Chapter 16: The Deck of Cards

1 It was … the border. A senior special mission unit officer; a TF Brown pilot; two Delta sources.

2 With U.S. forces … had its man. All Roads Lead to Baghdad, pp. 396–401; a Team 6 source. Abu Abbas, whose real name was Mohammed Zaidan, died in March 2004, reportedly of natural causes, while still in U.S. military custody in Iraq.

3 As Iraq teetered … Hussein himself. Two Delta sources; two TF Brown pilots; a Ranger officer; All Roads Lead to Baghdad, p. 426.

4 Task Force 20 … was born. A field grade JSOC staffer. Despite rumors to the contrary, the camp was not named after any service member killed in action named Nama, nor did the acronym stand for “not another motherfucking airfield,” however appropriate that might have been.

5 The deck of … from Nama. All Roads Lead to Baghdad, p. 426; a senior special mission unit officer; a Delta operator.

6 But A Squadron … villa next door. A Delta operator; three TF Brown sources; No Easy Day, pp. 53–56; Task Force Black: The Explosive True Story of the SAS and the Secret War in Iraq, by Mark Urban (London: Little, Brown, 2010), p. 53.

7 On June 11 … routinely. All Roads Lead to Baghdad, pp. 426–35; Little Bird pilots.

8 A week … “nonevent.” A senior special mission unit officer; Andrade; two Delta sources; “After the War: Fighting; Syrians Wounded in Attack by U.S. on Convoy in Iraq,” by Douglas Jehl, The New York Times, June 24, 2003, accessed at: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/24/world/after-the-war-fighting-syrians-wounded-in-attack-by-us-on-convoy-in-iraq.html; “U.S. Syria Raid Killed 80,” by Richard Sale, UPI, July 16, 2003, accessed at: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-Industry/2003/07/16/US-Syria-raid-killed-80/UPI-78851058396985/.

9 Delta’s A … deck of cards. Three Delta sources; “The Day My Team and Delta Force Killed Saddam Husseins [sic] Two Sons,” an account by a 101st infantryman participant in the action, accessed at: http://www.experienceproject.com/stories/Have-Been-To-Iraq-And-Have-A-Story/1543477; a TF Brown source.… $30 million reward … The Rewards for Justice program website’s “Frequently Asked Questions” page, accessed at: http://www.rewardsforjustice.net/index.cfm?page=faq&language=english#q14.

10 Less than … man in Iraq. A Delta source.… August 17 … “‘Chemical Ali’ Captured in Iraq,” FoxNews.com, accessed at: http://www.foxnews.com/story/2003/08/21/chemical-ali-captured-in-iraq/.

11 On October 6 … to lead JSOC. My Share of the Task: A Memoir, by General Stanley McChrystal, U.S. Army, retired (New York: Portfolio/Penguin, 2013), pp. 93–94; a Delta source.… Major General … Although the Senate had confirmed McChrystal as a major general in October 2002, the Army did not appoint him to that rank officially until May 2004. In the meantime, the service “frocked” him as a major general, meaning he was entitled to be treated as a major general and wear the insignia that came with the rank, but not to receive a two-star’s pay.

12 But as McChrystal … as a help. My Share of the Task, pp. 93–94, 96; a Delta source.

13 A few days … Al Qaeda leaders. My Share of the Task, pp. 94–95.

14 Within … and Afghanistan. My Share of the Task, pp. 99–100.

15 When Zarqawi’s … terrorists in Iraq. A Delta source.

16 … the ongoing … manpower needs. A retired special operations officer; a Joint Staff officer.

17 Stunned by … survived. My Share of the Task, pp. 100–7.… 250-person task force … Top Secret America: The Rise of the New American Security State, by Dana Priest and William M. Arkin (New York: Little, Brown, 2011), p. 238.

18 During … ops aviator. A Delta source; a senior special mission unit source; two special operations aviation sources.

19 In November … to victory. Operation Dark Heart: Spycraft and Special Ops on the Frontlines of Afghanistan—and the Path to Victory, by Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2010), pp. 190–98. (The U.S. government destroyed almost all original copies of this book and forced the author to publish a censored version instead. However, I obtained a copy of the uncensored edition. All references to Operation Dark Heart are to this version.); My Share of the Task, p. 108; a JSOC staff officer; a Ranger officer.

20 Then, with … compound in Tikrit. We Got Him! A Memoir of the Hunt and Capture of Saddam Hussein, by Lt. Col. Steve Russell, U.S. Army, retired (New York: Threshold, 2011), pp. 307–24; My Share of the Task, pp. 110–11; The Endgame: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Iraq, from George W. Bush to Barack Obama, by Michael R. Gordon and General Bernard E. Trainor (New York: Pantheon, 2012), p. 38.… nine days after … A Delta operator.

21 For the Delta … capture. Two Delta sources.

22 As early … tenacious insurgency. My Share of the Task, p. 123.

23 It was also … this influx. A task force official.

24 By fall … enemy figure. A senior JSOC officer.

25 Before the year … in the country. My Share of the Task, pp. 112–13.

26 McChrystal brought … Tenet. A senior JSOC officer.