We Got Him! Read online

  “STEVE DELIVERS THE MOST ACCURATE ACCOUNT I HAVE READ TO DATE OF THE CAPTURE OF SADDAM HUSSEIN.

  The brave and heroic actions of his soldiers, along with the countless sacrifices and actions by so many like them, have forever shaped the future of the world in which we live.”

  —Gen. Raymond Odierno, Commander of the 4th Infantry Division (2002–2004); Commander of III Corps and Multi-National Corps—Iraq (2006–2008); Commander Multi-National Force—Iraq (2008–2010)

  “STEVE RUSSELL AND HIS REGULARS USED TOUGHNESS, INGENUITY, AND GOOD OLD-FASHIONED STREET SMARTS TO BREAK OPEN SADDAM’S INNER CIRCLE.

  When I was embedded with Russell’s battalion in Saddam’s hometown, I watched them tighten the noose on Saddam. But I never knew how they did it—until I read this book.”

  —Brian Bennett, Washington correspondent for the Los Angeles Times and former Baghdad bureau chief of Time magazine

  “AN EXTRAORDINARY PERSONAL GLIMPSE OF THE WAR. A monumental credit to himself, his troops, and the United States of America.”

  —The late Robin Moore, author of The Green Berets and The French Connection

  “A GROUND-EYE VIEW OF THE COOPERATION OF THE U.S. ARMY AND SPECIAL-OPERATIONS FORCES THAT LED TO SADDAM’S CAPTURE, AND A MODEL FOR THE WAY THE FORCES HAVE WORKED TOGETHER SINCE.”

  —Kimberly Dozier, Associated Press/former CBS News correspondent and author of Breathing the Fire: Fighting to Report—and Survive—the War in Iraq

  When U.S. forces exterminated Osama bin Laden in Pakistan on May 1,2011, the world cheered not only the death of the 9/11 terrorist mastermind but the unmatched might, skill, and perseverance of America’s military elite. It was a brilliant example of history repeating itself in the most positive way; less than a decade earlier, the capture of Saddam Hussein, a triumph of military strategy in and of itself, opened the door for the most recent and essential victory in the War on Terror. Here is the riveting account of a grand human saga that tested every element of character and fortitude: the six-month manhunt that ended at a hole on the bank of the Tigris River, and the blow-by-blow plays of the actual raids that netted Saddam, culminating in the electrifying quote heard around the globe, “We Got Him!”

  No other event in Operation Iraqi Freedom caught the attention of the world like the hunt for and capture of Saddam Hussein. Square in the middle of the search, living in Saddam’s hometown of Tikrit, were Lt. Col. Steve Russell and his men of the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division. Packed with rare photos and insider information, We Got Him! chronicles the day-by-day search and the successes and dead ends as regular and special-operations soldiers tore into Saddam’s social networks. This is the definitive account of this major historical event and of the sacrifice that made it happen. It also provides a rare look at the enemy side of the action. With his extensive journal notes, combat reports, and painstaking research, Steve Russell has preserved the story as only someone who lived the experience can do.

  STEVE RUSSELL served 21 years in the United States Army as an infantry officer, deploying operationally to Kosovo, Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Iraq. During the first year of the Iraq War, his command of the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division was widely covered by Time, CNN, Fox News, ABC, CBS, NBC, Associated Press, and Reuters. He and his unit were featured in BBC Panorama’s Saddam on the Run documentary, as well as Discovery’s Ace in the Hole. Russell retired from the Army in 2006 to return to his native state of Oklahoma, where he has advocated nationally for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. Now an internationally renowned speaker, Russell lives in Oklahoma with his wife and five children.

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  AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH © STEVE RUSSELL

  COPYRIGHT © 2011 SIMON S SCHUSTER

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  This book is as factual as personal experience, extensive research, author’s personal journals, and interviews with participants will allow. Any errors are unintended, and the author apologizes for any omissions or errors.

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  Copyright © 2011 by Steve Russell

  Originally published by Deeds Publishing

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address Threshold Editions Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

  First Threshold Editions hardcover edition December 2011

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Russell, Steve, 1963-

  We got him! : a memoir of the hunt and capture of Saddam Hussein / Steve Russell. — 1st Threshold Editions hardcover ed.

  p. cm.

  Includes index.

  Originally published: Marietta Ga. : Deeds Pub., 2011. 1. Iraq War, 2003—Campaigns—Iraq—Tikrit. 2. Iraq War, 2003—Commando operations—Iraq—Tikrit. 3. Iraq War, 2003—Personal narratives, American. 4. Hussein, Saddam, 1937-2006. 5. Russell, Steve. I. Title.

  DS79.764.T55 R87

  956.7044’342—dc23

  2011027205

  ISBN 978-1-4516-6248-1

  ISBN 978-1-4516-6249-8 (ebook)

  Photographs in the photo insert are used by permission of Efrem Lukatsky, and are from the author’s personal collection.

  Maps and other illustrations and charts are from the author’s personal collection.

