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Coalition forces target al-Qaeda leaders, bombers (Baghdad)

Press Release A080823a-293
August 23, 2008

Coalition forces target al-Qaeda leaders, bombers (Baghdad)
BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained 13 suspected terrorists while targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq bombing and leadership networks around Iraq Friday and Saturday.

Information from an operation Aug. 5 led Coalition forces to a wanted man in Sharqat, about 90 km south of Mosul. Intelligence reports indicate the wanted man, who was captured during the Saturday operation, transports weapons and explosives for AQI and may be affiliated with AQI leaders in Kirkuk.

Saturday in Baghdad, Coalition forces detained three suspected terrorists, one of whom is allegedly associated with AQI senior leaders who are involved with suicide bombings. A precision operation in the city netted a wanted man believed to conspire with AQI senior leaders in the capital.

Coalition forces detained four suspects Saturday in Bayji, about 160 km south of Mosul, while targeting associates of AQI leaders who are reportedly planning attacks using poison. Using information from an operation May 27, Coalition forces targeted and captured a suspected bombing cell leader Friday in Bayji. The cell is part of a bombing network in the Tigris River Valley that targets Coalition and Iraqi security forces. The forces discovered body armor and military-style equipment on site, and detained one additional suspect.

Two suspects were detained in Mosul during a Friday operation targeting a senior AQI liaison within the terrorist network.

“Al-Qaeda in Iraq will face a continuous assault from all sides,” said Maj. John C. Hall, MNF-I spokesman. Source Link
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Educating Tomorrow’s Leaders

Posted on 08.18.2008 at 09:57AM
By Lance Cpl. Casey Jones
Regimental Combat Team 1

Excerpt

RAMADI, Iraq - In most parts of the world a school house stands as a symbol—a symbol of education, of growth, of innocence.

But in al-Anbar province, Iraq, school houses had been used early in the war as a domicile for malicious acts conducted by insurgents against coalition forces, not for educating the future leaders of tomorrow.

In a November 2006 Washington Post article, Abdul Sattar Jawad, the former dean of the College of Arts at Mustansiriya University in Baghdad, wrote, “The mass [violence in the country] underscores the chilling fact that the most dangerous place in Iraq is not the mosque, the marketplace or the military checkpoint, but the classroom.”

In sharp contrast to Jawad’s dim description of the country, the region is now rebuilding. Restorations and reopening of schools are taking place daily in Iraq, with Ramadi seemingly leading the way.

The Industrial high school in Ramadi was the latest school to open in the city.

“It’s great that the city was able to get this school opened up,” said Khalid Abdul Salam, an assistant to the Director General of Schools. “The school is going to be a wonderful institution not only for the students, but for all of Ramadi. As the youth of the city continue to earn an education, they will assist the city and the province in making their country prosperous.” Read More

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Schools refurbished in Abu T’shir
Friday, 22 August 2008

RELEASE No. 20080822-08

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers gathered with community leaders for a luncheon to celebrate the summertime renovation and reopening of two schools in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad Aug. 21.

Local leaders from the Abu T’shir community and Soldiers from the 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, met at al Nahreen Primary School for a short discussion, tour of the facility and luncheon.

Lt. Col. Troy Smith, commander of the 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav. Regt., spoke about the great contributions made by the many contractors.

“This is a great step to work towards the future in Abu T’shir,” Smith stated. “Everybody wants to continue to improve the area.”
The contractors made many improvements on the schools through the summer, such as new furniture, air conditioners and remodeled sewage systems.

Dawood Salman, a civil engineer and manager of the Muath bin Jabal Secondary School, which is equivalent to an American junior high and high school, managed many projects for the school during its 45-day makeover.

“When kids return to the school and see it is in good condition, they will be very happy,” Salman explained. “It also makes the teachers have better lessons for the kids.”

The attendees toured the two schools to see first-hand the improvements made and then had a traditional Iraqi meal to commemorate the school’s success.

“The future is in your hands,” Smith said to local leaders at the luncheon. “I have no doubt the future is bright.”

