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The Battle of Nasiriyah was one of the first major battles of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Heavy fighting took place in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah between Iraqi forces and U.S. Marines over control of key bridges over the Euphrates River and the Saddam Canal.
The battle began early on March 23 when a supply convoy of the U.S. Army took a wrong turn into the city and was ambushed. 11 soldiers were killed and six soldiers, including Jessica Lynch were captured.
After rescuing a number of soldiers who managed to escape the ambush, the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, under the call sign Task Force Tarawa, attacked north into the city, seizing two major bridges along "Ambush Alley". In heavy urban fighting, 18 Marines were killed including at least one Marine who was killed when A-10s mistakenly strafed a company of Marines north of the Saddam Canal.
On the night of March 24-25, the bulk of the Marines of Regimental Combat Team 1 passed through the city over the bridges and attacked north towards Baghdad. However fighting continued in the city until April 1 when Iraqi resistance in the city was finally defeated.
The ambush of the 507th Maintenance Company was re-created at the beginning of the 2003 NBC made-for-TV movie Saving Jessica Lynch. The ongoing battle for Nasiriyah is the backdrop for the rest of the events of the film. The battle is also featured in the 2008 HBO miniseries Generation Kill, in episode 2, "The Cradle of Civilization."
The Battle - Prelude
In late March Task Force Tarawa, the ground force for the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, with the U.S. Army 3rd Infantry Division on their left and the 1st Marine Division on their right, advanced on Nasiriyah. The main target of Task Force Tarawa was the three bridges over the Euphrates River. The western bridge on Highway 1 had already been captured by the 3rd Infantry Division, however the two eastern bridges were inside the city itself.
The original plan was for Task Force Tarawa to take & hold the two bridges inside the city, creating a corridor for the RCT1 to pass north through the city along Route 7.
Nasiriyah was the headquarters of the Iraqi Army's 3d Corps, composed of the 11th ID, 51st Mech ID, and 6th Armored Division—all at around 50 percent strength. The 51st operated south covering the oilfields, and the 6th was north near Al Amarah, which left three brigade-sized elements of the 11th ID to guard the An Nasiriyah area.
U.S. Army convoy ambushed
At around 0600 on the morning of March 23, an 18-vehicle convoy of 31 soldiers of the United States Army's 507th Maintenance Company and two soldiers of the 3rd Forward Support Battalion of the 3rd Infantry Division made a wrong turn along Highway 7 into the city. The convoy was led by Captain Troy King, a supply officer with no training as a combat officer. Iraqi pickup trucks armed with machine guns mounted in the beds began shadowing the convoy as it passed an Iraqi checkpoint near the Euphrates River[5]. After passing the Al-Quds headquarters on the northern outskirts of the city, King realized that he was lost and the convoy began turning around to retrace its steps through the city.
At around 0700 the convoy began taking small arms fire and in the resulting ambush 11 soldiers were killed and a number of soldiers, including Private Jessica Lynch, became prisoners of war. At least 15 of the 18 American transport vehicles in the convoy, ranging from Humvees to Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks (HEMTTs), were destroyed by small-arms fire, RPGs, mortar rounds, and tank gunfire. Some of them swerved out of the road or crashed while attempting to avoid incoming Iraqi fire. One truck was crushed by the traversing gun barrel of a Type 69-QM tank.
Iraqi Type-69 tank destroyed near Nasiriyah hospitalAt 0730, King's three surviving vehicles made contact with the tanks of Major Peeple's Alpha Company, 8th Tank Battalion on Highway 7, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of Nasiriyah. King informed Peeple of the ten beleaguered soldiers from the five disabled vehicles of the second element of the convoy (known in the official U.S. Army report as Group 2) which had also managed to escape the ambush and set up a defensive perimeter about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) south of city. Peeple sent his tanks forward to rescue the soldiers. In heavy fighting, several Iraqi platoon-sized units, two ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" anti-aircraft weapons and several mortar and artillery positions were destroyed by a combined force of M1 Abrams tanks, Cobra helicopter gunships and the artillery of 1st Battalion, 10th Marines.
An Nasiriyah Incident - 507th Maintenence Company
A trail vehicle convoy element of this unit was ambushed during the rapid advance towards Baghdad during Operation Iraqi Freedom on March 23, 2003. The 507th was last in a march column of over 600 vehicles from the 3rd Infantry Division. This element which included the heavier, slower vehicles of the 507th, made a wrong turn into Nasiriyah, a major crossing point over the Euphrates River northwest of Basra.
A U.S. Army investigation concluded that this wrong turn was the result of a navigational error compounded by a lack of rest, limited communications and human error.
In the summer of 2005, the 507th was disbanded and re-formed as E Company, 5/52 ADA BN. As of fall, 2007, they are now F Company. A monument was placed at the battalion's area on Fort Bliss.
Killed in Action
The following soldiers of the 507th were killed in action (KIA):
Specialist Jamal R. Addison, 22, Roswell, Georgia
Master Sergeant Robert J. Dowdy, 38, of Cleveland, Ohio, who was the Company First Sergeant.
Private Ruben Estrella-Soto, 18, of El Paso, Texas.
Private First Class Howard Johnson II, 21, of Mobile, Alabama. He was the first casualty from Alabama during Operation Iraqi Freedom. A graduate of LeFlore High School in Mobile, Alabama, Johnson enlisted two weeks after graduating from high school and according to a CNN Newsnight desired a career in the Army hoping that someday he would rise to the rank of Sergeant Major. Johnson was the son of Rev. Howard Johnson, pastor of Truevine Baptist Church. His funeral service was held on 5 April 2003, at Truevine Baptist Church and buried in Gethsemane Cemetery, Mobile, AL. Among the politicians present were Gov. Bob Riley, U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, and Mayor Mike Dow. U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, served as the funeral's master of ceremonies. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.
Specialist James M. Kiehl, 22, of Comfort, Texas
Chief Warrant Officer Johnny Villareal Mata, 35, of Pecos, Texas.
Private First Class Lori Piestewa, 23, of Tuba City, Arizona, first female soldier killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. She was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and a Prisoner of War Medal.
Private Brandon Sloan, 19, of Bedford Heights, Ohio.
Sergeant Donald Walters, 33, of Kansas City, Missouri. He was posthumously awarded a Silver Star (upgraded from a Bronze Star) for gallantry with marked distinction, and a Purple Heart.
The following were assigned to the 3rd Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division Fort Stewart, Georgia and had fallen back in the march column to assist the 507th in vehicle recovery:
Specialist Edward J. Anguiano, 24, of Brownsville, Texas.
Sergeant George Edward Buggs, 31, of Barnwell, South Carolina.
Wounded in Action
The following 507th soldiers were listed as wounded in action (WIA) by media accounts:
Sergeant Curtis Campbell, Brooklyn, New York (Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart)
Corporal Francis Carista (Purple Heart)
Specialist James Grubb, Manchester, Kentucky. (Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart)
Staff Sergeant Tarik Jackson (Purple Heart)
Corporal Damien Luten (Purple Heart)
Media Coverage
The most famous member of the unit became Private First Class Jessica Lynch whose dramatic rescue from an Iraqi hospital received world wide media coverage. This media interest in Jessica Lynch has largely overshadowed the sacrifice and valor displayed by other members of the unit. For example, Sergeant Donald Walters and Private First Class Patrick Miller were awarded the Silver Star for valor.