  To the soldiers of the 22nd United States Infantry

  who have given their lives in the defense of freedom

  CONTENTS

  FOREWORD

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1: TIGRIS

  CHAPTER 2: TOWNS

  Trek to Tikrit

  Commuters and Captives

  Wake-up Call

  A Fighter to the End

  Keeping Tikrit Beautiful

  To the Colors

  High Power

  CHAPTER 3: TIPS

  We Have Some Information

  The Enemy Is Still Here

  You Don’t Know Jack

  Dolphins and Sharks

  Ace of Diamonds

  Queens and Cash

  Transitions

  Borders, Reporters, and Orders

  Fireworks

  Not Too Shabby

  Pepsis, Rubber Boats, and Graffiti

  The Strong Man

  The Return

  CHAPTER 4: TACTICS

  The Hunters

  Salt Lick, Catfish Traps, and Spawns

  Brothers, Brother-in-Law

  Continued Success, Discontinued Support

  Tough Guy

  Paying Us Back, Paying Our Respects

  Rats’ Nests and Rocks

  Crackers and Kalashnikovs

  CHAPTER 5: TARGETS

  Raids and Rocket Grenades


  Duck, Duck, Goose

  Bombs and Bombast

  A Free and Democratic Iraq

  Taps

  As Long As We Have Breath

  Raids and Rotor Blades

  Good Mission, Bad Timing

  Jagged Fence, Crooked Town

  Fire Island

  The Beer Hall Faithful

  Draining the Swamp

  Faithful Efforts

  A Sense of Mortality

  Holy Months and Milk Monitors

  CHAPTER 6: TYRANT

  The Race

  The Boy

  Fat Man, Firefights, and Firefighting

  Phone Calls

  Red Dawn

  Jackpot

  Cesar Romero

  CHAPTER 7: TUMULT

  Fallout

  Uppity

  For Another Day

  Cucumbers and Christmas

  Cracking the Whips

  Get It Done

  New Year, Old Fight

  Death Throes

  How’s Business?

  CHAPTER 8: TORMENT

  Fighting for a Nation

  A Chance to Say “Goodbye”

  Inside, Outside

  Long Beards

  CHAPTER 9: TRIUMPH

  Rat Patrol

  Wish They Were You

  Saddam’s Social Network

  Task Force 1-22 Infantry “Regulars” Order of Battle

  Task Force Roster

  Author’s Note

  INDEX

  FOREWORD

  General Raymond T. Odierno

  TIKRIT, IRAQ—DECEMBER 13, 2003, 8:30 PM

  “Sir, this is Jim Hickey.”

  “Yes, Jim.”

  “We’ve captured Number One. . . . ”

  In my 35 years of uniformed military service, I’ve received many memorable reports from subordinate commanders. Many will remain with me for the rest of my life, fostering visions of families whose lives will be forever changed by the loss or maiming of a loved one fighting in a conflict thousands of miles from home.

  This particular report from Colonel Jim Hickey, then Commander of the 1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, would have a profound impact. When made public, this news would have an immediate effect and induce mixed reactions within the city of Tikrit, from elation to violence. The news would provoke a spectrum of mixed reactions throughout Iraq, from relief and hope to fear of the unknown to come. The news would impact the Middle East and the world. What now? Will the Americans see this through? Al-Qaeda would view this news as an opportunity: “The Americans have been focused on Saddam, while we have been organizing. They will not stay. We will fill the gap created by the collapse of the government and the pre-existing fissures of multi-ethnic Iraq. This is our chance.”

  THE ENVIRONMENT

  In June 2003, the environment in Iraq was volatile at best. In May 2003, the President of the United States announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq. The people of the United States were preparing to receive their victorious troops with open arms. Over the previous four months, televised live in their living rooms and offices, the U.S. Joint Force invaded, conquered and toppled a brutal regime, liberating the people of Iraq. However, the Multi-National Force on the ground was beginning to realize that much deeper problems remained. There were many underlying complications that had been building for years inside of Iraq: ethno-sectarianism, societal devastation, and economic underdevelopment, just to name a few that were not yet resolved.

  So, while some believed victory was in our hands, we found ourselves, in fact, at a perilous juncture. How we handled the situation in the months and years to come would have a lasting impact on the nation of Iraq and on the Middle East.

  Tikrit, Iraq, was Saddam Hussein’s birthplace. It was also his final hiding place. In 2003, Tikrit was home to Saddam loyalists who unwittingly served as the first insurgents. Most of them were nationalists, not religious fundamentalists, loyal to their tyrannical dictator of thirty years and confident in their ability to restore him to his rightful place of power. They saw the Americans as they always had: enemies with great strength, but small hearts and no staying power.

  1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, commanded by Colonel James Hickey, understood these nuances, as did many incredible and dynamic young commanders across Iraq. They understood what was at risk and, equally important, they understood what had to be done. The rest of the world, including many within our own government and our military, did not understand the dynamics or the reality unfolding on the ground. Many were quick to criticize the tactics of the ground force commanders as “heavy-handed,” but the critics’ understanding of the operational environment was marginal at best. For those of us who participated in this campaign and for many who have studied it in retrospect, we can appreciate the difficulty of culling irreconcilable enemy combatants, while simultaneously gaining the support and cooperation of the reconcilable population. It was an incredibly complex environment; complex in a way we had not anticipated prior to the invasion.

