Want to write for Task & Purpose? (Photo by Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images), "Ethan Melzer infiltrated the U.S. Army in service of a neo-Nazi, white supremacist and jihadist group," said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. "[119][120][121] He was charged in June 2020 with conspiring and attempting to murder military service members, and providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. [24], In mid-1967, the 4th Infantry Division's 1st and 2nd Brigades conducting Operation Francis Marion in western Kon Tum Province were making heavy contact with People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. The enemy loss in lives was about four times that of the allies.. Ethan Phelan Melzer, 24, who also goes by Etil Reggad, pleaded guilty last June to charges of attempting to murder U.S. service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, and illegally transmitting national defense information during the days leading up his units mid-2020 deployment. He was arrested May 30 at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza. [75], In 2003, as preparations were being made for Operation Iraqi Freedom, the 173rd Airborne Brigade was assigned to be a part of an assault from the north of Iraq. [3][18] After the war, the troop reverted to reserve status and was posted at Birmingham, Alabama from 1947 until 1951. The SSI would be given to them in May 1963. Hebert's patrol was caught in a midnight ambush as it crossed what has become known the "Bridge of Death." The next day, Pfc. . The brigade was dispersed throughout the east of the country, with units operating in Kunar, Paktika, and Laghman Provinces. [69] A U.S. Army report detailed a pattern of "cruelty and maltreatment" between March 1968 and October 1969. [92] Between 30 March and 2 April, the 173rd Airborne Brigade, along with the Special Forces detachment and the Kurdish forces, engaged and destroyed the 2nd, 4th, 8th and 38th Iraqi Infantry divisions as well as a force loyal to Ansar al-Islam. Not long after its reactivation, elements were deployed to Kosovo as part of Operation Rapid Guardian in support of Kosovo Force (KFOR). The 173rd participated in the initial invasion of Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, and had four tours in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 200506, 200708, 200910, and 201213. [69] Herbert was relieved of his command shortly after reporting to his superior the war crimes he had witnessed. [3] This was the brigade's fifth deployment since 2003, their fourth to Afghanistan as they prepare for a complete transition of the security of Afghanistan to the Afghan National Security Forces. Melzer also shared the intelligence with someone claiming to be a member of al Qaida, and promised to leak more information, including photos and U.S. radio channel frequencies, upon arrival in-country. He used his membership in the military to pursue an appalling goal: the brutal murder of his fellow U.S. service members in a carefully plotted ambush. Of the 137 men that comprised the unit, 76 had been killed and another 23 wounded. Those of us fortunate enough to be there will. According to the Department of Justice, Melzer, 24, communicated not only with O9A members but also alleged members of al-Qaeda. He had been quietly discharged from the Ohio National Guard last year after his arrest, Military.com reported. The obstruction charge carries a minimum sentence of six months in jail. The next morning, Nov. 20, 4th Bn., 503rd Inf., set out to relieve the 2nd Battalion paratroopers. Harold B. Birch, battalion commander at the time, recalled that about 14 Red Warriors were wounded in the attack, some by a misdirected American helicopter gunship.. After he was notified of the assignment, Melzer joined his new unit and attended weeks of training, including classified and unclassified briefings, to prepare for the deployment. American and Vietnamese local intelligence was poor, the area was a traditional VC stronghold, and province and district officials were never able to eliminate the local VC infrastructure. . The changing face of the 173d Airborne Brigade now offers opportunies for both Female and Male individuals. Conetto, Al, "In the Beginning, there was the Hump,". Melzers sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods. Ethan Melzer infiltrated the U.S. Army in service of a neo-Nazi, white supremacist and jihadist group, said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York. But there was a silver lining: Investigators . Nicholas Slayton "Grand Junction Police approached Peters in a bagel shop in Feb. 8, 2022, to execute a warrant related to her iPad, on which she is suspected of improperly recording a court hearing for her deputy clerk," said the report. It is that most become delirious and almost always cry out for their mothers., Copyright 2010-2023, National 4th Infantry (IVY) Division