by Damien Lewis
*
As with the Bravo Two Zero patrol of the First Gulf War, M Squadron had been given a mission that they doubted was doable from the get-go. Even so, when they set out to achieve that mission they little realized the extent to which the intelligence they had been given would prove faulty. The reality they drove into on the ground in northern Iraq proved almost the complete opposite to what the intel had suggested, rendering their objective largely unachievable.
In the immediate aftermath of the mission, M Squadron was pilloried in the media, especially when the captured Land Rovers were paraded on Iraqi TV and the story was picked up by the international press. Headlines appeared in the British newspapers declaring that the men of the Squadron had ‘run away from the Iraqis’, and there were even accusations that they had ‘panicked and fled’. They were given almost no opportunity to respond to such criticism, which rankled. They had been largely vilified, and undeservedly so. Sadly, some of the men depicted in this book went on to be killed on future operations or exercises, so they will not have the opportunity to read the full story as told in these pages.
The truth is that M Squadron had been ordered to undertake a mission that was unprecedented in terms of geographic scope and goals, as well as being next to impossible in view of the faulty intelligence provided. Nonetheless, they went ahead to the best of their ability to achieve that mission, in keeping with the ethos of UK Special Forces whereby small groups of elite operators are sent in to achieve the seemingly impossible.
The Squadron penetrated some seven hundred kilometres into Iraq – amounting to over one thousand kilometres driving – without being compromised. When it was eventually hit in a deliberate attack by a combined force of Fedayeen, Iraqi infantry and heavy armour, the Squadron managed to extract with no loss of life – despite being trapped so far behind enemy lines, facing a vastly superior enemy force, and despite the fact that the limited air power provided was unable to mount any air strikes because of the confused battle situation on the ground.
The longest-ever British Special Forces mission behind enemy lines was one of David Stirling’s operations with the SAS and the Long Range Desert Group during the North Africa campaign of the Second World War. In September 1942 the LRDG undertook Operation Caravan (mentioned in the main body of this book), penetrating some 1,859 kilometres across the desert, to attack airfields and barracks at the Italian-held Libyan town of Barce, and destroying many enemy aircraft on the ground.
Covering well over a thousand kilometres all told, M Squadron’s mission into northern Iraq was certainly up there with the most epic undertakings by British Special Forces.
*
Ten days after the Squadron were pulled out of Iraq, a unit from Delta Force went into the same area, tasked with a similar mission. They had armour attached to their patrol and 24/7 dedicated air cover. They were hit by the Fedayeen in pretty much the same location as M Squadron. They ended up taking casualties, and although they inflicted heavy losses on the Fedayeen via air strikes, they too had to pull out and abandon their mission.
It wasn’t until 11 April 2003 – approaching three weeks after the ground war proper had begun in Iraq – that the Iraqi 5th Corps chose to surrender. By that time Saddam’s regime had fallen, Basra, Baghdad and the northern city of Kirkuk were in Coalition hands, and the rump of Saddam’s regime had retreated to the Tikrit–Bayji area and were surrounded. Supported by thousands of Kurdish Peshmerga guerrilla fighters, one thousand elite operators from the US 10th Special Operations Group, plus two thousand soldiers from the elite 173rd Airborne Brigade, took the Iraqi city of Salah, and accepted the surrender of the 5th Corps commander. However, only some fifteen thousand 5th Corps troops – a fraction of the suspected strength of the Corps – actually surrendered, and they were mostly sent back to their villages.
Most of the 5th Corps soldiers were believed to have simply ‘melted away’, discarding their uniforms for civilian clothing and mixing with the civilian population. This was a recurring feature of the war in Iraq, once Saddam’s regime had fallen, and it contributed to the mass of weapons sloshing around the country in the aftermath of the conflict.
Thus it was that M Squadron’s mission, the surrender of the Iraqi 5th Corps, had finally been achieved – but only by using three thousand crack US forces, with many battle-hardened Kurdish guerrilla fighters in support, in contrast to one squadron of sixty elite British operators. The US force was also backed by comprehensive and overwhelming air power.
Perhaps most importantly, the surrender of the Iraqi 5th Corps was taken only several weeks into the war and after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, when it was patently obvious that the Iraqi leader was never going to return to power. By that stage the Corps’ commanders would have known they had nothing to lose – and potentially everything to gain – by agreeing to surrender.
