Battle of Debecka Pass The Battle of Debecka ( Dibagah , Dibege , دیبهگه ) Pass , sometimes known as the Battle of Debecka Ridge or Debecka Crossroads , or otherwise referred to as the Alamo of the Iraq War , was a successful operation launched by U . S . Special Forces to secure a major crossroads near the village of Debecka ( Dibege , دیبهگه in Kurdish ) , between Mosul and Kirkuk in northern Iraq . It was notable for its use of the Raytheon / Lockheed - Martin Javelin anti - tank missile . The weapon demonstrated how lethal and crucial technology can be in determining the outcome of a battle . The light unarmored SOF and Peshmerga ( KDP ) force faced a mechanized force of Iraqi infantry and tanks . The numerically inferior US and KPD force was able to defeat the Iraqi mechanized infantry & tank force with combined air - to - ground strikes , superior maneuvering , and the use of the Javelin missiles . Objective . On April 6 , 2003 , 26 United States Army Special Forces were given the task to capture a strategically important junction between Mosul and Kirkuk , near the village of Debecka ( Dibege , دیبهگه in Kurdish ) . Were it captured , it would sever Highway 2 and impede Iraqi movement in the north , as well as provide a springboard to eventually drive on and capture the important Kirkuk oil fields . The battle . On the eighteenth day of the U . S . - led invasion of Iraq , the US Special Forces moved in for the attack . The battle began with an aerial bombardment from B - 52 bombers . The US Special Forces troops linked up with the Peshmerga resistance , and reached the base of the ridge . Peshmerga troops then proceeded to clear a minefield before them . Iraqi troops attacked and stopped the coalition force from destroying a large dirt berm . The coalition force made their way over the top of the ridgeline , and engaged the Iraqis in bunkers , capturing about twenty Iraqi soldiers . Coalition troops then returned and destroyed the berm , as they would need an avenue of escape should withdrawal from the area prove necessary . Coalition troops then mounted a small hill known as Press Hill , obscuring an approach to the crossroads from the south . They were faced with an Iraqi mechanized company with hundreds of troops , and a four - and - a - half - hour battle began . Early into the battle two Iraqi armored personnel carrier s ( APCs ) were destroyed along with two occupied Iraqi troop trucks by Javelin anti - tank missile s . Soon after two more Iraqi APCs were destroyed along with another Iraqi transport truck , again by Javelin anti - tank missiles . The attacking Iraqis halted the offensive and laid down fire from defensive trench es . As the battle wore on , the Iraqi attack became less and less organized . Later , three Iraqi trucks approached the coalition company with headlights flashing . This was likely an attempt to fool Special Forces operators into believing that it might be a surrender . However , it was merely a ploy to initiate the final attack . A phalanx of three Iraqi armored personnel carriers and three troop trucks , supported by four T - 55 tanks , moved forward to attack the coalition lines . Coalition troops maneuvered up the ridge to their final position in order to suppress the offensive . Aggressive action by ground forces stopped the Iraqi advance and helped secure a tactical coalition victory . An embedded BBC news crew filmed an air - to - ground fratricide event on April 6 in conjunction to this combat operation . The event took place near Dibagar . A combined Army Special Forces element supporting a Kurdish ( KDF ) infantry team controlled a Navy F - 14 . The BBC correspondent stated that the aircrew asked for a 9 - line Close Air Support ( CAS ) brief , but was told there was no time and provided a visual only target talk on . The aircrew said they saw a road , an intersection , and some vehicles . The JTAC cleared the attack , but the F - 14 was visual with the KDP / SPECOPS troop and imbedded BBC news crew and dropped a GBU - 16 ( 1000LB ) Laser Guided Bomb ; killing approximately 19 and wounding approximately 46 . Among the casualties were senior KDP representatives and a BBC news employee who had arrived on the battlefield to observe the operation . The whole incident was filmed by BBC correspondents and is available online at " liveleak . com & BBC website " . This fratricide incident is the biggest blue - on - blue loss of life during OIF - I . References . 2 . Lowery , Nathan S . , " The Battle for Debecka Crossroads " , Tip of the Spear , Winter 2005