Sheik helps 24th MEU win hearts and minds

NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va. (March 10, 2006) -- The battle for hearts and minds isn’t won where the metal meets the man. It’s not won with superior technology, 5,000-pound, laser-guided bombs or from inside a command post. It’s won in the warmth of the home, surrounded by smoky wisps of apple-scented tobacco, sitting face to face with the leader of 35,000 local citizens.

The training necessary to win the Iraqi citizen’s approval – training that is increasingly needed – is near impossible to duplicate without being “in theater.” But, the 24th Marine Expeditionary Units, during its Training in an Urban Environment Exercise in Hampton Roads, Va., came close. The MEU devised a cultural immersion dinner, featuring an actual sheik, authentic Iraqi food, and a facsimile of an Iraqi guest room. Attention was paid to the smallest details.

“Having the real sheiks as part of the training is absolutely critical,” said Lt. Gen. James F. Amos, II Marine Expeditionary Force commanding general and a participant in a recent dinner. “This is what Marines have to deal with, and Marines are doing it right. That’s what this training does.”

In the scenario, a rifle company commander meets with a sheik from the Iraqi town of Falluja. The sheik, his advisors and prominent members of his family sit together with the company commander and translators to discuss how the two sides can work together to ease security concerns, address employment issues, and repair infrastructure.

“The key is to figure out the big, broad direction you want to go in,” said Amos. “You don’t want to get hung up on each of the complaints.”

Sheik Abdulamir al-Jaber, speaking through a translator, said he had traveled from southern Iraq just 20 days ago to help train the Marines in Iraqi culture. His goal, he said, was to “prevent our families from being in danger and prevent the Marines from being in danger.”

Sheik al-Jaber urges the Marines to empower the Iraqi people by employing them and building the country from within, rather than having Marines do all of the work. Al-Jaber, who lived under the rule of Saddam Hussein, believes that despite the problems in Iraq, “the situation is improving.”

Behaa al-Khazeriji, an Iraqi-American role player who prepared the food for the dinner – rice with leg of lamb, says that to win Iraqi hearts and minds, the Marines must first win the sheik. Making eye contact with the sheik rather than the translator and adhering to local customs can pay dividends in gaining the sheik’s confidence, which in turn can yield benefits.

“You are safe in the house of the shiek,” explained al-Khazeriji. “Forget your weapons; you are (a) human being. Take time and listen.”

“Nobody can do nothing to you when you’re eating the sheik’s food,” added Basim al-Shamary, a native of Al-Kut, Iraq, and a dinner participant.

With the sheik on their side, the safety of Marines on the street improves, as does their ability to provide a secure environment to the sheik and his family, said Amos.

“We want to rebuild the cities so that the women and children can go to the market in peace,” said Amos. “We’re gaining ground in winning the hearts and minds. But until we kill the insurgents, we’ll never be successful.”

The 24th MEU is wrapping up the premier training event of its pre-deployment training program. TRUEX, involved each of its four components: the Command Element; Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 365 (Reinforced); Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment; and MEU Service Support Group 24.

The 24th MEU is scheduled to deploy this spring to the European and Central Command theaters of operations.

"to me it looks like most of the insurgency is foreign funded, and run by foreign enforcers with an agenda."
All you said is fine and accurate. In that a lot of foreign money we know has supported the foreign elements, e.g. al Qaeda, as well as other small groups say, those that from Georgia, Cheshnia, other places in the ex soviet union etc., not to mention the ME countries and countries in Africa, and the Indonesian, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. groups/individuals that have come to Iraq some times with slight different primary reasons.
But we must also remember a lot of Iraqi money that found it's way into Saddams coffers also was used to finance a lot of Iraqi criminals and Baathist/old Iraqi army/intel/secret police etc., people.. Guys like Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri for over two years was a key Saddam financer, just to name a prime example.
I was speaking primarily about Iraqi part of the insurgency, in all it's forms, e.g. Baathist, say Ansar Al-Islam radical Wahabist goons, various Iraqi Salafist groups etc., not to meantion the obvious Shia clowns being financed and morally supported by Iran, such as Muqtad al Sadr and Abul Aziz al-Hakim to the south etc..
These are the people I am pointing the finger at, as well as the thousands of tribal shieks in the various provinces, that have been very slow to sign on to the coalitions goals.
In short. And you may agree upon reflecting on the short list I provide, these people have allowed the insurgency to build and run wide. Then add to that clowns like Sadr and his militia during 2004 causing so much resistance, and keep ing constant tormoil in central eastern Baghdad to exists, because he is so set against the coalition being in his country.
One adds all these things up, plus quite a few other things not mentioned along the same line, and one can see quite clearly if all the Iraqi elements would have united much earlier and worked with the Intermim Iraqi Governement, as well as the coalition only the radical foreign elements and hard core Saddamist would most likely still be in play.
And as we see in the past six months leading up to really super cooperation we are now seeing, in various elements now cooperating, and even going after ali babba independently, things could have settled down and we could have been pumping tons of more monies, establishing more business internal for them, in the way of re-construction and new construction etc.. In short employing millions of more Iraqi with meaningfull work.
So that is a very brief dialog as to why I believe the Iraqi have been cutting their own throats. Our Army,Navy,Airforce, and Marines as well as other coalition forces had been willing since early 2004 to rebuild Iraq and help it on it's way to a better future. They have for the most part resisted us. Right? But dispite these facts. We have come a long way in rebuilding their infrastructor. New water treatment systems where they never existed before, same for electrical grids, rebuild railway systems long in decay, oil refineries slowly being rebuilt from total neglect, new hospitals, medical clinics, the lists are long.
And the silent majority of Iraqi whom have been helped and given protection in many of the provinces do appear grateful, but in whole they all for many reasons, such as fear and retribution, and culturally not allowed to take independent actions (must go through sheik for instance) have only recently opened up and supported the coalition efforts.
Surely better late then never, but they could have spared themselves so much heartache and grief.

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