The two schools are tentatively scheduled to reopen Aug. 25. Source Link
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Iraqi Army Takes Lead to Support Sadr City Clinic

Posted on 08.22.2008 at 02:34PM
By the American Forces Press Service Public Affairs Office

Excerpt

BAGHDAD - The 11th Iraqi Army Division delivered medical supplies and provided treatment to the citizens of the Thawra 1 neighborhood of the Iraqi capital’s Sadr City District, Aug. 20, 2008.

Company C, 1st Battalion, 35th Armor Regiment, attached to Task Force 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, who currently supports the 4th Infantry Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team in Multi-National Division - Baghdad, provided security for the operation, while Iraqi soldiers and medical personnel met with families in need of treatment.

The Iraqi army took the lead to provide supplies for the 2nd Health Clinic of Sadr City, as well as additional medical attention to the surrounding community, putting an Iraqi face on the operation.

Soldiers from 1-35th Armor Regiment provided security and helped facilitate the Iraqi army operation. Before the combined medical engagement started, Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldiers and the Iraqi security detachment escorting the Iraqi army medical team secured the clinic and the surrounding area.

“We are just glad to be able to help and let the IA take the lead with the combined medical engagement,” Army Capt. Andrew Slack, commander of Company C, said. “Hopefully, every clinic in Thawra 1 will get repeated visits from the IA as they are operating with more independence every day.” Read More
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MND-B Soldiers Seize Weapons Cache in Baghdad

Courtesy Story
Posted on 08.22.2008 at 02:07PM
By the Multi-National Division – Baghdad Public Affairs Office

BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers seized a large weapons cache in eastern Baghdad, Aug. 21, 2008.

At approximately 5:45 p.m., Soldiers with Company A, 1st Battalion, 66th Armored Regiment, attached to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, acting on a tip from a local resident, found six rocket propelled grenades, three mortar rounds, five 120 mm artillery rounds, four propellants, a 155 mm mortar round, an 80 mm rocket, 100 PKC machine gun rounds, 100 7.62 machine gun rounds, 100 .50 caliber rounds, an RPG launcher and a pair of binoculars in the New Baghdad area of Baghdad.

“With the removal of these weapons off the streets, we are directly saving lives of Iraqi citizens and coalition forces,” said Maj. Mark Cheadle, spokesman for MND-B and the 4th Infantry Division. “This is a measurable success … saving lives.” Source Link
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MND-B Soldiers Detain Suspects Across Rashid, ISF Dismantle Booby Trap

Courtesy Story
Posted on 08.22.2008 at 02:01PM

Excerpt

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained suspected special groups leaders and Iraqi security forces dismantled a homemade booby trap, Aug. 20, 2008, in the Rashid District of southern Baghdad.

At approximately 9:30 p.m., Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, detained a suspected terrorist in East Rashid’s Masafee community linked to attacks using improvised explosive devices and suicide vests in Baghdad.

At approximately 11 p.m., Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B, working on actionable intelligence arrested a suspected special groups criminal in West Rashid’s Hadar neighborhood.

Meanwhile in the Risalah community of southwestern Baghdad, Iraqi national policemen of the 1st Battalion, 5th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division, discovered a homemade booby trap, at approximately 10 p.m. Read More
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7th Sustainment Brigade, Coalition Forces Provide Medical Support for Local Iraqi Town

Posted on 08.22.2008 at 07:42AM
By Spc. Anthony Hooker
215th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Excerpt

AL SHAKRAH, IRAQ – Soldiers from the 7th Sustainment Brigade, Romanian, and Iraqi military forces combined with lraqi civilians to host a medical civil action program, July 29, 2008, at a local Iraqi clinic.

From eight a.m. until the early afternoon, coalition forces worked alongside representatives from the Iraq ministry of health to diagnose and treat any Iraqi citizen who was interested.

Hundreds of Iraqis came from the nearby countryside as well as neighboring city Al Nasariyah. To manage the crush of patients, a triage site was set at the clinic’s entry.

A military tent was also raised outside the clinic as an additional waiting room.

