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| Iraq |
| US Now Embedding Iraqi Soldiers In US Units |
| 2007-09-21 |
| It was late in the afternoon, and the paratroopers from 2nd Platoon were pulling security at the end of a quiet residential street. Their interpreter was inside one of the houses, helping the platoon leader interview a source. Before long, a group of women clad in black approached, shouting and causing a scene. Normally, with no interpreter on hand, it would be hard for the paratroopers to figure out why the women were upset. But in this instance, there was an easy solution. "Sal, go talk to them," suggested squad leader Staff Sgt. Antonio Alvarado to the Soldier next to him. Programs like this result in serious mojo to the participants. I expect the embeds are fast track NCOs, who will be the bones to the IA senior NCO corps. The soldier called 'Sal' got up off a knee and strolled over to the women. Conversing easily in Arabic, he quickly calmed them down and had them describe the problem. As they spoke, he jotted down the information in a green notepad to give to the platoon leader later. How is a Soldier in a U.S. platoon able to communicate with Iraqis so well? Simple - he isn't a U.S. Soldier at all. 'Sal' is actually Hanni Sadoon, a sergeant from the Iraqi Army embedded with the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division. In the northern Adhamiyah area of Baghdad, Sgt. Sadoon and more than 20 other soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 11th Iraqi Army Division are embedding with paratroopers from the 2nd "Black Falcon" Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment in a new program designed to foster partnership and expose the Iraqis to U.S. military techniques. Currently each of the Black Falcon platoons has four embedded Iraqi soldiers. The soldiers stay with the platoons for 60 days, and then return to their own units. The first group of embeds is about halfway through the program. The program has advantages for both sides. The Iraqi soldiers learn new techniques and tactics, while the American platoons get the benefit of the embedded soldiers' cultural knowledge. "It's a great advantage to me as a squad leader, because it's like having an extra soldier and an extra interpreter at the same time," said Staff Sgt. Alvarado, an Edcouch, Texas-native. Day in and day out, the Iraqi and U.S. soldiers pull guard duty together, listen to the same briefings, and go out on the same raids and patrols. The paratroopers have given all the Iraqis friendly nicknames, as well as "Double-A" 82nd Airborne patches to sew onto their uniforms. Basically, the embeds are like replacement soldiers who happen to be Iraqis. "Once we're out on the street, we treat them just like a 'Joe.' They're just another Soldier," said Staff Sgt. Shane Glowcheski, a Rapid City, S.D.-native acting as a platoon leader for B Battery, 2-319th AFAR. Staff Sgt. Glowcheski currently has four Iraqi Soldiers embedded in his platoon. On a recent patrol, Sgt. Sadoon and Staff Sgt. Alvarado took the point together, leading the patrol down winding streets and talking with local merchants along the way. At one point, Staff Sgt. Alvarado stopped to talk to a man sitting sprawled-out on a curb. After a while, Sgt. Sadoon came over. He listened for a while, then turned to Staff Sgt. Alvarado. "Majnoon," he said, pointing a finger at his head and wiggling it in a circle: "Crazy." The man was apparently deranged. "Oh, I thought he was trying to tell me something," Staff Sgt. Alvarado said as they continued the patrol. For the paratroopers, walking several miles a day on patrol is routine. The Black Falcons conduct engagement patrols constantly through the area, building a rapport with the community. "That's why we're so good in this sector, because we got the trust of the people," said Staff Sgt. Glowcheski. For the Iraqi Army, gaining that trust has proven more difficult. Because the IA is required to man so many checkpoints, the Soldiers have little time to do the kind of dismounted engagement patrols that have proven successful for the Black Falcons. The embed program gives selected members of the IA that opportunity, said Lt. Col. Al Shoffner, the battalion commander. For the embeds, it means learning to use a softer touch when dealing with the local people. Staff Sgt. Glowcheski said that under Saddam Hussein the Iraqi Army never did peacekeeping operations, it was strictly a fighting force. Some of that attitude still lingers, he said. "They're very aggressive. We're trying to tame that down and show them that they only have to be aggressive when they need to be aggressive," Staff Sgt. Glowcheski said. It's an attitude that the paratroopers believe is crucial to success in a counter-insurgency fight and to the long-term ability of the IA to be successful. "We're trying to guide them to interact with the people more, so the people will trust them and come to them first, so that when we're out of Iraq they'll be able to depend on the IA forces," said Staff Sgt. Alvarado. After several weeks of patrolling with the Americans, Iraqi soldiers like Sgt. Sadoon say the message is starting to sink in. The most important thing is to take an active role in the life of the community, he said. "We keep in touch with the locals and see what their needs are, what they are suffering from, like the power and electricity, and also the security issues," Sgt. Sadoon said. The next step for the embeds is to return to the Iraqi Army with their new skills and teach them to their fellow soldiers, Staff Sgt. Glowcheski said. "They need to take all the things we're teaching them, from the battle drills to the counter insurgency stuff, and take it back to their unit," he said. "That's really the point of all this." |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #16 That's quite comforting, TopMac. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-09-21 23:17 |
| #15 By now there must be a vast understanding of their language on the part of our troops, and a vast understanding of our language on the part of the Iraqis. This helps and is essential for this type of inter service operations. |
| Posted by: wxjames 2007-09-21 14:10 |
| #14 I found as I lived with and advised the Iraqi Army, the Iraqis actually have a number of good NCOs. The trick is getting the old guard to let go and empower them. We never had a problem with the guys doing the right thing once the officer let go. Me and my NCOs learned from them how to deal with the mindset and they learned from us to be in charge. When well led (just like most cases in history)the IA will perform well, and since most of their senior NCOs are on their 4th war they know how to fight, you just have to refine them. |
| Posted by: TopMac 2007-09-21 13:29 |
| #13 Well, when you start with the greatest country in the world, what else would you expect? Democrats? |
| Posted by: Bobby 2007-09-21 12:20 |
| #12 Most Arab armies want Officers from "reliable" sources (religious, political, etc), and a bunch of cannon-fodder on the other end...with little in between. From what I can tell, the authority we push down to junior officers and NCOs in particular is pretty much unprecedented. It goes along with a whole lot of other things, including "no soldier left behind". Not to mention "my men, my mission, then myself". |
| Posted by: lotp 2007-09-21 12:07 |
| #11 Great story, Chuck. Our people in Iraq are just amazing. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2007-09-21 11:49 |
| #10 as lotp notes, NCOs are a new concept for most Arab armies...yet the backbone of ours! (having been part of the backbone! :) ) Most Arab armies want Officers from "reliable" sources (religious, political, etc), and a bunch of cannon-fodder on the other end...with little in between. |
| Posted by: Justrand 2007-09-21 10:46 |
| #9 Never cease to be amazed. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-09-21 10:30 |
| #8 Been doing it in Korea since the war. They're known as KATUSAs (Ka-tous-ahs), Korean Augmentees to the United States Army. You have a few in each section or platoon. There's a KATUSA officer and Senior NCO at the Brigade level to assist [to include discipline - the augmentees really didn't want a little one on one discussion with the senior NCO]. Helps alot with working with locales and coordinating with other Korean authorities. Normally, it was one year of national military service for every Korean male or two years as a (volunteer) KATUSA. Over the decades, its sort of evolved in a good o'boy net for those who completed their time. Meant getting good job offers, good positions within corporations, many other perks. So, there evolved a bit of old world bribery to get one's kid into the program. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-09-21 10:06 |
| #7 More about Staff Sgt. Shane Glowcheski and his unit here with a pic for the ladies. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2007-09-21 09:57 |
| #6 Perhaps not on Day 1 but not 4 years later, either. Thank goodness Petraeus is running the show and soon the New Army. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2007-09-21 09:52 |
| #5 From your lips to God's ear, TW. I hope there is time for this to come to pass. |
| Posted by: SR-71 2007-09-21 08:31 |
| #4 I don't think anyone was ready for this on day 1, N guard. We had as much learning to do as the Iraqis to get to this point. The embeds will be the bones of the Iraqi Army NCO, corps, but also of civil society as they rear their children with the ethos they've learnt here, then themselves retire and get involved on the civilian side. Truly wonderful! |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-09-21 08:08 |
| #3 Professional, empowered NCOs are a revolutionary idea for a ME army. |
| Posted by: lotp 2007-09-21 07:52 |
| #2 They should also do it with junior officers. |
| Posted by: Fred 2007-09-21 07:46 |
| #1 This is something they should have been doing on day one! Yes, this will result in some serious Mojo for the participants. Not just for the Iraquis, tho. An armed 'terp will have a somewhat different take than the colledge boys we were stuck with. Discuss. |
| Posted by: N guard 2007-09-21 05:51 |