FALLUJAH, Iraq -- Marines from Company F, 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, teamed up with the 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade of the Iraqi Army as part of Operation Constitution Hammer here in October. The operation was conducted to disrupt insurgent activity along the main supply routes in Fallujah, find and capture weapons caches, and kill or capture insurgents. Company F established and maintained cordon security to prevent anyone from coming into or leaving the search area. Marines from 2nd Platoon along with the Iraqi troops searched the buildings that were encircled. The Marines were determined to search every building within their area of responsibility, cutting any lock that barred their access to a building. After the buildings were inspected and cleared, new locks were installed with the Marines turning the keys over to the IA. “We need to be able to search the building even if the store owners aren’t there,” said Capt. William H. Grube, the commanding officer of Company F. “We cut and replaced the locks of the buildings,” added the 34-year-old Emmaus, Penn., native. “The owners of the buildings can retrieve the keys for the locks we installed from the IA.” The mission was a success. The Iraqi troops unearthed a large cache of weapons and denied the insurgents the ability to operate in the area. The Marines of 2nd Platoon walked away from the mission with a sense of accomplishment. “I think it was a good mission,” said Sgt. Samuel D. Hodges, a 22-year-old Hendersonville, Tenn., native. “Some of these buildings hadn’t been searched since the war started. I think the IA is still at the beginner stage but they are improving. It’s just going to take time.”