Saddam Hussein's former palace at Camp Prosperity is now the home of Companies C and D, 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division. Paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne began deploying to Iraq on Dec. 3, 2004. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Mike Pryor
A paratrooper from Company D, 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, makes himself at home inside one of Saddam Hussein's former palaces at Camp Prosperity in central Baghdad. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Mike Pryor
82nd Airborne Troops Get New Housing
Airborne troops have returned to Iraq,
but this time around, living quarters are palatial (literally).
By U.S. Army Pfc. Mike Pryor 82nd Airborne Division BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 15, 2004 — When U.S. Army Sgt. Eddie Rodriguez and his fellow paratroopers in the 82nd Airborne Division were rolling towards Baghdad at the outset of Operation Iraqi Freedom, they camped in schoolhouses, warehouses, bombed-out buildings and on the desert floor. Almost two years later, Rodriguez is back in Iraq with the 82nd. But compared to last time, the place where he's staying now is a palace. Literally. It used to be one of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's homes.
"Hey, it might be nice to live the good life for a while," said Rodriguez, Company D, 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, about his new surroundings.
Rodriguez' battalion is one of two from the 82nd that deployed in early December to Iraq to provide security and support for the country's upcoming elections. The unit is stationed in Baghdad's International Zone. Because of the nature of the battalion's mission, each of its companies is based in a different section of central Baghdad. These sites will be the paratroopers' new homes until the end of the deployment.
The palace where Delta and Charlie Companies are based is in the area of the International Zone known as Camp Prosperity. That name seems appropriate. The road to the palace bisects a shimmering man-made lake lined with green palm trees. The columned entrance resembles some ancient Greek temple.
Inside the palace, however, it's a different story. The hallways and rooms are a maze of plywood boards dividing the paratroopers' living quarters. Cots, ruck sacks and all the other equipment of an Army at war are stacked against the walls. In the building where Saddam Hussein once slept on silk sheets, paratroopers wrapped in their sleeping bags watch DVDs and play card games on the floor.
"It's a kick to be living in the home of the man we helped topple.