Raddatz' Book Marks the Explosion of the Iraqi Insurgency

March 1, 2007 — -- When describing her book, "The Long Road Home", ABC News' chief White House correspondent Martha Raddatz says simply, "I wanted to write about the reality of war."

In retelling the 48-hour firefight in Sadr City on April 4, 2004, Raddatz weaves together -- from the perspectives of both soldiers on the ground in Iraq and the families they left at home -- in harrowing, chilling detail, an unforgettable and unique portrait of the war in Iraq.

It was important to Raddatz, a three-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, not to offer commentary on the origins of the war or the policy and strategy decisions that have taken place since it started.

"Covering this war for so long, it moves so fast. The lead story today is this, the lead story tomorrow is that. And you haven't ever just paused and said: 'This is what it is, this is what happened.' " Raddatz says.

Regarded as a crucial turning point in Iraq, the firefight in Sadr City that spring is viewed as the incident that marked the explosion of the Iraqi insurgency. Raddatz describes the event as "a microcosm of the whole war."

"We went in there unprepared for what we were about to face, without the right equipment, with people who were dedicated to what they were doing and facing an enemy we had no idea existed," Raddatz says.

Under the thumb of Saddam Hussein for so many years, the United States expected Sadr City to be a simple babysitting mission -- the soldiers of the 1st Calvary Division would be gone for a one-year tour of duty, oversee the postwar peace, help rebuild infrastructure, throw candy, get flowers and come home.

"That they attacked U.S. troops, that there was open rebellion on the streets from [Iraqi] citizens and militia was a huge turning point," says Raddatz, "And look today -- it's not solved. It was sort of a silent, festering enemy before -- and it still is."

Getting the Story

"The Long Road Home" began for Raddatz in the summer of 2004 after a dinner with retired Gen. Jack Keane, who shared with her the story of these soldiers who had only been in Iraq for four days on what they thought would be a peacekeeping mission.

Within days, Raddatz was in Sadr City for ABC News' Nightline facing a group of soldiers who hadn't had the chance to tell this story before.

She remembers meeting Staff Sgt. Robert Miltenberger who had never seen combat and had been set to retire just before the soldiers were told they'd be heading for Iraq. The "stop-loss" orders in his contract meant he had to go.

Raddatz remembers looking at him and thinking, "Oh the last thing this poor guy wants to do is talk about what happened."

"He broke down crying immediately," she says, "I think it was one of the most emotional interviews I've ever done, because when you interview soldiers you know they don't want to cry, so when they do, you know how deep it is."

Telling the Story

She credits her many roles -- woman, wife, mother, seasoned journalist on the front lines taking many of the same risks as the soldiers -- as something that helped her bridge gaps between soldiers and their families, appreciate the way the civilian world sees the military, and understanding the armed forces in a way most of the civilian world does not.

"I think being a mom and a mother and a wife and all that helps me understand the soldiers, understand the families, understand the love, understand how horrible it is to think about your own children when you see something happen to other families." Raddatz says.

Of her travels to Iraq, Raddatz says that, more than a man, if something happened to her she would be criticized for going over there in the first place because she is a mother.

"My kids understand that. And my kids know that this is a passion of mine but they know they're my number one passion," she says.

Raddatz describes writing the book from the home front as well as the front lines as "a wrenching juxtaposition" but an important one "because the people at home are part of it."

"The families are absolutely integral to the way the soldiers function over there. They couldn't do their jobs without that support," says Raddatz, "And, like their husbands who actually fought in the battle, the wives will be affected by what happened in Sadr City forever."

Raddatz describes the soldiers she interviewed as extraordinary and diverse, emotional and courageous, poetic and thoughtful. The troops didn't appear to be a particularly "touchy-feely" bunch, and Raddatz initially thought "it would be really like pulling teeth to get any kind of detail or richness to this story or who they were or what they thought about."

It wasn't; Raddatz calls the soldiers "a writer's dream."

Understanding the Story

Raddatz recounts a story told to her by Lt. Shane Aguero, the ambushed platoon's leader, who she describes as a sarcastic and funny man. During the attack in Sadr City, Aguero took refuge with his men in a house down an alleyway. His wife Amber had warned him when he left for Iraq, "In every war there is always a platoon that gets pinned down. Don't let it be your platoon."

As he lay in the alley, Aguero told Raddatz that he looked up and saw a bird fly over to carry his thoughts to his wife.

"I certainly didn't ask him if he saw a bird. He was just talking about the story," Raddatz said, "They were so good at relating the details."

Ultimately those intimate, powerful, gut-wrenching details -- combined with the emotionally-rich recounts of their families at home -- opened a window to the war that Raddatz considers essential to its understanding.

"We have sacrificed, again, nothing as a nation for this war. Nothing." Raddatz emphasizes.

"The only people who have sacrificed are the soldiers and the families who support them and, to me, it's the least we can do to read about who these people are, what their sacrifice is and appreciate them in ways we do not now. It's easy to get caught up in the policy of this, it's easy to get caught up in the polling."

"Everyone should do what they need to do in ways they need to do them to serve their country," says Raddatz, "But, to me, we should know who these people are who are doing it for us."

Martha Raddatz's book, The Long Road Home, is available in bookstores March 1, 2007.