Rescuers Nearly Called Mission Off
Team of Marines Feared Ambush

Back to the War on Saddam Hussein Page

washingtonpost.com

By Peter Baker
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, April 16, 2003; Page A01

MARINE COMBAT HEADQUARTERS, Central Iraq, April 15 -- The Marines were told to look for House 13. Inside they hoped would be U.S. soldiers captured by the Iraqis. As they made their way through a dusty warren of two-story mud-colored hutches in the Iraqi town of Samarra, they found House 11. They found House 12. But no House 13.

What they did see were more and more Iraqis swarming around. First a child who popped around a corner, then two or three men. Soon there were dozens of people staring at them from the streets and the rooftops above them. "Something's not right," Lance Cpl. Curney Russell recalled telling his squad mates.

Some of the Marines began to worry that the tip about U.S. prisoners was a setup for an ambush. "We thought it could be a 'Black Hawk Down' situation," said Russell, recalling the 1993 raid that turned into an ambush in Mogadishu, Somalia, in which militiamen killed 18 U.S. soldiers.

Unable to find the house and leery of a trap, their commander prepared to order them to withdraw. Then a man with a light beard in dingy yellow pajamas peered out from a house, trying to get their attention.

"I'm an American," he called out, quietly but urgently.

So began the rescue of seven U.S. prisoners of war on Sunday, but it almost didn't happen. If Chief Warrant Officer David Williams, the senior officer among the POWs, had not beckoned them, the Marines would have pulled out, two of those involved in the rescue operation said in interviews today.

Their accounts shed new light on how the Marines came to find the only U.S. service members listed by the military as POWs in Iraq when President Saddam Hussein's government was toppled. The liberation of the seven soldiers from the Army's V Corps provided an emotional coda to Hussein's ouster for U.S. military commanders in Iraq. Five of the seven were from the ill-fated 507th Maintenance Company convoy ambushed in the southern city of Nasiriyah on March 23, a detachment that also included Pfc. Jessica Lynch, who was rescued separately on April 2. The other two prisoners recovered Sunday were pilots aboard an AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter brought down by a barrage of gunfire early in the morning of March 24.

With no other soldiers believed captured, coalition forces report just two Americans and two British still missing, formally categorized as "duty status whereabouts unknown." British units found two bodies in shallow graves on the Faw peninsula Monday and are trying to identify them, while U.S. forces are examining other remains to determine if they match one of their missing.

From the viewpoint of the Marines, Sunday's rescue mission came together with unusual speed, involved some dicey moments and succeeded in part by chance and with the surprise help of the guards holding the Americans.

The Marines from the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion were rolling north out of Baghdad toward Hussein's home town of Tikrit for what they thought would be a final showdown with the deposed leader's loyalists. They had covered about 70 miles and reached the town of Samarra when they got the word.

Local Iraqis approached the Marines, telling them that the seven POWs were being held in town and giving directions where to find them. Russell and his squad leader, Cpl. Christopher Castro, said today they were not sure whether a police officer or a civilian provided the information. But it appeared to come at the behest of the men holding the Americans, because the Marines were told to knock three times first and the guards would open the door with their weapons holstered or on the floor.

A battalion commander summoned the Marines from Delta Company and hurriedly scratched out a map. Delta Company had already experienced fierce combat in the war, and Castro had seen one of the Marines from his squad killed and another shot up badly.

The Marine commander did not want them going into Samarra with guns blazing and warned them not to open fire unless necessary. Two of Delta Company's platoons were ordered to secure the area, while 3rd Platoon would conduct the search with an Arabic-speaking interpreter.

One group of Marines came under sniper fire. The rest of them were on edge. Castro, a 21-year-old squad leader from San Antonio whose ever-present sunglasses had earned him the nickname "Hollywood," kept in mind the two ambushes he had seen earlier in the war. They came upon a small square but none of the houses had the correct Arabic numeral on it.

