Active Unit News

U.S. Troops in Saddam's Hometown Brace for Revenge
Sat Jul 26,11:23 AM ET
By Michael Georgy
TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) - In Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s hometown, U.S. troops braced on Saturday for more bloodshed in retaliation for the killing of the former Iraqi leader's sons.
Finger on the trigger of a .50 caliber machinegun mounted on an armored personnel carrier in Tikrit, Staff Sergeant Kenneth Maxwell admitted to nerves as other soldiers checked for weapons in civilian cars passing through his checkpoint.
"Our commanders have put us on a heightened state of alert," Maxwell, from Hartford, Connecticut, told Reuters.
He said guerrillas were now attacking during the day as well as night and Saddam loyalists were using ambulances to transport weapons for operations against the Americans. Tension has risen noticeably since Saddam's sons were killed on Tuesday.
The danger of daylight attacks is clear -- three soldiers of the U.S. 4th Infantry Division were killed on Saturday as they guarded a children's hospital in Baquba, 60 miles away.
Washington hopes the killings of Uday and Qusay Hussein in a U.S. raid on their hideout in the northern city of Mosul will sap the resolve of sympathizers, especially in towns like Tikrit and Baquba, part of Saddam's Sunni Muslim powerbase.
But their deaths have only fueled the rage of Tikritis.
Young men on the main street said they were ready to join Fedayeen Saddam, Uday's militia that was blamed for many of the attacks that have now killed 47 U.S. troops since May 1.
"Now I am with the fedayeen. I was not before but now I want to fight the Americans. Saddam is our leader and we will defend him," said Qaysi al-Seyn, as U.S. troops ate ice cream nearby.
TALES OF WOE
Resentment was building in Tikrit and elsewhere in Iraq (news - web sites) even before Saddam's sons died. Many people complain that U.S. troops are trigger-happy and heavy-handed during arms searches.
"American soldiers just charged into my house. When my son stood up they shot him," said Sulaiman Moussa, one of a group of elderly men who sat discussing the U.S. presence.
"He was just a poor man. He was not in Saddam's party. The American soldiers cried when he realized they made a mistake.
"But it is too late."
U.S. military officers based in one of Saddam's lavish palaces in Tikrit said they were not especially worried about revenge attacks after the deaths of Uday and Qusay.
"We are ready and we have our security out there," said Lieutenant Colonel Bill Macdonald of Charleston, South Carolina, the public affairs officer of the 4th Infantry.
U.S. troops in Tikrit come under fire from attackers with rocket-propelled grenades, Kalashnikov assault rifles or remote controlled bombs every few days, soldiers say.
The killing of Saddam's sons may have been a propaganda victory for Washington, but it has left U.S. troops in Iraq feeling more vulnerable than ever. There are more troops guarding bridges and positioned on watch towers.
"They told us to keep on our toes at all times. Now we have to wear flak vests, all our gear, inside the compound as well," said Sergeant Jenny Olson, of Fort Hood, Texas. "At first I didn't feel that threatened but now I feel more threatened.
"I think it is going to get worse before it can get better."

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