Servicemembers supply aid to orphanage

3 July 07
By Pfc. Melissa M. Escobar
22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Backpacks jammed full with school supplies, soccer balls, teddy bears, toys, hygiene kits, sandals and shoes were delivered to an Afghan orphanage in Mahmud Raqi district by members of the Bagram Provincial Reconstruction Team June 27.

National Guard Soldiers with the 351st Civil Affairs Command from Mountain View, Calif., along with the 1175th Military Police Company, 205th MP Battalion from Mississippi geared up and armed themselves with humanitarian supplies.

In the three months that the team has been in country, this was the first time they visited the orphanage.

"The governor of the province asked us to visit the orphanage," explained Army Capt. Jordan J. Berry, team leader with 351st CACOM. "The mission was a good-will gesture to strengthen ties with the community."

"It’s a positive thing," said Army Maj. Jim E. Blashford, a native of Grass Valley, Calif., with 351st CACOM. "It shows our ability to make a high impact by giving to those who could really use this stuff and shows that we’re not the bad guys. These kids have none of this stuff and it’s an obvious example of the United States doing good and being put in a good light."

While supplying the children with humanitarian aid supplies was the main event, the team took the opportunity to observe the orphanage’s facilities and asked the director if there was a need for anything else.

The director of the orphanage and the on-staff doctor who runs the small health clinic inside expressed the need for certain medicines and supplies for the children. Another concern that the director had was the quality of water that was coming from the nearby well.

"Finding out about their additional needs such as the medicine shortages and who is funding them is good for us to know," said Berry, a native of Dallas.

During the visit, the team also learned the facilities being used by the orphanage are being rented and only temporary.

"I would like to see a permanent building built for the kids," said Army Sgt. Valentin DeLeon, a civil affairs specialist with the Bargram PRT, who spent the day handing children backpacks and pumping up soccer balls. "I hope we can influence the governor to take more interest in improving the orphanage."

The Bagram PRT routinely meets with the Kapisa governor to discuss changes they feel necessary to improve the quality of life for the people of Afghanistan.

"It was a perfect opportunity to give to those who have an obvious need," said Blashford. "We have plenty to give away. This was really just a way for us to get our foot in the door."

"Everyday we see improvements in Afghanistan," said DeLeon, from San Jose, Calif., who hopes to watch the development of the orphanage. "I like doing my job and it’s awesome to see your projects grow and progress. It’s a good feeling."

Photo - Army Sgt. Valetin DeLeon, a civial affairs specialist with 351st CACOM, opens up a soccer pump to inflate a soccer ball for a child at the Kapisa Orphanage in the Mahmud Raqi district of Afghanistan during a humanitarian aid drop on June 27. Photo by Melissa Escobar.

Yusufiyah-area Men Flock to IP Recruitment Drive

27 Jun 07
Courtesy Story.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Over 1,200 Iraqi men came to Joint Security Station in Yusufiyah during a three-day police recruitment drive that ended June 25.

The drive, orchestrated by the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) from Fort Drum, N.Y., the 23rd Military Police Company, 503rd MP Battalion, 16th MP Brigade, from Fort Bragg, N.C., and the 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, began June 23 to increase Iraqi police manning in the 4-31 “Polar Bears’” area of operations.

The goal was to find 200 qualified Iraqi police officers. When the drive began at 8 a.m., there were almost 200 men waiting in line to apply.

Gen. David Petraeus, the Multi-National Force-Iraq commander, visited the recruitment efforts the first day and spoke to several potential recruits and encouraged them to serve their country.

Five hundred seventy-seven applicants were processed the first day. Another 150 were waiting in line the second day and by mid-afternoon 361 had filled out applications and spoken with the troops.

Officials accepted 252 applications on June 25.

The surplus applications – including one from a local woman - will be kept and as the JSS expands, those individuals will be the first called for new hires.

Applicants represented all major Sunni and Shia tribes in the area with the majority coming from Yusufiyah and Mulla Fayad. Also represented was Carguoli Village, a longtime hotbed of terrorist activity, which has recently begun making strides toward peace.

Each applicant completed a basic literacy test. Other requirements included being between the ages of 20 and 35, not being part of the Iraqi army, having no ties to extremist groups, and a willingness to move at the government’s need. Applicants must be Iraqi citizens. The recruits’ records will be checked by the Ministry of the Interior to prevent terrorist groups from infiltrating into the IP forces.

Photo - Capt. Brent Dittenber, commander, Alpha Company, 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), from Fort Drum, N.Y., checks the names of applicants for the Iraqi police force with Iraqi army staff officers. The recruitment drive was June 23-25. Photo courtesy of Joint Combat Camera Center.

Iraqi, Coalition forces move forward despite attacks

21 Jun 07
by Spc. Carl N. Hudson
Combined Press Information Center.

BAGHDAD – The Fardh Al-Qanoon spokesman and a Multi-National Force-Iraq spokesman held a press conference at the Combined Press Information Center Wednesday.

Iraqi Army Brig. Gen. Qassim Atta Al-Moussawi, Fardh Al-Qanoon spokesman, and U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Mark Fox, a Multi-National Force-Iraq spokesman, discussed the progress of Fardh Al-Qanoon.

“Our military operations are still ongoing in many places in Baghdad to pursue the terrorists,” said Al-Moussawi. “Terrorist attacks will not make us stop our operations in Baghdad, and we’ll move forward with steady steps.”

Al-Moussawi addressed the progress made by the Iraqi Army in the past week.

“We’ve killed 32 terrorists, detained 170 others, freed five kidnapped (victims), defused eight improvised explosive devices and 17 car bombs, found 2,000 different kinds of weapons and seized eight tons of TNT,” said Al-Moussawi.

With the Iraqi Army in the lead, Iraqi locals continue to provide information in response to attacks made by terrorists.

Fox also explained the ongoing security efforts.

“All of the additional requested forces for the ‘surge’ are now in place and are simultaneously conducting coordinated core-level offensive operations throughout Iraq,” said Fox. “Coalition forces are strong and focused and are concentrating our effort and might against the extremists, taking the fight to where they are, going after the terrorists to deny them sanctuary and taking back neighborhoods in order to build a secure future for the Iraqi people.”

“Iraqi and Coalition forces are conducting carefully planned and executed operations, demonstrating their resolve to deny terrorists safe havens,” he said. “We’ll continue to pursue these terrorists wherever they go by attacking their networks and damaging their ability to wage horrific and calculated violence against the citizens of Iraq.”

Al-Moussawi and Fox also expressed their sympathies to the killed and injured from the al-Khalani mosque bombing in Rusafa, Iraq.

“We share the outrage of the Iraqi people against this despicable attack,” said Fox.

“We face a summer of hard fighting,” he said. “I’m confident there’s good prospects for continued progress in the months ahead and that can be matched by progress in the political and economic areas here in Iraq giving us hope for the way ahead.”

Photo - Iraqi Army Brig. Gen. Qassim Atta Al-Moussawi (right), Fardh Al-Qanoon spokesman and U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Mark Fox, a Multi National Force-Iraq spokesman, discuss the progress of Fardh Al-Qanoon at athe Combined Press Information Center in Baghdad. Photo by Spc. Emily Greene.

Artillery battalion trades steel rain for hearts and minds

20 June 2007
Story and photo by Cpl. Rick Nelson
2nd Marine Division.

HADITHAH — The counter-insurgency coalition forces are conducting in Iraq calls for numerous military units to give up their traditional roles and pick up a different weapon. This is nothing new for artillery units, who, since the Battle of Fallujah in November of 2004, have often been called upon to put away their howitzers for rifles, police batons, and claims cards. All around Iraq, artillery batteries and battalions are serving as provisional rifle, military police, and civil military units. In Hadithah, it’s no different.

At the Hadithah Civil Military Operation Center, Marines assigned to 5th Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, an artillery battalion based out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. assist the local populace with their civil matters.

“This was a big change from our usual duties as a field artillery battalion,” said Cpl. Russell Mullis, Civil Affairs Group, Team 1, Detachment 1, 5/10. “Steel rain and hearts and minds are two entirely different missions, but we’re adapting very well.”

Until this year, CAG detachments were primarily staffed by reservists. This is the first year an artillery unit has civil affairs as their primary mission.

“We serve as a liaison between the local populace, and the coalition forces,” said Mullis. “We handle any claims and concerns from the populace, and process projects to rebuild the area.”

Civil Affairs Group, Team 1, Detachment 1, 5/10 is a part of Task Force 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment who fall under Regimental Combat Team 2. These Marines operate the CMOC, and patrol in Hadithah to conduct assessments and coordinate with local contractors.

“The Marines run two different missions, CMOC and civil affairs,” said Warrant Officer Harold Kiser, Officer-In-Charge, CAG, Team 1, Detachment 1, 5/10. “Our areas of concern and focus form the acronym SWEATS – schools, water, electricity, agriculture, transportation and sewage.”

The center conducts many daily tasks for the local nationals, a lot of which includes vehicle registration and badge distribution. CAG also compensates the locals for any damages inadvertently caused by military personnel during counter-insurgency operations.

“The sheer number of people who come through everyday is our biggest challenge,” added Mullis, a Winston-Salem, N.C.

On average, the CMOC will assist approximately 150 people a day. The largest number of local nationals serviced in one day was 220. CAG compensates for this number by issuing the local national a specific number after he or she has been searched at the entrance. This number puts them in a line to air their grievances and receive help. The Civil Affairs Team uses interpreters to overcome the language barrier.

“Our main problem here is a shortage of interpreters, but the ones we do have do a great job,” Mullis added.

Once a number is selected, an interpreter will speak with that person and determine how they can be helped. After speaking with the interpreter, the Marines will cater to the local national’s problem based on the situation.

Mullis recalled one such incident that occurred at the CMOC.

“A local national was driving his dump truck through a [traffic control point] in Haqlaniyah and misunderstood the Marines working there, and he went the wrong way,” said Mullis. “The way he went had road spikes, and he ended up destroying two of his tires.”

The driver was issued a claims card. When he arrived at the CMOC, he was given 381,500 dinar ($299.92 in American money).

“We searched through vendors to see what an average price was on the tires, which is how we came up with the amount,” he added. “That’s the usual way we complete our claims, and it seems to be working.”

This CMOC is another facet to this complex environment, and it’s something the CAG Marines know is vital to mission success.

“The CMOC provides a place for local nationals to interact with coalition forces, and without it, I think there would be a lot more friction with the people,” said Mullis.

Marines assigned to the CAG detachment continue to help the locals here and support the Lava Dogs of 1/3 in order to aid their counter-insurgency campaign.

Photo - Cpl. Russel Mullis, a Marine with the CAG detachment assigned to 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines, hands out paperwork to the local nationals at the Civil Military Operations Center in Hadithah.

Mission Success Relies on Maintenance Troops

18-Jun-07
Multi-National Division-Central Story.

FOB KALSU, Iraq — “In order to have combat power you need to shoot, move and communicate. “We are the move part,” said an auto mechanic with 2nd Brigade Combat Team out of Fort Stewart, Ga.

The mechanics of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 26th Brigade Support Battalion, Fort Stewart, Ga., help ensure vehicles and equipment are combat ready when soldiers go on missions.

Readiness is monitored through weekly command maintenance, said Staff Sgt. Javier Castillo, non-commissioned officer in charge, Company B, 26th Brigade Support Battalion.

Such checks help reduce the chance of having a deficiency that may stop the mission or endanger lives.

“If equipment doesn’t work, the mission is over,” Castillo said. “Get to know your equipment, and make sure it is combat ready.”

The best way to get to know equipment is preventive maintenance checks and services, or PMCS.

“A PMCS determines deficiencies. Without one you don’t know what is broke or will break in the near future,” Castillo said. “When you lack a PMCS, you have to ask yourself ‘Is this combat ready?’”

While mechanics perform PMCS along with their command maintenance, weekly maintenance is often not enough because of the heat, dust and sand in Iraq.

“Some people rely more on the mechanics, and view us as a Jiffy Lube to take care of all their problems,” said Sgt. Sandra Muniz, Company B, auto section. “Thus, they get complacent.”

In Iraq, complacency can be deadly. It is important that units conduct their own daily vehicle inspections in addition to the mechanic’s checks, said the mechanics.

“You can save a lot of lives on missions from daily routines,” Muniz said.

“Each unit needs to take ownership of their equipment. It can save their lives,” Castillo added.

While individual soldiers may not be armed with the knowledge the mechanics have, the mechanics said it shouldn’t keep them from doing their own maintenance. To conduct a PMCS, the only thing a soldier needs is the vehicle’s technical manual, or TM.

Each TM contains a troubleshoot outline that operators can use to fix low-level problems, Castillo said.

“The TMs are simple, by the numbers,” said Sgt. Robert Monigan, another Company B, auto section mechanic.

“Whenever you work on a vehicle[, you] have the technical manual by your side. It takes care of a lot of problems,” Muniz stressed.

If a unit loses its manual, an electronic copy can be picked up at the motor pool. All a soldier needs to do is bring a disk to copy it to, Monigan said.

Once an operation has all the tools needed to do a proper PMCS, the operator should perform a PMCS before leaving on a mission, during mission downtime, and after completion of the mission, said Castillo.

“If you need to get out of a hotspot, you want your vehicle to be 100 percent,” he said, adding, the best way to maintain this percentage is to do a PMCS at these times.

Monigan knows from recent experience how important these checks are during missions.

Upon arrival at their destination, the crew did a control check and found a water hose leaking. By replacing the hose before rolling out, they prevented the vehicle from breaking down on the return trip, Monigan said.

Besides saving time, such actions may have also saved lives by not having to stop during the mission and possibly become a target.

Just as a soldier wouldn’t want to go on a mission without body armor or a properly functioning weapon, Castillo said soldiers should remember their vehicle is just as important and that they shouldn’t want to leave without it properly maintained and combat ready.

“Take care of vehicle, and it will take care of you,” Monigan said.

Photo - U.S. Army Spc. Christopher Marshall, Company B, 26th Brigade Support Battalion, tightens bolts that hold ballistic glass onto a gunner's turret. Daily inspections help keep vehicles combat ready. Multi-National Division-Central photo.

Historic Abu Nuwas Street Revitalization Center Opens

By Maj. Sean Ryan
2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division Public Affairs Officer, PAO.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE LOYALTY, Iraq — The rebuilding of the famous market in eastern Baghdad is making progress with the opening of the Abu Nuwas Revitalization Center June 9.

The market is well known for serving up mazgouf fish, meaning river fish, a Baghdad delicacy cooked over wood fires while you wait and served with fresh vegetables. The wait won’t be too much longer as the information center is one of the first steps in the historic street’s revival.

The information center was opened in conjunction with local leaders from the Rusafa District along with the District Advisory Council chairman from Abu Nuwas.

This part of the city, which once provided a variety of shops, restaurants, and hotels, was world-renowned and will soon open again. Approximately 45 business owners attended the opening to discuss economic and security issues.

According to Maj. Dave Carlson, a native of Allensburg, Wash., and the leader of the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division’s civil support team and the Rusafa district, the meeting allowed business owners from the area to discuss issues and “become unified in their economic goals.”

“It’s in everyone’s best interest to make the street a more central location,” said Qays Foraj, the Abu Nuwas chairman. Foraj explained to the business owners his vision of the future for the market and the possibilities of offering financial assistance.

The center will be open to answer questions or discuss upcoming projects to citizens and business owners, alike. Questions to be answered include when the market will be open for customers.

“I would be very happy once the area brings back even a portion of the customers that used to come,” said a store owner who owns a retail store. “A lot of money is being put into fixing the street and the people appreciate the time and effort from everyone.”

Under Operation Fardh Al-Qanoon, also known as the Baghdad Security Plan, the Abu Nuwas Market is one of the areas targeted to stimulate economic growth.

Brig. Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, Multi-National Division-Baghdad‘s deputy commanding general for support, paid a recent visit to the market and discussed issues with local owners.

“The Iraqi people need to remain resilient and things will get better,” he said. Brooks recognized that security needs to improve and reassured the store owners that they will not be left without protection.

“Coalition Forces are working side-by-side with the Iraqi Security Forces and we are here to help, not leave,” he said. Iraqi Police and Army under the Iraqi Rusafa Area Command provide security for the area, with help from the soldiers from 1st Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, currently operating as part of the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

The area has been shut down due a series of car bombs that left the area paralyzed several months ago. With no customers coming in, a lot of shop owners and restaurateurs had to close their doors and the ones that stayed in the area, slowly watched their livelihoods disappear.

“We still need essential services like electricity and water,” an owner of one of the fish markets told Brooks during the general’s visit, “but we are ready to start telling all customers we will be open soon.”

Photo - U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, paid a visit to the market and discussed issues with local owners, June 9, 2007. Approximately 45 business owners attended the opening of the Abu Nuwas Revitalization Center in the Rusafa District of eastern Baghdad to discuss economic and security issues of the area. U.S. Army photo by Maj. Sean Ryan.

Leaders, Wounded Warriors Celebrate Army Birthday at WRAMC

13-Jun-07
by Bernard S. Little
Army News Service.

WASHINGTON - Walter Reed Army Medical Center joined installations and commands worldwide this week in celebrating the Army's 232nd birthday with a cake-cutting ceremony Tuesday in the hospital's Heaton Pavilion.

Acting Secretary of the Army Pete Geren, acting U.S. Army Surgeon Gen. Maj. Gen. Gale Pollock and Sgt. Maj. Of the Army Kenneth O. Preston attended the celebration honoring those who answered the "Call to Duty - Boots on the Ground - Army Strong," this year's Army birthday theme.

Maj. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, commanding general of the North Atlantic Regional Medical Command and WRAMC, said medics have been a part of the Army for almost its entire existence, pointing out that about a month after the Continental Congress established an Army to defend the colonies, a medical service was created for care for the 20,000-member Continental Army.

"We've had our boots on the ground as Soldiers almost since our inception as a defender of America's freedoms," Maj. Gen. Schoomaker said. "It's also fitting to celebrate at the place where our first mission is to put warriors back on their feet to return to the fighting force and resume their lives."

Walter Reed has treated nearly 6,000 patients from Operation Iraqi Freedom since the war began. More than 2,000 of those troops were injured in battle. Walter Reed has also treated nearly 550 patients from Operation Enduring Freedom, and more than 180 of those troops were injured in battle.

Maj. Gen. Schoomaker spoke of attending the funeral last year of Cpl. Angelo Vaccaro, a medic killed while serving with the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan. "Only days after a major enemy encounter, during which he performed courageously saving many lives, Soldiers from his unit once again came under major enemy fire suffering several casualties." Cpl. Vaccaro volunteered to evacuate the injured while the battle continued, and was killed by enemy fire.

"His sacrifice and call to duty will not be forgotten," Maj. Gen. Schoomaker said of Cpl. Vaccaro.

Walter Reed's Warrior Transition Brigade headquarters will be named after Cpl. Vaccaro later this year.

SMA Preston agreed that birthdays provide a special time to reflect. "As we reflect back on the Army's history we see our nation's history. There are 178 streamers on the Army flag. Each one represents critical events in the history of our Army, nation and world. These critical events represent sacrifices by Soldiers. They not only sacrificed themselves, but they were there to save the day," he said.

The SMA spoke of Sgt. Maj. Brent Jorgensen, who was injured in Iraq but recovered and redeployed. He was injured again when the vehicle he was riding in was hit by two rocket-propelled grenades. Then a first sergeant, he suffered a severe head injury, wounded right knee and left leg amputation at the knee. His driver was killed.

During Sgt. Maj. Jorgensen's recovery, he was selected for promotion to sergeant major and to attend the Sergeants Major Academy. "Two weeks ago, I handed him his diploma as he walked across the stage. He was the first-ever amputee to attend the academy and graduate. He will soon be the sergeant major for the Army's Wounded Warrior Program and report to Walter Reed in July.

"These are incredible stories of the spirit of the American Soldier and a testament to the efforts of Army health-care professionals," SMA Preston said.

Sec. Geren said much as changed since the Army's birth on June 14, 1775, including technology, uniforms and medicine. "But one thing has not changed - the centerpiece of the Army and our nation's defense - the Soldier."

Photo - Installations and commands worldwide are celebrating the Army's 232nd birthday this week. Shown here is the sword presented to Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth O. Preston to cut a cake at a ceremony at the U.S. Senate June 12. Photo by Staff Sgt. Christina M. O'Connell.

Dragon’ Soldiers Seize, Destroy Bomb Factory

12 Jun 07
By Multi-National Corps-Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory.

BAGHDAD — Baghdad soldiers seized a bomb-making factory, along with another large weapons cache while on patrol in the eastern portion of the Rashid District of the Iraqi capital June 11.

"This is tremendous work by our soldiers to take more than 300 (improvised explosive devices) off the streets," said Col. Ricky D.Gibbs, commander of 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division.

Troops from Company A, 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, and Company A, 1st Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 4th IBCT, discovered the factory, a complex of small buildings deep in the thick palm groves of East Rashid, after receiving word of the objective's location from other Coalition Forces.

The find consisted of one vehicle wired and loaded with explosives as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device; 54 82mm mortars; 27 155mm artillery shells; one 500-pound bomb; 64 anti-tank mines; two 200-pound bombs; three 100-pound bombs; 30 130mm projectiles; 30 hand grenades; 200 artillery boosters; 10 40mm rounds; one bag of blasting caps; one rocket of unknown caliber and origin; one bag of booster charges; six bags of propellant; 300 five-gallon cans of nitric acid used to make homemade explosives; one bag of breaching charges and 15 bags of anti-personnel mines with 100 mines per bag. Also found in the cache was enough wiring and bomb-making material to create more than 300 improvised explosive devices.

In a separate cache near the complex, an additional 125 five-gallon containers of nitric acid were found.

Three other vehicles were also found at the site wired as car bombs, but did not contain explosives.

A Coalition explosive ordnance disposal team catalogued the weapons and explosives found and will dispose of them properly, preventing them from being used against innocent Iraqi people or Iraqi Security and Coalition Force personnel.

"This find further emphasizes our ability to get after the extremists and take away their tools of destruction, as none of these weapons and explosives will ever be used to harm others," Gibbs said.

Photo - Electrical wiring and other components used to make improvised explosive devices were discovered by troops from the Multi-National Division – Baghdad in a bomb-making “factory” in Baghdad’s East Rashid District June 11. Components seized were enough to build 300 IEDs. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ben Washburn.

First LAR always on watch, even in enemy’s nightmares

11 Jun 07
By Cpl. Ryan C. Heiser
2nd Marine Division.

RAWAH, Iraq - There is an old saying, ‘All that is needed for evil to win, is for good men to stand by and do nothing.’ Marines like Lance Cpl. Marco N. Garces and Cpl. Diego A. Romero, like the rest of their battalion, refuse to stand by and do nothing.

Garces and Romero, scouts with Company D, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 2, were part of a patrol early on the morning of May 27, 2007, in the city of Rawah, Iraq, which overlooks the Euphrates River.

“Our patrols maintain our presence, especially at night,” said Garces, a native of Corpus Christie, Texas. “It lets the citizens know that we don’t slack off, and we are still out there doing our job, protecting them.”

A half moon shined down on the empty streets as the patrol made its way out of the company’s headquarters. Their footsteps echoed in the silence as each man used his flashlight to peer into dark corners and down empty alleyways.

“It would be so easy for the enemy to plant IEDs (improvised explosive devices) if we didn’t patrol at night. There would be a lot more mischief, and it would give the enemy a great chance to smuggle things into the city,” said Garces.

The Marines said the night patrols are essential to maintaining the city’s safety, and preventing injuries and even death.

“Night-time is the only time when we can’t visibly see the entire city, so it is important we make sure to eliminate any blind spots by sending out patrols to canvass the area, no matter what time it is,” said Romero, a native of San Antonio.

Romero said he would hate to see the devastation that would await the company if they didn’t send out patrols one evening.

“It would suck for whoever had the first patrol the next morning,” said Romero. “There would be casualties and a lot of dead Marines. Not just us either, the locals would get torn apart. The bad guys don’t care who they hurt, and the civilians rely on us to make sure stuff like that doesn’t happen.”

The duo said the patrols also have an affect on their brother Marines.

“It gives a peace of mind. We know we always have guys out there, so we are safe. As long as someone is always watching, there is a much lower chance of anyone getting hurt,” Romero said.

“I don’t know if anyone would sleep if we didn’t go out at night. Nobody can plant an ambush or an attack if you’re always there, always watching,” Garces said.

The patrols aren’t just the Marines’ responsibility; they also get the local Iraqi Police, or IPs, involved in the nocturnal activities.

“It’s a relief that we take the IPs with us,” said Garces. “It’s good for the locals to see their own guys watching out for them. It has to make them feel better to know that we aren’t the only ones keeping them safe, their own brothers and countrymen are looking after them too.”

The Marines said the night duty just comes natural, and they couldn’t imagine going any length of time without someone in the city, ‘watching their backs.’

“Evil never sleeps, the enemy never sleeps, why should we? I hope he does sleep though and dreams about us, standing outside his door, listening to him breathe. We are always out there, and he knows it. We’re even in his nightmares,” Romero said.

Photo - Lance Cpl. Steven R. Greene, a scout with Company D, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 2, uses his flashlight to peer into a dark corner while on a night patrol. The Marines say they patrol at night in order to maintain a constant presence throughout the city.

Forensic science gives edge to warfighters

11 Jun 07
by Sgt. Jess Kent
MNC-I PAO.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Since opening its doors seven months ago, the Multinational Corps - Iraq Law Enforcement Forensics Laboratory has been enabling warfighters to track down criminals and insurgents throughout Iraq.

"We're fully nested in the corps and are here to support every unit in the country," said Maj. Joseph Heffernan, coordinator for the MNC-I Law Enforcement Forensics Laboratory.

This forensics initiative taken on by the Army leads to a myriad of evidence routinely being brought into the laboratory, where specialists work with the motto "Defeat Sniper through Science."

"When the evidence is submitted for processing, I make sure that it's processed with the proper documentation," said Staff Sgt. Stephen Hall, evidence custodian NCOIC, MNC-I Law Enforcement Forensics Laboratory.

Evidence is not in the receiving area for long. The four forensics staff members work hard to get results and ensure that evidence gets to the right examiners.

"My job is to process evidence for the presence of latent prints to identify who was holding the weapon," said Stephen Greene, chief forensic latent print examiner, MNC-I Law Enforcement Forensics Laboratory. "I may perform up to a dozen processes on each item of evidence."

Those processes are designed to find latent prints to be compared to record prints of subjects or searched through the Automated Fingerprint Identifications System. Many AFIS assets are available to search, including Iraq's system. Although the Iraqis had a limited fingerprint database in the past, it is now being expanded.

"The end result we're hoping for on every piece of evidence we examine here in the laboratory is to identify the person associated with the evidence," said Staff Sgt. Hall. "When we're able to identify the person using the weapon and take him off the streets and out of play, we help make a safer environment for our Soldiers and the people of Iraq."

In an average day, forensics staff members work 14 to 18 hours to turn evidence around and enable law enforcement officers to track down criminals. Their biggest challenge is not having enough hours in each day.

"With the small number of workers we're pretty strapped right now, but that's our mission and that's what we do," Maj. Heffernan said. "I think the laboratory will continue to grow based on the amount of evidence we receive for processing. Last month we had a 112 percent increase in cases."

Some of the tools specialists use to exploit evidence range from lasers, forensic light sources, cameras and microscopes to a firing range.

"We work as a team to make identifications on tool marks, bullets, cartridge cases and guns," said Michael Kelley, chief forensic firearms examiner, MNC-I Law Enforcement Forensics Laboratory. "For example, if they grind out the serial number on a rifle, we bring it back."

Mr. Kelley, a former Army Criminal Investigation Division agent and chief warrant officer, is known for the shooting reconstruction case of Cpl. Patrick Tillman, a professional football player who enlisted in the Army and was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.

In one rewarding case, Mr. Kelley was tasked to identify the owner of a Purple Heart stolen and then found in 1990. After he brought back the medal's inscription, Mr. Kelley discovered that it belonged to Maj. Audie Leon Murphy, the military's most highly decorated Soldier.

Currently, Mr. Kelley routinely examines fired bullets and cartridge cases and links them to Dragunov sniper rifles used in attacks against U.S. Soldiers and Coalition Forces.

"I think we're giving the Soldiers a tremendous edge," he said. "What we do provides support for the warfighter's mission, and the science of forensics impacts what the warfighter does."

Photo - Michael Kelley, chief forensics firearms examiner, MNC-I Provost Marshals Office Law Enforcement Forensics Lab, fires a Dragunob sniper rifle into a machine designed to catch the round. Once the test round is caught and inspected, identifying marks can be compared with previous rounds fired from the same weapon. This method is essential in determining if the weapon was used in a certain crime. Photo by Sgt. Jess Kent.

K9 Team Brings Special Skills to the Fight

5-Jun-07
By Spc. Amanda Morrissey
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

SHUKRAN, Iraq - For just about every cordon and search operation in Iraq, there is a special two-Soldier team that provides an extra sense to the efforts to find anti-Iraqi forces and hidden weapons. One of those teams at Forward Operating Base Q-West is Staff Sgt. Chuck Shuck and his dog, Sgt. 1st Class Gabe, both with 178th Military Police Detachment, 720th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade.

On this particular morning, Shuck and Gabe are helping Battery A, 5th Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment Soldiers search the nearby village of Shukran for any weapons that may be hidden in the area.

“The dog has a nose like no human has, that’s just a given,” Shuck said. “A dog is able to smell stuff that humans can’t smell because they can pick up on residue and stuff like that. Even if Soldiers miss something, 95 percent of the time the dog is going to pick up on it.”

In the eight and a half months Shuck and Gabe have been in Iraq, they have worked primarily with 5/82 FA Soldiers. They have conducted approximately 140 searches both on and off the base and have been on more than 90 combat missions off the FOB. To date, one of their biggest finds was 36 122 mm rounds back in Oct. 2006.

Gabe and Shuck have also seen their fair share of action in theater.

“Last month, we were on a raid with Alpha Battery, 5/82 FA, and a guy started shooting through the door. Gabe and I were right there in the thick of things with them, and it was pretty amazing,” Shuck said. “Gabe actually got put in for a Combat Action Badge.”

Such skills take a lot of training, both for the dog and its handler. They go through a five-month training course at Lackland Air Force Base, where the dogs receive obedience and detection training. Soldiers learn how to work with the dogs and how to care for the health of their canine partners. At the end of the course, the dog and the handler certify as a team and graduate together.
“These dogs are trained to clear open areas, buildings, routes and vehicles, and they’re able to work off leash,” Shuck said. “We also train with the dogs in school to react to gunfire, so that pretty much doesn’t faze them.”

Gabe is unique because he is a specialized search dog, meaning he will respond to the commands of his handler without the guidance of a leash. He is one of approximately 300 dogs with such training in all branches of the military.

Graduation from the schoolhouse doesn’t mark the end of training for these teams. Each month, they conduct 16 hours of mandatory detection training to keep the dogs proficient in their skills, as well as daily exercises, said Shuck.

However, Gabe is more than just an extra-sensitive nose to the Soldiers he works with.

“I can see from working with the units here just having the presence of the dog there is a morale booster for Soldiers,” Shuck said. “Gabe is like the mascot of the battalion, and everybody knows him.”

Gabe is also a morale booster for his partner. While in Iraq, Shuck and Gabe are roommates and constant companions, going just about everywhere together.

“The dogs really do become you’re best friend, your partner,” Shuck said. “Gabe is loyal, and he’s trustworthy. You always have a companion in the dog. If I’m having a bad day, he turns it into a good day. There’s nothing that beats having a dog as a partner.”

Photo - Staff Sgt. Chuck Shuck (right) and his partner, Sgt. 1st Class Gabe, both with 178th Military Police Detachment, 20th Military Police Battalion, search a home during a cordon and search operation in the village of Shukran, near Forward Operating Base Q-West.

Surge improves security, quality of life

2-Jun-07
By Master Sgt. Dave Larsen
1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs.

CAMP LIBERTY — The surge of Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces into Baghdad neighborhoods is aimed at improving the security situation in the Iraqi capital. Yet, there are other programs benefiting by having more boots on the ground during Operation Fardh Al-Qanoon.

“The surge has assisted civil military operations by putting more coalition eyes on the environment, so that we get a more responsive analysis of what essential services and economic development services are needed by the populace,” said Lt. Col. John Rudolph, the assistant chief of staff of civil military operations for Multi-National Division – Baghdad.

Rudolph said civil military operations in MND-B’s area of operation, which run the gamut from governance to agriculture to infrastructure to economic improvements, have already dedicated more than $163 million of Commander’s Emergency Relief Project (CERP) funds to projects all aimed at improving the quality of life for Iraqis living in and around Baghdad.

“This really is about improving the quality of life for the Iraqis,” said Brig. Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, the deputy commanding general for support with MND-B. That “support” role not only touches the lives of the 50,000-plus troops working under MND-B, but also the Iraqi people. He said it’s challenging to move ahead with quality of life initiatives in the face of extremist efforts to stop them.

“There is a perception that I’ve seen in every sector of this region we have responsibility for - when I talk to the Iraqis - that the Americans have the ability to put a man on the moon, and yet they can’t provide us with electricity,” Brooks said. “That whole idea of an expectation that we promised and haven’t delivered causes a great deal of problems.”

Most westerners and Americans, for sure, cannot conceive flicking on a light switch on the wall and having it click with no effect. But, Baghdad has never had electricity flowing to its six million residents 24 hours a day. Electricity, or the lack thereof, was also tool used by the Ba’athist regime to reward or punish the population.

“You saw areas favored by Saddam and his regime see power longer throughout the day, but they still didn’t get power 24/7,” Rudolph said. “They still had to use what they called the ‘generator men,’ who were entrepreneurs who had their own generators and supplied power to local neighborhoods for the ‘off power’ periods - even during Saddam’s period.”

Rudolph said that providing power to Baghdad residents remains a priority, as witnessed by the 62 projects accounting for more than a quarter of the civil military operations funds dedicated this year – more than $44 million. The challenge to get the lights on throughout the Iraqi capital remains an ongoing issue.

“It was an inefficient system to begin with and what we have done is by our electrification projects, in general, we’ve improved distribution so that the power that comes in is distributed more efficiently,” Rudolph said. “However, the level of available power goes down. It goes out to more places, but it doesn’t last as long.”

Brooks said the provision of power to Baghdad neighborhoods remains a function of governance, and it will be the Iraqi government that will need to illuminate the Iraqi capital.

“Our effort here has to be more than a physical one - to not only find ways to improve those systems physically, but also have to work back through that governance effort to ensure that people who are in positions of responsibility in government are not sectarian and are not biased in the delivery of essential services to all people,” Brooks noted.

Improved security in some areas of the city has allowed life to flourish for some Baghdad residents. Temporary barriers erected throughout the city have created what military officials call “safe markets” and “safe neighborhoods.” Rudolph said the market areas have benefited from the temporary barriers, keeping suicide car bombers at bay while allowing commerce to continue.

The marketplace in the Rusafa District in what is known as “Old Baghdad,” on the east side of the Tigris River, is one of those success stories.

“Shoppers feel much safer going into the market now and they’ve actually seen an increase in the number of local citizens using that market,” Rudolph said. “It’s a perception, an attitude that the stigma of the random violence has lessened.”

The Doura Market is often a stop for visiting dignitaries to Baghdad in the southern Rashid District. The 1st Cavalry Division’s 2nd “Black Jack” Brigade Combat Team from Fort Hood, Texas, conducted the initial assessment of the area and started the revitalization project there.

Doura Market, Rudolph said, went from an unorganized street market of only a few dozen vendors to a thriving market place with more than 200 sellers now. He said the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division from Fort Riley, Kan., now operates in Rashid, and even more improvements are underway.

“4-1st Infantry is following up in their footsteps with a barrier plan just like Rusafa,” Rudolph said. “The shoppers (there) feel much safer in that environment. They’ve got solar-powered lights to provide security in the area. They have host nation security forces doing random patrols of the area, and because of these security measures more shops have opened up.”

Haifa Street, in the city’s center, west of the Tigris River, was once known as a hot-bed of extremist activity. It was a battleground for the 1st Cavalry Division when they operated in Baghdad in 2004-2005, and again earlier this year.

The battleground is now a model neighborhood.

“We’ve turned that around,” Brooks said. “Now, we have a thriving market area that is starting to grow and a revitalization process that will make the Iraqis really proud and recognize that things have improved.”

All things start with security, Brooks said, but quality of life initiatives have been brought to life in areas of the Iraqi capital where the neighborhood and district advisory councils have worked in harmony for the good of their constituents.

“It’s where people in the neighborhood, people in the district recognize that they have needs and they’re the ones who should represent the people in that area,” Brooks said. “Mansour has a very active district council that is functioning very, very well, and our recent security operations have enhanced that, so they feel more and more secure.

“They still remain periodically threatened, though,” Brooks said. “You have to recognize that people who are performing well, especially in harmony, are often targeted by extremists who don’t want to see good governance to ever form here.”

CERP funds are a “band-aid,” Rudolph said. They are a way for coalition forces to provide immediate aid where needed. But MND-B, in conjunction with the State Department, is looking at long-term solutions to many of the issues facing the residents of the Iraqi capital.

“They use training programs for business practices and they also do micro-grants and micro-loans, but those are ‘payments in kind,’ Rudolph explained. “If a business needed, say, a cash register to be able to transact business activities, they wouldn’t get the money to buy it. They would get a cash register. It’s the items they would need, not the cash. As much as security has improved, we still don’t want cash-flow going into the hands of the wrong parties. That’s the best means of addressing it.”

Brooks said MND-B has shifted its focus to long-term investments, versus short-term “band-aids” over the past three months.

“There’s been progress, but the approach that has been taken over the last several years for divisions like the 1st Cavalry Division was to find problems and fix them, and do it quickly,” Brooks said. “We’ve had success in that. But the reality is that it doesn’t leave an enduring systemic effect; so we’ve shifted our focus here over the last three months to look at the holistic system sewage on the west side of the river, for example, and identifying where the pump stations are, where the lift stations are, where the pipes that may be broken are, where there is standing sewage. Then, applying the resources, within the city of Baghdad and the government of Iraq, where they really matter.”

By looking at the broader picture, and engaging the local, district and provincial governments, Brooks said long-term progress is possible.

“What’s changed, I think over that last few years, is how much the larger infrastructure has been revitalized,” Brooks said. “Water pipes have been replaced, electrical transformers have been installed, but it’s that last 100 meters worth of the service that really still has to become focused. Then people will really recognize a difference.”

While on one hand, extremist elements are attempting to create chaos in the city streets and deter progress and quality of life initiatives, Brooks pointed in the other direction, to the American Soldier, and attributes much of the progress made to date in the Iraqi capital to the dedication of troops putting their boots on the ground to interact with residents and local officials.

