Blue Star Chronicles

This action is part of the ‘troop surge’ currently underway in Iraq. We are sending more Troops and they are moving into the neighborhoods rather than living on larger bases. The point is that the Troops are in closer proximity to the population which will hopefully result in more cooperation and intelligence from the population.

In making this move, more Troops are necessary because of the increased vulnerability of our Troops in these much less secure living quarters. The neighborhoods are infiltrated with al-Qaeda and Iranian operatives. As they move out into the neighborhoods the enemy sees opportunity to inflict harm on them. The enemy also is testing boundaries and Troop reactions to their attacks. In addition, the enemy is not operating under rules of engagement and our Troops are operating under extremely restrictive rules of engagement. Our Troops are in a position of living among and with people they have no idea whether or not they can trust.

The latest issue of Stars and Stripes addresses the reasoning behind this move and the dangers inherent in moving our Troops into the neighborhoods of Iraq.

As part of the change in philosophy, more than 50 outposts have sprung up around Baghdad, along with others placed in contentious areas throughout the country like Diyala and Anbar provinces.

“It’s a hard transition for a lot of units,” said Maj. Robert Griggs of the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division — the unit that holds Inchon and four other company-size outposts. “Units are concerned that the enemy may try to overrun them.”

I imagine they are concerned. I don’t see how they sleep at night at all.

The regiment arrived in Iraq a few months before the public release of the U.S. military’s new doctrine. The 282-page field manual stressed minimizing the size of bases, making them less intrusive to the local populace and less suggestive of “unduly luxurious living by foreign forces.”

Previous leadership of the U.S. effort in Iraq had placed greater emphasis on placing American forces in large forward operating bases, some the size of small towns, with fast-food franchises and department-store like outlets.

Maybe I have the wrong attitude but we are already asking our Soldiers to do repeated rotations and to have extended rotations. Now they are having even minimal ‘reminders of home’ taken away. They are living in close proximity - perhaps even in the same living quarters - with people who want to kill them. If having a hamburger weren’t possible it would be one thing, but since it IS possible, why not let them have a hamburger?

It seems to me that once again we are putting the needs of Iraqis and the enemy ABOVE the needs and safety of our own Soldiers.

Soon after the base was established, insurgents began testing their new neighbors. In the first months, one convoy came across seven roadside bombs piled outside the front gates. More recently, U.S. officials had gotten reports that a force of more than two dozen insurgents planned to storm the walls.

My hope is that the increase in violence is al-Qaeda and other insurgents testing the ’surge’ and this new plan of operation will result in victory. My fear is that it puts our Troops in much greater danger without proper rules of engagement to protect themselves in these very precarious relationships.

Placing soldiers out among Iraqis facilitates intelligence gathering as locals grow more familiar with U.S. troops, Dittenber said.

“[Soldiers get to] know the local people, they begin to learn who is supposed to be there and they can tell when something is out of place,” he said.

I hope this works.

Staff Sgt. Duane Thomas spends 48-hour rotations at another of the regiment’s outposts. The 28-year-old from Little Meadows, Pa., said that the initial push to establish the position was a struggle. “We had a couple of big engagements,” he said. “[Insurgents] did not want us to move forward.”

Since then, however, the area has calmed down, he said. “We’ve only taken a few sniper rounds, some mortars. We’re gaining real estate, taking away supply routes from the enemy.”

But the added benefits of increased interaction between troops and the local population have yet materialize, Brown said.

“I always tell my guys never to trust anybody out there,” he said. “You never know.”

That’s wise. I genuinely hope this works. I understand the philosophy behind it. It’s a gamble that closer proximity will result in better cooperation from the population. It’s a gamble that increases the risks of American casualties.

As the mother of a front-line combat Soldier in one of those COPs, all of this makes it very difficult to exhale.

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