Operation in Diyala tests ‘clear, hold and build’ strategy, Iraqis’ ability

[unhappycamper]

Sgt. Joseph Prince, a soldier from 3rd Platoon, Company A, Task Force 3-66 Armor, pulls security while Iraqi soldiers search a house Thursday in Tahweela, Iraq.


Operation in Diyala tests ‘clear, hold and build’ strategy, Iraqis’ ability
By Steve Mraz, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Tuesday, February 24, 2009

TAHWEELA, Iraq — American and Iraqi troops have kicked off operations in southern Diyala province aimed at bringing a "clear, hold and build" strategy to rural areas that have long been safe havens for Sunni insurgent groups.

Operation Dark Wolf Pursuit One was launched last week as U.S. soldiers partnered with Iraqi army units to clear this desolate yet heavily mined area in the southern Balad-Ruz district of Diyala province.

Security conditions have improved — to a degree — in the more densely populated areas of the province. That, plus the addition of a fourth brigade for the area’s Iraqi army division, mean efforts can be shifted to the less-populated southern Balad-Ruz district, according to Lt. Col. Lou Rago, commander of Task Force 3-66 Armor.

Soldiers with Company A, 1st Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment out of Grafenwöhr, Germany, set out on foot patrols in Tahweela village as U.S. engineer units swept the dusty roads for mines that have struck several Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles in recent weeks. For their current deployment, the Company A soldiers have been attached to the 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor out of nearby Forward Operating Base Hammer.

The operation is part of larger efforts to enact the "clear, hold and build" strategy in the area. That strategy has been credited with bringing security to many parts of Iraq, but it requires troop levels that were not available in many areas.


Rest of article and pics at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60925