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Or if they do report it, without the anti-War Agenda Spin!
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Posted on 10/17/2007 5:30:40 PM PDT by SandRat
MANSURIYAH — Six weeks since buried improvised explosive devices and sectarian violence made a road between the villages of Qasarin and Mansuriyah impassable, Iraqi Police (IP) and U.S. Army Soldiers cooperated to reestablish security in the area during Operation Patriots.
In what played out like a small liberation celebration, Soldiers entered Mansuriyah to the fanfare of cheering crowds. IP then handed out humanitarian aid and began constructing security checkpoints along the embattled road.
“It was kind of a pageant when we entered Mansuriyah,” said Capt. Alhaji Bangura, commander of Cobra Troop, 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. “I guess people were just really excited to see us there.”
On the morning of Sept. 30, Soldiers from Arrow Troop, 2-1 Cav, moved their Stryker vehicles slowly up the narrow route, situated along lush banks of the Tigris River in southwestern Diyala province, toward Mansuriyah, a small village cut off from the rest of the valley by the closed road.
Explosive ordinance disposal teams pushed ahead of the Strykers, uncovering and destroying multiple IED’s, as IP and 4-2 Soldiers searched the surrounding houses and farms for evidence of insurgent activity.
“We used to patrol this area quite a bit. Then we got pulled away for other tasks and hadn’t been able to get back here. That was about three months ago,” said Capt. Joe Byerly of Arrow Troop. “The sheikh here made such an impression on me that I’d wanted to get back.”
As the troops worked their way up the road, one section at a time, local sheikhs and village elders approached to voice their concerns. The residents reported that Mansuriyah, a Shia farming village situated among large tracts of fruit orchards, had been without electricity and water after recent attacks on facilities by al-Qaida in Iraq insurgents. The citizens were also unable to travel due to the dangers on surrounding roads.
Reports indicated that Sunni insurgents had been crossing the Tigris by boat, staging attacks on Mansuriyah and fighting with Jahadi al-Mahdi forces, then retreating back across the river, said Staff Sgt. Christopher Bridges, a truck commander in Arrow Troop.
Many homes along the route leading into town are now blackened, blown-up and deserted from the fighting, though reports differ regarding what group is responsible for the damage.
After searching a number of objectives for insurgent activity, combing palm groves, fruit orchards, barns and homes, Soldiers found and destroyed several caches, containing items such as two explosively-formed penetrators, a bag of homemade explosives, a spool of copper wire, two propane tanks, an anti-tank mine with a crush-wire and an oxygen tank with wires attached.
Once the route was cleared, Soldiers moved into Mansuriyah.
“We’ve had reports that large crowds are waiting for us here,” Bridges said at the time. “Could be a little crazy.”
Dismounting from their vehicles, the troops were greeted by more than 1,000 local residents celebrating in the street. Several large groups danced and chanted along with the music from a handheld radio. Iraqi citizens pushed in from all sides, shaking Soldiers’ hands, saying hello and following them as they walked. The Soldiers crossed the blood of a freshly-sacrificed sheep, a symbol of good luck, as they moved toward a scheduled meeting in a nearby building.
IP ushered the U.S. Soldiers through the busy crowd and inside a meeting room, then fended off aggressive groups of citizens attempting to push inside the building. The outer door had to be locked and guarded by police. Children crowded in at the windows to the meeting room where IP, U.S. Soldiers and the village elders of Mansuriyah took seats in a large circle.
Sheikh Abdi Jabar Mohammed sat at the head of the meeting and thanked the Soldiers for returning to his village. Platters of apples and bananas and cold cans of soda were passed around the circle. A long discussion then ensued about the future of Mansuriyah.
The elders wanted security from Sunni insurgents, an electrical generator and they wanted the city’s water pump fixed.
“We will do our best to provide you with all these things,” said Capt. Dustin Heumphreus of Arrow Troop, speaking through an interpreter. “But I warn you that these things take time. Everyone will have to work hard and work together in order to accomplish these things.”
After the meeting, IP began constructing security checkpoints along the route to Mansuriyah to prevent more booby-traps from being planted. Policemen and local citizens drove a front-end loader up and down the route, filling in HESCO (Hercules Engineering Systems Consortium) barriers and IED craters. The barriers will be used to block sniper fire from across the river and IP will soon patrol the road. At night, U.S. Soldiers parked their Stryker vehicles at strategic points along the route, pulling all night security along the river.
The following day, IP distributed several truckloads of cooking oil, rice, flour, bottled water and other humanitarian assistance to eager crowds in the village center at Mansuriyah.
“We hope to return here soon. We want to work to provide security for you and your people,” Byerly told Sheikh Mohammed at the sheikh’s home during a final meeting of the operation.
“Insh’allah,” the sheikh replied before he set out a large dinner for the Soldiers. “God willing.”
FR WAR NEWS! HEY...I DIDN'T SEE THIS ON THE NEWS /sarc
This is a nice touch. I've read that the Iraqi Police are not as well accepted or trusted as are the Iraqi Army and coalition troops. So having them participate in the security work as well as distribute aid may give them more credibility with the local citizens.
As someone said, the US Military should be the one’s given the Nobel Peace prize.
No one else even comes close..
BTTT!
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