The 173rd was also assigned Company N (Ranger), 75th Infantry. Interrogators also employed a technique called the "water rag", which involved pouring water onto a rag covering the captive's nose and mouth, which creates the sensatation of drowning and can lead to death by asphyxiation. Upon learning the importance and sensitivity of his upcoming deployment, Melzer immediately began passing that information to members of O9A. [144], NATO Training exercise incident in Bulgaria. A former soldier was sentenced to 45 years in prison for attempting to plot with a hate group to attack his unit. (Markus Rauchenberger/Army) A former Army private who pleaded guilty last year to plotting. Anne Wilkes Tucker Photography Study Center, Ambush Alley, 25th Division, Recon Cavalry, Ambushed Convoy Sent to Relieve Duc Co SF Camp. It is a merciless land of steep limestone ridges, some of them exceeding 4,000 feet, wrote Robert Barr Smith in, Vietnam magazine. Supported by A/2-503, the Americans moved up the hill and set up for the night. He then eliminated nine enemy soldiers who were assaulting his position. (Photo by Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images), Black Vietnam veteran receives long-awaited Medal of Honor. A former U.S. Army soldier was sentenced Friday to 45 years in prison, the maximum, for plotting what prosecutors described as a "murderous ambush" overseas on members of his own troop. All rights reserved. For example, Melzer subscribed to encrypted online forums where he downloaded and accessed videos of jihadist attacks on U.S. troops and facilities and jihadist executions of civilians and soldiers, in addition to far-right, neo-Nazi, and other white supremacist propaganda. (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. The Justice Department will use all available resources to disrupt and bring to justice those who would aid foreign terrorist organizations and use violence to harm our men and women in uniform or any American anywhere., 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. The army apologized and promised to improve their procedures for defining training areas. Haynes never questioned anything until Spc. 1st Cavalry Division units1st Bn., 12th Cav Regt., and 2nd Bn., 8th Cavalryalso played a part in the campaign. [71] These inactivations, along with subsequent reorganization of U.S. Army divisions, saw several divisional brigades stationed in bases that were far from the division's headquarters and support units. At its peak of its deployment in Vietnam, the 173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate) comprised over 7,000 soldiers. Division doctors at Dak To kept busy, too, often getting by on only three or four hours of sleep a night. He acknowledged that would likely be killed if he carried out the attack, writing, who gives a f--- [. She then had another arrest warrant issued against her after allegedly violating the terms of a protective order by contacting her former Mesa County office to demand a recount of that election. The battalion lost 12 KIA. Ethan Melzer, 24, of Kentucky, pleaded guilty last year to attempting to murder U.S. service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, and illegally transmitting national defense information. A former U.S. Army soldier was sentenced to 45 years in prison Friday after he plotted to ambush his unit and illegally shared classified information with a violent transnational extremist organization, of which he was a member. O9A members are instructed to fulfill sinister deeds, including insight roles, where they attempt to infiltrate various organizations, including the military, to gain training and experience, commit acts of violence, identify like-minded individuals, and ultimately subvert those groups from within. O9A has had active members in Britain, the United States, Italy, Brazil, and New Zealand for several decades and has promoted terrorism, sexual violence, polarization, separatism, and racial hatred, according to the U.K.-based Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right. He had been quietly discharged from the Ohio National Guard last year after his arrest, Military.com reported. By unlawfully disclosing his unit's location, strength, and armaments to other O9A members and jihadists in furtherance of this ambush, Melzer traitorously sought to attack the very soldiers . In May 2020, the Army told Melzer he would be assigned to another unit slated for deployment where they would be guarding a military base. 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. [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. [128], Illinois Route 173, which runs for 66 miles along the Illinois/Wisconsin border was designated the "173rd Airborne Brigade Highway" in 2008. His first duty assignment was with Alpha Company, 3d. 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.. An ex-soldier was sentenced to 45 years in prison for attempting to murder U.S. service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists and illegally transmitting national defense information, the Department of Justice announced Friday. One of the most notable units to operate out of a FOB was the brigade's 74th Long-Range Surveillance (LRS) detachment. Melzer and his alleged co-conspirators used this information to plan what they referred to as a "jihadi attack" with the objective of causing a "mass casualty" event victimizing his fellow service members. 4th ID had to relocate their forces from Turkey to Kuwait and were subsequently slowed down in Baghdad. As of the sentencing, Melzer is no longer a part of the Army, although it is not immediately clear when between his guilty plea and now he was discharged. [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. The 2-503rd conducted combat operations in Zabul Province. 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. He was arrested in June 20020 and pleaded guilty in 2022. Melzer was taken into custody by the FBI on June 10, 2020. The brigade returned to the United States in 1972, where the 1st and 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry, were absorbed into the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile), and the 3rd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery was reassigned to Division Artillery in the 101st. [126], The 173rd's service, particularly in Vietnam, has been featured several times in popular culture. General Deane sent his forces 20 kilometres (12mi) west and southwest of Dak To to search for the PAVN 24th Regiment. 