06:45, Northwest Suburb of Tetric.
The dry wind stirred up dust, hitting the windshield of the Hummer.
Major Mahmoud, commander of the First Battalion, Third Brigade "Freedom Fighters" of the Kurd, stood on the roof, observing the front with binoculars.
Thirty-five years old, having fought with the 1515 Armed for 4 years, two shrapnel scars on his face.
His battalion was one of the main attacking forces today.
Behind him, over three hundred vehicles formed a kilometer-long convoy along the dry riverbed—twenty Hummers, fifty off-road vehicles, the rest all Toyota pickups, each with a PKM general-purpose machine gun or RPG-7 gunner mounted in the back.
The soldiers wore mixed camouflage uniforms, some with American-made helmets, others only with headscarves.
The weapons were primarily AKMs, but M16s and even German G36s could be seen—acquired through various channels over the years.