The 7th SB, deployed from Ft. Eustis, Va., provided three doctors and a combat medical team to augment medical staff from the Romanian and Iraqi Armies. The clinic concentrated on identifying ailments, providing vitamins and other supplements, and performing minor surgeries. Major William O’Connell, a surgeon with the 7th SB, worked alongside ministry of health physician Dr. Ahmed Abdul Sabeh to remove shrapnel from one patient and lance a cyst from another. Read More
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U.S., Iraq Make Progress on Status of Forces Agreement

Posted on 08.21.2008 at 04:31PM
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

Excerpt

WASHINGTON - Washington and Baghdad are close to reaching a status of forces agreement, but negotiations on the deal to determine the future U.S. military role in Iraq are ongoing, a Defense Department official said on Aug. 21, 2008.

“We’ve made good progress on it; we are close,” Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. “There are still some issues to work out, but … it’s very premature at this point to say that we have an agreement.”

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in a surprise one-day visit to Baghdad, said the discussion about the status of forces is possible only because of recent security progress leading up to negotiations.

“The reason we are where we are today, talking about this kind of agreement, is that the surge worked, Iraqi forces have demonstrated that they are strong and getting stronger, [and] we are making progress together in the defeat of Iraq’s enemies of all stripes,” she said during a news conference in Baghdad. Read More
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Soldiers Exemplify Valor

Posted on 08.21.2008 at 10:16AM
By Spc. Anthony Hutchins
926th Engineer Brigade

Excerpt

BAGHDAD – Three Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers from the 926th Engineer Brigade were shown the appreciation, Aug. 15, 2008, of their unit and the Army for their actions on, June 19, 2008.

Members of the Brigade Protective Services Detail were on a mission on the east side of the Tigris River in Baghdad when they were attacked. All of the Soldiers in the PSD performed their duties in textbook fashion. They drilled this possibility for months in preparation for the worst-case scenario and reacted as though it was second nature.

Within a moment, a simple drive became chaos. As they were traveling near the Sadr City area of Baghdad the lead vehicle was struck by an explosively-formed projectile. Quick reaction and good driving skills by the driver, Spc. Jarrod Allen of Montgomery, Ala., helped ensure the safety of the crew and the passengers. “There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that we were hit, no confusion, it was very clear.”

After the vehicle came to stop, Spc. Allen exited the vehicle with the assistance Sgt. Curtis Calhoun of Atlanta, truck commander. Calhoun led Allen to safety after realizing that Spc. Allen was unarmed upon exiting the burning vehicle. Allen then returned unarmed and with no concern for himself to the truck with a fire extinguisher even though it was engulfed in flames. “I thought there was the possibility that someone was in there, Spc. Thaddeus Lake specifically.” Calhoun went searching for the passengers of his vehicle who ran to the opposite side of the street to take cover. Read More
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ISF Detain 14 During Operation Lion’s Roundup

Courtesy Story
Posted on 08.21.2008 at 08:25AM
By the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs Office

Excerpt

FORWARD OPERAING BASE KALSU, Iraq – Iraqi security forces conducted an early morning operation in the Babahani area, Aug. 14-15, 2008, in an effort to detain insurgents prior to the onset of Shabaniyah.

During the operation, soldiers from 4th Battalion, 31st Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division detained 14 individuals and confiscated a cache of 28 empty rocket bodies as coalition forces provided the outer cordon.

“Col. Sa’eed and the 4/31st Battalion conducted successful operations in Babahani and the Bouharat,” said Lt. Col. Timothy Newsome, a native of Homerville, Ga. “Great work by Col. Sa’eed and his staff that is certainly indicative of the potential of this battalion in conducting ever-larger, independent operations.” Read More
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Strike Troops, Iraqi Physicians Aid Local Residents in Kateib

Posted on 08.20.2008 at 01:43PM
By Sgt. Matthew Vanderboegh
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division

Excerpt

BAGHDAD – A woman, with her three children huddled around her in anticipation, stood in line with a throng of others, Aug. 6, 2008, at the Al Suasse Elementary School in Kateib, a suburb in northwest Baghdad.

She, along with hundreds of others, anxiously awaited her turn in line so her children could finally receive a long overdue medical screening.

