Dear Interested Reader,
The 41st Fires Bde promote communication to help Iraqi doctors. 2nd PLT "Dig Deep" helping to defend Iraqi border with Iran. Combat Wombats train their counterparts in route clearance. Moving troops to Iraq's rural areas will boost security. Journalist Richard Tompkins trains Iraqi journalists. Riyadh primary school gets renovated. Highlighting Army Spc Eileen Flynn and her desire to serve. In Afghanistan, local leaders gathered for a stability initiative. Int'l Security Assistance Force aid orphanage and a drug addiction treatment center.
Joanna
________________________________
March 18, 2009
Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory
APO AE 09342
Communication Key to Helping Iraqi Doctors in Wasit Province
Story by Sgt. 1st Class Joe Thompson
A little boy looks up after receiving a toy car at the Abbas Hospital, March 12.
FOB DELTA — In an effort to provide sustainable health projects in the Wasit province and maintain a clear line of communication, local Iraqi doctors met with the medical team from the 41st Fires Bde at the Al Abbas Hospital.
The visit was part of Op Gunner Med, a joint medical civil-military op between the Wasit Dir. Gen. of Health and the 41st Fires Bde, designed to restore the medical capacity in Wasit and improve the level of patient care.
“The most important thing we want everyone to know is that we are trying to open up all the lines of communication so we can discuss things, with the ultimate goal of making things better for patients in Wasit,” said Capt. N.I. Okpokwasili, 41st Fires Bde. surgeon. This was the first visit to the Abbas Hospital by Okpokwasili since he assumed the bde surgeon position. Much of his visit was spent with the senior Iraqi physician, Dr. Nawfal Malily, explaining the medical capabilities that FOB Delta has, and how the 41st Fires Bde. medical team can help him and his staff. “Most of the stuff that you have at Al Abbas is far above what we have over at FOB Delta,” explained Okpokwasili to the staff. “The American medical system in Iraq is not to completely fix our Soldiers here. Instead, we stabilize, and then we send them out either to Germany or the U.S.”
What the 41st Fires Bde. medical team can offer to the doctors at Abbas is weekly training and discussion of case, said Okpokwasili. He also explained the video-teleconferencing systems that the ministry of health and the 41st Fires Bde. are installing in the local hospitals in Wasit, to enable communication between each of the hospitals as well as Baghdad. “Our surgeons can discuss with your surgeons the things that they know. In that way we can be a resource,” said Okpokwasili. “Once you establish if our doctors can help you then we can establish how.”
-30-
Engineers Helping to Defend the Iraqi Border
By 1st Lt. Susan Nagal
Imagine that you are tasked to help construct a home, a COP, for 20 – 30 soldiers who are responsible for training and mentoring an Iraqi Border Patrol Bde. Now imagine that when you arrive at the location, you discover that the site for that home has a mud filled, 2 feet deep, football field sized water hole right in the middle of it. Don’t forget about security during construction, because this COP is going to be next to Amarah, a city that is known for having small arms fire, mortars, and rocket attacks. To top it off, the Iraqi Border Patrol Bde’s HQ are right next to where you are going to work, so on average you will have 10 to 20 high ranking Iraqi officials stopping by to check out your progress every day. It was with these circumstances that 2nd Plt, “Dig Deep,” from the 610th Engr Support Co, 14th Engr Bn, 555th Engr Bde was confronted upon arrival at their mission site. Despite these challenging conditions 2nd Pln, alongside airmen from “Det Ten,” an AF construction detachment that works with the 14th Engr Bn, completed construction and turned over COP Amarah to an eagerly awaiting Border Patrol Transition Team (BPTT).
The first thing 2nd plt researched before conducting their mission was some info about their customer. BTTs are primarily composed of officers and senior NCOs with various backgrounds. The BTT at COP Amarah is focused on training up the Iraqi Border Patrol Bde which controls almost all of the border patrol units operating on the Iranian border. The construction of the COP allows the BTT to live and work with the Iraqi Bde, and enables them to better determine what they need to do to improve how the Iraqis oversee their border patrol units. Once 2nd Plt had a good idea of who they were working for, they had to determine how they were going to deal with the water hole.
The water hole was a big problem. Water had pooled after a heavy Dec. rainfall and had never fully evaporated, leaving a very large muddy area. Removing the water, affectionately referred to as “the swimming pool,” was the first step of several needed to make the ground solid enough to set up the BTT’s living areas. It took a little ingenuity, but with the help of a small submersible water pump the platoon was able to extract enough water from the site to start pushing dirt.
Throughout construction, 2nd Plt’s Soldiers moved several thousand cubic meters of earth and gravel onto the site to bring the ground up high enough, so that it didn’t turn into another swimming pool. Normally this wouldn’t be very complicated, but something at COP Amarah made this a little tricky: puppies. Stray dogs are commonplace in Iraq and the project site was no exception. A dog had given birth to a litter of 4 female puppies at the site weeks before our arrival, and the puppies had decided that it was their home. They felt no reason to leave, because the Iraqis working at the Bde HQ had provided scraps of food for the animals and had treated them well.
The 2nd Plt Soldiers were in the middle of their 10th month of a 15 month deployment, and with home always on their minds, interacting with this small band of puppies brought up their morale and reminded many of them of the pets they left at home. It wasn’t long before the puppies had adopted the soldiers into their family, and it wasn’t unusual to see a soldier working on the site with a puppy or two trailing behind him anxiously watching what he was doing.
After almost 3 weeks of 12 -16 hour workdays, the soldiers of 2nd plt and airmen of Det Ten, took COP Amarah from being a huge muddy water hole and turned it into a livable COP, complete with tents, latrines, and showers for the BPTT. Reflecting on their accomplishments, Pfc. Tyler Crista said, “The amount of work was great and the conditions weren’t the best, but we pushed through and got the mission accomplished.”
Before - The "Swimming Pool" at COP Amarah
-30-
Combat Wombats Pass Route Clearance Knowledge to the Iraqi Army
By Capt. Randy Schultz
555th Engr Bde
With a decrease in enemy IED activity and promising signs of stability in the Al Anbar province of Iraq, the Soldiers of 2nd Plt, 937th Engr Co (Clearance) have seen a new mission take precedence in the latter half of their deployment.
The platoon, based out of Fort Hood, Texas, has shifted its overall mission focus from route clearance ops to find IEDs, to training their IA counterparts. After spending 10 months conducting route clearance ops around Al Asad Airbase, the Soldiers of the plt have become experts at their assigned mission, and were eager to share their knowledge with the Iraqi engrs.
Soldiers taught a variety of route clearance specific skills to include movement formations while traveling on Iraqi roads, to the different methods of investigating possible IEDs, to operating the different route clearance vehicles. The Iraqis also learned other general combat engr related skills such as operating a mine detector, and conducting dismounted cache sweep ops. Lastly they learned the basics of maintaining the IA’s badger, a mine resistant ambush protected vehicle, with an interrogation arm attached. According to Spc. Jared Latham, “The IA soldier’s knowledge has been dramatically increased, and they can now conduct preventive maintenance checks and services on vehicle, on par with most American Soldiers.”
The motivation and eagerness to learn from each Iraqi soldier was outstanding, and allowed to quickly pick up these new skills. This was thanks in large part to the efforts of IA Lt. Basheer who had hand-picked his Soldiers to attend the training, and quickly became a route clearance expert himself.
According to Sgt. 1st Class Chris Dahmer, 2nd Plt’s senior NCO, “Lt. Basheer showed excellent command and control of his plt during the Iraqi-led missions. His plt’s vehicle movement during each patrol was successful even though there were 2 radio systems and 2 languages being used.” Overall, the combined training patrols were a resounding success, and even resulted in the 2 plts finding an IED on their first mission together.
At the same time the Iraqis weren’t the only ones who learned from the training. Many of the American Soldiers walked away with a better appreciation of their new allies and confidence in their abilities. Spc. Jhon Cadavid from felt the training offered the Iraqi soldiers a chance to see that “we as Americans are willing to learn a lot more about their culture and customs, and it showed the human side of the American Soldiers.”
-30-
Office of the Secretary of Defense Public Affairs RSS
Moving Troops to Iraq's Rural Areas Will Boost Security
Story by Donna Miles
WASHINGTON - As U.S. forces move from Iraq's urban areas in accordance with the U.S.-Iraqi security agreement, they'll be better positioned to target insurgents where they operate, the dep. cmdr of MND Baghdad said yesterday.
Army Brig. Gen. Frederick Rudesheim said the relocation, required by June 30 under the security agreement that took effect Jan. 1, will increase urban security by putting troops closer to insurgents' rural hideouts. This, he said, will help them better target the places where enemy forces organize and launch their urban attacks. "We're talking about an enemy that tries to establish itself in rural areas and establish support zones in the rural areas around Baghdad," said Rudesheim, who also is the 1st Cav Div's dep. comm. gen. for support. Troops moving into these areas will be positioned "to improve security outside and in the city centers by choking off supply chains fueling terrorism," he said.
Rudesheim said the repositioning won't bring an end to urban combat, noting that "isolated acts of violence and disruption" will continue. "We will have combat ops in the city," he explained, "but they just will not emanate from the cities."
