Iowa Guard rate danger in middle range in Afghanistan

Iowa Army National Guard soldiers with the 832nd Combat Engineers, tasked with clearing east Afghanistan roads of homemade bombs, rate their daily danger near the middle on a scale of 1 to 10.

“Improvised explosive devices are the most dangerous tactic employed by the Taliban in Afghanistan and the number one cause of casualties,” said 1st Lt. Ryan Lett, 31, a platoon leader with the 832nd, which distinguished itself performing route clearance in Iraq.

The Iowa National Guard members, part of the unit's largest deployment since World War II, work around the clock “in challenging locations and dangerous circumstances” in the face of opposition from “a skilled and determined enemy force that is doing everything it can to disrupt our success,” their commander, Col. Ben Cornell, said Sunday. The 2,800 members of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team have settled into eastern Afghanistan and assumed full responsibility for counter-insurgency operations, Cornell said.

Lett said the tools at the 832nd's disposal make route clearance much safer than it would otherwise be.

Those tools, he said, include robots that facilitate safe scouting of suspected bomb sites and vehicles equipped with radar able to detect buried bombs and digging arms that unearth and defuse them.

“Most importantly, the platoon has people trained in demolitions that enable us to dispose of the IEDs (improvised explosive devices),” he said.

The Iowa troops, partnered with Afghan police and army units, “set an example for them while providing them with the tools they will need so they can soon take over the responsibility for securing their own country,” Cornell, a Strawberry Point native, said.

Many Iowa Guard soldiers are based at Bagram Air Field, the hub of U.S. operations in Afghanistan with a 21-mile intensely defended perimeter, Others are deployed at more remote and dangerous installations called combat outposts and forward operating bases.

Civilians' reaction

While many Iowa soldiers have already met the enemy, most, like Lett, have not, but they have all met Afghan civilians, whose support and approval of the U.S. mission is central to its success.

“The adults have been a little standoffish, but the kids swarm us when a patrol stops and we dismount the vehicles. The kids ask for ‘baksheesh,' which means ‘gift” and is supposed to be a sign of friendship,” Lett said.

Cornell said he sees “smiles and thumbs up” from Afghan children and looks of tolerance from their parents.

Primary mission

Primary mission

By far the largest of the brigade's three elements, Task Force RED BULLS, otherwise known as the 2/34th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, with home headquarters in Boone, includes nearly 2,000 Iowa National Guard troops, all under the command of Cornell. RED BULLS, based at Bagram Air Field, about 26 miles north of the capital city of Kabul, operates in the provinces of Parwan, Panjshir, Laghman and three districts in western Nuristan.

RED BULLS' primary focus is working with the Afghan National Security Forces to protect the population, help build the legitimacy and capacity of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and help with development projects. It also runs base operations at Bagram, home to about 30,000 soldiers and civilian contractors and one of the world's busiest military airports.

Daily life at Bagram is secure and almost comfortable, according to Maj. Mike Wunn, a spokesman for the Iowa Guard in Afghanistan.

“Compared to our soldiers who live on combat outposts and smaller forward operating bases, we have it very good,” said Wunn, who works in a modern office but sleeps in a “relocatable building” - basically a shipping container stacked with others under a common roof.

Soldiers at the more primitive and less secure outposts have to cook their own meals in containerized mess facilities, draw water from nearby rivers for laundry and personal hygiene and burn their latrine waste, Cornell said.

Subordinate units

RED BULLs' subordinate units include the 133rd Infantry Regiment, based in Waterloo and known as Task Force IRONMAN; 1st Squadron, 113th Calvary Regiment, based in Sioux City and known as Task Force RED HORSE; and the 334th Brigade Support Battalion, based in Johnston and known as Task Force ARCHER.

The 2-34th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, based in Cedar Rapids, has troops deployed with ARCHER and with other battalion task forces under RED BULLS' command.

Task Force LETHAL, the 1st Battalion, 168th Infantry Regiment, with home headquarters in Council Bluffs, includes about 650 Iowa Guard soldiers operating under the command of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team. LETHAL has full responsibility for operations in Paktya province, and its duties include patrols and security for combat outposts and forward operating bases.

Task force FURY, which includes about 50 Iowa Guard and 300 Nebraska Guard soldiers, is the 1st Squadron of the 134th Cavalry with home headquarters in Lincoln, Neb. FURY, based at Camp Phoenix, near Kabul, trains and mentors Afghan police in Kabul province.