Soldiers from Multi-National Division – Baghdad’s 1st Squadron, 75th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), along with elements from the 432nd Civil Affairs Battalion, Iraqi security forces and local Iraqi physicians, came together during a Combined Medical Engagement to reach out to the citizens of Kateib.

They worked together for the combined good of the local citizens of Ghazaliyah, who have been without medical care prior to the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“We are here to help provide basic medical services to the Iraqi people by getting the Iraqi army and Iraqi civilians to work together,” said 1st Lt. Brandon Koser, a native of Fairfax, Va., who is the medical platoon leader for 1-75 Cav. Regt.

Four Iraqi physicians from surrounding areas volunteered their time to provide basic medical treatment and counseling.

“We are here to serve the people,” said Oday, the resident dentist. Ali, a pediatrician, added “I am very happy to help out the Iraqi families.” Read More
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Kicking a Path to Freedom

Posted on 08.18.2008 at 10:16AM
By Lance Cpl. Casey Jones
Regimental Combat Team 1

Excerpt

RAMADI, Iraq – Throughout modern history, sports have helped recovering regions come together.

One example came shortly after the World Trade Center attack on, September 11, 2001. The attack devastated citizens of New York City, but the Yankee’s success the following year helped to brighten their spirits. That year, the baseball team won the American League pennant for the fourth consecutive season.

About a year after Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana and Mississippi, the New Orleans Saints helped citizens take their minds off exhausting rebuilding efforts and relax for a few hours each Sunday during football season. The team broke several franchise records that year, seemingly carrying the entire region on its back, and went to play in the National Football Conference championship game for the first time in its 41-year history.

Communities seem to heal faster when sports are involved.

When 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, and Ramadi’s leaders decided to hold a five-day soccer tournament at the city’s newly renovated Mulaab Soccer Stadium, they hoped the event would have the same effect.

The Ramadi Soccer Tournament involved 10 teams from neighborhoods across the city, and was composed of two single elimination-style games played each night until a winner was determined.

“Soccer truly is a world sport,” said Lt. Col. Brett A. Bourne, the battalion commander for 1st Battalion, 9th Marines. “It doesn’t cost money to play; you just need a ball and a field. All of the children in this region can come to this stadium and play a game.”

Col. Hattim Hamid, the Mulaab station Iraqi police chief, said the citizens of Ramadi were excited about the renovations and the ensuing tournament.

“Hundreds of Ramadi citizens have told me they would dream of seeing the stadium return to its past glory and to be able to play soccer there again,” Hattim said. “They thought that dream would never come true. But, with the help of 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, and other coalition forces throughout the years, the stadium was rebuilt and their dreams have been fulfilled.”

Extensive renovations went into rebuilding the soccer stadium after intense combat between coalition forces and insurgents over the last five years left it in ruins. The stadium’s seats, walls and even the grass were destroyed. Read More
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‘Normalcy’ returning to Kirkuk village

by Spc. Jason Jordan
1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division

Excerpt

KIRKUK (Aug. 19, 2008) — In the southern Rishad valley of Kirkuk province lies the remote village of Gaydah, located several miles from the nearest highway and even further from the nearest substantial city or district.

Already accustomed to seclusion, the village residents were surprised when Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division showed up in their community in February. The residents were more surprised when they announced that they would set up operations there, living and working with the residents for the next two months.

Operating from within a schoolhouse in the area, the Soldiers spent the next several weeks meeting with the villagers, providing humanitarian aid, rebuilding infrastructures, and planning future civil service projects.

The mission complete, Soldiers left. But they returned Aug. 20, along with members of the 443rd Civil Affairs Battalion, to receive updates and determine plans of action.

“The people of this village have been wary of the Coalition forces for the past several years because they have seen units come and go, and promises made that were never fulfilled,” said Capt. Gregory Hotaling, commander, Company D, 2-22 Inf. Regt. “We wanted to assure them that we were different, and to help prove our resolve, we lived among them in their impoverished community; experiencing for a short time the life they have always known.”

The community welcomed their friends back with open arms, grateful to see the Soldiers had kept their promise.

