By Will Weissert
The Associated Press, 27 November 2006
FALLUJAH, Iraq - It's been two years since U.S. forces cleared out this dangerous western city, the bloodiest urban combat of the Iraq war. But Iraqi soldiers still aren't ready to stop Fallujah from becoming an insurgent stronghold again.
U.S. teams say training efforts have been undermined by corruption, a dearth of basic equipment and Iraqi soldiers' mistrust of those from different Muslim backgrounds and lack of faith in the government.
Iraqi commanders acknowledge they can't handle a city as large and volatile as Fallujah without American support — especially with the country teetering on the edge of civil war between the Shiite majority and Sunni minority.
"It's something we keep in mind, that one day coalition forces are going to leave. But it can't be now," said 1st Lt. Hamazah Adman, head of intelligence for the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division.
"We can say that two years may be enough," he said.
There are more than 400 U.S. adviser teams in Iraq, and Gen. John Abizaid, head of U.S. forces in the Middle East, has said he recommends expanding those teams as America looks for a new direction in the war.
Not waiting for Washington, Marine Col. Lawrence D. Nicholson, commander of Regimental Combat Team 5 in Anbar province, began moving troops from combat to adviser teams in January. That increased the average size of the training teams in the area from about 10 to between 15 and 20 Marines.
Fallujah, a Sunni city of 300,000, lay in ruins after fighting in November 2004. Now the lights and water are back on and many residents who fled have returned. The Iraqi army now patrols more than 60 percent of the city, helping to battle insurgents who have killed scores of Marines with roadside bombs, ambushes and sniper fire.
During a recent late-night operation, Marine helicopters and Humvees cordoned off the southern district of Nazaal and two U.S. companies went house-to-house, hunting for guns, explosives and insurgents. An Iraqi company backed by three American advisers conducted its own search.
"They are our people and they are just doing their duty," said Abed El-Rahem, who sat in his socks on a couch while soldiers traipsed through his home, tracking mud on the fine carpets.
Except for one red-faced moment when his soldiers tried to search the same house twice, the operation went smoothly, though the Iraqi army recovered just one rifle in four hours of looking.
"Things are so violent that the people can't come to us for help, so we come to them," said Col. Abd al-Majeed Nasser, who led the raid.
Like many U.S. advisers in Iraq, Marines from the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion's Military Transition team live with the Iraqi army, sharing separate ends of a heavily fortified former health club.
But the Americans complain that much of their time is spent ensuring Iraqi soldiers are paid and that they receive basic equipment like flashlights and gloves. Higher-ups pocket supplies meant for troops, and many soldiers sell uniforms and boots while on leave, returning to demand new ones.
"Most of the time we can't advise. We are too busy running around protecting ourselves from attack or just making sure the army has the basics," said Sgt. Thomas J. Ciccarelli, 37, of South Lake Tahoe, Calif.
The Iraqis don't have enough soldiers to patrol Fallujah. Officially, the 2nd Brigade is more than 700 men short, but the real number is probably far higher because of desertions and "ghost" soldiers who exist only on paper. Ciccarelli's transition team is supposed to be advising 465 soldiers, but actually interacts with about 300.
Lt. Col. James Teeples, a senior adviser to U.S. military training teams in Fallujah, said many problems stem from corruption at the Iraqi Defense Ministry. While the average soldier makes less than $700 monthly, officials pay bribes of $15,000 to become brigade commanders, anxious to pocket kickbacks from the lower ranks.
"A good thing to keep in the back of your mind, kind of a realistic expectation, is that none of these guys are 100 percent clean," Teeples said.
He said many Iraqi soldiers try to do their jobs honestly, but supplement their incomes by stealing supplies like ammunition and selling them on the street.
Unlike Baghdad and other parts of Iraq torn by sectarian violence, the main battle in Anbar is between U.S. forces and largely Sunni insurgents.
Teeples said there are close links between many top Iraqi army officials and Shiite militias. Soldiers in the mostly Shiite army also have reached out to militias for protection, fearing civil war if American forces begin withdrawing, he said.
"They watch the news on U.S. satellite and they realize that everybody back home is talking about a drawing down of U.S. forces and they start looking at their future and wonder what's going to happen to their family once U.S. forces leave," Teeples said. "So you get a lot of them who, when they're home on leave, they start talking to militias who they think can protect them."
Lt. Javier Torres, a 31-year-old Marine, Brooklyn native and member of the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion's Transition Team, said advisers are careful not to teach Iraqi soldiers too much.
"If we train them to be snipers it could be that one day soon they are firing at us," he said. "With everything we teach them, we have to be aware that it could eventually become a threat."
Shiite soldiers insist they are sensitive to all civilians — even in Fallujah where most residents are Sunni. But there was some visible tension during the night raid when an Iraqi captain told a man who had fled Baghdad for fear of Shiite militias that it would never be safe to return.
Ahmed Sallah, 28, shot back: "I should be able to live anywhere."
Nasser, the Iraqi colonel, said educated Iraqis understand that Shiites and Sunnis do not pose a threat to one another, but that few Iraqis finish high school.
"The government is incapable of controlling the country. The militias are more powerful," he said. "Many believe that the leaders were placed there by the U.S. and not elected by the people so they don't trust them."
If U.S. forces leave, Nasser said, "the suffering of many people will get worse."
"The Iraqi army can't provide air supports, the Iraqi army can't disarm roadside bombs. We have no tanks," he said. "The Americans should provide us with those assets before they go."
--------------------------
Citation: Will Weissert. "Iraqi army not ready to defend Fallujah," The Associated Press, 27 November 2006.
Original URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061128/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_training_the_army
--------------------------