Euphrates River was still ahead. The Iraqis had set up a defensive position on the approaches to the bridge to deny a crossing. It was a risky tactic because it is easier to defend the approaches from across the river, but it worked well enough to decimate the soldiers who had no idea they were lumbering into an ambush instead of traveling a safe route. The Americans engaged in a fierce firefight with the Iraqis for more than an hour and suffered many wounded and dead. Other soldiers were missing and presumed captured.
The 1/2 Marines were just as mystified as the soldiers of the 507th by the ambush because they thought the Army had secured An Nasiriyah. Intel reports circulating among the 2d Marine Regiment had suggested that approximately 8,000 soldiers from the Iraqi 11th Division intended to surrender there.
But as Task Force Tarawa closed in on the city, they didnât find any surrendering Iraqi soldiers. Instead they found burning American Army trucks, dead and wounded American soldiers, and mayhem.
The Marines from Alpha 1/2 did their best to help the injured, two of whom were critically wounded. The Iraqis only increased their rate of fire as the Marines moved about on their mission of mercy. During the rescue an Army officer reported that half the soldiers in the ill-fated convoy were missing. (The situation became a world-shaking event when Army brass revealed later that several women were among the dead and captured soldiers in the unfortunate 507th. Most famous was Private First Class Jessica Lynch, who was awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart after her daring rescue from an Iraqi hospital.)
Marines from Alpha Co. brought forward their corpsmen to treat the critically wounded soldiers and called for helicopters to get them out. Other Marines fanned out in search of the missing soldiers. Five were found hiding in a nearby swamp; several of their dead were also discovered. Later, America would learn froman Iraqi newsreel that a number of captured soldiers had been executed. The Marines kept fighting, taking the Iraqi ambushersâ fire and starting a struggle that went on for days.
As soon as the soldiers were under the Marinesâ protective wing, Alpha was told to move on to An Nasiriyah and take the southern bridge.
THE STREETS OF AN NASIRIYAH
Soon AAVs filled with Alpha Co. Marines pushed across the Euphrates River bridge. Bravo Co. was right behind them. As soon as the tracks got across the bridge, the lead AAV was challenged by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) shot from a white van with a blue stripe. The trackâs driver swerved. The RPG missed. But the tension was palpable, and soon there were other obstacles: The tracks encountered mud and broken sewer mains that turned the ground they were crossing into sludge pits. After penetrating into the eastern edge of the city the tracks began getting stuck.
Meanwhile, Iraqis were firing RPGs out of windows, doorways, and cars. Alpha called for reinforcements and got M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks for support. The tankâs 120mm stabilized main guns, coaxial machine gun, and the always fearsome M2 Browning .50-caliber heavy machine gunâbetter known as âMa Deuceââare great equalizers. The tanks belonged to a company of Marine Reserve tankers assigned to Task Force Tarawa. Their firepower was a greatly needed addition to Alphaâs limited means. The tanks allowed the badly hit Marines to hold their ground while reinforcements moved up. But within a few minutes the same bad luck hit the reinforcing tanksâthey got mired in the same mud and muck.
1/2âs original missionâto secure the southern bridge across the Euphrates and push on to the Saddam Canal bridgeâwas a bust. Now their best hope was to hang on to the southern bridgeand push another company to the canal bridge and hold that as well. Charlie Co., in trace behind the now mired Bravo Co., got the call. When Charlieâs AAV started taking hits and
The 1/2 Marines were just as mystified as the soldiers of the 507th by the ambush because they thought the Army had secured An Nasiriyah. Intel reports circulating among the 2d Marine Regiment had suggested that approximately 8,000 soldiers from the Iraqi 11th Division intended to surrender there.
But as Task Force Tarawa closed in on the city, they didnât find any surrendering Iraqi soldiers. Instead they found burning American Army trucks, dead and wounded American soldiers, and mayhem.
The Marines from Alpha 1/2 did their best to help the injured, two of whom were critically wounded. The Iraqis only increased their rate of fire as the Marines moved about on their mission of mercy. During the rescue an Army officer reported that half the soldiers in the ill-fated convoy were missing. (The situation became a world-shaking event when Army brass revealed later that several women were among the dead and captured soldiers in the unfortunate 507th. Most famous was Private First Class Jessica Lynch, who was awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart after her daring rescue from an Iraqi hospital.)
Marines from Alpha Co. brought forward their corpsmen to treat the critically wounded soldiers and called for helicopters to get them out. Other Marines fanned out in search of the missing soldiers. Five were found hiding in a nearby swamp; several of their dead were also discovered. Later, America would learn froman Iraqi newsreel that a number of captured soldiers had been executed. The Marines kept fighting, taking the Iraqi ambushersâ fire and starting a struggle that went on for days.
As soon as the soldiers were under the Marinesâ protective wing, Alpha was told to move on to An Nasiriyah and take the southern bridge.
THE STREETS OF AN NASIRIYAH
Soon AAVs filled with Alpha Co. Marines pushed across the Euphrates River bridge. Bravo Co. was right behind them. As soon as the tracks got across the bridge, the lead AAV was challenged by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) shot from a white van with a blue stripe. The trackâs driver swerved. The RPG missed. But the tension was palpable, and soon there were other obstacles: The tracks encountered mud and broken sewer mains that turned the ground they were crossing into sludge pits. After penetrating into the eastern edge of the city the tracks began getting stuck.
Meanwhile, Iraqis were firing RPGs out of windows, doorways, and cars. Alpha called for reinforcements and got M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks for support. The tankâs 120mm stabilized main guns, coaxial machine gun, and the always fearsome M2 Browning .50-caliber heavy machine gunâbetter known as âMa Deuceââare great equalizers. The tanks belonged to a company of Marine Reserve tankers assigned to Task Force Tarawa. Their firepower was a greatly needed addition to Alphaâs limited means. The tanks allowed the badly hit Marines to hold their ground while reinforcements moved up. But within a few minutes the same bad luck hit the reinforcing tanksâthey got mired in the same mud and muck.
1/2âs original missionâto secure the southern bridge across the Euphrates and push on to the Saddam Canal bridgeâwas a bust. Now their best hope was to hang on to the southern bridgeand push another company to the canal bridge and hold that as well. Charlie Co., in trace behind the now mired Bravo Co., got the call. When Charlieâs AAV started taking hits and
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