Battling for Baghdad: soldiers and marines take on Iraqis in what Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld called "the fastest advance on a capital city in modern military history."

VFW Magazine, June-July, 2003 by Shannon Hanson

From the beginning of the war in Iraq, the battle for the capital city of Baghdad loomed in the distance. As U.S. troops making their way toward the city met limited resistance from Iraqi forces, a fierce confrontation at Baghdad seemed imminent.

The Army's 3rd Infantry Division and the Marines' 1st Division took western and eastern routes, respectively, from Kuwait, converging on the city in early April. While the Republican Guard and Fedayeen did fight back against GIs entering the city, firefights were isolated and Iraqi defenses ineffective.

The long road to Baghdad had come to an end, and the city fell in just a matter of days.

'Marne' Division in Action

The first American troops to reach Baghdad were members of the 3rd Infantry Division, nicknamed the "Marne" Division in WWI. The division is one of heavy armor and firepower, requiring a huge logistical train to maintain it. It set a western course for Baghdad, moving rapidly through the desert to avoid populated areas.

The 300-mile trip took the division 17 days, though its speed pushed troops and equipment to the limit, according to the New York Times, stretching supply lines dangerously thin. Its avoidance of cities also opened it up in the rear to harassment from Iraqi paramilitary groups, such as those that plagued the Marines in Nasiriyah (see May issue of VFW).

But the division completed its historic journey, pushing through the Karbala Gap and occupying Baghdad's international airport.

The push through Karbala was the 3rd Division's first major conflict in its advance into Baghdad. Though a sandstorm had separated elements of the division on the way there, all were assembled outside the city by March 31.

The plan was to press on to Baghdad through the Karbala Gap, a mile-wide stretch between the Euphrates River and a reservoir. Attack Co., 3rd Bn., 7th Inf. Regt., and two tank companies drew the assignment of fooling the Iraqis into thinking U.S. forces would cross the river to the east, at Hindiyah.

The companies seized a bridge across the Euphrates near Hindiyah, igniting a seven-hour firefight while the rest of the division poured north through the Karbala Gap. "I bet they're bragging right now about how they defeated the American war machine," said Attack Company commander Capt. Chris Carter as the companies received orders to pull back from the bridge.

Elements of the division assaulted the airport on April 3, while others patrolled the outskirts of the city. Some moved into Saddam Hussein's now-deserted presidential palaces, using bathrooms, taking showers and sleeping under a roof for the first time in weeks.

The airport fell easily to Army control, and the first American plane, an Air Force C-130, landed there on April 7, opening it to use as an American airfield.

Army troops were poised at Baghdad's door, awaiting orders to invade.

With the 'Old Breed'

As opposed to the Army's 3rd Division, the Marines' 1st Division uses more lightly armored vehicles and excels in the small-unit maneuvering required in populous areas. So, reported the Los Angeles Times, "that helps explain why [it] drove north to Baghdad through the fertile and populous areas between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers."

The Marine's trip to Baghdad was perilous, as Iraqi paramilitaries continually nipped at their heels as they passed through cities such as Nasiriyah and Kut. Forces assembled near Baghdad, ready to invade the city when ordered.

The morning of April 7 brought action in many areas of Baghdad. The 7th Marine Regiment encountered isolated firefights as it progressed slowly into the capital from the southeast. "The enemy is seeking to disrupt our movements by controlling key bridge crossings and the like," said Maj. Dan Healey, commander of B Co., 1st Bn. "So we are rooting them out now."

The strategy, according to commanders, was to demoralize the scattered Iraqi troops and prevent a prolonged guerrilla campaign.

During their advance, Marines came upon a sprawling industrial complex they suspected was being used as the base of the resistance. They spread out among the buildings, engaging in a half-hour firefight that left no U.S. casualties. It did, however, lead to the discovery and destruction of 10 Iraqi anti-aircraft guns.

At the same time, the Army's 3rd Bn., 15th Inf. Regt., 2nd Bde., 3rd Inf. Div., ran into heavy fire while holding on to a cloverleaf in the southern part of Baghdad. The convoy of Bradleys, Humvees and support vehicles began receiving fire from the north as it approached the cloverleaf. Soldiers engaged, and any vehicle that approached from the north was destroyed.

When radio reports indicated enemy bunkers south of and within the cloverleaf, infantrymen moved down the trench line, firing upon and accepting the surrenders of Iraqi fighters. But fighting intensified, and an Iraqi propelled grenade hit an ammunition truck, turning the area into chaos.

The soldiers were soon ordered to pull out, and the convoy resumed its push north. Fighting continued along the way, from the front and both sides. But the group continued and made it to Saddam's Sijood Palace, where an M-88 armored recovery vehicle driver was ordered to knock down the wall and iron fence bordering it.