Story by: Spc. Erin Robicheaux
CAMP AL TAHREER, Baghdad--Soldiers in the 256th Tiger Brigade Combat Team are, indirectly, helping their battle buddies to successfully complete missions. They do it by sharing what the lessons they've learned on their own missions, as well as vital intelligence.
The "middle man" in this venture is called Project Babylon. The objective, according to 2nd Lt. Shane Istre, the project's officer in charge, is to give the entire brigade a "common operating picture."
He said the end result is to assure that no stone is left unturned for any patrol that leaves the gates of Tigerland. His team does this by gathering patrol information quickly.
"As Soldiers come in from a mission, it's our job to debrief each patrol and to gather as much information from them as we can," Istre said. "We question them thoroughly about things they have seen and heard, and we try to concentrate on what they may not remember to tell us."
Istre said sometimes even a detail of a mission that may seem insignificant to a Soldier could turn out to be one of the most vital pieces of information. That's why the Babylon staff is well trained on what types of questions to ask.
Spc. Leslie Hammons, 199th Support Battalion, explained that she and her co-workers went through rehearsals to ensure that they knew exactly what they would be looking for from the Soldiers coming off of a mission.
"We focused on letting people talk and we were trained on being as fast as possible, since the Soldiers would most likely be tired from having been up for many hours," she said.
The Project Babylon's staff is made mostly of Soldiers who have a civilian background in law enforcement. The patrol debriefings are fed immediately onto a tactical website, making it available to all members of the brigade. The idea was the brainchild the brigade's commanding general, Brig. Gen. John Basilica Jr., with the goal of not only gathering much-needed information but also standardizing the content of reports.
Before debriefings begin for incoming patrols, Istre and his staff take into account that most patrols have not had a hot meal in a while, so they try to make it as pleasant as possible for those Soldiers. They've added some creature comforts to the process.
"We need for them to understand that this is to help them," Hammons said. "We are not interrogators. We simply want to get as much usable information as possible to pass on to the next patrol."
Sgt. 1st Class Bryan Marshall, a platoon sergeant with Company A, 1088th Engineer Battalion, credits Babylon for possibly saving his life and the lives of his Soldiers. Intelligence provided by the Babylon staff tipped Marshall off on where to expect possible small arms fire. When they ran into it, they were ready.
"We knew where it might happen and, thankfully, that's where it did happen," Marshall said. "As a result, we're all okay."
Spc. Kenny Schulz of Battery B, 1st Battalion, 141st Field Artillery Regiment was brought into the Babylon staff as a result of his law enforcement background. He admits that, at first, the patrols weren't very happy about having to make a stop before resting, but because of the success of the intelligence sharing, the Soldiers finally understand the big picture.
"Now the troops are telling us that they look forward to coming here," he said, "It's a cozy feeling for them. We have a Christmas tree, comfortable sofas, and an LSU banner from back home. It makes them feel relaxed, but I think they just want the food and drinks."
"We want to extract relevant information from patrols as quickly as possible, and make it available immediately to all units," said Maj. John Wells, a brigade intelligence officer. "Units can review what is important to them and turn it into intelligence for their commanders. Every time our Soldiers go on patrol, they are in danger. We want to ensure the risk is not in vain by learning all we can from their experiences."
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| Date Taken: | 12.20.2004 |
| Date Posted: | 12.20.2004 11:12 |
| Story ID: | 733 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 45 |
| Downloads: | 19 |
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