THE TENSION: Combat Camera: Troops Find, Destroy Al-Qaida Safe Houses

A paratrooper with Company B, 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, prepares to board a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter following the completion of Operation Geronimo Strike. Photographer: Sgt. Ernest Henry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division Public Affairs

A paratrooper with Company B, 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, searches the area outside one of the al-Qaida safe houses discovered during Operation Geronimo Strike. Photographer: Sgt. Ernest Henry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division Public Affairs

Video: Blackfoot Air Assault
B-roll of paratroopers conducting an air assault mission into a fish farm area. Scenes include clearing houses, AH-64 Apaches firing Hellfire missiles and destroying terrorists' safe houses. Also see "Operation Bastogne Interviews" in the Interview section. Produced by Sgt. Ernest Henry. Watch it.

Operation Geronimo Strike Finds Al-Qaida Safe Houses
07.03.2007
4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division

KALSU, Iraq – Paratroopers discovered, then destroyed, three al-Qaida safe houses during an early-morning raid near Jurf As Sukhr today.

Operation Geronimo Strike, conducted to prevent anti-Iraqi operations and attacks, was an air assault raid on Kalsu’s Fish Farms area. Company B, 1st Battalion, 501st Airborne, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division Paratroopers discovered several houses used by al-Qaida to meet, train and hide weapons.

“Tonight we did an air assault raid into an area used by the insurgency. Basically, we did a search on what we thought were safe houses for terrorists,” said Capt. Charles Canon, Company B commander.

While the paratroopers were searching the area, they discovered two houses filled with weapons and explosives. A third house was booby trapped.

“In one of the buildings, we found an IED in the process of being made, we found a terrorist safe house, and in a third building, we found a bunch of propaganda and materials, CDs, and some cameras and things like that,” continued the Orlando, Fla., native. “It definitely seemed like a propaganda publishing house, or something of that sort.”

Because one of the houses was also booby trapped, the commander called in AH-64 Apache helicopters to destroy the three buildings. Paratroopers found two anti-aircraft rounds in a fourth house, which was not destroyed.

With the area searched and the safe houses destroyed, the paratroopers returned to Forward Operating Base Kalsu.

“This was our first company air assault in this sector. I think we did a very good job,” Canon said. “The aviation, both the (tactical operations center) and the men of Blackfoot did a great job and the mission went very well.”