Leaders with the two units spent several hours inside the village mayor’s home; discussing the current situation of the area and future projects – while other Soldiers spent time talking and playing with the children outside. Read More
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Iraqi troops fill Georgians’ security role

by Sgt. First Class Joe Thompson
41st Fires Brigade

Excerpt

FOB DELTA — The 32nd Iraqi Army Brigade immediately offered their help to maintain security in Wasit province when word broke of the 1st Georgian Brigade’s departure from Iraq.

“We knew it was unfortunate that the Georgians had to leave, but it provided us with the opportunity to take an active role in securing the checkpoints along the main routes in Wasit,” said Brig. Gen. Abed Gabr Mazloum, commander of the 32nd IA Brigade.

Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment are partnering with the IA Soldiers at the checkpoints and patrol bases in Wasit.

“We are working hand-in-hand with our Iraqi partners,” said Lt. Col. Timothy Bush, commander, 2-20 FA.

“They have the lead in running the traffic control points, and we plan on training them in patrol base operations, temporary traffic control points and presence patrols around their respective patrol bases,” said Bush.

“The people of Wasit need to know that the Iraqi Army is here to help maintain their safety and security, and we are very fortunate to have our great friends, the Americans, by our side in this mission,” said Abed.

Abed began working with Col. Richard M. Francey Jr., commander of 41st Fires Brigade, to develop an actionable plan to sustain the security situation in Wasit. In less than 24 hours, both units sent Soldiers to man the checkpoints and patrol bases previously occupied by the 1st Georgian Brigade.“We began planning with our Iraqi partners to take over the Georgian mission as soon as we found out they may have to go home,” said Francey. Read More
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Iraqi Partnership Extends to OR

Friday, 22 August 2008
By Cpl. Tyler B. Barstow

CAMP TAQADDUM — Iraqis are no longer just patients in operating rooms, now they are scrubbing-in alongside their U.S. counterparts to participate in surgeries. Camp Taqaddum Surgical, 1st Supply Battalion (Reinforced), 1st Marine Logistics Group, has partnered with Iraqi medical personnel at Camp Habbaniyah, bringing them into the operating room for the first time here, Aug. 21.

Lt. Cmdr. John A. Lynott, senior orthopedic surgeon with TQ Surgical, worked with Iraqi Army Maj. Tahseen Muallah, a medical officer from Camp Habbaniyah, to remove fragmentation from the leg of an Iraqi Policeman (IP). Mohammed Ali, the 33-year-old IP, was injured from an improvised explosive device in 2006. Since then, his injuries have prevented him from working and keep him up at night.

Less than two hours later, the fragmentation was removed and Ali was recovering from the surgery.

“It’s the first time we’ve scrubbed in with any Iraqis,” said Lynott, who felt confident in Muallah’s abilities and noticed how well-trained he was in the operating room.

With progress like this, it’s only a matter of time before the new medical facility at Habbaniyah is up and running, staffed with well trained and experienced Iraqi surgeons.

“Anything we do to help build their medical capacity is a good use of our time and facilities,” said Brig. Gen. Robert R. Ruark, commanding general of 1st Marine Logistics Group.

With a little more time and experience with the new facilities here, leaders are confident the Iraqi surgeons will soon be treating their own, thanks to this partnership. Source Link
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Government 101: Seeds of Democracy in Western al-Anbar

Friday, 22 August 2008
By Cpl. Ryan Tomlinson
Regimental Combat Team - 5

Excerpt

RUTBAH — City and village leaders from around the region gathered at the Rutbah City Council building here Aug. 18-20, to learn the fundamentals of running a democratic government.

“It does my heart good that when I showed up here and started talking to the leaders, we discussed education and government and not once talked about security,” said Lt. Col. Russell E. Smith, 44, battalion commander, 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 5, from Rochester, N.H. “This is a huge step in this area because it proves that we’ve turned a corner and are now focusing on rebuilding western al-Anbar [province].”

During the training, the leaders gathered inside the conference room to learn the basics of operating a government. The men learned structure, organization of councils and economic strategies. The training started in December 2007, and the leaders meet for three days every two months to ensure they are best equipped to handle their positions.

