3rd Infantry Division Operations - Fort Stewart - U.S. Army

Chapter 14
Hammer Time
In the summer of 2007, east of Baghdad, the 3rd Heavy
Brigade Combat Team (3HBCT) had conducted operations
to build relationships with their new neighbors. The
rough exterior of al-Wahida and Salman Pak hinted at a glorious
past. A cancer had taken hold however. A combination of
good will and deliberate combat operations were the surgery
needed to remove the criminal elements from these once peaceful
communities.
The 1-15 Infantry and 3-1 Cavalry conducted a series of operations
to learn about the human "terrain" in their new operational
area. The question was how to gain trust quickly so that
Iraqi and coalition forces could take action on the most pressing
social problems. A combination of extremist threat elements
were at work in 3rd HBCT's area. There were Shia extremists
with possible ties to Iran. There were al-Qaeda affiliated groups
as well. AQI had been named Iraq's public enemy number one