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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Marine stops 2 vehicle-suicide bombers in shootout |
| 2005-04-18 |
| HUSAYBAH, Iraq — From his tower lookout post on the Iraqi-Syrian border, Marine Lance Cpl. Joshua Butler last week helped stop two suicide car bombers who were on a mission to kill hundreds of Marines here and strike a symbolic victory for the insurgency. The daylight attack on this remote U.S. military base fits a pattern of recent insurgent attacks on U.S. military strongholds. On Saturday, a mortar attack at Camp Ramadi killed three servicemembers, and there was a coordinated assault two weeks ago on the U.S.-run Abu Ghraib prison on the outskirts of Baghdad. U.S. forces have repelled each attack, inflicting large losses on the insurgents while incurring few casualties. The base commander at Camp Gannon, a former Iraqi customs and immigration post at the edge of one of its most dangerous cities, credits Butler with preventing massive deaths here. "Butler — that day, that Marine — that's the critical error the insurgents made," Capt. Frank Diorio says. "They thought they could keep the Marines' heads down. But he gets back up." Butler, 21 and an Altoona, Pa., native, fired through the windshield of the first suicide bomber as he rammed a white dump truck through a barrier of abandoned vehicles the Marines had improvised. Barreling toward the camp's wall, the truck veered off at the last moment under volleys of Butler's gunfire. "I shot 20 or 30 rounds before he detonated," he says. Knocked down by that blast, with bricks and sandbags collapsing on top of him, Butler struggled to his feet only to hear a large diesel engine roar amid the clatter of gunfire. It was a red fire engine, carrying a second suicide bomber and passenger. Butler says both were wearing black turbans and robes, often worn by religious martyrs. Amid the chaos of that first bomb blast, supported by gunfire from an estimated 30 dismounted insurgents, the fire engine passed largely undetected on a small road that leads from town directly past the camp wall, according a Marine report. "I couldn't see him at first because of the smoke. It was extremely thick from the first explosion," Butler says. When the fire engine cleared the smoke, it was much closer than the dump truck had been. As the driver accelerated past the "Welcome to Iraq" sign inside the camp's perimeter, Butler says he fired 100 rounds into the vehicle. The Marines later discovered the vehicle was equipped with 3-inch, blast-proof glass and the passengers were wearing Kevlar vests under their robes. Pfc. Charles Young, 21, also of Altoona, Pa., hit the fire engine with a grenade launcher, slowing its progress and giving Butler time to recover. Without breaching the camp wall, the driver detonated the fire engine, sending debris flying up to 400 yards and knocking Marines from their bunks several hundred yards away. Butler, less than 50 yards away, again was knocked down by the blast, which partially destroyed the tower in which he was perched. After he crawled for cover, a third suicide bomber detonated outside the camp. That blast caused no damage or injuries. Sporadic fighting continued for several hours. Meanwhile, Cpl. Anthony Fink of Columbus, Ohio, 21, fired a grenade launcher that the Marine unit says killed 11 insurgents. The Marines' "React Squad" swiftly deployed against the remaining insurgents. "We were able to get the momentum back," Diorio says. He also says that Husaybah townspeople later reported 21 insurgents dead and 15 wounded. No Marines were seriously hurt. |
| Posted by:Yosemite Sam |
| #9 Sniff, soo happy, brings a tear to my eye. Damn proud to be an American |
| Posted by: JackAssFestival 2005-04-18 11:06:27 PM |
| #8 It seems to me that we should protect all our bases with trenches and moveable steel planks to cover them when we need to cross them. It is unfortunate that even after we've killed so many of them, the terrorists have no real problem recruiting new suicide bombers. |
| Posted by: mhw 2005-04-18 8:48:47 PM |
| #7 The Marines later discovered the vehicle was equipped with 3-inch, blast-proof glass and the passengers were wearing Kevlar vests under their robes. Does the military still use the LAAW? That might have stopped the fire truck cold. The tactics of the splodeydopes are evolving, and we need to stay a step ahead of them. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-04-18 7:56:54 PM |
| #6 Makes me dang proud. |
| Posted by: anymouse 2005-04-18 6:54:02 PM |
| #5 It's having the horseshoe curve so close, it gives them an understanding of time, distance and the brotherhood. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-04-18 5:24:29 PM |
| #4 Altoona, Pa List under towns not to fuck with. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-04-18 5:22:20 PM |
| #3 Good Man L Cpl Butler! Bit worrying that the splodey-dopes were wearing bullet-proof vests and had blast-proof glass installed. Like the last bit about the splodey-dope detonating outside the camp "That blast caused no damage or injuries" - they don't count the gene-pool ejecta in their accounting ;) |
| Posted by: Tony (UK) 2005-04-18 5:11:41 PM |
| #2 "Butler — that day, that Marine — that’s the critical error the insurgents made," Capt. Frank Diorio says. Lol! The good Capt calls it: LCpl Butler is not to be fucked with, heh. Kudos, son - you're the real deal. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-04-18 2:58:18 PM |
| #1 I can't spell "Vehicle" |
| Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2005-04-18 2:43:32 PM |