TALLIL, Iraq – American military commanders have left little doubt of their annoyance with Iran’s interference in the internal security of Iraq, and much of it can be blamed on the porous border: Smugglers carrying anything from bootlegged cigarettes to bombs pour into Iraq, and its security forces often can’t stop it.

But one Fort Lewis company has the task of tightening the frontier.

Charlie Company, 38th Long Range Surveillance works with Iraqi border guards to monitor the 900-mile-long frontier. They perform dismounted patrols with the Iraqis and call in any suspicious activity.

The company is perhaps the most high-profile unit of the 201st Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, which deployed in September and has soldiers at almost 40 bases across Iraq.
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Today’s local links:

17th Fires Brigade
U.S. Soldiers, Iraqi Sailors Secure Shores [DVIDS]
Top Commanders Evaluate Base for January Turnover [DVIDS]

I Corps/Multi-National Corps-Iraq
Cable Dawgs: Making More Out of a Move [DVIDS]

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Webcams for Strykers in Afghanistan [KPLU-FM]
Task Force Defends ISAF Forces and Defeats IED’s in Southern Afghanistan [DVIDS]

3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
U.S. and Iraqi Soldiers Take Part in Combined Mortar Training [DVIDS]

4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Maneuver Center CSM Visits Raider Brigade [DVIDS]

201st Battlefield …

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A soldier who served with the Washington National Guard’s 81st Brigade Combat Team is working to start a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in his hometown of Cleburne, Texas.

I wrote about Laureles when I was in Iraq earlier this year. He transfered to the Washington National Guard in 2003 from Texas so he could deploy and practice battlefield medicine. He had since bounced from unit to unit so he could stay continously in Iraq since.

Other local links:

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Ferndale mayor declares Nov. 14 Aaron Aamot Day [Bellingham Herald]

4th Brigade, …

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I’m catching up on almost a week’s worth of links (I was out of town), but obviously the biggest story while I was gone was the memorial service for the seven fallen Fort Lewis soldiers. Vice President Joe Biden was in attendance.

Other local links:

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division:
Injured Fort Lewis soldier back from the brink [The News Tribune]
Two more from Fort Lewis confirmed killed in Afghanistan [The News Tribune]
Fort Lewis Memorial: Going back to Louisiana [The News Tribune]
Fallen Stryker soldier: ‘Not once did he quit or complain’ [The News Tribune]
‘Faith will help us out,’ Fort Lewis soldier’s family says [Bellingham Herald]
Biden: 7 Wash. state soldiers were extraordinary [AP]
Vice President Lauds Fallen Fort Lewis Soldiers [KPLU-FM]
7 fallen Stryker Brigade soldiers honored at Fort Lewis [Seattle Times]
Roadside bomb kills two Fort Lewis soldiers [KOMO-TV]
Soldier from Ocala killed in Afghanistan [Orlando Sentinel]
West Bank soldier killed in Afghanistan mourned at service in Harvey [Times-Picayune]
Ferndale Graduate Killed In Action In Afghanistan [KGMI-AM]
Memorial for Vancouver Soldier Killed in Afghanistan [KUOW-FM]
SF units to get latest Land Warrior kit [Army Times]
Fallen soldier was to return for Thanksgiving [ocala.com]
Custer soldier killed in Afghanistan explosion [Lynden Tribune]
Biden honors fallen Fort Lewis soldiers [KOMO-TV]
Vice President Biden Honors Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan at Ceremony at Fort Lewis [ABC]
My husband is at war [San Francisco Chronicle]
On The Scene In Afghanistan: A Deadly Day For U.S. Soldiers [NPR]
Funeral Procession for Spc. Kyle A. Coumas [thepinetree.net]
Combat Advisors See Afghan Troops in Action [DVIDS]
U.S. combat injuries rise sharply [Washington Post]
Perdue visiting soldiers in Iraq [Jacksonville Times-Union]
Crossroads of Afghanistan-Contested Province Is Vital Link [DVIDS]
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The Los Angeles Times sits down with Fort Lewis commander Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby to talk about the delay in Iraq’s parliament passing an election law and more.

Other local links:

4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Trust Leads to Weapons Cache Find [DVIDS]

201st Battlefield Surveillance Brigade
Last Ft. Lewis BDE Takes Control in Iraq [DVIDS]

17th Fires Brigade
Basrah Safe by Iraqi Army and U.S. Forces’ Explosive Effort [DVIDS]
Gaining insight on what it takes to lead troops [theredbulls.org]

Naval Base Kitsap
Security Exercises Taking Place at Kitsap …

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About 1,000 soldiers from Fort Lewis’ newest brigade stood on the parade grounds of Watkins Field as they celebrated their upcoming deployment with friends and family.

It’s a feeling the members of the 201st Battlefield Surveillance Brigade shouldn’t get used to.

Over the next year, the brigade will be spread across Iraq and operate largely in the shadows, collecting and analyzing an array of intelligence.

“Everywhere where there are U.S. forces, we’re going to be supporting them,” said brigade commander Col. Robert Whalen after the unit cased its colors Wednesday.

The year-old unit, the third of its kind in the Army, will attach to other units – including three brigades deployed from Fort Lewis – to provide human intelligence, signal intercepts, counterintelligence, Arabic linguists, long-range surveillance, reconnaissance, target acquisition and other services.
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