During the course of three days, paratroopers captured four high-ranking milita leaders from North Babil. Paratroopers from 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division conducted operations and captured the leader of the militia in Iskandariyah and several commanders and lieutenants Oct. 12-14. “We captured four of our 10 most wanted,” said Sgt. 1st Class Richard Williams, from Abbottstown, Pa, the non-commissioned officer in charge of intelligence for the 3-509th PIR. “Two of those guys were on the brigade’s most wanted list, including the second most wanted man in all of Babil.”The paratroopers have been working hard to bring security and stabilization to the city with the help of Concerned Local Citizens and Iraqi Security Forces.
The Concerned Local Citizens programs in Iskandariyah are fighting back against a campaign of murder, kidnapping and intimidation waged by militias and extremist groups. “(CLCs) are a huge help. Those guys don’t need militias or any other extremist groups,” Williams said. “We took out their top level leaders and the (CLCs) are securing their own neighborhoods. Those things combined have put the militia on the defensive. It is something the militias have never had to deal with.”
The paratroopers recently launched a massive offensive to drive al-Qaeda out of the Euphrates River Valley. Following the paratrooperÂ’s offensive push, CLCs sprang up all throughout the Valley and Jurf As Sakhr region, making it one of the safest places in all of Iraq.
The Iraqi Security Forces working side-by-side the 3-509th PIR are emboldened as well. “The ISF have more confidence in what they are doing. It is growing every day,” Williams continued. “They want to do more because they are finally seeing the fruits of their labor pay off.”
While the majority of the militia leadership in Iskandariyah and Haswah have been captured, a challenge remains. “Right now the militia has started a huge propaganda campaign to try and undermine our efforts, but the locals aren’t reacting to it,” Williams said. “In fact, the locals are becoming more receptive and we are receiving a positive reaction to our efforts.”