Memoirs of an Outlaw: Life in the Sandbox

Chapter 13: Fallujah

We hadn't been in country for more than two weeks when we had our first major piece of action. On March 31, 2004, four American contractors were ambushed and killed, and their bodies were dragged through the streets of Fallujah and eventually hung from a bridge, with Iraqis rallying around them. This was just one of many incidents that led the bigwigs from MEF (Marine Expeditionary Force) Headquarters to decide they wanted to conduct a major assault on Fallujah. Their plan was to occupy the east side of the city to rout out the insurgents and gain a stronghold in Fallujah.

The Outlaws' job was to provide security on the roads surrounding the city and to conduct vehicle searches in hopes of finding insurgents fleeing. We were also trying to cut off all major escape routes for the insurgents. Our platoon was strategically positioned on the main road overlooking the northeast part of the city. The other platoons were located at various other points determined by the higher-ups. We had a few vehicles from Weapons Platoon attached to us as well as some elements from other units. Our headquarters element initially stayed back at the camp but was eventually brought forward to help with logistics and support.

The first few days of the assault were actually a bit boring since we didn't do much except search cars and conduct small patrols. The most exciting part of it was watching the "fireworks" display going on above the city at night. I could hear the occasional machine gun bursts from deep within the city. Sometimes there were a few tank rounds or artillery rounds fired into the city. From time to time, the insurgents would fire mortars in our general direction, and we would all run for cover. But overall, it was actually a bit boring. Hell, even the scout snipers got so bored that they decided to shoot the light bulbs that were illuminating the MSR at night. It was actually amusing to watch them do it because it took quite a few shots to knock them out. For some reason, even after they shot them, they continued to glow, which seemed to frustrate the hell out of the snipers.

Nighttime was probably the eeriest part of the day. After dusk, the Muslim clerics would chant verses, songs, and sayings from the Qur’an over the loudspeakers that were attached to their mosque towers. Our interpreters would tell us that some of the things that the clerics were saying were anti-American. They would tell their followers to attack us, kill us, or not aid us in our mission. It wasn't really what they were saying that made it so creepy; it was the sound of the teachings that made it disturbing. Dusk would come, and one by one each mosque would come to life with a spine-chilling song preaching hatred toward Americans. And then as suddenly as it came, it stopped, and there was silence.

After the prayers were over, Psy-Ops (Psychological Operations) would sometimes patrol the roads. Once we found out what they were doing, it became a bit entertaining. They had Humvees with huge loudspeakers on the top. Occasionally, they would have a prerecorded message asking the law-abiding citizens of Fallujah to inform us where the insurgents were or to stay inside so they didn’t get shot. Every now and then they would also drive by playing AC/DC or some other heavy metal band extremely loud in an attempt to unnerve the enemy. I don’t know if it ever worked, but I sure enjoyed the music.

A couple of days into the assault, we were reassigned to conduct vehicle checkpoints farther down the MSR and along the ASRs (alternate service routes). We never really found much. Once in a while we found a pistol or rifle, but we didn’t find many. We couldn’t even confiscate them unless it could be used as an explosive.

Part of what made the insurgency so effective was that they constantly adapted to every new technique we tried. We started conducting numerous vehicle checkpoints, so they devised another way to smuggle weapons to the city; they used the Red Crescent (non-Christian counterpart to the Red Cross) vehicles. Somehow, the enemy figured out that we hardly ever searched Red Crescent vehicles because we believed them to be for humanitarian assistance within the city. They were mostly deemed off limits by the higher-ups. So the insurgents decided to use our weakness of humanitarian assistance against us.

One such day, word was passed over the company “net” (radio frequency) that there was a convoy of Red Crescent vehicles entering our vicinity heading toward the Jordanian hospital on the outskirts of Fallujah. It was said that there was the possibility of weapons mixed in with the cargo. This was stated because other Red Crescent vehicles had been stopped earlier that day with huge caches of weapons.

About ten minutes had gone by when the vehicles finally came into view. At first glance they looked like oversized farm trucks used to carry sheep. As they came closer, it was a funny sight to behold because they reminded me of a mix between old farm trucks and circus cars. There were four trucks that were about twenty feet tall, with tarps covering the top to stop cargo from flying out. Leading the “convoy” was a small ambulance with the Red Crescent painted on the side. Sitting on top of the cabs of the vehicles were anywhere between one to three Iraqis, and inside each cab were another three Iraqis.

My vehicle (Red 2) and Sergeant Richard Learn’s vehicle (Red 4) were tasked with stopping and searching the rear vehicles while the other section of our platoon searched the front trucks. We brought them to a halt and had the Iraqis dismount the vehicles. I ordered my team to set up a civilian search area where Forsyth and Shearer would search the Iraqis while Herman and I searched the trucks. Lance Corporal Duarte’s (Red 4 team leader) team followed suit on the other vehicle. After thoroughly searching both vehicles, Duarte and I started to question the passengers. Fortunately, some of them were doctors and could speak passable English.

While we were talking to them, I felt uneasy because a few of them didn’t seem to be doctors or nurses. Some gave hardened stares like that of a soldier and whispered among themselves. They eyed us suspiciously but didn’t make direct eye contact, as if they were avoiding something. They were also the ones who didn’t speak English. The doctors told us that they were nurses and helpers, but that still didn’t ease our suspicions. However, even though our alarms were raised, we had nothing to hold them on and had to let them pass.

Luckily, we had done a very thorough search and found nothing. Nevertheless, about an hour later, another convoy of Red Crescent trucks was searched near the hospital and had weapons mixed in with the medicine. This was getting to be a more complicated war than we had anticipated.