The Battle of An Nasiriyah

I’ve been doing quite a bit of reading into the 2003 fight for An Nasiriyah, widely believed to be the toughest battle of the second Gulf War. I devoured Marines in the Garden of Eden, Richard S. Lowry’s account of the Marine action at the Nasiriyah bridgeheads. Lowry’s website summarizes the book effectively:

The true story of the bloodiest battle in the campaign to oust Saddam Hussein.

It began on March 23, 2003, a clear Sunday morning in the city of An Nasiriyah, Iraq, where members of the 507th Maintenance Company had become hopelessly lost on their trek through the desert. The enemy ambushed the 507th at first light, killing and wounding twenty-one soldiers and taking six prisoners, including the now-famous Private Jessica Lynch. By nightfall, 18 Marines had given their lives in what would become the battle for An Nasiriyah.

For the next week, An Nasiriyah was rocked with gun and mortar fire, as the Marines of Task Force Tarawa fought to wrest control of the city from Saddam’s fanatical followers. This is the story of the battle for “The Nas,” as seen through the eyes of the soldiers, sailors, Marines, and newsmen who made it through those terrible seven days, and would never forget what they experienced, what they learned-or those they lost in the name of freedom.

Lowry’s website also provided a link to Lt Col Doug Feiring’s online journal, which is a first hand account of Feirings’ in-the-mud experiences during the 7 day slugout. I liken it to reading the journal of a soldier in the 101st Airborne Division during the Battle of Bastogne. An excerpt:

Col. Feiring’s photo of 2/8 moving North into An Nasiriyah.

We spent the day coordinating the movement of several large logistics convoys through Ambush Alley. There were several convoys waiting to get through including one from Marine Wing Support Squadron 374 (MWSS-374). This unit was tasked with establishing an airfield at Qalat Sikar, 60 miles north of An Nasiriyah. They would not be able to move through until the following day and were parked on the road just outside of our camp. One of their lead vehicles was an airfield fire truck with several fuel trucks close behind.

As darkness started to settle, we started getting reports of enemy activity near the railroad station. We lit that place up with artillery. We fired a “Battalion 10″ which means each of the 18 howitzers in the artillery battalion fired 10 rounds each. I have never heard such an impressive sound. We all certainly hoped that put the damper on any enthusiasm the Iraqis might have had to attack that night.

Col Feiring’s journal is absolutely superb. Read the whole thing.