Iraqi Army trains to fight Terrorists

Photo By Sgt. Cassandra Groce | Two Iraqi Soldiers load a PKC to shoot from the turret of a humvee. Soldiers fired .50 caliber machine guns and PKCs from turrets.  

MUQDADIYA, IRAQ

03.15.2006

Courtesy Story

133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Pfc. Cassandra Groce
133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detach.

MUQDADIYAH, Iraq (February 18, 2006) -- Enlisting in the army to defend your country from insurgents is the dream for many of the new Soldiers in the Iraq Army.

Coalition Forces are training this Army to reach that dream.

"I joined the Iraq Army to defend Iraq against the terrorists," said Hussan Ali, a soldier in the Iraq Army for the last two and a half years. "The training given by Coalition Forces is very useful. It will help us defend ourselves against the terrorists."

Soldiers in 1st Platoon, Abel Troop, 1-32nd Cavalry have helped train Iraqi Soldiers on the .50 caliber machine gun, the PKC and reflexive fire situations.

After the machine gun training, the Iraqi Soldiers ran to the next range before the stress fire lane.

"We ran them down the road to get their blood pumping and put them in a realistic situation where they would have to engage the enemy," said 1st Lt. Walter Pratt, the platoon leader of Abel Troop.

The Iraqi Army's dedication to become an efficient entity is paying off in their patrols in the city.

"They speak with the civilians and are not afraid," said Zaran Muhammed-Abed, a platoon sergeant in the Iraqi Army. "We are satisfied and feel good about the Iraqi Army."

Coalition Forces are seeing a marked improvement in the performance of their protégés.

"Every time we train with the Iraqi Army, they get better and better," said Pratt. "We've seen them make great strides to the point where we are slowly but surely giving the province and the policing and security of the province up to them. I think it is a good example for the rest of the country."

The Iraqi Army's burgeoning control of the Daliyah province is evident at Forward Operating Bases like Normandy, where the perimeter of the base is secured by Iraqi forces. The Iraqi Soldiers even patrol the nearby villages and perform their own missions independent of Coalition involvement.

"When we clear a village we do a good job and sometimes we catch terrorists," said Muhammed-Abed.

Just like the United States Army, the Iraqi Army is continually training to become better and to maintain the skills they have mastered.

"We realize that the better they are, the more skillful they are going to be here (Iraq)," said Pratt. "We want to make sure they are as trained up as possible."

"We benefit from the training, and we appreciate them (Coalition Forces)," said Muhammed-Abed.

• Date Taken: 03.15.2006
• Date Posted: 03.15.2006 14:50
• Story ID: 5741
• Location: MUQDADIYA, IQ