Hell in the Streets of Husaybah: The April 2004 Fights of 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines in Husaybah, Iraq

by David E. Kelly

Overview

First-person accounts chronicling the 3/7 Marines engaging in intense street-by-street fighting to put down an uprising in Iraq in April 2004.

During the April 2004 fights throughout Iraq, most media attention was focused on the city of Fallujah. However, at the same time, out on the border with Syria in and around the city of Husaybah, fighting was equally intense.

This book tells the story of that period through many first-person accounts of intense fighting in the town of Husaybah, Iraq, during. It is based on interviews with Marines at all levels of the fight, from battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Matt Lopez, USMC, to infantrymen and squad leaders. When the Lima Company commander Captain Richard Gannon (Call sign Lima 6) was killed on entry to an enemy-held building, the company’s executive officer, Lieutenant Dominique Neal (Lima 5) informed his Marines that he had assumed command with the radio message, “Lima 5 is now Lima 6.” It also details the heroic actions of Corporal Jason Dunham who saved the Marines around him by covering an enemy grenade with his body.

Praise for Hell in the Streets of Husaybah

“The young riflemen do not sound like college professors, and the officers occasionally seem to be weighing their words. . . . The overall effect is mesmerizing, as the reader is transported onto the battlefield, firefight-by-firefight, and even granted a glimpse or two into how individual Marines felt about what was happening.” —The Journal of America’s Military Past

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781636241517
Publisher:	Casemate Publishers
Publication date:	04/04/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	200
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Lieutenant Colonel David E. Kelly received his commission in 1971, and served as an infantry officer with Lima Company, 3rd Battalion 4th Marines with an Amphibious Readiness Group (ARG) off the coast of Vietnam in 1972-73. Prior to retirement from the Reserves in 1999 he was Operations Officer for the Marine Field History Detachment. He volunteered to return to active duty to deploy to Iraq in 2004 as senior Field Historian in order to conduct interviews with Marines and Navy personnel at all levels in Iraq. He is a retired high school teacher living in Springfield, Pennsylvania.

Table of Contents

DEDICATION
PREFACE
INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1: THE FIGHT IN HUSAYBAH, APRIL 2004
Overview
Lieutenant Colonel Matthew A. Lopez, Commanding Officer 3/7
Trip to Al Qaim
Commander Edward W. Hessel, MD, USN, STP 4
Lance Corporal Jason A. Sanders, Kilo Company, 3/7
Corporal Kristopher E. Benson, CAAT Blue, Weapons, 3/7
Captain Bradford W. Tippett, Commanding Officer India Company, 3/7
Staff Sergeant Alexander A. Carlson, 3rd Platoon India Company, 3/7
Gunnery Sergeant Brian W. Eyestone, 5th Platoon, 1st Force Recon Company
Corporal Michael T. Phillips, 1st Combat Engineer Bn, Attached to 3/7
Lance Corporal Jerad A. Allen, C Company MPs, Attached to 3/7
Lance Corporal Daniel P. Baute C Company MPs, Attached to 3/7
Corporal Ryan D. Griffey, Truck Platoon, MHG, Attached to 3/7

CHAPTER 2 LIMA COMPANY 3/7 MARINES, Camp Husaybah
Convoy to Firm Base
Lance Corporal Daniel R. Johnston, 1st Platoon, Lima Company, 3/7
Corporal Jason A. Lemcke, 1st Platoon, Lima Company, 3/7
Lieutenant Bradley R. Watson, 3rd Platoon Commander, Lima Company, 3/7
HM3 Justin T. Purviance, USN, Senior Line Corpsman, Lima Company, 3/7
Captain Dominique B. Neal, Commanding Officer, 1st Platoon, Lima Company, 3/7

CHAPTER 3 FINAL INTERVIEWS WITH 3/7 MARINES AT CAMP AL QAIM
Return to Camp Al Qaim
1st Sergeant Michael J. Templeton, Kilo Company, 3/7
Lance Corporal Jonathon D. Stamper, 3rd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3/7
Lance Corporal Brian M. Schultz, 4th Platoon, Kilo Company, 3/7
Colonel Craig A. Tucker, Commanding Officer
Regimental Combat Team 7 (RCT7)
Return to Camp Fallujah

FINAL THOUGHTS
GLOSSARY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX