Photo By Lance Cpl. Jason Hernandez | Iraqi officers gather various simulated intelligence items before hiding them...... read more read more
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CAMP HAMZA, Iraq — Iraqi officers took part in a sensitive site exploitation course held aboard Camp Hamza, Iraq, June 19.
The information learned from the course, designed to teach the Iraqi officers to become future SSE instructors, is something that Military Transition Team 0228 believes to be essential to successful future operations conducted by the Iraqi brigade they are training.
"A lot of soldiers in the Iraqi army really don't know what goes into searching a house for evidence, much less how to actually do it themselves," said Sgt. Erik Lueras, the operations chief for MiTT 0228. "With these courses, they'll not only be able to properly conduct a search and gather evidence, but they'll also be able to teach others how to do the same."
With the course running late into the evening, the Iraqi officers watched firsthand as the Marines went step-by-step, removing an insurgent role player from his home and properly searching the potential suspect.
"It's important that they know how to search someone, not just because they've got to ensure they have all of the evidence they'll need to get a conviction, but because they need to protect themselves and whoever happens to be out there with them," said Lueras. "That's why we have to go through the whole process for them repeatedly - so they'll understand."
Additionally, the team instructed the officers on how to appropriately treat compliant civilians, while being sensitive to Iraqi culture, and reminded the soldiers that it is their responsibility to look after the well-being of the Iraqi people.
"What we're trying to do right now is show the Iraqi army a different and more professional approach to dealing with civilians, regardless of whether they are guilty or not," said 1st Lt. Jeffrey Marston, an intelligence advisor with MiTT 0228. "The great thing is that they're actually interested in succeeding and excelling in this course."
During the second phase of the course, MiTT 0228 proved the tactical effectiveness of the methods they had been teaching the Iraqi officers.
The officers were given various intelligence items, weapons and improvised explosive devices to hide in any spot that they thought might be overlooked by Marine and sailor searchers during a simulated house search.
Smiling and actually having fun hiding items around the house, translators and Marines who would not be searching watched in a mixture of curiosity and amusement.
"It was pretty awesome actually watching them get into the class and taking the initiative in showing us they wanted to one-up us," said Lueras. "It just shows that day by day they're growing more and more motivated. They know soon enough we're going to be leaving operations in their hands and that they'll be the ones who have to make sure the arrest goes right the first time."
Going through the house, one Marine and one corpsman documented the condition of the environment before and after the search, to ensure no property had been damaged, and found 14 of the 15 items hidden throughout the simulated residence.
"This is really what we're out here to do at this point in the game," added Marston. "We're just professionalizing and fine-tuning the Iraqi military. Our job at this point is to refine their training."
With only two classes in the course left, suspected insurgents across Al Anbar province have a new challenge to face. Now, troops with the 28th Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division, will not only be able to put insurgents behind bars, but they'll have the proof to keep them there.
| Date Taken: | 06.19.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2009 06:48 |
| Story ID: | 35661 |
| Location: | CAMP HAMZA, IQ |
| Web Views: | 164 |
| Downloads: | 84 |
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