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| Iraq |
| New Anbar Province Counterinsurgency Operation |
| 2006-01-19 |
| Iraqi soldiers and about 1,000 U.S. Marines, sailors and soldiers with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) are conducting counterinsurgency operations in Iraq's Anbar province. Operation Koa Canyon began Jan. 15 to capture or kill insurgents and to locate and destroy their weapons caches in the western Euphrates River Valley, between the Jubbah/Baghdadi region and the city of Hit, officials said. This combined operation involves 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Division, and the 22nd MEU's ground combat element, Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment. Most forces are conducting cordon-and-knock operations and searching for weapons and insurgent activity along the Euphrates River, about 80 miles northwest of Baghdad. U.S. Marines are also working with Iraqi police in the Baghdadi region in Anbar province. I suspect that this is more a combination of field training exercise for predominantly Sunni troops, unit shakedown operations, brigade training exercise, and core evaluation. All of which is very, very good. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose |