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Students of the Twin Schools wait for the official opening of the schools in Taji, Iraq, Oct. 12. The Twin Schools will provide education to more than 1,200 children. Photo by Pfc. Adam Halleck, 1st Cavalry Division. TAJI — Following two years of hard work, a ribbon cutting ceremony here celebrated the grand opening of two schools nestled in a small village north of Baghdad, Oct. 12. Known as the “Twin Schools� to American Soldiers, the facilities can now provide the more than 1,200 students of the area with the high-quality education they deserve.In the past two years, this project...

Lt. Col. Kristan L.K. Hericks (center), CO of the 419th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion "Wolfpack," and her 419th Soldiers successfully completed a 12-month tour at Camp Taji and will be redeploying home to Irvine, Calif, soon. Photo courtesy of the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary). CAMP TAJI — After a long and often-times grueling year here, the 419th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion (CSSB) "Wolfpack" is on its way home. Over the next few days, the Wolfpack Soldiers will see a Relief in Place/Transfer of Authority ceremony where they officially pass the torch to the 541st CSSB, as well as an awards...

Army Spc. Adam Feldon talks with an Iraqi boy May 4, 2009, as a patrol of Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers and Iraqi Police officers moves through Taji Market, north of Baghdad. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Doug Roles. TAJI — Iraqi Security Forces and U.S. Soldiers have been hitting the streets, working together to maintain security in Taji Market, one of the busiest sectors of the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team’s area of operations north of Baghdad. The market is a lynchpin in the security effort because it’s where the lives of locals intertwine. “Being the main market area, that’s...

Spc. Neal Cooper cleans a wound on the face of a young Iraqi child. Photo by Sgt. Ryan Nolan, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. TAJI — A Pennsylvania Army National Guard medic is making a big difference for children here by providing a little medical care.Spc. Neal Cooper, from Myerstown, Pa., is a medic assigned to the 104th Cavalry Regiment, currently working in Shaykh Amir Village here, just north of Baghdad.Cooper completed Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas in August 2008, only one month before he was to deploy to Iraq. However, Cooper was well...

TAJI, Iraq, Jan. 28, 2009 – Coalition members transferred the 4,000th armored Humvee to the Iraqi government Jan. 25 as part of a program to provide mission-capable Humvees to Iraqi security forces and on-the-job training to Iraqi mechanics. The program, based at Camp Taji here, is managed by logistics personnel from Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq, with assistance from Army Materiel Command, Tank and Automotive Command, Multinational Corps Iraq and other coalition partners. The program includes a complete refurbishment of Humvees for the Iraqi Defense Ministry, Interior Ministry and Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Bureau. The project employs more than 500 Iraqis with...

TAJI — The Czech contingent, Senior Iraqi and Coalition partners gathered at the Iraqi Army Armor School here Dec. 4 to mark the Czech Republic end-of-mission and to recognize the Czechs for their work training and advising the Iraqi Army. Czech Republic Army Maj. Frantisek Grmela commanded 14 Soldiers who served as trainers and advisors to the IraqiArmy Armor School at Taji for the past six months. Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq TAJI — The Czech contingent, Senior Iraqi and Coalition partners gathered at the Iraqi Army Armor School here Dec. 4 to mark the Czech Republic end-of-mission and...

CAMP TAJI — Traffic builds while a truck struggles to make it up a sandy on-ramp as the vehicle’s driver navigates an alternate route in an attempt to bypass a damaged bridge. After some time, Iraqi Police and locals give the driver a push. The scene replayed every few minutes, frustrating military and civilian drivers alike near the city of Taji. A steep slope on the on-ramp, coupled with a lack of a hard surface, were making it hard for traffic to travel the road and causing traffic to regularly back up for half a mile. This is where the...

TAJI, Iraq– Soon a group of Iowa National Guardsmen will be leaving Iraq and leaving behind a legacy of training and friendship with their Iraqi Air Force partners.“This day I would like to say goodbye to our dear friends who gave serious assistance and backup for our air force,” said Lt. Gen. Kamal, IqAF commander. “They did a major job to build our new Air Force.”“We would like to thank their families, said Kamal. “Because they were so patient waiting for them to do their duties here. Our salute to their families to wish them all the best happiness and...

....The GOP's greatest embarrassment of all might seem to be Florida's 22nd, where the party that Iraq destroyed is running a candidate charged with violating the Uniform Code of Military Justice. And, yet, the South Florida GOP doesn't see it that way. This year's surprise in Palm Beach County is that local Republican officials, some of whom are also presiding over more competitive races, believe their candidate is not a laughingstock but the marquee Republican of the year--that he is not a symptom of what ails the national GOP but a possible cure. Palm Beach County Republican Chairman Sid Dinerstein,...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, March 31, 2008 – As some 19-year-olds are going to college, hanging out with friends and beginning their adult life, one Multinational Division Baghdad soldier is beginning his adulthood in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Army Pvt. Derk Hayes, a Peru, Ind., native, who serves in Multinational Division Baghdad with Company C, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, receives a commander’s coin for excellence March 9, 2008, from Army Lt. Col. Richard “Flip” Wilson, commander of 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, at Camp Taji, Iraq. Photo by Sgt. Brad...

Lt. Col. Thomas Boccardi, a native of Colorado Springs, Colo., shakes hands with a newly freed man, March 19, in Tarmiya. Seven men were released from prison to Tarmiya, and 15 were transported to Taji. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. William Greer. Face of released man blocked for his protection. CAMP TAJI — Twenty-two detainees were released as part of Operation Forgiving Dragon, March 19.  Seven of the detainees were released back to the city of Tarmiya and the remaining 15 to Taji.  Both cities are located northwest of Baghdad. The Iraqi Army, Iraqi police and local leaders...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, March 27, 2008 – On Sept. 11, 2001, Nicholas Pata was a volunteer firefighter in Rockland County, N.Y., who assisted rescue efforts after terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in Manhattan. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus (left) presents a commander’s coin for excellence to Army Pfc. Nicholas Pata, a New York City native who serves as a radio-telephone operator for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Multinational Division Baghdad, March 12, 2008. Photo by Staff Sgt. Christian Foster, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available....

Scouts, left to right, of Troop C, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, Sgt. Jonathan Toth of Clinton, Miss.; Pfc. Zach Foege who hails from Watertown, Wisc., and Pvt. Joseph Solis of Dallas get to know an Iraqi boy during a foot patrol in the Baghdad Gardens neighborhood near Taji, Oct. 6. Photo by Staff Sgt. Jon Cupp, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs. TAJI — Soldiers from Troop C, 1st Squadron, 7th “Garryowen� Cavalry Regiment, who work out of a nearby Coalition outpost, are continuing to reach out in operations to build relationships and trust with the...

BAGHDAD – Iraqi Army Forces, with U.S. Special Forces acting as advisers, detained two leaders of rogue elements of the Jaysh al-Mahdi militia during two intelligence driven operations Aug. 24 in Baghdad and in Taji. In the first operation, Iraqi Army Scouts detained a suspected Shi’a extremist responsible for directing a criminal network of individuals who routinely attack Iraqi and Coalition Forces with improvised explosive devices and explosively formed penetrators in the New Baghdad area. The leader is also linked to a Jaysh al-Mahdi cell responsible for extrajudicial killings of innocent Iraqis. The forces also detained a second suspicious individual...

FALLUJAH, Iraq – Iraqi Security Forces conducted a helicopter assault raid July 28 detaining two known al Qaeda in Iraq cell members suspected of numerous crimes including murdering and intimidating Iraqi citizens and improvised explosive device attacks against Coalition Forces. With U.S. Special Operations Forces present as advisers, Iraqi police detained their primary suspects without incident in a remote area northwest of Taji.      The detained individuals are high-level members of an al Qaeda cell in the Qaryat al Majarrah region and directly linked to a cell leader who was also detained in the same area July 20. The first...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq — For a fourth time in two weeks, a large cache of improvised explosive device-making material and mortar rounds was turned over to Coalition Forces by the “Neighborhood Watch” in Taji, Iraq July 9.The cache contained more than 20 mortar rounds, multiple makeshift mortar tubes and mortar fuses. Also in the cache were IED timing devices and IED detonation material.This is the fourth time since the establishment of a Coalition outpost in Falahat, a village near Taji, north of the Iraqi capital, that weapons caches have been turned in or identified to Soldiers from Troop D, 1st...

TAJI, Iraq, July 5, 2007 – As the United States celebrated its Independence Day, soldiers continued working, standing guard and going on patrols staged from Coalition Outpost X-Ray near here. Pvt. Brandon Reed, a scout with Troop C, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, climbs rapidly into a gunner’s turret on a Humvee at Coalition Outpost X-Ray, Iraq, on July 3 after his platoon receives orders to go on an unscheduled mission. Photo by Staff Sgt. Jon Cupp, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Instead of fireworks and family picnics, soldiers from Troop C, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment,...

BAGHDAD, Feb 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. military in Iraq said it was checking whether a helicopter came down just north of Baghdad on Friday. "We're looking at reports of a possible aircraft down," a spokeswoman, Lieutenant Colonel Josslyn Aberle, said when asked about reports from residents near the major U.S. air base at Taji that they saw a helicopter come down shortly after dawn. U.S. embassy spokesman Lou Fintor also said: "We're looking into the reports."

WASHINGTON, July 24, 2006 – A group of golf enthusiasts plans to donate golf clubs, balls, tees, mats and other golf equipment to servicemembers at Camp Taji, a military base in Iraq. U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Abdul Mercado inside his living quarters at Camp Taji, Iraq. Soon Mercado and others at his base will have golf equipment donated by Golfers 4 Freedom. Courtesy photo    U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Abdul Mercado, 36, of 4th Battalion, 42nd Field Artillery, has been playing for 13 years. For the past eight months he has been deployed to Camp Taji and hasn't been...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, May 22, 2006 – The Counterinsurgency Center for Excellence here was established last year to help units adapt to and train for the war against terror in Iraq as it is fought today, which is much different than it was 2003, 2004 or even 2005. "There is a different nature of operations now," said Army Lt. Col. Pete Cafaro, the center's deputy commandant. "Some of the units were here at the beginning when they were fighting their way to Baghdad. Now that's not the fight. Now what we're trying to do is train the Iraqis so they...

GOTTA SEE THIS - War for Enduring Freedom 3/25/06 - Samarra, Op. Swarmer , Kerbala, Abu Ghraib, al-Dor, Baquba, USS Gonzalez, USS Cape St. George, Taji, Nowruz, Istanbul, Tashkent, Tehran BREAKING: Samarra, Op. Swarmer - 11 caches and 104 terrorists taken BREAKING: Kerbala - terrorist attack Abu Ghraib - Real story: cache taken al-Dor - US-Iraqi patrols root out terrorists Baquba - Cache taken USS Gonzalez, USS Cape St. George - Weapons confiscated from terrorist pirates Taji - Nowruz celebrations Istanbul, Turkey - Nowruz celebrations Uzbek capital Tashkent - Nowruz celebrations Tehran - Nowruz celebrations QFN ==== YE OLDE QUAGMIRE-FREE...

"We lose more of them [Iraqi Army members] on leave than we do in combat... these guys are bleeding for a greater voice than we are." -- Army First Sergeant John "Top" MacFarlane on the risk of being a member of the Iraqi Army (many are assasinated while they take their seven days off a month) "I think this is Bob's [ABC's Woodruff] blood right here." -- MacFarlane to me, pointing at a blood stain on his flak jacket "... they're all nuts." -- Army Major Mike Jason on insurgent groups all within a 10-mile radius of here "Go ahead...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY As is their custom when in Washington on a weekend, the President and First Lady attended St. Johns Episcopal Church this morning. The President will address the nation this evening from the Oval Office. In the meantime, Vice President Dick Cheney made a surprise visit to Iraq on the first leg of his Middle Eastern trip. QUOTE OF THE DAY: From the Vice President's remarks to the troops at Al-Asad Air Base, Al-Asad, Iraq, Sunday, December 18, 2005. (Click here to read the entire transcript.) THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, I'm not Jessica Simpson. (Laughter.) But...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 14, 2005 – Passion for his country, pride in his soldiers and acceptance of his own personal sacrifice are traits exuded by Col. Abbas Fadhil, the Iraqi military commander in Taji, Iraq, a senior Defense Department official recalled here after meeting him in Iraq. Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary Allison Barber, who led a group of military analysts on a visit to Iraq the week of Oct. 17, said that in the first several months after the fall of Saddam Hussein, the colonel began recruiting soldiers to join the new Iraq military. After he had been on television several...

An Iraqi maintenance worker checks under the hood of a truck to make sure it's operational before being shipped out. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Lorie Jewell Taji Depot Ramps Up Training, Supply Efforts The depot supplies the logistic needs of 10 divisions of the Iraqi Armed Forces, with items ranging from weapons and body armor to ambulances and pickup trucks. By U.S. Army Sgt. Lorie Jewell Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq TAJI, Iraq, Oct. 5, 2005 -- Since operations began in May, the Taji National Depot has completed roughly 500 missions by ground and by air to move equipment...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq – Task Force Baghdad Soldiers at Camp Taji are being given the opportunity to advance to sergeant or staff sergeant, even while deployed. The standard is the same here as it is back at home station: prospective noncommissioned officers must still appear before a promotion board. Prior to the board, however, a Soldier must get ready. Preparing good Soldiers for advancement is extremely important to Staff Sgt. Everick L. Moore, who is serving with the 3rd Infantry Division in Iraq. “If I send good Soldiers to the board, the Army will have good leaders,” said Moore, a...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Aug. 23, 2005 — U.S. Army medics with the Division Support Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division are helping train the Iraqi Army in combat medic skills. U.S. Army Sgt. Matthew J. Carver and Spc. Richard J. Fourroux, combat medics with the 550th Area Support Medical Company, Brigade Troops Battalion, Division Support Brigade, are leading the efforts to train new Iraqi Army recruits to be full combat medics. "It’s a tough course. But, in the end, we learn what will enable us to save more lives while conducting operations out in the field." Iraqi Sgt. Qiass Al-Jobory Carver, who...

The Tohono O'odham Nation is grieving the death of a 20-year-old tribal member killed in action in Iraq. Pfc. Seferino Reyna, an Army combat engineer and father of two, died Sunday when his vehicle was hit by a homemade bomb near Taji, about 20 miles northwest of Baghdad. "This is a tragic loss for the Reyna family, and the entire Tohono O'odham Nation mourns," said Vivian Juan-Saunders, chairwoman of the nation. Reyna was the first O'odham member killed in Iraq. He is the 21st service member of American Indian or native Alaskan descent to die in Iraq or Afghanistan, according...

The clinic serves as a battalion aid station and also provides lab, dental, x-ray and trauma services. TAJI, Iraq, Aug. 3, 2005 — "You never know what is going to roll up to the door," said U.S. Army Capt. Jacqueline L. Graul, brigade nurse for 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division. Graul is part of the staff at "Cobra" Clinic, run by C Company, 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, which provides for the medical needs of soldiers at Camp Taji. "You don't get a second chance with a real casualty. All your training is on the line."...

TAJI, Iraq, Aug. 1, 2005 — Rhode Island never gets this hot. For Rhode Island National Guard soldiers of D Company, 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment, the Iraqi heat has been a challenge, but integrating with other units has gone smoothly. The infantry company is attached to 1st Battalion, 118th Field Artillery Regiment, 48th Brigade, Georgia National Guard, which is supporting 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division here. "Three-quarters of my unit are prior active-duty soldiers, so they seamlessly transitioned to what they once were," said Capt. William H. Tuttle IV, D Co. commander from Warwick, R.I. "I have not seen...

U.S. Apache helicopter down in Iraq -military 4 minutes ago BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A U.S. Apache attack helicopter crashed in Iraq on Monday, a U.S. military spokesman said. ADVERTISEMENT "We had a helicopter crash northwest of Taji," Lieutenant Colonel Cliff Kent, spokesman for the 3rd Infantry Division said, referring to a major airbase north of Baghdad. He said an investigation was underway. It had not yet been determined whether there were casualties aboard the AH-64 helicopter, which carries a crew of two, Kent said. Local people said they saw one of a pair of helicopters crash out of the sky...

TAJI, Iraq (Army News Service, June 8, 2005) – The Iraqi Army’s Operation Lightning resulted in several detainees and weapons confiscations in Taji and across Iraq, said military officials. Searches in Taji are part of the larger Iraqi Army operation to disrupt the enemy’s ability to attack the legitimately-elected government and innocent citizens of Iraq. The first few days of the operation have provided several good leads. Elements of 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division; 1st Battalion, 13th Armor Regim----

Life has been pretty mundane since she returned from Iraq a week ago. After spending nearly a year in Iraq, Amber McClenny had one thing she wanted to do once back in her hometown - absolutely nothing. "I wanted to be lazy," she said. "And that's what she's been doing too," added her husband, Heath. But after being forced to work more than 90 hours a week as part of her punishment for refusing an order in October, it's an understandable desire. The Army Reservist from the 343rd Quartermaster Company also took a $400 a month pay cut and was...

ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Army Reserve company that drew attention when some of its soldiers refused a mission to transport fuel along a dangerous road in Iraq has returned home, with members honoring the officer who led the unit through the controversy. The 343rd Quartermaster Company came back to the Rock Hill Memorial Army Reserve Center on Friday, and returning soldiers presented the unit's flag to the company commander, Capt. Victor Baez-an. He took charge after some members of the unit balked at the Oct. 13 mission, saying their vehicles were in poor condition and did not have armor....

QUARTZ HILL - When Sarah Joy Miller graduated from Desert Christian High School, she entered the Army National Guard, expecting weekend training sessions once a month, two weeks of duty a year. Should she be called into active duty, she figured it would be for a natural disaster, filling sandbags or assisting with emergency crews. Then a year ago, she received orders to report for duty. She was going to Iraq. "At first I was like, I don't want to go to Iraq," the 20-year-old said. "My Army buddies said, 'Maybe God wants you there?' " She struggled with uncertainty,...

Earlier this week, The Providence Journal contacted Rhode Island National Guard Maj. Christian M. Neary, of the 103rd Field Artillery, in Iraq, and invited him to ask some of his soldiers to write Christmas greetings to Rhode Island. Communicating by e-mail, The Journal sent Neary four questions for the soldiers. To our surprise, the responses from the soldiers were returned through Neary with two extra questions, numbers 5 and 6 below. The Journal has included the additional questions and the soldiers' answers, as we received them. Staff Sergeant Michael Zompa Howitzer Section Chief 1. What are you doing to deal...

To: U.S. Congress Six Ohio-based reservists were court-martialed for taking Army vehicles abandoned in Kuwait by other units so they could carry out their own unit's mission to Iraq. Members of the 656th Transportation Company said they needed the equipment to deliver fuel that was needed by U.S. forces in Iraq for everything from helicopters to tanks. The reservists took two tractor-trailers and stripped parts from a five-ton truck that had been abandoned in Kuwait by other units that had already moved into Iraq, one of the reservists, Darrell Birt of Columbus, told the Associated Press on Sunday. Birt, a...

A MILITANT group killed two US intelligence agents in Iraq on December 8, according to a video released on an Islamist website today. The video shows two armed and masked men reading a statement announcing the deaths of the two men near Taji, north of Baghdad, described as "two members of the Pentagon and the CIA''. The footage from the Saraya al-Jihad Al-Islami group shows various photos and official documents belonging to the two men, one of whom is named as Joseph James Wemple. The statement said that "fighters attacked the vehicles (carrying the two men), killed them and took...

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 6 - The American military has ordered punishment, but not courts-martial, for 23 Army Reserve soldiers who refused in October to deliver fuel to a base in Iraq, claiming that it was too dangerous, military officials here said Monday. The soldiers are receiving nonjudicial punishments under Article 15 of the military justice code, which could include reduction in rank, loss of pay and restricted movements depending on their commander's discretion, said Lt. Col. Steve Boylan, a military spokesman. Eighteen have already been disciplined, and the five others will have their punishments decided later, he said. Under the...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - The U.S. military will not court-martial 23 Army reservists who refused a mission transporting fuel along a dangerous road in Iraq, but they will face less severe punishment, an official said Monday. The soldiers from the 343rd Quartermaster Company, based in Rockhill, N.C., may be assigned extra duties or face reductions in rank, military spokesman Lt. Col. Steve Boylan said. The soldiers failed to report Oct. 13 for an assigned mission to transport supplies from Tallil air base near Nasiriyah to Taji north of Baghdad. "They felt they didn't have the proper equipment to do the...

