Economic Revival Stimulates Southern Baghdad’s Doura Neighborhood

Multi-National Force - Iraq ^ | Sgt. 1st Class Robert Timmons

[SandRat]

Citizens in Baghdad’s Doura district go into a corner market to buy food. Neighborhoods in the district have shown a recent economic revival after years of fighting. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Robert Timmons, 1st Infantry Division, Public Affairs.

BAGHDAD — Bullet holes attest to the battleground that was this two-block portion of the Doura neighborhood. Just a few months ago, residents were afraid to step outside, leaving their neighborhood filled with garbage, without power and with most of its shops closed.

That was until members of 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, made a concerted effort to weed out insurgents and put the citizens of Doura’s east side on the track to success.

“When we first arrived here, there were (10) stores open on the entire street,” said Army Lt. Col. Jim Crider, the squadron commander, as he toured the peaceful streets with members of the Iraqi media. “There were several attacks, improvised explosive devices every day, and no one wanted to cooperate.

“Initially, we stayed on the street to protect the people (24) hours a day, seven days a week, until we became friends with the people,” he said.

As of Oct. 27, (138) stores were open, Crider added.

Staying out on the streets and erecting barriers to prevent gunfire from entering the area began to pay off in more ways than one. Citizens began to come back outside and an Iraqi National Police checkpoint was relocated because it was deemed unnecessary to protect that portion of town.

“This is one of the safest places in Doura,” said Pvt. David Polasek, a Lawrenceville, Ga., native serving with Troop A, 1-4 Cav., as he watched Iraqis laying new concrete on the street median. “More people are coming out every day because they feel safer.”

Once the citizens began to feel more secure, the insurgent threat began to diminish.

“Once we began to trust each other and share information, the insurgents could no longer hide,” Crider, a native of Hopkinsville, Ky., said. “At the same time, we began to work on essential services projects such as trash pickup and street lights. Once they saw they had good power and jobs, the area began to look much nicer and the insurgents began to disappear. And things got really good.”

Many projects aimed at helping citizens have been completed in the past few months. “We suffered a lack of security and essential services in (this area) until three months ago, when the citizens and local contractors were able to complete (22) projects together,” said Dr. Moayaad, who lives in the neighborhood.

Some of the citizens said the area hasn’t been as good since before Saddam Hussein left power.

“The situation got worse after the fall (of Baghdad) until this moment,” said Aalaa Eldien Salim, a butcher whose shop was one of the few that remained open during the tough times the neighborhoods endured. “The security gradually started to return to the area because of the presence of Coalition forces in the area. They are rescuing us from the saboteur’s elements. The lighting in the area is important for the shops.”

Salim said he was able to keep in business because of monetary help. “I had damages due to explosions around my shop,” he said. “I received a grant, which helped me to fix the windows, but I still need to buy some stuff for the shop, like a freezer.”

The streets were once empty but for a few stores, now they are busy with the activity of a garbage truck making routine rounds to pick up trash, workers placing multicolored bricks down as a new sidewalk, children playing, and people visiting the Doura clinic for their medical needs.

(Story by Army Sgt. 1st Class Robert Timmons, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division Public Affairs)

In Other Recent Developments Here:

BAGHDAD – Members of the Iraqi Army and Iraqi Security Volunteers conducted a raid of the cemetery adjacent to the Abu Hanifa Mosque in Adhamiyah Nov. 16, seizing a cache of weapons hidden in two pits disguised as graves.

BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed six terrorists and detained (10) suspects Saturday during operations targeting terrorist networks in central and northern Iraq.

Press Releases

• Coalition forces disrupt al-Qaeda foreign terrorist and propaganda operations; 27 detained
• 101st Airborne’s Strike Brigade sends Dagger Brigade homeward bound (Camp Liberty)
• Eight suspects captured, cache discovered (Baghdad)
• Iraqi Army, volunteers find cache during raid (Baghdad)
• Iron Hammer successful in pursuit of al-Qaeda in Iraq (Tikrit)
• Operation Marne Courageous: Coalition Forces establish presence west of the Euphrates

[SandRat]

FR WAR NEWS!

WAR News at Home and Abroad You'll Hear Nowhere Else!

All the News the MSM refuses to use!

Or if they do report it, without the anti-War Agenda Spin!

Not for commercial use. For educational and discussion purposes only.

[M Kehoe]

To the dismay of the left, freedom and capitalism work every time they're tried.

5.56mm

[mowowie]

Alot of Good Iaq stories here this morning.