Found this article on CNN and thought I would pass it on. Apparently, there is a major military operation going on in Haditha, which is where Aaron was stationed and where his platoon is still located. Pray for their safety and for their families, since this must cause them some anxiety. The last few weeks have been very violent in that area. Please pray that there will be as little bloodshed as possible on both sides.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- U.S. forces launched a wide-ranging offensive Wednesday against insurgents in western Iraq, involving about 1,000 American and Iraqi troops in Sunni-dominated Anbar province, the Marines said.

"The operation is successful to this point," said Marine Col. Steven Davis. "We were able to achieve what we believe is total surprise, and and we continue to do our series of coordinated searches for insurgents and for caches of munitions and weapons."

A Marine statement issued earlier described the offensive -- Operation New Market -- as "focused on disrupting insurgent activity in the vicinity of Haditha and maintaining the pressure on insurgents begun with Operation Matador" earlier this month.

That offensive -- conducted between May 7 and 14 -- was launched farther west near Syria, around Qaim. It was designed to disrupt cross-border infiltration by insurgents organizing for attacks in Ramadi, Falluja, Baghdad and Mosul.

Wednesday's resistance by insurgents is "less severe" than what forces found during Matador, Davis said at Al Asad Air Base in western Iraq. "A number of different types of groups that make up the insurgency here." But unlike Matador, Davis said, "we believe most of these are probably Iraqi insurgents at this point."

"This particular area has been subject to a very fierce intimidation campaign of the citizens" by insurgents, Davis said. "Insurgents have been targeting the military and the infrastructure installations."