WADI SHADIYA, Jordan — On a hilltop in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the calm morning silence is broken when two F-16 Fighting Falcons drop their explosive payload. As a cloud of powdery dust and shrapnel rise from the target area, the engines of five M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tanks roar to life and move into position atop a hill overlooking a ravine.

A radio crackles as a platoon leader’s voice pours from the speakers.
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