"At first when we couldn't find it, I thought maybe it was a setup," said Russell, 18, of Manchester, N.H., who was just six days out of infantry school when he was sent to Kuwait last winter. "I saw a guy on the rooftop and said to Corporal Castro, 'Hey, we've got a guy on the rooftop!' All of a sudden I saw 10 or 20 other people coming out on the rooftop."

"That's where the fear factor hit," said Castro. "We were about to pull out." Then Lance Cpl. Aaron Greenleaf heard the POW call out and shouted, "Sir, I can hear them over here!"

Russell was the first to the door. "I ran up, knocked on the door three times -- bang, bang, bang!" he recalled. "They didn't come. My CO [commanding officer] said, 'Kick the door.' "

After Russell smashed it in, the rest of Castro's squad stormed in, shouting, "Get down! Get down!" While Williams evidently saw the Marines outside the house, the other prisoners later recalled that they were stunned when they heard the door broken down. One of the Marines yelled, "If you're American, get up and get out," Castro and Russell said, and they began to separate the seven prisoners from their captors.

The three Iraqis they found in the house had disposed of their weapons. The now-freed POWs intervened on their behalf. "Don't hurt them," pleaded Williams, the senior POW and an Apache pilot, the Marines recalled. "They're our friends. They helped us out."

As the highest-ranking soldier among the seven, Williams had assumed leadership of the beleaguered group, sometimes representing their interests with the captors in trying to improve their conditions. A 31-year-old father of two from Fort Hood, Tex., Williams had been flying the Apache that went down, then ran across fields and swam down a canal before being captured by armed Iraqi farmers who hit him and paraded him up to Baghdad.

In interviews on Sunday as they were being evacuated from Iraq, Williams and other prisoners said that unlike their early jailers, their final captors were compassionate and used their own money to buy them food and medicine. "The biggest thing that I have to say is the last three guys that were holding us captive were the best," Williams said Sunday. "They were police officers, not army. They treated us very well."

The Marines asked if the Iraqi guards wanted to come as well, but they declined, saying the town was their home. The prisoners, weakened by their captivity, seemed almost dazed at what was happening around them. "They were kind of shaken up," Russell said. "They looked a little scared but they were happy to be getting out of there."

With the crowds milling nearby, the Marines wanted to get the POWs out quickly. "All I thought was, 'Let's get the hell out of here before they start firing at us,' " Castro said. He put the freed soldiers in vehicles, helping Spec. Shoshana Johnson, 30, who had been shot in both feet, and sped them out within two or three minutes of bursting into the house.

From there, the prisoners were taken about four miles down the road to a secure area, where two men from an Army "human exploitation team" talked with them for an hour or so while the Marines found fresh clothes for the soldiers, who had worn the same Iraqi pajamas for 21 days.

A CH-46 helicopter arrived within 90 minutes and whisked the seven to the Numaniyah airfield about 80 miles southeast of Baghdad, where they were quickly ushered onto a C-130 Hercules transport plane to Kuwait. Castro and Russell went along with them, sticking close to the prisoners as they escaped Iraqi airspace.

The plane ride proved an emotional roller coaster for the freed prisoners as they absorbed their salvation. Spec. Joseph Hudson, 23, laughed, flashed the thumbs-up sign and proclaimed his everlasting love for the Marines. Chief Warrant Officer Ronald Young, 26, excitedly talked with the airmen and fellow prisoners. Sgt. James Riley, 31, Spec. Edgar Hernandez, 21, and Pfc. Patrick Miller, 23, sat more quietly. Williams smiled and then became choked up as he recalled thinking that he would never see his wife again. By then, a bond had formed with their rescuers. On hitting the tarmac in Kuwait, Williams implored the Marines not to leave them and they accompanied the soldiers to a medical facility and stayed the night with them.

"They just kept hugging us," said Castro, sounding a little embarrassed.

Riley said during the plane ride to Kuwait that he and his fellow POWs were not heroes but that the men who came to rescue them were. Castro rejected that today.