“We wouldn’t have any of these successes; we’d have no progress if it weren’t for the contributions of our troops who are out there,” Brooks said. “We ask an awful lot of our Soldiers who are deployed over here. Certainly, we know we put them into harm’s way to accomplish whatever mission we set out to do. But their energy, their passion, their willingness to keep trying in the face of deliberate set backs at the hands of the enemy or at the hands of sometimes the Iraqis themselves - they’re out there every day and they keep moving forward.

“In all these areas, not only security, but in governance, it may be that the first, best way for people to come together is because an American Soldier encouraged a district council member to sit in the same room with another,” Brooks added. “And governance begins, then, with the passion and the heart of the Soldier in this country.”

Photo - An Iraqi vender works on setting displays of fresh vegetables on Haifa Street in Central Baghdad. The area had been a hot-bed of violence and extremist activity, but is now returning to a peaceful normality of day-to-day living. Photo by Lt. Col. Scott Bleichwehl.

Hajj Hameed, AQ-I's Chief Justice of Shari'ah, DEAD

There has been heavy clashes between AQ-I (al Qaida in Iraq) and the Old Guard (Baathists and nationalists) for the past two day in the Amiriya district of Iraq. We have heard that there were some clashes by the AP, but we were told that the Iraqi people rose up against the terrorists. Unfortunately, this does not appear to be true.

Omar, from Iraq the Model, has the real news about what is happening in his country. I chose to grab a hold of this little (big) tidbit:

One correction to the AP story, Hajj Hameed was the chief of the Sharia courts of al-Qaeda in Amiriyah, not the leader of the network. Only god knows how many innocent people were executed by orders from this terrorist. Whether killed by Baathists, fellow terrorists, good Iraqis or American troops….Good riddance! [Continue reading.]

I could not agree more. Squirm in hell, you bastard.

Amputee Blazes New Trails On, Off the Battlefield

May 25, 2007
By Terry J. Goodman
Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Public Affairs Office.

WASHINGTON - Maj. David Rozelle learned early the importance of leading from the front and setting the example for his fellow Soldiers. But his ability to lead was tested June 21, 2003, when a landmine struck his vehicle a few miles west of Baghdad and he lost his right foot.

For most, this would have been a devastating, life-changing event. For this native Texan, it was only a speed bump. "Growing up, I was taught that I can accomplish anything if I wanted it," he said. "I wanted to continue to lead Soldiers and serve my country."

Maj. Rozelle's chain of command told him he could return to duty with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment if he recovered from his injury. The chance to return to his unit in Iraq was all he needed to prove his physical ability - despite an amputation and the concern of Families and friends.

After eight months of rehabilitation at Fort Carson, Colo., Maj. Rozelle was ready to show he was combat-ready. "When the Army puts an officer in charge of troops, it wants to make sure that the individual can get it done - lead them into battle and be successful," said Maj. Rozelle, who is now administrator for the Amputee Care Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

"When I took my Oath of Office, it never mentioned giving up if I was injured. It was my responsibility as a leader to lead from the front and return to duty," he said. In March 2005, almost 20 months after being injured, Maj. Rozelle found himself in familiar territory - in Iraq and serving as commander of a cavalry troop. He was the first troop commander to redeploy to the same battlefield as an amputee in recent military history.

Today the major finds himself at Walter Reed doing the same thing he's always done - leading from the front and setting the example. This time, it's fellow amputees benefiting from Maj. Rozelle's counsel, experiences and motivational techniques. "I've been there," said Maj. Rozelle, who spends the bulk of his duty day establishing programs and systems for the new Military Advanced Training Center, which is scheduled to open this fall. "I want to help them realize there is life after this kind of injury. If they work hard and have the right mind set, anything is possible."

When he's not inspiring Walter Reed patients and helping complete a state-of-the-art facility that will improve Walter Reed's capacity to care for amputee patients, Maj. Rozelle competes in marathons and triathlons, and also snow skis. "I'm 34 years old with a beautiful wife and two great kids," he said. "I have started a whole new life, and only hope to be a good example for my boys."

Maj. Rozelle was awarded the Bronze Star with Valor for actions in combat. He is also author of the New York Times Best Seller "Back in Action: An American Soldier's Story of Courage, Faith and Fortitude."

Photo - Maj. David Rozelle is shown here as a captain in command of Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. Maj. Rozelle returned to Iraq after losing his lower right foot during the first phase of Operation Iraq Freedom. He is now administrator for the Amputee Care Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Photo by Pfc. Matthew Clifton.

Civil Affairs Help Make a Difference for Iraqis

31-May-07
By Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback,
13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary).

LSA ANACONDA, Iraq – Rifles, pistols and tanks are a few tools of war. Active listening, patience and cooperation are a few of the tools used by Capt. Glen A. Stambone, a civil affairs officer with the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary).

Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, starting at 8:30 a.m., the Civil Military Operations Center (CMOC) lets the people’s voices be heard.

Most of those voices are speaking Arabic. In order to provide good customer service, the civil affairs office here uses two interpreters. Stambone said one is more of a “street smart” interpreter, the other is used for legal document translations.

“Tex” is the street smart guy. He’s called Tex to protect his identity.

Stambone said everything the civil affairs unit handles at the CMOC falls into two categories: claims and all other issues.

Under the claims category people can seek resolution for property damage, wrongful death, confiscated property and similar issues. If the responsible unit is under the command and control of the 13th SC (E), civil affairs will process it. If the unit does not belong to the 13th SC (E), civil affairs will collect information and turn it over to the appropriate unit.

In the other category, the civil affairs unit here has helped people get jobs, disclose intelligence to the proper authorities, seek medical attention, gain access to the on-post Iraqi bazaar and has facilitated construction contracts in the local area.

“There was a 5-year-old little boy, brought in by his dad, who was shot twice by terrorists,” said Stambone. “He had surgery in an Iraqi hospital before coming here. He wasn’t doing well and we got him into the Air Force Hospital here. The boy had a number of appointments here. His dad kissed me on both cheeks after each appointment.”

Though Stambone was able to get medical attention for that little boy, it was more of an exception than it was the rule.

“We’re not able to help everyone all the time. A lot of times, it’s the first impression they get of us (Americans),” Stambone said noting the importance of trying to make a good impression on the Iraqi people even when he’s unable to provide assistance.

“We’ll go out and investigate issues, see what people we can help. It’s a good impression we’re leaving and that goes a long way. We’re trying to establish a relationship with the local nationals and set up some kind of good rapport,” said Stambone.

Working with Iraqi people is all about customer service, said Stambone. “Just show that you care. You don’t want it to be like when you go to the Department of Motor Vehicles and get the ‘what do you want’ attitude. We want people to walk away with that good customer service feeling.”

As much as he tries to give good customer service and be courteous to people, there are occasions Stambone’s methods simply won’t conclude the meeting, explained Tex.

“It’s a different community between the U.S. and here,” said ‘Tex.’ “I often have to explain to people that just because he’s a captain doesn’t mean he has all the power.

“These are simple people. They believe a captain can control all things. For what I do, it’s all about explanation… Otherwise I tell them what the captain is saying over and over again and it goes in circles.”

Running the CMOC is approximately 70 percent of the civil affairs mission here, said Stambone. The civil affairs unit has built a database to track all visitors and their claims since their arrival here in September. Since then, they’ve processed more than 760 claims.

Photo - U.S. Army Capt. Glen A. Stambone (right), a civil affairs officer with 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) listens to a request from an Iraqi citizen through “Tex,” a translator for the unit. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Gary A. Witte.

Earning, maintaining trust of residents

31 May 2007
By Sgt. Mike Pryor
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division

BAGHDAD — It’s the usual happy chaos when 1st Lt. Josh Rowan arrives at neighborhood advisory council member Abu Muhanned’s house for their weekly meeting – children running amuck in the yard, women crowded into the kitchen, and Muhanned standing in the doorway in pajamas and bare feet, a cigarette in one hand, jabbering into his cell phone.