Association. On May 18, 1967, its D Platoon went on a short patrol and chased a lone NVA scout, who led them into an ambush. It was the first U.S. Army. The 1st Battalion, 50th Infantry (Mech), 173d Airborne Brigade has the mission of keeping open and securing the section of Route 19 from An Khe Pass to the 4th Infantry Division's area of operations. . The unit did this to cover some of the spaces in Southern Europe that have opened up with the withdraw of other American forces from the area. A paratrooper in the 173rd Airborne Brigade's Sky Soldiers, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, in Vicenza, Italy, in 2019 through 2020 plotted an ambush on his unit, "to result in the deaths of as many of his fellow service members as possible. A progressive PAC that advocates for campaign reform has filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission arguing that Fox Corporation head Rupert Murdoch broke the law when he shared Joe Biden's campaign ads scheduled to air on Fox with Donald Trump's son-in-law and then White House adviser Jared Kushner, the group reported Friday. General Deane sent his forces 20 kilometres (12mi) west and southwest of Dak To to search for the PAVN 24th Regiment. The following day, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam's (ARVN) elite 1st Airborne Task Force (the 5th and 8th Battalions) and the 3rd Brigade, 1st Air Cavalry Division (5th Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry; and an additional infantry battalion) arrived to conduct search and destroy operations north and northeast of Kon Tum. [78] The resulting wear and tear of 4th ID's M1 Abrams and M2 Bradleys made them an ineffective unit in tight urban areas such as Jar Salah. Privacy Policy | For corrections contact [email protected], for support contact [email protected]. During the battle, Father Watters had ventured outside the perimeter at least five times, carrying wounded troops back to the aid station. [3][44][45] The operation saw three brigades controlling eight battalions dropped by helicopters and US Air Force aircraft into War Zone C, in Ty Ninh Province. The jungle is laced with vines and thorns, and in it live diverse snakes, a million leeches and about half the mosquitoes in the world. Another historian called the terrain probably the wildest in South Vietnam if not all Southeast Asia., CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR SOCIETY PHOTOS. U.S Army badge is seen on a uniform of American soldier. During fierce, close-quarters fighting, some of the paratroopers made it into the PAVN trench line but were ordered to pull back as darkness fell. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. A class of prime youth shredded in seconds. One of the most notable units to operate out of a FOB was the brigade's 74th Long-Range Surveillance (LRS) detachment. The company was able to take the hill but suffered 9 dead and 28 wounded. 24. Among the first ground combat troops in northern Iraq, Haynes parachuted in this time with the 173rd Airborne Brigade. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. ; and the attached 2nd Sqdn., 1st Cav Regt. The dust-offs started coming within 30 minutes. The 173rd secured these areas with company sized detachments, often patrolling the 4th ID's sectors with two unarmored M998 cargo Humvees at any given time. Noted for its roles in Operation Hump and Operation Junction City, the 173rd is best known for the Battle of Dak To, where it suffered heavy casualties in close combat with North Vietnamese forces. [3][25] As the Pacific quick-reaction force, they were the first brigade to be sent to South Vietnam two years later when hostilities escalated there. On 23 June, the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment (1st Brigade, 1st Air Cavalry Division) arrived to bolster the 173rd. Melzer told members of O9A in his encrypted electronic communications [y]ou just gotta understand that currently I am risking my literal free life to give you all this and that he was expecting results. Melzer further acknowledged that he could be killed during the attack and described his willingness to die for O9As goals, writing who gives a fuck [. The 1st and 2nd Battalions saw extensive action in eastern Logar and Wardak. .] to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade . Forward deployed across Italy and Germany, the brigade routinely trains alongside NATO allies and partners to build partnerships and strengthen the alliance. The package also includes a provision authorizing the state to fine, suspend, or revoke the license of any public lodging establishment or public food service establishment if the establishment admits a child to a live adult performance that depicts or simulates nudity, sexual conduct, or lewd exposure., Alejandra Caraballo, a clinical instructor at Harvard Law Schools Cyberlaw Clinic in a tweet described the measure as a full elimination of recognition and a limitation on access to care for all trans people, including adults.. 