Two Soldiers from Company A, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment provide security during a night mission in the area northeast of Salman Pak Jan. 20. The mission was part of a two-day combined operation between Company A, the Iraqi 3rd Brigade, 1st National Police Division and Concerned Local Citizens clearing out insurgents and setting up CLC checkpoints in Zelig, Iraq. U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Timothy Kingston.

Thirteen insurgent fighters were killed, two enemy trucks destroyed and 14 improvised explosive devices were found during the combined operation, which is part of the country-wide Operation Phantom Phoenix.

Capt. William Clark, the commander of Company A, said Concerned Local Citizens took the lead in the operation. The Wheeling, Ill. native said the majority of IEDs were found in Zelig and the group cleared homes along major routes in and out of the city.

Company A assisted the Concerned Local Citizens in setting up operation checkpoints.

“Locals are coming out to help build checkpoints with the Concerned Local Citizens,” said Staff Sgt. Matthew Jemison, a Soldier in 1-15 Infantry Regiment from Metairie, La. “The results of the operation were very positive.”

The 1-15 Infantry Regiment is assigned to the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, from Fort Benning, Ga. They have been deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom since March 2007.