82nd Airborne Sets Up Shop in Adhamiyah

82nd Airborne Sets Up Shop in Adhamiyah
Feb 09, 2007BY Sgt. Mike Pryor

A paratrooper from B Company, 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, pulls security during a patrol in Baghdad's Adhamiya District Feb. 7. Photo by Sgt. Mike Pryor

BAGHDAD (Army News Service, Feb. 9, 2007) - The 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team established a combat outpost in the heart of Baghdad this week in an effort to reduce sectarian violence in the Iraqi capital and assist the Iraqi security forces to take control of the city.

Paratroopers from the 2nd BCT's 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, will be living, working and conducting operations out of the newly-established Combat Outpost Callahan, located in Baghdad's Adhamiyah district.

"Living in this neighborhood means we can maintain a constant presence. We're not going home at night. We're here 24/7," said 1st Lt. David Bopp, platoon leader with Company C, 2nd Bn., 325th AIR.

Until recently, COP Callahan was nothing more than the skeletal remains of what had once been a busy shopping mall. But in the early morning hours of Feb. 7, following dozens of precision-targeted raids in the area by the 2nd Infantry Division's 3rd Stryker BCT, the 2nd Bn. "White Falcons" moved in and occupied the building.

Since then, COP Callahan has been a whirlwind of activity. At any given hour, paratroopers are busy stringing concertina wire, sawing and hammering lumber, and stacking sandbags to ensure maximum force protection. Outside, cranes and forklifts move heavy concrete barriers into place along the perimeter, mindful of the occasional sniper fire. As all of this happens, patrols constantly move in and out to meet the local population. (more)