He greets Rowan warmly and ushers him and his Soldiers inside his home nestled in eastern Baghdad’s Adhamiyah District. While a security team sets up on the roof, Rowan and Muhanned move to the living room to talk. By now, it’s a familiar routine.

It should be.

Muhanned’s house was the destination of Rowan’s very first patrol in Iraq, almost four months ago, and they have met regularly ever since to plan development projects for the area.

Today, however, will be Rowan’s last visit. Rowan, a platoon leader with 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, from College Station, Texas, is moving to a different job. The purpose of this final meeting was to introduce Muhanned to his replacement, 1st Lt. Jeremy Tillman, of Walnut Ridge, Ark.

“All I’m here to do is introduce Tillman and close the loop,” Rowan said.

In the Army, the only constant is change. Soldiers are always moving from one position to another and taking over different duties. But in Iraq, the challenge for new leaders like Tillman is, how do you take over a relationship? Rowan and Muhanned worked successfully together because they had a strong personal bond. Tillman will have to build that trust all over again.

“That’s the challenge of counter-insurgency warfare,” Rowan said.

“It’s difficult,” agreed Tillman. “It’s really just about the individual person’s personality.”

Over tea and cigarettes at Muhanned’s house, Rowan made a big show of introducing Tillman.

“Sir, I look forward to working with you,” Tillman told Muhanned, when Rowan was done.

“I will put my hand in your hand. You will protect me, and I will protect you,” Muhanned replied.

The meeting continued for almost two hours, with conversation bouncing from topic to topic. One minute they were talking about putting trash cans on the street corners, the next minute about a trip Muhanned’s son was planning and the next about security threats in the area. In between, Muhanned’s wife served a huge lunch.

When the meeting was over, Tillman said it had been an eye-opening experience. At his previous unit, the focus had been almost entirely on raids and kinetic operations. Tillman could only remember a few times when he had actually sat in an Iraqi’s house and talked.

“Here, they’re interacting. They’re constantly getting out there and talking to local leaders,” Tillman said. “The mindset is just totally different.”

Since the 2-319th took over its section of Baghdad in February, the paratroopers have adhered to classic counter-insurgency theory, balancing military operations with efforts to engage local leaders, build the economy, and improve essential services. Rowan said the strategy, though slow and difficult to measure, is showing results.

“People are moving here from other parts of Baghdad because they say this is a safe place,” he told his platoon members just before his last patrol with them. “It’s the little things that we are doing that are making a difference.”

In the end, it all boils down to personal relationships, said Capt. Jonathan Harvey, Rowan and Tillman’s battery commander.

The challenge when a key leader gets switched out is to maintain the existing relationships.

“You have to be very delicate in the hand over,” said Harvey, of Nebraska City, Neb. “Iraqi culture is big on trust.”

Harvey said he made sure Tillman had plenty of time to shadow Rowan and meet one on one with all his Iraqi counterparts.

“Back in the states, a change of command is nothing more than an inventory. Here, it’s a much more deliberate process,” Harvey said. “(For Tillman and Rowan) we took 11 days, and each day had a different leader engagement.”

Despite the introductions and the crash course he received on Adhamiyah’s kaleidoscopic array of political and religious groups and their rivalries, Tillman said he still has a lot to learn. It will take time to build up the kind of personal relationships that Rowan had, where he knew not just someone’s name, but their wife and son’s names and what brand of cigarette they smoked, too.

“I know the area. As far as terrain, how to operate, tactics - I know all that,” Tillman said. “What I need to learn is who I can trust.”

Photo - 1st Lt. Josh Rowan (left), of College Station, Texas, goes over some information with 1st Lt. Jeremy Tillman, of Walnut Ridge, Ark., at a meeting with the chairman of the neighborhood council in Rabi, Adhamiyah May 21. Tillman would soon be taking over for Rowan as a new platoon leader with B Battery, 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. Photographer: Sgt. Michael Pryor.

Security in northern Iraq aids economic opportunities

29 May 2007
U.S. Army story by Maj. Juanita Chang
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

IRBIL — International businessmen representing more than a dozen companies continued traveling through northern Iraq in search of economic opportunities Friday.

In northern Iraq economic promises have boosted confidence in the population, international businessmen and investment potential.

The group traveled the stable northern region of Iraq and met with local business leaders, members of chambers of commerce and key government officials as some arranged for return trips to begin projects.

“I was very impressed with the enthusiasm, zeal and passion of the Kurdish people and their government,” said Subhas Sircar, regional vice president of Marine Middle East, Mediterranean and South Asia Insurance Company Ltd.

A lot of work needs to be done in a short amount of time, but we look forward to supporting them in their endeavors and being partners in their progress, Sircar added.

Irbil is the capital of the Kurdish region, Iraq’s fourth largest city and was seen by investors as a secure and economic hotspot with a 400-store mall, world-class hotels, amusement parks and a zoo.

“Projects such as this are our response to the destructive activities of terrorists,” said Nechervan Barzani, prime minister of the Kurdish Regional Government. “Whatever they do, the terrorists cannot stop our progress.”

Along with the economic boom in the area, an international airport with high level security measures lands flights daily with direct routes to popular hubs such as Vienna, Stockholm, Amman, Dubai and Amsterdam.

According to the businessmen, a huge potential for investment dwells in Iraq’s northern region.

Some apartments in the area were selling at $130,000 per apartment.

The business executives also stopped in Dahuk and Salaymaniyah, Iraq, to be greeted by provincial governors and given a tour of their respective cities in hopes of luring investors to the area.

The Iraqis in this northern region have come together and worked as a unified group to achieve these common goals. Leaders of business and industry praised the KRG for setting the conditions for future prosperity.

Photo: A view from the tenth floor of the new Naz City Apartments in Irbil, located near the new state-of-the-art convention center and Irbil International Airport. A group of international investors traveled the stable northern region of Iraq and continued to meet with local business leaders, members of chambers of commerce and key government officials as some arranged for return trips to begin projects Friday. U.S. Army photo by Maj. Juanita Chang, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

Army paratroopers share thoughts on surge

Tuesday, 29 May 2007
By Sgt. Michael Pryor
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

BAGHDAD — In the first days after his battalion began operating in east Baghdad’s Sha’ab neighborhood, Capt. Will Canda said he often saw the beds of Iraqi police trucks stained red with dried blood.

“It was like they had just come from a butcher shop,” said Canda, a Westcliffe, Colo. native and commander of Company B, 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment.

Like wagons rolling through plague-stricken villages in medieval times, the police trucks were being used to pick up the bodies of murder victims found littering the neighborhood.

That was in February, when Canda’s battalion became one of the first units to move into a battle space as part of Operation Fardh al Qanoon – which translated, means “enforcing the law” and is the name for the strategy to stabilize violence in Baghdad by pushing thousands of additional U.S. and Iraqi forces into the city’s neighborhoods.

Since then, troops have continued to pour in, dotting Baghdad with small outposts and joint security stations.

Top U.S. commanders have cautioned that any verdict on the overall success of the plan will have to wait until after all units are in place and conducting operations. But Canda and his paratroopers have been on the ground long enough to begin drawing their own conclusions.

Three months after they arrived in Sha’ab, the bodies are gone, the murders have stopped, and the neighborhood has come back to life, Canda said.

“It’s night and day from when we got here,” he said.

It’s an impressive claim considering the challenges facing the paratroopers when they first arrived here in early February.

One obvious problem was the sheer size of the region. The battalion’s area of operations comprises a huge section of east Baghdad, including the Sha’ab, Ur, and Sadr City neighborhoods.

Twenty percent of the city’s total population lives within this area of operation, said Maj. Trey Rutherford, the battalion’s operations officer. That equals out to a rough ratio of one paratrooper for every 26,000 Iraqis.

But the numbers weren’t the paratroopers’ only obstacle. They also faced an entrenched and hostile militia organization, an inefficient local government and a breakdown in essential services for the population.