“A lot of these men come from different tribes and different backgrounds,” said Mark B. Humphries, 54, a liaison officer with the U.S. State Department from Webster, Texas. “When they enter their office, they must take off the tribal robe and perform as public servants for the whole district. They’re still adapting, and our job is to help them through the transition.”

The training was set up in a three-level process. The first was teaching Coalition forces Iraqi law. The second was teaching Iraqi leaders to be leaders, and the third was teaching councilmen to be councilmen. Although the training is only in its second phase, the leaders have already begun to make a difference. Read More
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U.S., Iraq Make Progress on Status of Forces Agreement

Friday, 22 August 2008
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON — Washington and Baghdad are close to reaching a status of forces agreement, but negotiations on the deal to determine the future U.S. military role in Iraq are ongoing, a Defense Department official said yesterday.

“We’ve made good progress on it; we are close,” Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. “There are still some issues to work out, but … it’s very premature at this point to say that we have an agreement.”

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in a surprise one-day visit to Baghdad, said the discussion about the status of forces is possible only because of recent security progress leading up to negotiations.

“The reason we are where we are today, talking about this kind of agreement, is that the surge worked, Iraqi forces have demonstrated that they are strong and getting stronger, [and] we are making progress together in the defeat of Iraq’s enemies of all stripes,” she said during a news conference in Baghdad.

“And we can look forward to an agreement, or we can look forward to a set of circumstances, in which we know what is needed in the future in terms of roles, responsibilities, numbers,” she added.

Rice’s counterpart in Baghdad, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, said the two sides are “very close” to an agreement.

“We are very close to finalize this important agreement for Iraq, for the region, and for the friendship and the partnership of Iraq and the United States,” he said. Source Link
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New Fresh Water Pipeline to Extend From Al Rasheed to Mahmudiyah

Thursday, 21 August 2008
By Pfc. Christopher McKenna
3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division

Excerpt

FOB MAHMUDIYAH — A water pipeline that will connect the city of Al Rasheed to the city of Mahmudiyah is nearing completion.

“People who have been limited on their water supply within the city will soon not have to worry about such issues,” said Sgt. Hamad Ali Kathwan, 25th Brigade, 17th Iraqi Army Division.

The goal in this project is to demonstrate to the Mahmudiyah Qada the local government’s ability to recommend, plan and complete a project, said Maj. Alaric Robinson, a native of Hartford, Conn., Company A, 411th Civil Affairs Battalion.

The project began May 25, and the pipe is expected to provide water to 25 percent of the city of Mahmudiyah by the end of August. The pipe is 20 inches in diameter and will span a distance of nine kilometers.

“The pipeline attaches the Al Rasheed water treatment plant to the water tower in Mahmudiyah in order to bring potable water to the city,” said Lt. Col. Linda Capobianco, from Salt Lake City, embedded Provincial Reconstruction Team deputy team leader.

“This is a shared project between Coalition forces and the Iraqi government,” said Capt. Benjamin Neusse, native of Murfreesboro, Tenn., 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), civil military operations officer.

“The local water director came to us and identified demand [for water] in Mahmudiyah as well as excess supply in Al Rasheed. We provided the pipe, and the GoI is providing the funding for the installation, testing and connection of the pipe – everything but the pipe itself,” he said.

Each section of pipe comes in 9-foot pieces. After the pipe is put together, it will be tested to ensure a steady water pressure is maintained over a 24-hour period.

“The government of Iraq did the technical piece of the project so that it was completed to their standards and their specifications,” Neusse said. Read More
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Operation Iraqi Children Delivers in Baghdad

Wednesday, 20 August 2008
By Sgt. Daniel Blottenberger
18th Military Police Brigade

Excerpt

BAGHDAD — Anxious but appreciative orphan children in the Salhiya District of Baghdad had something to smile about when Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers arrived, Aug. 13, to hand out school supplies as part of an assistance mission named “Operation Iraqi Children.”