"All we did was our job," he said. "People have been thanking us every day." Still, he allowed, "It was good to get them out alive."

© 2003 The Washington Post Company

Reply 1 - Posted by: bukeye1, 4/15/2003 9:42:33 PM New meaning to 'angels in the whirwinds'.

Reply 2 - Posted by: Urgent Fury, 4/15/2003 9:54:46 PM Is it weird to wish I was over there in the middle of it?

Reply 3 - Posted by: Irving, 4/15/2003 9:54:57 PM "At first when we couldn't find it, I thought maybe it was a setup," said Russell, 18, of Manchester, N.H., who was just six days out of infantry school when he was sent to Kuwait last winter.

Reply 4 - Posted by: Standing Wolf, 4/15/2003 9:55:28 PM Riley said during the plane ride to Kuwait that he and his fellow POWs were not heroes but the men who came to rescue them were. Castro rejected that today. "All we did was our job," he said. That's America for you.

Reply 5 - Posted by: saildreamer, 4/15/2003 9:58:44 PM Nice story. Our military just keeps making me prouder and prouder. The POWs claim the rescuers are the heros and the rescuers say they were just doing their job.

Reply 6 - Posted by: Evocatus, 4/15/2003 10:02:30 PM Group hug. Feel the love. You all earned it. (gosh darn it, the kids today. Whaddya do with 'em?) Mama DID raise ya right!

Reply 7 - Posted by: catbird, 4/15/2003 10:05:54 PM Heartwarming

Reply 8 - Posted by: sunflower, 4/15/2003 10:09:21 PM Man, I so admire our young Military, who are so well trained, and under the leadership, of a Moral President, Our Commander in Chief, who rescued our POW's. The rescuers are as heroic as the personnel they rescued, and thank God, they both are saved. My heart goes out to the Families who have lost loved ones, in this fight, but they were doing what they believed in, to be right. God Bless those Families, God Bless Our Moral President, God Bless America, and God, Please continue to Bless our Military, in a Just Cause. To save the USA, and to liberate Iraqis.

Reply 9 - Posted by: pepperblue, 4/15/2003 10:09:32 PM God is good.

Reply 10 - Posted by: enemelde, 4/15/2003 10:15:09 PM Thanks for the reminder, #1, of that incredibly prescient quote in President Bush's inauguration speech. We had no idea, did we, of just how prophetic it was? For those who don't remember, here's the quote. It comprises the last few paragraphs of his speech that day. ''After the Declaration of Independence was signed, Virginia statesman John Page wrote to Thomas Jefferson: 'We know the Race is not to the swift nor the Battle to the Strong. Do you not think an Angel rides in the Whirlwind and directs this Storm?' … We are not this story's author, who fills time and eternity with His purpose. Yet His purpose is achieved in our duty; and our duty is fulfilled in service to one another. Never tiring, never yielding, never finishing, we renew that purpose today: to make our country more just and generous; to affirm the dignity of our lives and every life. This work continues. This story goes on. And an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm.'' We had 9/11 and Iraq ahead of us at the time. But the Angel has always been there.

Reply 11 - Posted by: dotnetjunkie, 4/15/2003 10:23:32 PM Amen - it is so sad that we have so many people in our land who don't understand the grace, love, and moral foundation that springs from the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

Reply 12 - Posted by: wagop, 4/15/2003 10:25:21 PM #10 - thank you for that quote. It truly is prophetic. Thank God we have a truly moral man in the White House.

Reply 13 - Posted by: Wesen, 4/15/2003 10:26:41 PM When will we find out about their executed friends.

Reply 14 - Posted by: voxpopuli, 4/15/2003 10:27:49 PM now it's up to US to clean out the trash in THIS country... we owe it to our soldiers..

Reply 15 - Posted by: doubting thomas, 4/15/2003 10:29:00 PM God Bless these American former POWs and the Iraqi Policemen who were kind to them.

