Table of Contents
Foreword xiii
Prelude: March 12, 2006 1
Summer 2005
1 "We've Got to Get South Baghdad Under Control" 11
2 The Kunk Gun 24
October 2005
3 "This Is Now the Most Dangerous Place in Iraq" 41
4 Relief in Place, Transfer of Authority 51
5 1st Platoon at the JS Bridge 65
6 Contact 77
November 2005
7 Route Sportster and Bradley Bridge 93
8 Communication Breakdowns 108
9 The Mean Squad 119
10 "Soldiers Are Not Stupid" 125
December 2005
11 Nelson and Casica 135
12 "It Is Fucking Pointless" 148
13 Britt and Lopez 161
14 Leadership Shake-up 170
January 2006
15 Gallagher 185
February 2006
16 February 1 203
17 Fenlason Arrives 223
March 2006
18 Back to the TCPs 241
19 The Mayor of Mullah Fayyad 251
20 The Janabis 258
21 Twenty-one Days 271
April-June 2006
22 "We Had Turned a Corner" 285
23 The Alamo 301
24 Dilemma and Discovery 310
25 "Remember That Murder of That Iraqi Family?" 316
July-September 2006
26 The Fight Goes On 333
27 "This Was Life and Death Stuff" 340
Epilogue: The Triangle of Death Today and Trials at Home 350
Postscript 365
List of Characters 371
Military Units and Ranks 375
Acronyms and Abbreviations 377
Acknowledgments 379
Notes 385
Selected Bibliography 417
Index 431