Zach Iscol couldn’t hear a thing after an American F-16 fighter jet dropped a 500-pound bomb just 45 meters from his position. As the ringing raged in his ears, a fellow Marine handed Iscol a cigarette and asked, “Are we just ghosts now?”

Despite this harrowing flash, among others, Iscol recalls being concerned with how the Iraqi soldiers under his command would perform in combat. As the executive officer of Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Iscol led a mixed platoon of about two dozen Marines and more than 200 Iraqi soldiers.

“My biggest fear is, I didn’t know if our Iraqis were going to run or if they were going to fight,” he said. “That’s something I was very worried about.”

Partnering with Iraqis was crucial in the five months before the battle. With several translators wounded, Iscol relied on the Arabic language skills his Marines garnered. Through eating, training and living with their counterparts, the Marines learned enough Arabic to direct Iraqi troops under intense fire.

“Here we are, in the biggest battle the Marine Corps has ever fought since 1968, without any translators in a mixed unit,” said Iscol. “It was amazing to see.”

The battle held many signature moments for Iscol. Walking into the city felt like entering a canyon with seemingly towering structures amid the vast desert. Iscol found his Marines to be innovative. After seeing many injured upon entering buildings, his platoon adopted a top-down approach by jumping from roof to roof and fighting through houses.

Other moments remain more challenging to bear. The human cost of the battle was immense. Houses were transformed into something resembling Japanese-style pill boxes from World War II.  And the enemy was dug in, ready to fight.

After weeks of going block by block to clear the city, Iscol reached the other edge of Fallujah, leaving behind a bloody trail of aggression.

“The enemy were there to die, and they wanted to take as many Marines with them as they could,” Iscol said.

The battle changed the trajectory of his life. The responsibility he found to care for those he fought alongside didn’t end when he took off his uniform.

In the decades since returning from war, Iscol has built The Headstrong Project, a nonprofit mental health care organization that cares for thousands of veterans. Today, he also serves as the commissioner for New York City Emergency Management.

In all of the violence he and his Marines experienced, Iscol sees an underlying devotion to one another.

“At the end of the day, you’re fighting for the man on the left and the man on the right,” he said. “That comes out of love.”

Learn more about Fallujah: 20 Years Later at fallujahstories.org.