Reply 16 - Posted by: reason incarnate, 4/15/2003 10:30:02 PM I like that even when in a dangerous situation, the Marines didn't panic and innocent llives were spared. Those Iraqi policemen may go on to be big US supporters. I also like it that our guys spoke up for the people that helped them.

Reply 17 - Posted by: darnright, 4/15/2003 10:30:49 PM Oh God, 10... Thanks...

Reply 18 - Posted by: yakusc, 4/15/2003 10:31:13 PM Our finest men and women...and the future leadership of our country...truly we are in good hands.

Reply 19 - Posted by: vlad, 4/15/2003 10:32:32 PM No #2 it's not weird at all. I wish I were 20 years younger so I could have a career in the military.

Reply 20 - Posted by: tuckysee, 4/15/2003 10:35:11 PM The world is far to dangerous to vote for a D'rat...listen to me America. What a travesty it would be to have Hillary command such an military.

Reply 21 - Posted by: petie3, 4/15/2003 10:38:30 PM You find good people in the darndest places.

Reply 22 - Posted by: farmwife, 4/15/2003 10:38:31 PM "Where do we find such men (and womean)?"

Reply 23 - Posted by: kennowen, 4/15/2003 10:39:58 PM Really liked the 'just doing my job' comment. Great stories out of this war.

Reply 24 - Posted by: sunflower, 4/15/2003 10:40:21 PM Be ever the more thankful we have a Moral Leader who is not an appeaser, letting us have another 9/11. had owl gore been elected, falsely, we would have already been through two more 9/11's by now, probably worse, and still appeasing the enemy, as his mentor did.

Reply 25 - Posted by: William of Carmichael, 4/15/2003 10:46:23 PM Inspiring story. I must comment on what came to mind, however. Some that read this won't like it. But first I recall that no American said we should war against the Iraqi people and events have proven us correct to say that our war was not with them. As far as our troops go, did you catch their ages? They are American youths. You know, the ones some businessmen and employers say are too lazy and spoiled to hire. I can barely count the number of times I've seen it posted by a few L-dotters. Is it really the youths or has it always been largely the employers' motivation and management that's been lacking? Or was it just their excuse to exploit "cheap" labor. The good work of hundreds of thousands of American youths in uniform is a very good sampling.

Reply 26 - Posted by: amylu, 4/15/2003 10:46:29 PM Now here's an example of REAL Americans. Hollyweirdos, are you listening?

Reply 27 - Posted by: pewman2, 4/15/2003 10:56:04 PM thanks #10.......... i remember all the prayers after 9/11, but i especially remember the song "God Bless America". is it not a prayer, also? God has answered these prayers, sung or spoken. He is "standing beside us". Thanks to our Heavenly Father and to His Resurrected Son. Maybe we should worship with His Children this Sunday.

Reply 28 - Posted by: Gantry, 4/15/2003 11:01:38 PM Not only this war to be proud of our servicemen and women. Don't forget Viet Nam war that was so mis-managed by a Democratic president,but fought so well by our soldiers; and opposed by the same peaceniks and draft dodgers who are still at their nasty business today. The Korean war where most of the soldiers who fought there and died there, waited years for some sort of recognition for their efforts for the South Korean people. It is good that these kids and veterans today are recognized and appreciated for their efforts in keeping this country safe, and doing the job despite the whining heard from the left. I hope peoples eyes have been opened as to whom some of the enemy really are. Lets hope they all vote in the next election and liberals don't attempt to deny them that right again.

Reply 29 - Posted by: SmithL, 4/15/2003 11:03:40 PM It's all about character. Look at the brave men and women putting it all on the line for us, then look at the vermin trying to shut down our cities and streets.

Reply 30 - Posted by: Badger State, 4/15/2003 11:18:31 PM Pretty tough to loathe our military. You would have to be a complete... Oh, nevermind.

