The Untold Story of Special Forces and the Iraqi Kurdish Resistance | Mark Grodvic | Ep. 371

The Team House

dee takos

History, Government, Society & Culture, Documentary

4.7 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 25 September 2025

⏱️ 139 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This conversation delves into the experiences of Mark Grdovic, a member of the 10th Special Forces Group, during the Iraq War, particularly focusing on their operations with Kurdish forces. It covers the planning, execution, and challenges faced during the invasion, including the establishment of relationships with local forces, the importance of communication, and the dynamics of military strategy in a complex environment.
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https://www.markgrdovic.com/
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00:00 Introduction to Special Forces and the Kurdish Resistance
07:55 Planning for the Invasion of Iraq
11:51 Establishing Relationships with Kurdish Forces
16:06 Challenges of Communication and Coordination
23:54 Infiltration and Initial Operations
27:51 Operation Viking Hammer: The Assault Begins
31:57 The Role of Air Support and Tactical Decisions
35:56 Engagements with Enemy Forces
39:54 The Dynamics of Kurdish Politics and Warfare
43:56 The Aftermath of the Initial Assault
01:07:21 The Kurdish Liberation and the Battle of Halabja
01:10:07 Iran's Strategic Alliances and the Role of Terrorists
01:11:32 Missed Opportunities: The Zarqawi Connection
01:12:51 Challenges with Coalition Forces and Coordination
01:17:04 The Complexities of Surrender and Iraqi Army Dynamics
01:28:02 Restoring Order: The Role of Basic Services
01:31:57 The Transition from Occupation to Governance
01:38:33 Lessons Learned and Reflections on the Operation

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Transcript

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0:36.7	The Team House with your hopes, Jack Murphy and David Park.
0:41.9	Hey, everyone.
0:44.5	This is episode 371 of the Team House.
0:45.6	I'm Jack here with Dave.
0:48.3	And our guest today is Mark Gertovich.
0:51.6	He is the author of Those Who Face Death,
0:55.8	the untold story of special forces and the Iraqi Kurdish resistance.
1:00.4	Those who face death, that's the translation of Peshmerga, right? Correct.
1:01.0	Yeah.
1:01.9	So this book tells the story of 10th Special Forces Group in northern Iraq during the invasion in 2003,
1:09.4	going through a whole series of things, going after Ansar al-Sharia in the
1:14.5	north, Operation Viking Hammer, to going after Saddam's Army and Kirk Cook and Salamania,
1:19.8	all kinds of interesting stuff.
1:21.8	I was telling you before the show, I feel like we've done probably close to a dozen interviews
1:27.1	with different people who had
1:29.4	different little roles on the ground in northern Iraq during that time. But I felt like this
1:35.0	book really kind of like brings it all together because you were the S3 for 10th group. Third
1:40.8	Battalion. Third Battalion of 10th group when this happened and you were in country, of course.
	...

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