When Saddam Hussein was eventually captured in Iraq in December 2003, he was discovered hiding in the town of ad-Dawr, not far from Bayji and nearby Tikrit, his hometown. The city of Bayji and its inhabitants had indeed been a stronghold of support for the Iraqi leader, and subsequent months would prove it to be a scene of numerous insurgent attacks against US and allied forces.
*
To this day, Steve Grayling is convinced that M Squadron came out of the cauldron of northern Iraq without loss of life for one simple reason – because he let the Iraqi goat-herder live, the boy who had stumbled on their first LUP. Not normally one to be superstitious, Grayling has no doubt that the men of M Squadron had the gods looking after them when they found themselves centre-stage in the mother of all battles. Only the good karma of his earlier action, when he let his human instinct of compassion override his killer instincts – instincts that it might have made more sense to indulge at the time – earned the men of the Squadron the right to survive. To this day, this is his firm belief.
Whatever the truth of this, the Squadron’s achievement against such overwhelming odds is extraodinary, and one that remains unparalleled in the modern history of Special Forces soldiering.
GLOSSARY
AFV Armoured fighting vehicle. A blanket term used by the military that encompasses tanks, armoured cars and armoured troop carriers
Black light Vehicle operations conducted at night without using lights
C130 Lockheed C-130 Hercules. A four-engine turboprop military aircraft employed primarily for transporting troops and supplies
Chinook Boeing CH-47 Chinook. A twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter employed primarily for transporting troops and supplies
Cyalumes chemical light sticks
Dicker a phrase first used by British soldiers in Northern Ireland to describe lookouts posing as civilians who conducted reconnaissance on behalf of the iRA
Diemaco The Colt C7 7.62mm assault rifle is a variation of the popular M16 rifle and has become the weapon of choice for the UK Special Forces
DPV Desert Patrol Vehicle. Open-topped Land-Rovers designed for penetration missions deep behind enemy lines
DShK A 12.7mm Russian-designed anti-aircraft gun that can churn out 600 12.7mm rounds per minute. Known as the ‘Dushka’, meaning ‘sweetie’ in Russian, it can only fire on automatic, and it is a devastating weapon when targeting low-level aircraft
ERV Emergency rendezvous. An important element of SOP when on covert operations, ERVs are a series of locations committed to memory that allow a dispersed force to regroup securely
Fedayeen A combat militia under Saddam Hussein’s direct control
GPMG General Purpose Machine Gun. Also known, affectionately, as the ‘gimpy’ the GPMG is a belt-fed medium machine gun, usually operated from a stationary position or mounted on a vehicle
Humint A source of human intelligence on the ground
JTAC Joint terminal attack controller. The soldier responsible for co-ordinating air strikes in support of ground troops
Kraz 225s A Soviet-era six-wheeled steel truck with strong off-road capabilities in
widespread use with the Iraqi military
Lion of Babylon (Asad Babil) The Iraqi-manufactured version of the Russian T-72 main battle tank
LRDG Long Range Desert Group. A Second World War precursor to David Stirling’s SAS
LUP Lying up point. A location chosen to allow a unit to occupy it undetected
M72 LAW. Light anti-tank weapon. A one-use 66mm rocket-launcher designed to employed against armoured vehicles.
Milan The Milan anti-armour missile packs a 7.1 kg wire-guided warhead that can defeat most armour, and is the most powerful and accurate piece of kit that can be operated by a light vehicle or foot patrol
Millilux A unit of illumination
NBC Nuclear, biological or chemical weapons.
NEP Night enhancement package. Specialist night-vision technology that shows a pilot the terrain over which they are flying in glowing near-daylight, on laptop-like computer screens mounted in the cockpit
NVG Night-vision goggles
OPSEC Operational Security
Pinkie Affectionate term for the open-topped, desert-adapted Land Rovers used by UKSF
RPG Rocket-propelled grenade
SAM Surface-to-air missile
Satcom An encrypted radio satellite communications system
Shemagh An Arab headscarf popular with UKSF engaged in desert operations
SLAR Shoulder-launched assault rocket. An 85mm rocket launcher that fires an enhanced blast warhead, more commonly known as a thermobaric device
Terp Military slang for interpreter
INDEX
Page numbers refer to the printed book.
A10 Warthog 216
Afghanistan War 15
Qala Janghi 35, 50–1
Afrika Corps 20
Al Jazeera TV 303
Al Maini, Lt. General Yasin 48
Al Sahara airfield 60–6
al-Qaeda 15, 35
Anfal Campaign 157
Angus 166, 220
Asad Babil (T-72 main battle tanks) 49, 50, 74–5, 212, 229, 239
Bayji 3, 48
Bedou people 128
Birch, Phil (Mucker) 21, 24, 33, 51, 78, 81, 84, 94, 121, 123, 160, 231, 301, 305
background 23
Blair, Tony 307
Blue Force Trackers (BFTs) 232, 233–4, 243–4
Bravo Two Zero 9, 17, 26, 95, 107,147, 189, 235–6
British Royal Marines 228
Bush, George Walker 33
C130 Hercules transport aircraft 61, 70, 71–6
CBU87s (combined effects munitions bombs) 258
Chinooks 60, 61, 63, 64–5, 66, 72–3, 76–80, 82–4, 90, 258–9, 299
internal fuel bladders 294
MV Nisha assault 79–80
NEP (night enhancement package) 79
CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) Special Activities Division (SAD) 50
Clarke, Clive (Raggy)
4th LUP (lying-up point) 138
ambush 192
escape 220–1, 222–4, 237
extraction 275, 276, 277, 280, 290, 293, 297, 302
CSAR (combat search-and-rescue) 259, 260, 306
Diemaco assault rifles 57, 63, 73, 274
DPV Land Rovers see Pinkies
DShK anti-aircraft guns (Dushkas) 167, 198, 269
ERV (emergency rendezvous) procedures 247–8, 250
Euphrates River 61
F15 warplanes 64, 65
F15E Strike Eagle fighter jets 148–9
F16 Fighting Falcons 258, 263–6, 267–8, 270, 270–3
Fedayeen 134–5, 229, 240–3, 252–3, 261, 268–70, 274–6, 285, 288–9, 290, 309
ambush 140, 172, 178, 195
recruitment video 69–70
Field, Reginald (Reggie)
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 5, 101–3
7th LUP (lying-up point) 161–2, 163
ambush 181, 182, 192, 202–3
escape 237–8
extraction 259–60, 276, 287, 301, 303
Kenya 17–18
First Gulf War 9, 17, 48, 95
G2 airfield 71–2, 73–80, 303
general-purpose machine-gun (GPMG) 21, 24, 50, 134
Ghost One Six 283, 293
Goat Boy 1–13, 106–12, 311
GPS (Global Positioning System) 31, 145–6
Grayling, Steve (Grey) 157–8, 160–3
1st LUP (lying-up point) 94–7
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 97–103
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 124–32, 133–5
4th LUP (lying-up point) 135–40
5th LUP (lying-up point) 150–5
6th LUP (lying-up point) 159–60
7th LUP (lying-up point) 163–6
8th LUP (lying-up point) 204–21
ambush 167–204
debriefing 303–11
escape 222–31, 233–58
extraction 258–67, 270–7, 279–302
G2 airfield 75–80
Goat Boy 1–13, 106–12, 311
high-altitude training 33–8
Kenya 18–27, 30–2
LZ (landing zone) 81, 83–93
MV Nisha 80
Ninawa Desert 112–24, 140–7
Norway 158–9
Qala Janghi 35, 50–1
Gulf War (First) 9, 17, 48, 95
Halabja massacre 14
Henley, William Ernest xi
Hercules AC130 283
Heyman, Charles 307–8
Humvees 25, 28–9, 119–20
Hussein, Saddam 3, 14, 39, 48, 69, 149, 156–7, 310–11
illume rounds 228–9
IR cyalumes 77, 299
IR (infrared) laser torches 10
Iran hostage crisis 73
Iraqi 5th Corps 45–7, 48–9, 52–4, 66–7, 68–9, 116, 134, 179, 196, 253–4, 309–10
Anfal Campaign 157
Iraqi Security Organization (ISO) 69
Irish (American F15 warplane) 64, 65
Jabal Sinjar (Mountain of Eagles) 52, 138
Jamieson, Sgt Dave (Jamie) 185
JDAMs (joint direct attack munitions) 258