During the engagement, Soldiers from the 18th MP Brigade lent a hand in the delivering of the school supplies to the local orphanage, as Soldiers from the 42nd Field Artillery Regiment and policemen from the Salhiya Iraqi Police teamed up to help the children prepare for school.

Operation Iraqi Children, which began in 2003 and was founded by Laura Hillenbrand and Gary Sinise, is designed to distribute donated school supplies to needy children in Iraq, Afghanistan and Djibouti.

“Operation Iraqi Children is a wonderful way for the people of the U.S. to help the children of Iraq, and by doing so, we are helping our Soldiers, who are working so hard over there,” said Sinise, on the Operation Iraqi Children Web site.

The IP and MND-B Soldiers will hand out more than 3,000 school supply kits that were donated to the children in Baghdad. The kits contain: a pencil bag, composition books, notebook paper, colored pencils, large eraser, a small pencil sharpener, pencils, ruler and scissors.

“The kits have been a huge hit with the local children,” said Capt. Nate Brookshire, 716th MP Bn. “The kits have also given the maneuver units and Police Transition Team a positive avenue to interact with local children with our Iraqi counterparts.”

The 716th PTT has handed out more than 400 kits since mid-July to the children in Salhiya while on community policing patrols with the Salhiya IP. Read More
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IA Medical and Dental Clinic Gets It Done

Wednesday, 20 August 2008
By Staff Sgt. James E. Brown Jr.
1st Sustainment Brigade

Excerpt

CAMP TAJI — The doors opened up early at the Iraqi Army Troop Medical and Dental Clinic, but not until the clinic workers completed the daily task of picking up around the facility and conducting vehicle maintenance.

By then, Iraqi Army Soldiers stationed on Taji start to trickle in - sick call slips in hand - to be seen by one of the military nurses for various medical reasons.

“On average they see 60 to 70 patients a day,” said 1st Sgt. Timothy Baker, logistics training advisory team member, 152nd Cavalry Regiment, 1st Sustainment Brigade. “They have a very nice facility here and they do very good work.”

Like any other military medical treatment facility, Iraqi Soldiers enter, check-in and take a seat in the waiting room. One by one they are called in to get their vital signs read and have their names entered into the medical database. Then they are either treated on the spot or referred to the emergency department on the other side of the building.

When you enter the emergency department, you see the Iraqi Army nurses treating fellow Soldiers, doing everything from an intravenous injection, to reading an electrocardiogram, to administering an X-ray. Read More
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Good News from Afghanistan

Formerly violent Afghan district dubbed ‘peaceful’

by Capt. Jillian Torango
CJTF-101

Excerpt

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (August 13, 2008) — Government and military leaders, international representatives, and villagers packed into the common area of the new Anaba District Center in Panjshir province, Afghanistan, Aug. 11, to celebrate the naming of their district as “peaceful.”

Anaba is the first district in Panjshir to be labelled a peaceful district.

This was made possible through efforts of the Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups program, which is an Afghan-government lead program whose goal is to establish a secure environment through the disarmament and disbandment of illegal armed groups in order to set the conditions for the extension of good governance and the rule of law.

“Our country suffered through three decades of war and when the DIAG program started here in Panjshir the district of Anaba became a district of peace,” said Abdul Rahman Kabiri, the province’s deputy governor. “Those weapons that we used to fight against our enemies are the same weapons that we handed in for the DIAG program.”

One of the main perks of the DIAG program for districts throughout Afghanistan is that the program offers up to $150,000 in support for reconstruction in districts deemed peaceful.

“This is a province known for its history of fighting the good fight, and now our fight is for both peace and reconstruction,” said Kabiri. “And that is why the DIAG process worked very well here in Anaba and is continuing to work throughout Panjshir.” The Afghan National Army’s military lead for DIAG, Gen. Azim, hopes other districts will follow in Anaba’s footsteps.

“We hope that the next district of Panjshir becomes peaceful, and then the next and the next and soon all of Afghanistan will not think of the people of Panjshir only as the fighters they once were,” he said.

Anaba’s governor reiterated the fact that the people of Anaba are ready to move forward and live in a province of peace and prosperity and hopes the other provincial districts will too. Read More

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