It's still not clear, he said, if a residual U.S. force will remain in Baghdad's Int'l Zone, commonly referred to as the "Green Zone," after June 30. But even as combat forces leave the city, U.S. MiTTs will remain behind to train and equip Iraqi SF that Rudesheim said are exhibiting growing professionalism. He noted the success of a recent religious pilgrimage to Baghdad -- the largest and safest since the GoI authorized their resumption -- as a sign of the Iraqis' growing security capabilities.
U.S. troops will continue to provide reinforcement as requested after moving to the city outskirts, and won't allow progress to unravel, Rudesheim emphasized. "We will not forsake the security that has been established by the Iraqi SF and the CF," he told reporters. "Everything we do will be a responsible and thoughtful action based on the security of a particular area."
Rudesheim pointed to other activities under way in support of the U.S-Iraqi security agreement. MNF Baghdad has relinquished control of 11 facilities, including COPs and JSSs, since Feb. 1. A large FOB will revert to Iraqi control later this month, and more facilities are slated to be returned, closed or converted for other uses by late May. "As a CF, we remain dedicated to our partnership with the Iraqi SF and look forward to our continued success in the future," Rudesheim said. "We want to see the GoI and the SF of Iraq succeed."
-30-
Washington Times Journalist Trains Iraqi Journalists in Diyala
BAQUBAH — Addressing complex issues ranging from journalistic license to the independence of the press, Mr. Richard Tomkins recently gave a media class to local journalists at the Diyala Governance Center in downtown Baqubah, the capital city of Diyala province, March 11.
A veteran journalist currently writing for the Washington Times, UP Int'l, and the Middle East Times, Tomkins has a career that spans more than 36 years, 4 continents, and a multitude of different publications across the globe.
Recently, while embedded with the 1st Stryker BCT, 25th ID, in Diyala, Tomkins indicated that he would be interested in giving some media training to many of the province’s journalists.
A first for both the province and the journalists that live in the area, the training was coordinated through the assistance of the Diyala PRT’s Public Diplomacy Officer, Jon Cebra and the 1st SBCT’s PAO, Maj. Chris Hyde. The event was attended by approx. 30 print and broadcast journalists, as well as several govt officials.
Mr. Tomkins began his instruction by speaking in very general terms about what makes good journalism, referencing his experiences serving as a foreign correspondent at locations such as Central Africa, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. One of his key points throughout the class was accuracy and its overarching importance in modern journalism, particularly when regarding the issue of reporting casualties. “You must verify your facts…it’s a responsibility you have to take,” Tomkins said. “Talk to hospitals, talk to police…before you put a story out. You have a responsibility for accuracy. What you write will affect people,” said Tomkins to the assembled group of journalists, many of whom had traveled some distance from throughout the province of approx. 1.2 million residents to hear Tomkins speak about the art, craft and practice of journalism, as well as its future in the diverse and developing province. “Your writing will affect people’s impressions of Diyala for those who don’t live here.”
He continued by emphasizing the importance of professional ethics in the field of journalism. “A press pass is not a free pass. It doesn’t excuse you from your moral obligations.” One key issue Mr. Tomkins addressed, both in his opening comments, and in a question and answer period immediately following, was the development of a free press in the province. When talking about this issue, Tomkins referenced the history of the U.S. and journalism’s development through time within U.S. society. “The independence of the American press did not happen overnight. It took more than 250 years to get to this point,” said Tomkins. “In our constitution, the govt can’t interfere with free expression, but this doesn’t mean that you can be irresponsible as a journalist. You have to be ethical and responsible, and for a journalist, that means fair.”
Given the high amount of positive comments regarding this event from many of those in attendance, Cebra and Hyde are already planning to set up another media class for local journalists in the future.
-30-
Iraqi primary school renovations renew learning environment
FOB WARRIOR, Kirkuk – The Al Athabiah Primary School in Riyadh, recently completed a much needed makeover that was celebrated, March 2.
The successful renovation of the school culminated in a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by city council members, Riyadh Civil Service Corps (CSC) contractors, and Soldiers of Co B, 1st Bn, 8th Cav Regt, 2nd BCT, 1st Cav Div. Built in 1972, the school has fallen into disrepair and, at the request of the Al Athabiah council member of education, the CSC took on the project. Responsible for the refurbishment, CSC employed approx. 70 Iraqi student workers who recently acquired skills in painting, concrete work and carpentry to help facilitate the 3-month-long renovation. The repairs to the school included new electrical wiring, new cement to refurbish flooring and fresh paint for the walls.