99 U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade conduct an ambush on Cypriot troops during a force-on-force squad-level blank. Federal prosecutors alleged that Melzer intended to spark a jihadist terror attack on his own unit or any other that took up its location in order to undermine the United States abroad and further the goals of O9A, a largely United Kingdom-based group that has sympathized with al Qaeda. 173rd Airborne Brigade deploys to South Vietnam The lead element of the 173rd Airborne Brigade ("Sky Soldiers"), stationed in Okinawa, departs for South Vietnam. [105] Though the platoon was able to drive the insurgents back with air support, the fight resulted in 9 soldiers killed and 16 wounded; the deadliest attack on troops in the country since 2005. it would be another war . Today, the 173rd Airborne Brigade pauses to remember the loss of 48 Paratroopers during Operation Hump in Vietnam, on this day 52 years ago. After the new units were integrated into the brigade, the preponderance of the forces within the brigade were stationed in Germany, apart from the brigade headquarters in Italy. [70] The brigade was inactivated on 14 January 1972 at the fort,[5] and its assets were used to form the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, a parachute component within the airmobile 101st. The Department of Justice described his enlistment as an infiltration. [84] As the preparations for the brigade were in their final stages, it moved 10 trains and 300 trucks worth of equipment to the air base, as well as 120 busloads of soldiers. Before Hill 875 was even assaulted, the 173rd had already sustained 79 KIA and 287 WIA. The draws between the ridges are dreary, tangled places of perpetual twilight. The 173rd Support Battalion and the 173rd Combat Support Company provided logistical support from Kandahar, while sending individual soldiers to assist at other forward operating bases. She is the spouse of an Army veteran and a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in journalism. Americans serving their country overseas should never have to fear a terrorist attack from within their own ranks, and todays sentence holds him accountable for his deadly plan to attack the brave men and women of the armed forces who protect our nation.. . In approximately early May 2020, the Army informed Melzer that he would be reassigned to a unit scheduled for a further foreign deployment, where the unit would be guarding an isolated and sensitive military installation (the Military Base). The Americans reacted to the NVA buildup by launching Operation Mac-Arthur, with the 4th Infantry Division assuming operational control over the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Melzer, who is from Louisville, Ky., joined the Army in 2018. [91] Over the next 96 hours, the wing landed in the remaining 1,200 soldiers of the brigade as well as their vehicles. Four additional battalions were activated or designated at Bamberg and Schweinfurt, Germany. Published Mar 3, 2023 10:30 PM EST. [78] VCorps was not able to surround Baghdad as quickly as it had hoped because of a lack of available forces in the north. [26], The brigade arrived in South Vietnam on 7 May 1965, the first major ground combat unit of the United States Army to serve in the country. At its peak of its deployment in Vietnam, the 173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate) comprised over 7,000 soldiers. Washington Green proved to be the final American campaign in Bnh nh Province, and its greatest achievement may have been in training an impressive number of territorial and paramilitary forces. [119][122][121] The paratrooper was charged with leaking classified information (including the unit's location) to the RapeWaffen Division and the Order of the Nine Angles (O9A), a European Satanic occult-based neo-Nazi and white supremacist group that is also anti-Semitic, and has expressed admiration for Nazis such as Adolf Hitler and Islamic jihadists. While stationed abroad, Melzer consumed propaganda from multiple extremist groups, including O9A and the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, which is also known as ISIS. Companies C and D started up the hill at 9:43 a.m., with A Company providing rear security and attempting to cut out a landing zone at the bottom. Battle for Hill 875 - or the Siege of Dak To - The 2nd battalion of the 173rd Airborne Brigade with over 300 soldiers advanced up this hill with artillery . Former U.S. Army Soldier Sentenced to 45 Years in Prison for Attempting for Murder Fellow Service Members in Deadly Ambush. He was awarded the Medal of Honor nearly 60 years after he was nominated. According to the Department of Justice, Melzer schemed to ambush soldiers at a base in Turkey, aiming to cripple the bases fire teams and cause a mass casualty attack. (46.7 31.4 cm), Sheet: 18 7/8 12 13/16 