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. .] Reproduced from VFW Magazine, March 2006 issue, article by Tim Dyhouse. 56,244 10 months ago (NSFW) Russian Soldier Grenades Ukrainian Trench and Bunker . On Nov. 23, the 4th Battalion from the north slope coordinated a final assault on the hilltop with the 1st Bn., 12th Inf., 4th Inf. In November 1967, North Vietnamese Army (NVA) units were determined to rid the Central Highlands of American forces. to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade . [121], In May 2021, as part of the NATO training exercise Swift Response 2021, soldiers of the brigade were simulating seizing and securing the decommissioned Cheshnegirovo airfield in Bulgaria. The other hit C Companys command post and aid station. Neither battalion faced heavy resistance as the NVA had decamped during the night, denying the Americans a chance at some revenge. It was reorganized in December 1921 at Mobile, Alabama, redesignated on 23 March 1925 as the HHC 173rd Brigade, and redesignated as HHC 173rd Infantry Brigade on 24 August 1936. Last year a former member of an Air Force security team was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a police officer in the name of sparking a second civil war. The enormous amounts of ordnance expended by both forces had turned the once-lush tropical jungle into a scarred and torn landscape.. Melzer pleaded guilty in June 2022 to charges of attempted murder of U.S. Army soldiers, illegally sharing national security information and providing and attempting to provide terrorists with material support. Hebert's patrol was caught in a midnight ambush as it crossed what has become known the "Bridge of Death." [41] Soldiers of the brigade became involved in Operation Attleboro in fall of 1966, an operation that started out as a small search and destroy mission north of Saigon, but eventually involved 22,000 troops from 21 battalions. First Military Choice. It is that most become delirious and almost always cry out for their mothers., Copyright 2010-2023, National 4th Infantry (IVY) Division Association. it would be another war . cause another 10 year war in the Middle East would definitely leave a mark. Melzer also acknowledged in his messages that he deleted some of the communications regarding the planning of the attack because the plot amounted to treason. BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan -- A 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team Soldier received a Silver Star for valor in a ceremony here July 12. Pitts, White and Giunta each earned their medals for actions taken during bloody battles in. This work, B-Roll Package: Squad Ambush with Cypriot Troops, by SGT Mariah Gonzalez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. The next day, Pfc. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Carlos Lozada, after receiving orders to retreat back up the hill, provided covering fire, at times walking backward up the hill spraying M-60 machine-gun fire into the brush on either side of the trail. In 2019, he deployed to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, prosecutors said. 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. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Sign up to receive a daily email of today's top military news stories from Stars and Stripes and top news outlets A former U.S. Army soldier was sentenced Friday to 45 years in prison, the maximum, for plotting what prosecutors described as a "murderous ambush" overseas on members of his own troop. The 173rd Airborne Brigade ("Sky Soldiers"[1]) is an airborne infantry brigade combat team (IBCT) of the United States Army based in Vicenza, Italy. Members of O9A have openly expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler and Osama bin Laden, among others. until 0400 est. [63] For its combined actions during operations around Dak To, the 173rd Airborne Brigade was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. [3][5][25] During their time in Okinawa, they prided themselves as the "toughest fighting men in Okinawa, if not the entire U.S. Armed Forces". [15] Though the brigade in name did not exist during the war, the redesignation meant that it carried the lineage of the 87th Reconnaissance Troop, and when the brigade was reactivated, it would include the troop's lineage and campaign streamers. In an instant, he leaped on the device, shielding the blast with his body. The source of the debate strategy information possibly from reporting not yet publicly revealed or somehow indicated in the ads wasn't immediately clear. It. [68], After widely publicized reports by battalion commander Lt. Col. Anthony Herbert, investigators confirmed that military interrogators of the 173rd Airborne Brigade "repeatedly beat prisoners, tortured them with electric shocks and forced water down their throats". Watters. On Nov. 12, 1967, Pfc. The most prominent of these is the 2006 single released by the country music duo Big & Rich, entitled "8th of November". In approximately October 2019, Melzer deployed abroad with the Army to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. [5] The 173rd incurred 1,533 deaths and around 6,000 wounded. The 4th Battalion launched an unsuccessful attack at around 3 p.m., and pulled back to defensive positions after dark. Task Force Black left Hill 823 to find the PAVN who had attacked B/4-503. On Nov. 11, A, C and D companies of the 1st Bn., 503rd Inf., engaged the NVA for eight hours at two separate locations south of Ben Het sustaining 21 KIA and 128 WIA. Dennis Romero is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital. "The defendant believed he could force the U.S. into prolonged armed conflict while causing the deaths of as many soldiers as possible," the Justice Department said in a previous statement. Sky Soldiers serving in Vietnam received 13 Medals of Honor, 32 Distinguished Service Crosses, 1,736 Silver Stars and more than 6,000 Purple Hearts. [3][27][28][29][30][31] Williamson boldly predicted on arrival that his men would defeat the Viet Cong (VC) quickly and that they "would be back in Okinawa by Christmas".