After we crossed the border we didn’t know quite what to expect. The Americans had crossed some days before us and although things had got a bit exciting at Saferon Hill, on the whole they had met only limited resistance. On the first night after a long vehicle move into Iraq we laagered up on the side of a road and awaited further orders. It was a strange feeling knowing that I was now not part of an exercise but really in a hostile country where the enemy could attack at any time and from any direction. It was not a good night's sleep marred further by the fact that early in the morning (about 0300hrs) we got the one and only NBC alert of the war and spent the night trying to sleep in full protective kit.
The next day we moved north on orders and spent the day passing burned-out shells of tanks and armoured personnel carriers that the Americans had seen to. As it grew night we came under our first contact of the campaign. Four Platoon were contacted by dismounted gunmen dressed in civilian attire. After a short contact things calmed down and we got into night-time routine. This was the first indication that this wasn’t going to be the war we had expected as the enemy were adopting different tactics. Were we ever going to get a decent night's sleep? The next two weeks were spent carrying out the tasks of Brigade Reserve. These tasks involved Prisoner of War handling and Site Guards of key locations. Although there were sporadic contacts the majority of the time the problems that we faced were from looters. They would take anything and were very ingenious in their methods of gaining entry to guarded locations.
All the time we were carrying out these tasks, other Battle Groups were meeting resistance in Az Zubayr, a town south-east of Basrah, and Basrah itself. Although at this time we weren’t directly involved we still saw and heard the Artillery and Mortar fire going in each night from our side and on numerous occasions were on the receiving end, though to be fair the incoming was never that accurate but it still made for a sleepless night.
It was while we were at a small airfield to the south-west of Basrah we received orders that we were moving forward to relieve another Battle Group on the outskirts of Basrah. Our tasks here were some of the most demanding of the campaign, performing Vehicle Check Points and intelligence gathering. The worst part was that we were now even closer to the enemy mortar firing points and now we had to factor in the Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) and small arms fire that we were taking. We stayed on the outskirts performing these tasks moving forward slowly for about a week, gauging the enemy and trying to pinpoint the enemy firing points. When a firing point was found either the Artillery, Mortars or even the Challenger tanks were brought down to bear onto it very quickly and it was removed but as we were to find out later on there were stockpiles of RPGs and mortar rounds left in the street and normal civilians were being bribed or paid to take up arms against us. The result was always the same, they would suffer the losses.
It was strange that although it was just like being on exercise albeit where the threat was very real, the strangest part was that everywhere we went there were reporters. There were occasions when their zeal for a story perhaps over-rode their responsibility to act sensibly. This could make life very difficult for us. Indeed, this happened to me on the main VCP outside Basrah. We were under orders to restrict access of any male of a fighting age and check vehicles coming and going from the city as they were using the cars as transport for weapons and money. At times you would have up to 2000 people trying to get into the city and after being turned back they would set up camp by the side of the road and wait for the restrictions to be lifted. On the whole they were peaceful and understanding of the situation and were glad to see us there but when the Press turned up things sometimes got a little tense. There were always troublemakers in the crowd but if ignored they would soon get the message that we weren’t going to rise to the bait. With the presence of, and interaction with, the Press they would often become more vociferous and bellicose. All I can say is it’s a good job that the British Army are the world leaders in dealing with situations like these what with all the training we do for places like Kosovo and Northern Ireland.
On orders we moved into Basrah and for about 48 hours it was hard and intense but it soon died down. It was at this time that Number One Company and the Irish Guards suffered its tragic loss of Lance Corporal Ian Malone and Piper Christopher Muzvuru. It really brought home to us that we were truly at war and not on exercise. It knocked everyone sideways but in true “Mick” style we raised our game and got on with the job in hand.
We were now into Basrah and we weren’t leaving until the job was done. After the occupation of the three Battle Groups in Basrah the hostilities started to fade out quickly. We were soon into berets and carrying out the age-old British Army task, winning the hearts and minds of the local population and with no surprise the Irish Guards excelled at this.
We were still having contacts but these were on a small scale and due to the patrolling of the area by dismounted troops and the rapport we were striking up with the locals we were getting better information on where incidents were going to happen so that we could pre-empt them. The locals had had enough of oppression and were starting to help us by passing information to clear out the remnants of the old regime. We protected the banks which were targeted by not only the Fedeyeen but also the local gangsters and even the local people. They soon got the message and very quickly stopped trying to rob the banks because they were guaranteed a Mick patrol on the position within minutes.
The best feeling I personally had was with how Basrah changed during my stay. On arrival there was no electricity, no running water and everyone was off the streets by last light due to a curfew imposed by the old regime. By the time I was leaving, the streets were packed with families going on walks in the evening, the shops had all re-opened, the electricity was back on so all the streets were lit up with fancy lights and people were smiling.
It made it all worth it knowing we had made a difference to the lives of these people and although it wasn’t the war we expected to be fighting when we crossed the border only 4 weeks before, the Irish Guards had again (as they had done so many times before) risen to the challenge and done the Micks, past and present, proud.
Sgt B Taylor 1IG
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