Jasim Khalaf, the school headmaster, said he is pleased with the renovations, and is looking forward to using the refurbished facility. “The completion of this project and others like it clearly shows the willingness of the Iraqi people to overcome adversity and pave the way for their children’s future,” Khalaf said.
Cmdr of B Co, Capt. Eric Hong, was present during the ceremony and said the project was part of the Riyadh Public Works CSC program, which is upgrading other govt buildings in the area. "CSC is also renovating other buildings in the Riyadh area, primarily the police station and municipal building,” said Hong.
-30-
Face of Defense: Former Teacher Answers Call to Serve
Story by Staff Sgt. Alex Licea
BAGHDAD - Army Spc. Eileen Flynn seemed like an unlikely recruit for the military – on paper, at least. Flynn moved to the U.S. from her native Sydney, Australia, when she was 23. She was a teacher with bachelor's degrees in social science and early childhood education, and she's married to a U.S. Marine msgt.
Flynn was living the military lifestyle as a spouse, and educating children around the world as she traveled with her husband. But, for Flynn, being a spouse of a servicemember wasn't enough. She said she was always curious about life in uniform.
"I really wanted to see and experience what my husband used to tell me about," she said. "so I decided to join the Army, go to airborne school, become a paratrooper and serve my country." She enlisted in the Army in June 2007, and became an American citizen in August 2008. She is stationed with MND Baghdad here as an ops asst assigned to the 82nd Abn Div's HHC, Bde Special Troops Bn, 3rd BCT.
Flynn said her favorite part about being a paratrooper is the thrill of jumping out of an airplane. "It's a rush, and if I could jump every day I would," she said.
During her spare time in Iraq, Flynn enjoys going to the gym, and she is pursuing a bachelor's degree in liberal arts.
-30-
Honoring Women
A mother smiles at her daughter during an art show honoring Int'l Women's Day at al Nehrawan Youth Center in Diwaniya, March 8.
(Photo by Sgt. Rodney Foliente)
-30-
Fire Brigade
A bonfire lights the sky as NCOs from the 172nd Inf Bde welcome 22 graduates of the Blackhawk Warrior Leader Course into the leadership ranks at FOB Kalsu, March 7.
-30-
Combined Joint Task Force 101 RSS
Stability Initiative Jirga Held in Tag Ab, Afghanistan
Story by 1st Lt. Lory Stevens
BAGRAM AIR FIELD — More than 100 local Afghan leaders gathered at the Tag Ab District Center March 10 with Afghan, U.S. govt and military officials, to continue talks concerning the Tag Ab stability initiative.
Gov. Abu Baker of Kapisa opened the meeting, and emphasized the need to form a unified shura council over the next month to bring peace and stability by talking to anti-govt elements, and convincing them to lay down their weapons and work with the Afghan govt for a better future for all of the Afghan people.
“This shura was another important step in achieving long-term stability in Tag Ab District. It addressed the governance, development and security lines of op in our counter-insurgency campaign in a way that was understandable to the Tag ab elders and the shura reps,” said TF Warrior cmdr, Col. Scott A. Spellmon.
Afghan NA cmdr, Gen. Zamari, addressed the Afghan leaders in attendance and urged them to support the govt and the ANA working in Kapisa province. “When you send your sons to join the Army rather than the Taliban, then we can move forward,” Zamari said. He said when he no longer had to waste money fighting the insurgency in Tagab, there would be more money available for development. “We need peace, and if you help me and show me the enemy ... who is helping the enemy in the area with weapons and food ... anywhere the enemy is, we are going to attack,” Zamari said.
-30-
International Security Assistance Force HQ Public Affairs RSS
Int'l Security Assistance Force Make a Difference to Local Orphanage
Dutch Capt. Ellen De Jonge greets children in the playground during a visit to the Shahid Abdul Ahad Karzai Orphanage Center, March 12, when Int'l Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops delivered a donation of money and supplies on behalf of ISAF personnel.
KABUL – “We wanted to raise money for local charities, especially those that are dedicated to looking after children and to helping their communities,” said British Maj. Adrian Oldfield.
The first charity was the Khandahar City based Waden Drug Addiction Treatment Center, which is dedicated to helping people of all ages overcome heroin addiction. The second charity to receive funds was the orphanage. A total of $1,100 was raised for the orphanage (approx. 58,000 Afghani). While visiting the orphanage, ISAF personnel also distributed school supplies, clothing and soft toys to the children.
Principal Mohammad Zai welcomed ISAF personnel as they arrived at the orphanage. According to Oldfield, the visit “went really well and the children seemed happy with the gifts. We don’t have much to give to the children and rely on donations like this,” Zai said. “Myself and the children hope that more donations from ISAF will come again in the future.
Maj. Adrian Oldfield is surrounded by children.
-30-