joint terminal attack controller (JTAC) 23, 96–7, 133, 140, 260–1
Kabrat Sunaysilah 277
Kraz 225s 187, 188, 266
Kurds 14, 39, 46, 156–7, 162, 310
Lamb, Brigadier Graeme (Lamby) 44–6
LAWs (light anti-tank weapons) 74, 221, 244, 255
Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) 20, 55, 309
M Squadron
1st LUP (lying-up point) 91–7
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 97–112
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 124–35
4th LUP (lying-up point) 136–40
5th LUP (lying-up point) 150–5
6th LUP (lying-up point) 159–60
7th LUP (lying-up point) 163–6
8th LUP (lying-up point) 204–21
Afghanistan War 15
Al Sahara airfield 60–6
ambush 167–204
debriefing 306–11
escape 221–58
extraction 258–306
Five Troop 4, 19–20, 164–5, 168, 184, 217, 231
Four Troop 4, 19–20, 61–6, 164–5, 168, 217, 220, 231
G2 airfield 73–80
high-altitude training 33–8
HQ Troop 4, 47, 52–4, 60, 108, 125–6, 128, 165, 175, 179–80, 192, 209–10, 213, 214, 217–18, 231, 233, 257, 276, 294, 301, 303
Kenya 15, 17–38, 213
LZ (landing zone) 81–91
MV Nisha assault 16–17, 22, 79–80
Ninawa Desert 112–24, 140–7, 156
Six Troop 4, 6, 19–38, 136–7, 158–9, 164–5, 168, 170, 171, 182–3, 185, 198, 204, 206–8, 209, 211, 223, 231, 259–60, 305
M61 Gatling guns 258
March-Phillips, Sebastian 157
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 99–101, 103, 108
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 121, 127–8
7th LUP (lying-up point) 162, 165
ambush 167, 175, 176
Arabic lessons 57–8
background 43
escape 238
extraction 301, 303
Ninawa Desert 112–13
rat story 101
McGrath, Mick (Gunner)
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 123
7th LUP (lying-up point) 165
8th LUP (lying-up point) 205, 207, 210–11, 220
ambush 182, 193, 194, 203–4
background 43–4
escape 230, 231, 238–40, 245, 246–7, 248, 251–2
extraction 259, 276, 281, 301, 303
Ninawa Desert 121
Syria 306–7
McGreavy, Chris (Dude)
1st LUP (lying-up point) 92, 94
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 98–9
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 125, 133
5th LUP (lying-up point) 152–3
8th LUP (lying-up point) 215
ambush 169, 170, 174, 177, 184, 185
background 21
escape 220, 221, 257
extraction 274, 275, 284, 288–9, 298, 301–2
G2 airfield 78
Kenya 21–2, 23, 25, 33, 34, 37
Lancashire Hotpot 98
LZ (landing zone) 81, 85, 89
Ninawa Desert 114, 119–20, 141–2, 143
McGruff, Andy (Scruff)
2nd LUP (lying-up point) 103
3rd LUP (lying-up point) 125, 126–7
4th LUP (lying-up point) 136–7, 138, 139
5th LUP (lying-up point) 150, 151
8th LUP (lying-up point) 209, 216, 220
ambush 185
background 35
escape 230, 255
extraction 260, 262, 270, 272, 282, 284
Kenya 34–5
LZ (landing zone) 85, 86–7, 88
Ninawa Desert 143, 146
Qala Janghi 35, 50–1
Milan anti-armour missiles 151–2
N253 road 276, 291, 294
Naval Surface Warfare Center 74
NBC (nuclear, biological and chemical) warfare defences 59–60
neoprene ski masks 95–6
night vision goggles (NVGs) 10, 30
Ninawa Desert 52, 72, 129
Nisha, MV 16–17, 22, 79–80
Northern Alliance 15, 50
NVGs 76, 77, 91
O’Brien, Mike 307
Old Testament 129
Operation Barras 109–10
Operation Caravan 55–6
Operation Eagle Claw 73
