12/13/2023 0 Comments When was operation phantom fury![]() ![]() Maryland-born James Wilkinson was described by his friends as congenial, friendly, and charming. As Camp concludes, the terrorists attempted to “turn the city into a fortress to defeat the Americans-and they lost.”Īn Artist in Treason: The Extraordinary Double Life of General James Wilkinson by Andro Linklater, Walker Publishing, New York, 2009, 392 pp., notes, index, illustrations, $27.00, hardcover. Although the coalition troops faced a determined foe bent on their destruction, the enemy was no match for the soldiers and Marines. In the end, however, the fighting men managed to achieve victory, however costly. As in past conflicts, whenever civilian leaders insist upon a disastrous course of action, it is the American servicemen who have to pay for their gross errors in judgment. Instead of listening to their advice, the Bush administration typically rushed in headlong before carefully examining all options and attacking at a time that would be more beneficial to the coalition forces. The author focuses on the friction between the civilian and military camps that produced the first Fallujah fiasco. Despite this, Allied forces were victorious, although at a cost of 63 killed and more than 500 wounded. ![]() To make matters worse, the enemy used numerous mosques within the town as observation points and storage facilities for weapons and supplies. For more than a month, the terrorist stronghold was the scene of bloody combat as American and Iraqi troops slowly cleared the city of Islamic extremists. Once again, American soldiers and Marines stormed the insurgents’ stronghold and, as before, infantrymen had to endure their worst nightmare-going house to house to ferret out the enemy. This prompted the Second Battle of Fallujah in November 2004, code-named Operation Phantom Fury. Twenty-seven Americans paid the supreme sacrifice, and another 90 were wounded in vain. The remainder of the task fell to the newly formed Fallujah Brigade, which later disbanded and, in an unbelievable turn of events, surrendered all of its weapons to the terrorists. Although coalition troops fought aggressively and bravely, they were withdrawn before the insurgents had been driven from the city. Bush, they said, “wanted heads to roll.”Īlthough they felt that the “timing was not right,” military personnel obeyed their civilian leaders and initiated Operation Vigilant Resolve, the First Battle of Fallujah, in April 2004. Ricardo Sanchez, in charge of all coalition forces in Iraq, to proceed immediately. Paul Bremer and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld pressed U.S. Unfortunately, the pleas of Conway and other commanders fell on deaf ears as Ambassador L. “Once you commit you have to stay committed,” he remarked. Conway, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force commander, did not want it to appear that the United States was attacking out of revenge and thus lose the support of the rest of the civilian population. Initially, military leaders suggested that the Bush administration proceed with caution. Situated in the infamous Sunni Triangle, where the former dictator Saddam Hussein enjoyed his greatest support while in power, it is also called the “city of mosques” because of the 200 religious structures that dominate the city’s landscape. Located approximately 40 miles west of Baghdad, Fallujah was a thriving metropolis prior to the war, with a population of more than half a million residents. In Operation Phantom Fury: The Assault and Capture of Fallujah, Iraq (Zenith Press, Minneapolis, MN, 2009, 320 pp., index, photos, maps, $30.00, hardcover), retired Marine Colonel Dick Camp, a Vietnam veteran and Khe Sanh survivor, delivers an intriguing account of the two major campaigns to drive the terrorists out of the city. For the leathernecks, it would be some of the heaviest urban fighting since the Battle of Hue City in Vietnam in 1968. The incident was the catalyst that sparked two separate battles of Fallujah, after which American soldiers and Marines would spend months clearing the city of known terrorists residing there. That night on the evening news, the charred and mutilated bodies of two of the men were hung from an old bridge to be viewed by all. The four men, all employees of Blackwater USA, a private military contractor, had been slain. The car spun out of control and rear ended another. Driver Wes Batalona unsuccessfully tried to make a U-turn in the crowded streets, but was gunned down by AK-47 bullets that ripped through the vehicle. A Mitsubishi Pajero, carrying four Americans, was suddenly ambushed by insurgents. On the morning of March 31, 2004, in the city of Fallujah, Iraq, the unmistakable sound of automatic weapons fire could be heard. ![]()
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