Units focus on protecting commanders

[catman]

By Charlie Coon, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Friday, March 25, 2005



BAQOUBA, Iraq ? Protection of U.S. commanders in Iraq has been raised to a higher level with the formation of units such as the 3rd Brigade Combat Team?s Command Security Detachment.

The unit was formed prior to the third major rotation of U.S. troops into Iraq, known as Operation Iraqi Freedom III, and arrived with Col. Steven Salazar, the brigade commander.

Almost all of the soldiers in the ad hoc unit volunteered for the duty. The detachment is a mix of infantrymen, scouts, linguists, mechanics and others. They ride in armored, well-armed Humvees to sites throughout north-central Iraq as Salazar attends meetings and performs other duties.

?We facilitate [Salazar?s ability] to conduct those meetings without losing his focus,? said Staff Sgt. Kenneth Braxton of Philadelphia.

While Salazar is busy with other matters, the unit stays in touch with the brigade?s operations using its Blueforce Tracker, a computer screen in Salazar?s Humvee that displays maps and sends and receives e-mail.

Salazar is not the only commander protected by the unit. The 3rd BCT?s deputy commander, Lt. Col. Daniel Kessler, and Command Sgt. Maj. Jesse Andrews are also escorted as they go about their business throughout the Sunni Triangle.

Before the war, only generals received this level of security, said Capt. Carlos Lago of Jersey City, N.J., the security detachment?s commander. That changed partly because bounties on the lives of U.S. brigade commanders were advertised by insurgents in Iraq.

Based on fliers found by military intelligence officers, there have been bounties placed on commanders such as Salazar. As commander of the 4,500-soldier 3rd BCT, Salazar makes an attractive target for insurgents.

Salazar and other commanders travel frequently into the community, outside the safe confines of bases such as Forward Operating Base Warhorse, where the 3rd BCT is headquartered.

On Saturday and Sunday, for example, Salazar and his convoy traveled to the government center in downtown Baqouba to attend meetings with newly elected Iraqi politicians and tribal and religious leaders. Such meetings are thought to be possible targets of enemy fire.

Salazar?s security team checks roads for safety before leaving the base, enters rooms first to make sure they are secure, and are prepared to place themselves between Salazar and bullets if necessary.

?Our intent, if we run into an ambush, is to fight through the ambush,? Lago said.

?We?ll fix on the enemy, close on the enemy and kill the enemy,? added Braxton, who was awarded a Silver Star Medal for his actions in OIF I.

The security detachment was organized at Fort Stewart, Ga., home of the 3rd BCT, and started training in September for its mission at its headquarters. In Iraq, it is assigned to the 42nd Infantry Division?s Task Force Liberty, the 20,000-soldier unit that runs military operations in north-central Iraq.

According to Sgt. William Neujahr of Riverside, Calif., Salazar?s personal driver for more than a year, it is a gratifying and important assignment.

?[Salazar] looks after us and treats us well,? Neujahr said. ?He?s our mission. He?s the reason we?re out here.?