Courtesy Photo | FOWARD OPERATING BASE JUSTICE, Iraq -- Soldiers from the Iraqi Army's 1st Brigade, 6th...... read more read more
Spc. Derek Del Rosario
Task Force Baghdad PAO
FORWARD OPERATING BASE JUSTICE, Iraq - With rifles in the air, Iraqi Army Soldiers sang cadences and jubilantly marched in circles to celebrate during a ceremony commemorating their graduation from the first commando company basic course Sept. 21.
Over 100 Soldiers of the Iraqi Army's 1st Brigade Headquarters, 6th Division endured 16 weeks of intense training which was separated in three stages.
The first stage was a six week basic training course where the Iraqi Soldiers learned and practiced skills such as map reading and weapons familiarization.
The second stage consisted of four weeks of special training where the Soldiers worked on conducting check point and convoy operations, and learned how to conduct raids.
The final stage was six weeks of high level training, which gave the soldiers the opportunity to sharpen their skills in areas such as handling ambushes and close armed fire fights in a civilian environment
Iraqi Army Brig. Gen. Jalil Kalaf, 1st Brigade, 6th Division commander, said he feels the soldiers are well trained.
"The soldiers received house to house combat and training on different weapons," Jalil said. "It is very high physical and intense training that prepares the soldiers to counter terrorism."
The graduation ceremony included demonstrations of some of the training the graduates endured.
Spectators were treated to live exercises of unarmed close engagement combat, soldiers fighting positions, setting up explosive devices, and even soldiers showcasing their physical abilities by jumping through hoops of fire and crawling under barbed wire.
The training and increased responsibility of the Iraqi Army plays an important role in establishing a safe and secure environment, an area where Jalil says his brigade has made much progress.
"There has been improvement over the last six months. We received an area of operations in February, and we plan to expand that area," Jalil said. "My brigade is the first brigade in Iraq to handle such responsibility, and we are going to do the best we can."
Another aspect of the training that mirrors the increased responsibility of the Iraqi Army is that the training course was taught and supervised entirely by Iraqi trainers, said Jalil. With such progress being made, Jalil foresees a brighter future for a democratic Iraq.
"It raises my morale and gives me more confidence to see these soldiers graduate. The more trained soldiers we have, the more we can fight terror," Jalil said.
| Date Taken: | 09.28.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 09.28.2005 13:23 |
| Story ID: | 3138 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 202 |
| Downloads: | 74 |
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