Iraqi girls wave to a US Marine from the 1st Marine Division, patrolling the town of al-Nasr Wa al-Salam near Fallujah.(AFP/Patrick Baz)
Posted on 03/28/2004 3:00:09 PM PST by saquin
Two days after battling insurgents in this restive area, smiling US Marines patrolled the dusty streets of this Iraqi town Sunday, waving and shaking hands with residents in a bid to win them over.
A convoy of eight trucks mounted with machine-guns unloaded around 120 Marines in full combat gear in this town located around 50 kilometers west of Baghdad.
This is the heart of what is known as the "Sunni triangle", a hotbed of violent opposition by Sunni Muslim insurgents to the US-led occupation.
But unlike Friday's incident in nearby Fallujah in which a Marine was killed and several others were wounded, Sunday's two-hour Marine incursion here went off peacefully.
Five Iraqis, including a cameraman working for ABC News, were also killed and seven others wounded in the Fallujah clashes between US troops and insurgents, according to hospital officials.
Sunday, the Marines were clearly out to show the flag and try to win the hearts and minds to the local population.
After sealing off one entrance to the town, the heavily-armed Marines dismounted and fanned out in separate squads.
The first stop was the Al-Nasr Wa al-Salam police station where a Marine officer went to liaise with Iraqi policemen.
"We're just gathering intelligence," Corporal Shannon Tate told AFP as he stood guard inside the police station.
"We took over from the (US Army's) 82nd Airborne a little over two weeks ago. We haven't done a full switch yet, probably by the end of the month," he added.
A local plainclothes policeman came to report a carjacking. The Marines listened politely and then split into separate platoons, led by a few Iraqi policemen and followed by a swarm of noisy children.
"We're showing our presence, letting them know the Marines are here. Hopefully everything will be OK," said Corporal James Miller.
And indeed everything went without a hitch.
Shouting "Salaam" (peace), Marines waved, high-fived with children and shook hands with veiled matrons and shopkeepers.
Residents waved back and children asked the soldiers for money.
"Americans are good, Saddam (Hussein) no good," one young Iraqi said.
It was not possible to gauge whether this reflected the real sentiment of the local population.
As the Marines patrolled the dusty alleys in two files, they walked past walls with graffiti in Arabic proclaiming "No to terrorism", "Dictatorship will not come back", "Islam is innocent" or "Yes to a united Islam".
Some of the graffiti were however scrawled over.
The Marines, several of whom said they had fought the war that ousted Saddam Hussein last year, were visibly pleased with the friendly welcome.
"I am glad to be here. The people are very cooperative, very friendly," said Tate.
Lance Corporal Philipp Dennis concurred.
"I arrived from San Diego two weeks ago and I love it here. People did not have water so I gave them some. I'm helping those people. They are good people."
Asked about the incident in Fallujah, Corporal James Miller said his unit was not involved . "It was our sister unit 21-22."
"We went to another town yesterday and it didn't seem as friendly," he added.
The Marines said they would continue to mount "show the flag" patrols throughout the area to make residents feel secure.
"Al Nasr Wa al-Salam", indeed! In English, it means "Victory and Peace".
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