Reply 31 - Posted by: jatfla , 4/15/2003 11:27:55 PM #10...I had to copy and save that quote. That was powerful; and so was the article. Sometimes it's so easy to see the divine Hand in our lives and then at others, you wonder where the heck He is. Wonderful article about a wonderfully happy ending. Let's offer up Praise this Easter Sunday for God's goodness to all of us. (And then there's Luci Peterson....It's hard to understand God, isn't it?)

Reply 32 - Posted by: shadeau, 4/15/2003 11:35:17 PM Has John Mc Cain every said he wasn't to be considered a hero? How about that pilot that got shot down over Bosnia?

Reply 33 - Posted by: Lust For Justice, 4/15/2003 11:48:06 PM For my thoughts [are] not your thoughts, neither [are] your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9-10 Speaking for myself, if I could understand HIM, HE wouldn't be much of a God. How could finite understand infinite? I'm just glad HE is GOD, and I'm not!

Reply 34 - Posted by: The Road Apple, 4/15/2003 11:49:18 PM Monday evening on Bill O'Reilly's program there was a presentation of pictures of young Marines and soldiers who have been killed in Iraq. The pictures were accompanied by a wonderful song of military heroism. It was a most touching moment and I was so proud to be an American at that time. May God bless and keep them all.

Reply 35 - Posted by: Yorkiemom, 4/15/2003 11:51:44 PM The rescuers and the POWs deserve all the best life has to offer. I am so proud of all of them.

Reply 36 - Posted by: whitey, 4/16/2003 12:05:34 AM Perhaps Sean Penn will want to play a brave Marine in an upcoming movie. Maybe he'll be a POW or catch a bullet in the process to regain our sympathy. Doubt it!

Reply 37 - Posted by: DonQuijote, 4/16/2003 12:11:30 AM Thanks, ten.

Reply 38 - Posted by: shilohsharps, 4/16/2003 12:15:34 AM Thank you, God, for the grace of three policemen who understood, acted honorably under what must have been great stress, and did the right thing despite what also must have been great unkowns with bad endings if this had turned out differently. Because as we all know, if these three had fallen afoul of Fedayeen or Iraqi intelligence or worse, it wouldn't be just the policemen who paid with their lives but their familes and most likely all relatives who could be found. I am grateful to the Marines, again, and forever. But I am especially grateful for the gift of Good Men in Bad Times. I pray these three find out that every LDotter here is gripped with pride and respect for the risk they took. Thank You. And may God bless you.

Reply 39 - Posted by: Ardys Parrish, 4/16/2003 12:46:39 AM These three policemen should be found and made the foundation of the new police force we are creating in Iraq. We know they are good men. They probably know others.

Reply 40 - Posted by: DepuTJones, 4/16/2003 12:49:02 AM #2, it is NOT weird to wish to be in the middle of what's going on over there. I spent 8 long years in the Army, mostly under the Clintonista Regime and frankly, I hated it. I have been having the Army Blues ever since this stuff started.. WISHING Desperately to be over there with my comrades-in-arms. I swell with a pride that feels almost overwhelming at times.. and saddened, too, for not being able to be a part of it...again. I was in Basic Training in 1991 at the age of 23 when the first Gulf War began.. I missed that one too!!! THE CHAGRINE OF IT ALL! Thank You, God for teaching this country's people a lesson in the nuances of evil...May our Country never fall under the pall of the wicked again! God has saved us... WAKE UP AMERICA! God bless our President God bless our Troops God bless AMERICA!

Reply 41 - Posted by: morganmomx3, 4/16/2003 12:51:10 AM Actually, #32, I believe I have heard Scott O'Grady (the pilot you are referring to who was shot down over Bosnia) say that he is not the hero in his story. As for McCain.... well, he does seem to be very comfortable being considered a hero, doesn't he?

Reply 42 - Posted by: norcalvet, 4/16/2003 12:52:13 AM No #2, it is not wierd. We're both retired, but wish somehow we could go back in so we could be there, too. Guess the bond that exists between all military members is very strong. No, definately not wierd.

