4/3 AAB arrives in Anbar, continues joint operations

Photo By Sgt. Maj. Tanya Lumbard | Staff Sgt. Donald Sewell, Company B, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, assists his Iraqi police counterpart during a traffic control point assessment July 21.  

CAMP RAMADI, IRAQ

07.24.2010

Story by Staff Sgt. Tanya Lumbard 

4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs

CAMP RAMADI, Iraq - Fourth Brigade from the 3rd Infantry Division arrived earlier this month to begin transfer of authority responsibilities with 1st Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division as their deployment draws to a close.

Soldiers assigned to the Fort Stewart, Ga.,-based 4th Advise and Assist Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, have teamed up with their Iraqi security force counterparts in time to support Operation Iraqi Freedom and transition to Operation New Dawn.

Col. Lou Lartigue, 4th AAB commander, said his team’s operations will closely mirror the advise and assist mission of 1st AAB, 82nd Airborne Division.

“We’ll continue to support and enable the Iraqi security forces to prevent future attacks,” he said during his initial Iraqi media gathering at Camp Ramadi July 17. The Vanguard commander said 4th AAB will train with their ISF partners on a daily basis.

Soldiers assigned to the Fort Bragg, N.C.,-based airborne unit are currently sharing with 4th AAB Soldiers the lessons they have learned from their 12-month deployment. The 1st AAB will officially transfer authority to 4th AAB at a ceremony slated for early August.

Beginning an enduring partnership

Though the 4th AAB has not yet officially assumed authority of the Anbar province, advise and assist missions are already underway at Camp Mejid, an Iraqi army compound near the Al Asad Air Base. There, stability transition team members and Soldiers assigned to the Company B, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 4th AAB intelligence support team have partnered with 7th Iraqi Army Div., soldiers at the newly constructed Joint Operations Center.

The facility, which opened last May, was modeled on 1/82 AAB’s tactical operations center, and allows Iraqi soldiers to receive a ‘heads up’ on any significant actions in their areas. Both IA and U.S. forces in the JOC track and trade information on all significant actions 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week.

“Before [the JOC opened], the IA would meet with their American counterparts maybe once or twice a day to discuss significant actions that occurred,” explained an Iraqi Army officer. “Now, we have constant communication with each other; we can share information first-hand, and that’s important.”

The IA officer went on to say he is grateful for the presence of 4th AAB Soldiers at the JOC.

“We are reaping the benefits of the American expertise,” he said. “Their knowledge and logistical support is definitely appreciated.”

Enabling their Iraqi counterparts is the overall goal of the brigade, said Maj. Princeton White, intelligence advisor for the 7th IA Div. Stability Transition Team.

“We want to help the Iraqi security forces—police and army—secure their nation and protect themselves,” he said, adding that the brigade is working to help legitimize the ISF in the eyes of the people and the government of Iraq.

Securing the streets

Wasting no time in helping the ISF, Soldiers from 1st Platoon, Company B, 3rd Bn., 7th Inf. Regt., conducted partnered operations July 21 to assess four Iraqi police checkpoints in Anbar.

The “Cottonbaler” Soldiers, accompanied by 1/82nd AAB troops assigned to Battery A, 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regt., assisted Iraqi Police officers who searched oncoming vehicles. The traffic control point assessment afforded the 4/3rd AAB Soldiers another opportunity to establish an enduring friendship with the Iraqis before officially inheriting the largest province in Iraq.

• Date Taken: 07.24.2010
• Date Posted: 07.24.2010 14:45
• Story ID: 53323
• Location: CAMP RAMADI, IQ