  Each area of Iraq was unique and faced a unique set of challenges. Tikrit and Sal ah Din Province were vastly different from Mosul, Basra, Baghdad or Anbar. Each area presented unique challenges while demanding equally unique solutions. Additionally, to make matters more challenging, we did not appreciate the level of internal turmoil that existed in Iraq prior to our invasion. During the previous 30 years, Iraq was profoundly impacted by several key events, including: the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s; its grab for Kuwait and resulting military defeat in 1991; the subsequent economic sanctions of the 1990s and the implementation of the no-fly zone; the intra-Shia rivalry; the Sunni-Shia issue; and the Arab-Kurd issue. However, we learned as a military and as a nation. I believe I learned as a commander at the division, corps and force levels. As a force, over time, our experience allowed us to understand the underlying dynamics of the Iraqi culture and we began to adapt to this complex environment.

  THE TIKRIT APPROACH AND ITS LESSONS

  To pave a solid path to a new future, Iraqis needed to believe that the brutal regime would never return to power. Talk would not achieve this effect. Deeds were necessary to enable them to follow that path. The best way we could reassure them was to permanently remove the threat of Saddam, his family and loyalists to the people and the country. Tikrit and Sal ah Din were a nest for loyalists. Twenty-two of the 52 original “most wanted” in Iraq would be captured or killed in the 4th Infantry Division’s area of responsibility (Sal ah Din Province). Accomplishing this took a relentless pursuit of the enemy by organizations whose senior leaders were willing to underwrite appropriate levels of risk to accomplish the mission without handicapping their force.

  This relentless pursuit of a path forward taught us all many lessons. These lessons would be revisited and sometimes, unfortunately, relearned over the years. We made mistakes and paid a heavy price, but never lost sight of our primary objective: a free and democratic Iraq, led by a government representative of its people and in strategic partnership with the United States.

  The story of success detailed in this book resulted from the teamwork among many players. 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment (“Regulars, by God”), commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Steve Russell, Jim Hickey’s brigade, and the 4th Infantry Division cannot take sole ownership of the successful hunt for Saddam Hussein. It took a unity of effort between all partners to accomplish the mission in a very complex and evolving environment. I can say unequivocally, however, that Colonel Jim Hickey and Lieutenant Colonel Steve Russell were the two individuals most directly responsible for the capture of Saddam Hussein.

  This time period served as a transition point for the way we as an American military will fight in the future. We have learned in Iraq that success cannot be attained unilaterally. The transparency, cooperation and resulting relationships between the 4th Infantry Division (ID), 1st Brigade/4th ID, and our special operations forces (SOF) were unique and broke new ground. Initially built through strong personal relation
ships, this set the stage for future widespread cooperation between conventional and special operations forces which today is considered routine and necessary, both in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2003, it was not.

  Steve Russell’s relationship with his SOF partners is indicative of the cooperation leading to success throughout the echelons of command in Iraq. Steve delivers the most accurate account I have read to date of the unprecedented partnership between SOF and conventional forces and the approach taken by both to accomplish our critical mission together. What Steve and his partners learned and demonstrated was that it takes a network to defeat a network. Steve vividly describes his interpretation of the enemy network he faced in Tikrit in the summer and fall of 2003. Through personal relationships, he successfully developed a network which included his SOF partners, Iraqi government officials, Iraqi police, sheikhs and elements of the Iraqi population. This friendly network, and our burgeoning ability (from platoon through Corps and the inter-agency) to collaboratively attack complex problem sets formed the basis of what would eventually yield one of the guiding principles for our success in Iraq: Unity of Effort.

  Over time I have concluded that achieving unity of effort, operating on the ground among the population and maintaining constant pressure on threat networks are enduring characteristics of successful operations in a counter-insurgency environment. The operations of the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry “Regulars” in 2003 provided the basis for many of the tactics, techniques and procedures that were later implemented during the “Surge” of 2007-2008 and beyond. These principles enabled coalition forces to significantly reduce the impact of the insurgency, allowing us to transition to stability operations and turn complete control of security over to the Government of Iraq in 2010.

  THE FUTURE

  Some would argue that generals have demonstrated a propensity to fight the last war. I believe that we cannot afford to validate this assertion. We live in a dynamic world with diverse threats requiring flexible and adaptive leaders and organizations to deter and to defeat them. Two things we can be certain of about warfare in the future: First, our military will never again fight alone. There will frequently be a multi-national component and we must always take an inter-agency and whole-of-nation approach to warfare. Second, there will always be an irregular warfare component to any fight in which we may find ourselves. We cannot afford to relegate the Regulars’ lessons to historical archives. Rather, we must keep them alive, learn from them and continue to grow.