Photo By Senior Master Sgt. Heidi West | An Iraqi special operations forces Soldier performs a wrist lock hold on a fellow...... read more read more
By U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Heidi Davis
Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Arabian Peninsula
BAGHDAD, Iraq – "It's about leverage and violence of action," he said. "When a Soldier goes into a house, he has an M-4 [rifle], M-9 [pistol] and his hands. I want him to be able to go into a room and dominate it – whether it's with his weapons or his hands," said a coalition forces instructor and adviser to the Iraqi special operations forces.
To help ensure that dominance, Iraqi special operations forces soldiers were plunged into an intensive hand-to-hand combat and close-quarter-battle course in December at the newly established Iraqi Special Warfare Center and School in Baghdad. Hand-to-hand combat enhances a soldier's defensive capability in urban environments should a weapon fail during a struggle.
Students attending this multi-day course were attentive and seemed to pick up new moves relatively quickly.
"I've had you guys for two days, and you are already successfully executing choke holds and arm bars," said a coalition forces hand-to-hand combat instructor.
This cementing of newly taught information can be partially attributed to the method of teaching. First students were introduced to each combative maneuver as the instructor explained that speed is not the emphasis during training. Importance was placed on performing each step of a multifaceted maneuver with precision.
"[In the classroom,] I'm putting you in staged positions so that no one gets hurt," said the head instructor. "On the battlefield, it's not going to be staged. It's going to be a free-for-all. The basic reactive movements are the same, but the enemy is going to put up a struggle."
Students then progressed to the practice portion in which students paired up and executed slow, controlled movements with each maneuver. Meanwhile, instructors made corrections where necessary and reminded students of the complexity of a real-world, one-on-one struggle.
After rehearsals, students were ready for training-mat drills. Two students moved to the center of the training mat, while the head instructor set the ground rules.
"Each pair will go for a minute," he said. "No punching, biting, poking or kicking. Be professional ... You learn more from losing than winning."
Encircling the mat, Soldiers watched as their classmates went full force, leaving just one of the two standing. After the last pair finished, the head instructor explained how impressed he was watching them execute the movements. He added, with only a few days training they were doing exactly what they were supposed to do be doing.
Finally, students were ready to take their new combative skills to the shoot house, where they got a taste of what it would be like to apply the basic fundamentals in an urban setting. This near real-world portion of training reiterated to Soldiers that they cannot predict what lies before them when going into a structure. They must be prepared to act or react, execute the mission, come out alive and return to base safely.
"Sometimes we are the aggressor, sometimes we are not. We needed to prepare students for both scenarios," he said.
| Date Taken: | 01.07.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 01.07.2009 19:20 |
| Story ID: | 28572 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 157 |
| Downloads: | 141 |
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