On February 26, the 3rd Brigade was ordered to attack east to gain contact with and destroy the Iraqi Republican Guard Forces Command in zone. On 25 February, the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division conducted a 113km movement to contact to destroy elements of the 26th Infantry Division resulting in the capture of 299 Prisoners of War. The 2nd Battalion, 1st Field Artillery Regiment also eventually participated in these counterbattery missions. The 75th Field Artillery Brigade and Battery B, 25th Field Artillery, the division's target acquisition battery, conducted counterartillery fire missions and destroyed two Medina Field Artillery battalions in the process. Thirty-eight of the Iraqi tanks were destroyed by U.S. Ballistics reports have further confirmed this as well as physical evidence such as obvious sabot holes. Evidence suggests that some of them were hit by Iraqi T-72 fire. Only four Abrams tanks were hit by direct fire. This defilade (aka reverse slope) position was intended to give the Iraqis protection from the powerful long-range direct fire of the M1 Abrams tanks and the M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.ĭuring the battle the American forces destroyed 186 Iraqi tanks (mostly export model T-72Ms, Asad Babils and obsolete Type 69s) and 127 armored vehicles. The Iraqi forces were well-deployed such that they could not be seen by American forces advancing until after they had cleared the top of the ridgeline. Medina Ridge was one of the few battles during Desert Storm in which American forces encountered significant Iraqi resistance and found it extremely difficult to advance. Meigs of Civil War fame) 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, commanded by Colonel James Riley replaced 1st Armored Division's 1st Brigade for the duration of the war and was also heavily involved in the battle. 1st Armored Division's 2nd Brigade (Comprising three battalions TF 4-70th Armor, TF 2-70th Armor and TF 1-35th Armor) saw major action in this battle and was commanded by Colonel Montgomery Meigs (a descendant of General Montgomery C. The 1st Armored Division's Cavalry Squadron-1-1 Cavalry-made contact with the Medina Division and informed the Division Commander of the location of the enemy forces. The 1st Armored Division, commanded by Major General Ron Griffith, consisted of some 3,000 vehicles including 348 M1A1 Abrams tanks.
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