New Boats Help Iraqi Police Secure Waterways

Defend America News ^ | Petty Officer 2nd Class John J. Pistone

[SandRat]

New Boats Help Iraqi Police Secure Waterways

With five new patrol boats, the Iraqi police are now in a position to secure
waterways believed to be used as insurgent supply routes.

By U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class John J. Pistone Multinational Security Transition Command—Iraq

BAGHDAD, April 24, 2006 — The Tigris River runs through Baghdad and, with more than 35 miles of waterways in the Baghdad area, many coalition advisors and Iraqis believe this is the major supply route for insurgents. Until recently, it has gone virtually unprotected.

With five new patrol boats provided by the coalition, the Iraqi police are now in a position to secure these waterways.

“We believe that the insurgents have been using the rivers as a means of transporting their supplies because there are no checkpoints and no one on the water to stop them,” said Richard Eaton, International Police Liaison Officer with the Baghdad River Patrol and member of the coalition’s Civilian Police Assistance Transition Team.

“In order for the people to have peace they need to see us on the water, they need to see that we are out there day and night. Now they see us patrolling in our new boats and they know that we are there to protect them.”

Iraqi River Patrol Officer Mohammed

An Iraqi River Patrol Officer scans the Tigris River for insurgent activity, April 17, 2006. Multinational Security Transition Command—Iraq photo by U.S. Army Capt. Mark E. Jacobsen

He said the Iraqi police have always had a presence on the water but until recently it was limited to body recovery and trying to stop illegal fishing. He said they had been relegated to manning patrol stations along the river and were not able to really get out and patrol the waters.

“The boats they had were old and slow and often were inoperable,” Eaton said. “This prevented them from being able to conduct any type of patrolling or police work.”

Capt. Firas, of the Iraqi River Patrol, said in the past they would get a report of someone in trouble in the water and the majority of the time the person had drowned before the police could get there.

A combination of the inadequate boats and the lack of an efficient communication system were the cause of the problem, he said. He feels things will dramatically change thanks to the new boats provided by the coalition.

“With our old boats we were not able to respond to emergency situations … we could barely get outside of our immediate area,” Firas said. “Now we can go north, we can go south and we can bring police officers and rescue divers to a scene quickly.”

Patrol Officer Mohammed has been on the River Patrol for more than five years and said there have always been problems on the river. He said that over the past few years, more and more criminals have been using the waterways because of the citywide curfews. He said now they are in a position to put a stop to this.

“The rivers in Baghdad have always been dangerous but we have seen more and more bodies dumped in the river over

Police officers from the Baghdad River Patrol cruise down the Tigris River through Baghdad in one of their new patrol boats, April 17, 2006. Multinational Security Transition Command—Iraq photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class John J. Pistone

recent months. It has been frustrating because we did not have the tools to stop the criminals,” Mohammed said.

“Now that we have these boats, we can be active and aggressive in stopping these crimes.”

Mohammed feels the new boats will also help the Iraqi people feel more secure. “In order for the people to have peace they need to see us on the water, they need to see that we are out there day and night,” he said. “Now they see us patrolling in our new boats and they know that we are there to protect them.”

Eaton said the officers have had a steep learning curve with the new boats. Even though they are very skilled, they were not used to the increased power of the boats. He said the area where they needed the most mentorship has been patrolling tactics.

“These officers have been taught proper patrolling techniques because it was really a necessary function of their job,” Eaton said. “Now they have this new equipment and they can be proactive instead of reactive. This is what we have been working on the most.”

Eaton said there are plans to send 16 of the officers through an advanced river patrol course conducted at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. This is the same course the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard attend.

The obstacles this unit faces are not the skills of the officers or their commitment level, Eaton added, but the logistics involved in keeping a river patrol operational. He said the biggest obstacle has been getting enough fuel to keep them on the water.

Firas said the antiquated equipment had taken its toll on the morale of the unit as well. For several years, he said, Iraqi citizens and other police officers looked down on the River Patrol. He said the police officers working on the water loved their jobs, but they were often told that they were not “real officers.”

“These new boats have helped us walk with our heads up … people see us on the water with new modern equipment and they treat us as professionals. We now have the respect of the Iraqi people and other officers,” Firas said.

Mohammed added that in the past, people didn’t really know what the function of the River Patrol was.

“We need to let the (Iraqi) people know that we are here to serve them, this is what police work is about,” he said. “It does not matter whether you are Sunni, Kurd or Shiite. We are all one family and now we have the tools to help you – anytime, anywhere – along this river.”

[SandRat]

Iraqi Police Now have a Brown Water Navy.

[bybybill]

Hate being critical of our military, but why did this take this long?

[SandRat]

First they had to vet them, then run them through a Police Academy class, then run them through river patrol training then do "sail alongs," then it was "Probi" time, then after new equipment training team gets done with them you cut 'em lose. That would be my guess if it was done correctly.