 The climax of the enemy activity just prior to the assault was the ambush, burning and desecration of four American "private military contractors" from Blackwater Security, by an angry mob fueled by insurgents.It was during this period of heightened enemy activity that Pantano and his Marines were dispatched to a housing compound to search for a bomb workshop.After arriving at the compound, a weapons cache and a vehicle with bomb compartments were found at the reported location along with two military age males.