in. [112], In February 2015, 750 soldiers from the brigade and from units of the Hungarian Armed Forces, namely 24th Bornemissza Gergely Reconnaissance Battalion, 34th Bercsnyi Lszl Special Operations Battalion, and the 25/88th Light Mixed Battalion participated in the exercise "Warlord Rock 2015". Meanwhile, NVA soldiers began a ferocious attack on A Company at the bottom of the hill. The 173rd Airborne Brigade fielded the 1st, 2nd and 4th battalions of the 503rd Inf. This week a former member of the Ohio National Guard was sentenced to six years in prison for manufacturing ghost guns and making threats against Jewish schools and synagogues. [49] Charlie Company was ordered to support, but heavy vegetation and difficult terrain made movement extremely difficult. All rights reserved. According to survivors, he was on his knees giving last rites to a dying paratrooper when the bombs hit, killing him instantly. On Nov. 7- 8, A and D companies of the 3rd Bn., 8th Inf., fought NVA units east of Hill 830, losing 21 KIA and 81 WIA in close combat. "Combat Operations After Action Report, Operation GREELEY." [58] At 10:30, as the Americans moved to within 300 metres (984ft) of the crest, PAVN machine gunners opened fire on the advancing paratroopers. [62] Combined with noncombatant losses, this represented one-fifth of the 173rd Airborne Brigade's total strength. The centerpiece of the battle was the 110-hour fight for Hill 875. | These warnings, however, made little impression on the paratroopers, who were about to become victims of their own overconfidence. It would be in combat 12 days later. Stanton, Vietnam Order of Battle, pp. By integrating these support elements, the unit became able to maintain its fighting forces with all that is required to keep the ground soldiers supplied and moving. [131] In the 1998 movie The Siege, fictional Major General William Devereaux, played by Bruce Willis, states that he was in the 173rd Airborne Brigade at the same time that character Anthony Hubbard was in the 82nd Airborne Division. To walk away from Hill 875 would have diminished the importance of their sacrifices, Murphy concluded. [82] This force was assisted by Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq and tasked with attacking key airfield and oil production positions deep in northern Iraq. It was the audio portion of film shot on Hill 724 in Vietnam where a pitched battle followed a highly successful Vietnam ambush in November 1967. Headquarters and Headquarters Company Police detained Peters as she allegedly tried to stop an officer from taking the iPad. 56,244 10 months ago (NSFW) Russian Soldier Grenades Ukrainian Trench and Bunker . Gold Star, Active Duty, etc.). 12 June 2005. [115], In 2017, some 600 personnel (1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment) were deployed to the Baltic countries to be positioned in Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia for six weeks to coincide with the duration of the joint Russian/Belarusian strategic Zapad 2017 exercise that began 14 September 2017.[116][117][118]. An estimated 2 enemy battalions, the VC 85th Main Force and the PAVN 95th Regiment, were rendered ineffective as they had 297 killed, with D/16 Armor receiving credit for killing 218. [98] On 21 February 2004, the brigade returned to Italy for a one-year rest before a new deployment.[5]. The soldiers chose to have it contain a parachute and dagger to symbolize their participation in Operation Junction City and the other heavy fighting they had been through. "He deserved punishment, but he also deserved the chance to prove he could do something positive with his life. Jesus, they were all over the place, one paratrooper recalled. Privacy Policy. Maintenance window scheduled to begin at February 14th 2200 est. [24] Immediately after its transformation, the brigade began intensive training in both Germany and Italy to prepare itself for future deployments. Melzer deployed abroad with the Army to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team . Image Saber Strike 15 - Apaches take Flight. Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right. U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade conduct an ambush on Cypriot troops during a force-on-force squad-level blank fire training exercise in Larnaca, Cyprus, Feb. 16, 2023, as part of Exercise Silver Falcon 23. A second base was opened in Vicenza called Del Din and is the current headquarters of the 173rd. No reviews. The brigade returned to its home station in Europe in November 2010. Todays sentence makes clear that Melzers brazen actions backfired and that this office along with our partners in law enforcement and the military will work tirelessly to bring traitors like Melzer to justice and to protect the safety and integrity of our armed services., Melzer betrayed his fellow soldiers and his country, said Assistant Director Robert R. Wells of the FBIs Counterterrorism Division.