English: USMC Archives: Marines assigned to the Camp Pendleton, Calif.-based 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion patrol the dusty streets of Dulab, Iraq, July 17, 2006. The Marines were manning an observation point in this region of western Al Anbar Province, Iraq, July 9, when a band of heavily-armed insurgents surrounded and attacked the post for the second time in a month. A pickup truck came to a stop on a road near the post. Several young men jumped out and opened fire on the Marines, said Staff Sgt. Andrew Messuri, a squad leader with Company C, 3rd AA Bn., and a native of Camby, Ore. The Marines returned fire with their rifles and a machine gun. After a 15-minute gunfight, the Marines eliminated six insurgents and later captured four. But the Marines aren’t alone in their fight against the insurgency – several Iraqi Police officers fresh out of the police academy in Baghdad arrived in Dulab to live and train with the Marines. The Marines, who have spent the past four months providing security in this region, are more than halfway done with their seven-month deployment. They’re scheduled to return to the U.S. in October, and will be replaced by another U.S. military unit.