Reply 43 - Posted by: goarmy, 4/16/2003 12:53:41 AM in the midst of every war and battle there is a moment of decency and humanity. Someone asked "is it weird to wish I was there?" I was a green beret and I know when my guys are out there I want to be with them. The wish to be with them is a highly compassionate response; it is a response that makes you human, because to reach into another's time and place is share your existence, your soul with another. I hope it's not just an American trait.

Reply 44 - Posted by: quityerwhining, 4/16/2003 1:05:09 AM Giving the name ''Castro'' a ring of decency. The times, they are a changin'.

Reply 45 - Posted by: Bonbon, 4/16/2003 1:08:49 AM #11 Amen to that!! #33 Amazing GRACE!!

Reply 46 - Posted by: plpointer67, 4/16/2003 1:14:27 AM Thank you #10! Thank you Marines & All in uniform. Thank you President Bush & team. Thank you God!

Reply 47 - Posted by: stormy, 4/16/2003 1:16:24 AM All of our POW's have been blessed. Not just by God, but, those that helped with their rescues...our Troops and the Iraqis that pointed the way. May their rescuers remain safe.

Reply 48 - Posted by: Scout Finch, 4/16/2003 1:24:53 AM #36--You bet your sweet bippy Penn would play the part of a brave soldier during Operation Iraqi Freedom--as long as consumer polls shows strong military support. Hollywood will do anything to prostitute itself for cash money.

Reply 49 - Posted by: VivaFlame, 4/16/2003 1:26:32 AM = Never Forget = now includes our brave men & women, All of them. God Bless them All. God Bless the USA!

Reply 50 - Posted by: mamamoose, 4/16/2003 1:30:02 AM No. 32, John McCain has said many, many times that he is a survivor, not a hero. He ALWAYS swats down any hero reference to himself if he is present. Really, I know how you all hate him, but you must not cast blanket condemnation on this man you do not know. You might not approve of his politics, but this man is a patriot, and his father and grandfather before him, and his son after him.

Reply 51 - Posted by: cisco, 4/16/2003 1:33:37 AM "They are American youths. You know, the ones some businessmen and employers say are too lazy and spoiled to hire." Not so - These are the ones not too lazy and spoiled to hire. The lazy and spoiled ones are still hanging around all over the place in droves.

Reply 52 - Posted by: StevensCW, 4/16/2003 1:37:05 AM I'm with #39. These three are a good place to start an Iraqi police forece. God bless them for showing compassion for their fellow human beings.

Reply 53 - Posted by: radrelic, 4/16/2003 1:50:43 AM Great posts, great military, great countrymen/women. A time for learning and pondering. #20 said"...listen to me America. What a travesty it would be to have Hillary command such an military." Interesting times ahead of us. Israel may soon sign away a sizeable chunk of land to get peace. We'll need those angels, 10.

Reply 54 - Posted by: barbill4, 4/16/2003 2:49:58 AM Whle my first post was in defense of a fiend, I really did intend to write my feelings about these youngsters who are defending us. I have the hardest time when I look at them and see what they are doing and knowing they are just babies. Babies. Mothers' beloved baby children, 18, 19, 20. My heart is with them, I could hug each and everyone and never tire of it and I have a cry daily, especially when I see and hear Rick Levanthal talking with these kids. Their grins, their modesty and courage in the face of fearsome dangers makes me feel like a big fat old coward. I love them all and mourn for the dead ones and the injured ones and the missing ones. God be with them all and with their families and friends.

Reply 55 - Posted by: valleystorm, 4/16/2003 2:53:29 AM Well, I can tell you one thing....no one's ever going to get snide about the U.S. military with me ever again. I am so proud of them and grateful.

Reply 56 - Posted by: barbill4, 4/16/2003 3:01:11 AM In my post No.54, I mistakenly wrote fiend for friend. Was that a Freudian slip? Mamamoose