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| Mission Accomplished: part 5 of a frontline account |
| 2004-02-23 |
| Brian Taylor, a Marine reservist, servied in Fox Company, Second Battalion, 23rd Marines during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The Wall Street Journal published his diary in serial form. Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 appeared in previous weeks. Here’s an excerpt from the final installment: 0757Z--Yesterday we secured a water treatment facility near where we entered the city. It was a suspected WMD site but we find no evidence. We also find no fighters here, just a few families and employees. We gave rations to the families to thank them for their cooperation while we figured out what it might take to restart this place. And today we are back here again to guard it from looters.--38SMB 56278339 Another critical omission occurs to me. In every operation we’ve participated in, the sound of Islamic prayer has provided the soundtrack. Mosques are everywhere and five times daily, including dawn and sunset, the musical chant of Islamic prayer rings out from the towers. During our terrible fight on the 8th, the sound was there. And the next morning prayer noise provided an eerie melodic counterpoint to the artillery barrage that reduced the compounds. Marines listen to the prayers with suspicion. After all, it was Islamic fundamentalists that sparked the war on terror by smashing 767s into the Trade Towers. And I have never been convinced that those were the actions of "extremists" and not in character with the true teachings of Islam. Some Marines have a far more specific suspicion about the wailing imam in their towers. They suggest that they are broadcasting our positions to Iraqi fighters. But the prayers sound recorded, and our translators would surely notice such a scheme. |
| Posted by:Mike |
| #3 Good read. |
| Posted by: Raptor 2004-2-23 2:24:27 PM |
| #2 I got The March Up for Christmas (I love my wife!), and it's been interesting to compare Taylor's account to that book. |
| Posted by: Mike 2004-2-23 1:53:46 PM |
| #1 GREAT SERIES! This young man paints a realistic picture of the march to Baghdad for his marine company. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) 2004-2-23 10:09:26 AM |