected Saddam Fedayeen members.
Photos by Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
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By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Schofield Barracks-based soldiers recently conducted a midnight raid on a village on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq. The mission by soldiers from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, was one of a series of raids intended to reduce the threat of insurgents in the area.
The raid was conducted in nearly total darkness since there are no streetlights in the area. The soldiers were aided by night-vision devices. Throughout the four-hour mission a steady, cold rain turned the streets and alleys to mud.
Soldiers targeted 10 people in seven locations. Some were believed to be members of the Saddam Fedayeen. Several suspects were detained and later turned over to Iraqi police for further investigation.
The soldiers also turned up AK-47 assault rifles and Baath Party literature. Iraqi citizens are allowed to possess one assault rifle per household but, when asked, must disclose that they have such firearms. Assault rifles are routinely seized from Iraqis who deny having weapons.
Charlie Company worked in concert with U.S. Air Force investigators, canine units and the Iraqi police.
Advertiser photographer Richard Ambo and Military Affairs reporter William Cole accompanied the troops. Ambo was not wearing a night-vision device, and much of the time he could not see the soldier standing next to him. Most of his photos are time exposures, some as long as 3 seconds.
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| Outside Kirkuk, a soldier from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, guards a road lighted by a distant oil fire. |
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Other soldiers from the Schofield unit raid a house in their search for suspected members of the Saddam Fedayeen insurgent group. |
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Another soldier from Charlie Company stands guard during the raid of the Iraqi village. This photo is another time exposure taken in nearly total darkness.
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| The four-hour raid was conducted in a cold rain that turned streets to mud. The orange glow is from a distant oil fire; the vivid red is from raindrops distorted by time exposure. |
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| Soldiers remove a suspect from his house during the raid, one of a series intended to root out insurgents. |
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Soldiers seized contraband publications, including this book intended to stir up anti-U.S. insurgency. |
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| Charlie Company's soldiers guard a suspect in his house. A flashlight helped to illuminate this time exposure. |
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