None of these problems have been completely solved yet, Rutherford said.

“We’ve still got a ways to go,” he said.

But, he said, the accomplishments are already starting to pile up. The battalion has sent almost 200 criminals into the Iraqi justice system. People in the area are slowly beginning to look to the government for protection, rather than the militias. The economy is booming, thanks to improved protective measures at the markets. And the local government is starting to play a more active role, beginning at the neighborhood advisory council level, Rutherford said.

Most importantly, said Canda, security has improved. Life for the people of Sha’ab is returning to normal, to the way it was before the killing and bombings turned a walk to the market into a life or death gamble.

“I know that we’ve made a difference and made this area safer. Every time I go out, people tell me that,” said Spc. Herrick Lidstone, of Littleton, Colo., a radio operator with Bravo Company.

The battalion runs operations out of Coalition Outpost Callahan, a fortress-like building that was once an upscale shopping center. The place was empty and abandoned when the paratroopers arrived, but it’s now a constant blur of activity.

Day and night, the stairs are crowded with soldiers either on their way out on a mission or coming in from one. The whirring, clanging, hammering sounds of the motor pool continually echo through the COP as mechanics patch up damaged vehicles for the next patrol.

Each time the paratroopers leave the wire, the mission is different.

A typically hectic day might find them handing out Tylenol and tooth brushes at a medical assistance operation in the morning, doing detective work to track down members of a bomb-making cell in the afternoon, and kicking in doors on a full-combat raid at night.

“We ask them to do a thousand different things,” said Rutherford, “and we ask them to do it every single day.”

It’s a steep learning curve, said 1st Lt. Andrew Smith, a platoon leader with Charlie Company from Apopka, Fla.

“When I leave Iraq, I’ll have been a salesman, a cop, a politician, and a school principal,” Smith said.

Some of the paratroopers wish they could hand the “hearts & minds” missions off to some other unit.

“I didn’t sign up to hand out soccer balls,” said one sergeant.

But gaining the support of the population is the key to making the surge work, said Sgt. John Reed, a Bravo Company squad leader from Sanford, Fla. The people are the base that military, political, and economic progress has to be built on, he said.

“Without a base, without a foundation, you have nothing,” Reed said.

The results of the paratroopers’ efforts to engage the population are clearest during their daily patrols through the zigzagging streets of Sha’ab. Out on the streets, where people used to lock their doors in fright when Americans appeared, the paratroopers are now greeted warmly.

One afternoon 1st Lt. Rusty Bodine, of Fairfax, Va., was out trying to get residents to fill out an employment survey.

He knocked on one door and was welcomed in by the man of the house, who was dressed in a rumpled shirt and bare feet. He looked like he might have just woken up. While he looked at the survey, his sons brought out extra chairs and stools for the paratroopers to sit down.

While Bodine and the man talked, Reed and Sgt. Unberto Espinoza wandered into the next room. The man’s wife was there watching television surrounded by three of her children and several neighborhood kids. The kids swarmed around the two paratroopers, barraging them with questions.

“What is your name?” “Where is your home?” “You speak Arabic?”

Two teenage daughters peeked their heads out from behind a curtain, then disappeared again, giggling, when the paratroopers looked back. Stools and chairs were brought out, then cups of tea. When one of the paratroopers took out a picture of his baby son, the whole family passed it around, each one giving it a little kiss.

When it was time to leave, the family asked the paratroopers to come back the next day. They waved from the doorstep as the trucks drove away.

Inside the Humvees, everyone was feeling good. At more and more houses, they were getting similar receptions. Each one was a little victory for the paratroopers, who had worked hard to bring the people to their side.

Photo: U.S. Army Spc. Antonio Garcia, from San Angelo, Texas, a paratrooper with Company C, 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, pulls security while his platoon leader talks to the owner of a house during a cordon and search operation in Sha'ab, Baghdad, May 10, 2007. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Michael Pryor.

Pace Says Iraqis Must Step Up to Governance Challenge

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service.

WASHINGTON, May 28, 2007 – The Iraqi government needs to step forward to make progress in governance and revitalize the economy, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today during appearances on various morning television talk shows.

Marine Gen. Peter Pace also used the television appearances to thank servicemembers and their families on Memorial Day.

“It is very difficult to talk about numbers of those who have died in combat, but the fact of the matter is that freedom is not free,” Pace said on NBC’s Today. “We must protect our freedoms at home and abroad, and the men and women in uniform today understand how important their service is. This is not an easy fight, but they understand its value and importance to our nation.”

On CBS This Morning, Pace said that American servicemembers serving in Iraq understand they are buying time for the Iraqi government to set its house in order. “It is time for the Iraqi government to stand up to lead, to pull their people together, to make it so we can do what we would like us to do and they would like us to do: Come home,” Pace said.

The Iraqi security forces are increasing and the readiness rates are going up. “But their leadership is going to have to show that they can pull together a unity government and lead their people,” he said.

The general wants the Iraqi government to emulate the Sunni sheikhs of Al Anbar province. A year ago, the outlook in the province was bleak, he said. But tribal leaders and sheikhs saw the carnage that al Qaeda in Iraq was inflicting on the country and they joined with coalition forces and Iraqi security forces to drive the terrorists from the region.

“The example has been set in al Anbar by Sunni sheikhs who last year were fighting against us and their own government,” Pace said. “It’s a great example for the central government in Iraq to pull people together.”

The enemy in the war on terror is a bloodthirsty one with a 100-year plan. The general said that coalition forces found an al Qaeda torture chamber in Diyala province and freed 41 Iraqis.

“We are up against a very ruthless enemy and this nation is going to have to defend itself for as long as it takes,” he said.

Pace said he sees the enemy increasing attacks over the next few months as Americans debate the war and the surge. In part, they will increase attacks to affect the debate inside the United States. Ryan Crocker, U.S. ambassador to Iraq, and Army Gen. David Petraeus, Multinational Force Iraq commander, will issue an assessment in September as to the way forward.

“We will see the enemy in July and August try to increase our casualties,” Pace said. “That said, there has been progress.”

Planning goes forward across the spectrum for future operations in Iraq.

“You would expect us to be looking forward and planning ways to ramp up or ramp down depending on the situation on the ground,” Pace said.

He said the assessment in September will inform leaders on the next steps in the country. “We’re looking at an entire spectrum of ‘next steps’ to either reinforce success or make changes that may be necessary,” he said.

The chairman said that when he visits troops, he often gets asked if the American people still support them.

“Americans do understand the sacrifices that have been made over 232 years to let us live free,” Pace said. “They are reaching out in very special ways today to the men and women in uniform. I was in Charlotte, N.C., yesterday for the NASCAR race. (There were) 180,000 fans at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway who were on their feet cheering and screaming for the troops that were there.

“I think America has found a special way regardless of their feelings about the war to reach out and say thank you to those serving today,” Pace said.

On Memorial Day, Pace, a Vietnam combat veteran, said he has “some names in my head that I’ve carried for almost 40 years. They are very special to me, I think all of us who have served in combat have names like that. They remind of the sacrifice that’s required for the nation to live free. They remind me of my very special responsibilities to those who are serving today to ensure as best I can, that we have as little sacrifice as possible, but as much as required to keep us free.”

Interesting Times

Tomorrow, for the first time since February 1979, the USA will sit down with that rogue regime known as Iran. Why? Hell if I know. I am very upset about this, so I am going to lead you to someone who is in the area of the meeting place.

Omar, from Iraq the Model, has written this article to keep us up-to-date on what is going on over there. You we cannot count on our dinosaur media, but I'll leave that for another day.

I could go into the reasons why this is such a terrible idea, such as human right, nuclear weapons, murdering of our troops, etc, but this has already been said time and time again. Is their anything I could say to stop this from happening?

Why don't we stand them up? They felt all big and mighty when they pulled out of the last meet. Why don't we do it right back? Childish? Then you do not understand what carries weight over in the Middle East! There's always tomorrow.

First, they have to turn over Osama's son...