On the wing of an Apache (From Fort Hood Sentinel) By Cpl. Benjamin Cossel 122nd MPAD CAMP TAJI, Iraq –For two Apache Longbow pilots, the night of Oct. 16 was just a regular night flying a reconnaissance mission around southern Baghdad. A distorted cry for help came across the emergency radio shattering the chatter of all other communications. They recognized the call sign, they recognized the area and a few minutes later, they were in route to perform what would become a heroic rescue. “I really couldn’t make out at first what was going on. The transmission over the radio...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 - An Army investigation has recommended that two dozen members of an Army Reserve unit in Iraq be punished for disobeying orders last month to deliver fuel to another base, a Pentagon official and relatives of the soldiers said Monday. Most of the reservists will probably receive fines, demotions or reprimands, but four or five could face courts-martial on more serious charges, said the Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the inquiry's recommendations had not been announced. About 18 members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company, based in Rock Hill, S.C., were held for nearly...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Army investigators recommended disciplinary action against about two dozen reservists who refused orders to deliver fuel along a dangerous convoy route in Iraq, officials said on Tuesday. Four or five members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company could face courts-martial on unspecified criminal charges, said Army officials who asked not to be identified. The rest were expected to get administrative punishment, which could include demotion, loss of pay or a reprimand, the officials said. Members of the unit disobeyed orders to take their unarmored fuel tankers on a supply run from Tallil in southeastern Iraq to the...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Army is recommending punishment for about two dozen soldiers from an Army Reserve unit in Iraq that refused orders to drive a fuel convoy because they believed it was too dangerous, officials said Tuesday. No final decisions have been made, and none of the soldiers has been charged with a crime, the officials said, but preliminary findings of an Army investigation faulted about 24 members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company, which is based at Rock Hill, South Carolina. About 18 of the 24 were held for nearly two days after refusing orders to drive a fuel...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A U.S. Army supply unit whose members refused a dangerous fuel delivery mission last month has now fitted its vehicles with armor to protect against attack, the military said Saturday. Eighteen soldiers from the 343rd Quartermaster Company, a Reserve unit based in Rock Hill, S.C., refused to drive a fuel convoy last month from Tallil air base near Nasiriyah to Taji north of Baghdad, insisting their vehicles were not properly outfitted and the fuel was contaminated. The mission later was carried out by other troops in the unit, which has at least 120 soldiers, the military said....

Army specialist speaks about disobeyed order in Iraq fuel mission People across the country have been telling stories about Spc. Major Coates and his fellow soldiers all week. On Wednesday, the Mount Holly reservist decided to speak for himself. The voices of the Army reservists who disobeyed a direct order last week in Iraq have been noticeably absent from news accounts of the incident. Instead, relatives such as Coates' father, Johnny, and military officials, have spoken for the soldiers. But Coates telephoned the Observer from Iraq Wednesday, saying he wanted to clear up some misinformation. In addition to correcting details...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. soldiers who staged a mutiny and refused to go on a convoy in Iraq felt commanders ignored their plight when they complained about the safety and condition of their vehicles, their relatives said on Monday. Ricky Shealey, father of one of 18 soldiers who face discipline for refusing an order to go on a convoy last week, said his son's commanders dismissed complaints they were being asked to transport contaminated fuel in broken-down trucks. "The command just totally ignored them when they told them this fuel was contaminated and they were still gonna send them out...

A Kalispell National Guard unit stepped in to make a fuel delivery in Iraq last week after a South Carolina Army Reserve unit refused the mission. Guard Maj. Scott Smith confirmed that the 639th Quartermaster Company of the Montana National Guard delivered the fuel after some South Carolina reservists made headlines by refusing the mission as too dangerous. Initial reports indicated another platoon of South Carolina's 343rd Quartermaster Company had filled in on the job. But National Guard officials in Helena and the wife of a Kalispell commander said the Montana contingent had actually tackled the convoy duty. "They [the...

The commander of the Army reserve unit that declined to carry out a mission to deliver fuel in Iraq has been relieved of her duties, the American military in Iraq said today. In a statement, the military said the move came at the commander's own request. But on Wednesday, Pentagon officials described it as a disciplinary action, and one Pentagon official said the commander was being relieved for poor leadership. The action against the commander was first reported by CBS News Wednesday evening. The action involved the head of the 343rd Quartermaster Company. Last week, officials have said, more than...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A soldier from an Army Reserve unit whose members refused to deliver fuel along a dangerous route in Iraq says he and others did not act out of fear, as the soldier's father has said. "We are not cowards," Spc. Major Coates told The Charlotte Observer for a report published Thursday. "The way that things come out, it makes us look like that ... Our soldiers have run missions all over Iraq; we're never scared to go on a mission." Coates was among 19 members of a platoon from the 343rd Quartermaster Company, based in Rock...