24 MEU On the Attack

By Bull Nav

U.S. Marines in helicopters and Humvees flooded into a Taliban-held town in southern Afghanistan's most violent province early Tuesday in the first major American operation in the region in years.

Several hundred Marines, many of them veterans of the conflict in Iraq, pushed into the town of Garmser in predawn light in an operation to drive out militants, stretching NATO's presence into an area littered with poppy fields and classified as Taliban territory.

After sitting around for weeks in Afghanistan, waiting for NATO to come to a "consensus" on how the Marines were to be employed, they have finally been let loose. I expect they will be successful and clear the Taliban out of the area. My concern is that the bad guys will simply retreat back into the safe haven of Pakistan where they are untouchable.

But you know they are ready to go:

One Marine in Charlie Company, Corp. Matt Gregorio, a 26-year-old from Boston, alluded to the fact the Marines have been in Afghanistan for six weeks without carrying out any missions. He said the mood was "anxious, excited."

"We've been waiting a while to get this going," he said.

Understatement.

April 29, 2008 05:00 AM The Long War ~ USMC

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Comments

YOU BEAT ME TO IT! :-)

Good news, ain't it?

LtCol P
(24th MEU SOC, Sep 92-Nov 94, under the great Col Broderick)

LtCol P · April 29, 2008 09:21 AM

OO-RAH!
Cry Havoc, and let loose the Marine of War!
Here's to an outstanding job by our guys down there.
Cat

Cat · April 29, 2008 11:01 AM

Ooh-Rah

Richard S. Lowry · April 29, 2008 01:39 PM

Get Some Marines!!! Fucking Get Some!!!

I so hope that I end up there with you.... a new place to fight and do what we Marines do, not be IED fodder

....I hold out hope that I will find an enemy worth meeting on the sacred alter of battle and to share sweat and danger with my fellow Marines.

I want to lead my Marines and be challenged and push myself and my Marines further than we have ever been before... no excuse for complacency, no excuse for failure, attack in all directions and once again honor those Marines who came before me and fought, giving me the priviledge of earning the title Marine.

SSgt OB · April 29, 2008 05:55 PM

God Bless them all, and keep them safe and victorious.

GregS · April 30, 2008 04:20 AM

BTW, the Capt John Moder quoted in the article is Class of 98. I did not go anywhere near Pervert Corner until after Breakout in fear of that man. You could hear him pounding the railing outside his room with an axe handle as he thrashed some poor Rat Tie or another. However, having deployed with him twice since then, and put down a few beers (actually, make that pitchers) at the O Club in Bahrain with him, I can say that he is a really good dude. One of my old squad leaders is also over there with BLT 1/6. I hope they give the Taliban hell.

Slab · April 30, 2008 02:00 PM

Anyone have that feeling there is more significance here than meets the casual look?

When you move a unit as experienced, resourced, and capable as the 24th, shift theaters of war from Iraq and Afghanistan, and then go on the offensive...

I get the feeling this is very significant, it is probably a good thing the press is asleep with its coverage.

Galrahn · May 2, 2008 04:34 PM