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FOB HUNTER — U.S. Soldiers recently transferred a military base to Iraqi Security Forces near Majaar Al Kabir in a ceremony attended by key U.S. and Iraqi leaders in the Maysan province. "This is a historic event for the citizens of the Maysan province and for all Soldiers operating in Iraq," said Lt. Col. William Walski, commander, 2nd Squadron, 13th Cavalry Regiment. "We are proud of the relationships we have built with the Iraqi Security Forces and are confident of their ability to protect the citizens of Maysan province." During the ceremony, remarks were given by Muhammad Shia, governor of...

WASHINGTON, July 2, 2009 – It’s “so far, so good” in Iraq since U.S. combat forces withdrew from the country’s cities and towns, the commander of Multinational Force Iraq said yesterday. “It’s going fine -- no problem at all,” Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno said on the PBS program “Newshour With Jim Lehrer.” Iraqi troops and police are manning checkpoints and stations by themselves, the general added. Baghdad and Kirkuk have seen bomb attacks, but Iraqi forces have been able to handle the situations, Odierno told news anchor Judy Woodruff. U.S. forces have been moving out of the cities and...

It may not be "Mission accomplished," but we are getting closer. Yesterday, the United States completed the process of withdrawing from Iraq's cities. American forces closed or turned over to Iraqi authorities 150 bases and facilities. The Iraqis are happy to see us go, and we are glad to be leaving.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – U.S. troops pulled out of Baghdad on Monday, triggering jubilation among Iraqis hopeful that foreign military occupation is ending six years after the invasion to depose Saddam Hussein. Iraqi soldiers paraded through the streets in their American-made vehicles draped with Iraqi flags and flowers, chanting, dancing and calling the pullout a "victory." One drove a motorcycle with party streamers on it; another, a Humvee with a garland of plastic roses on the grill. U.S. combat troops must pull out of Iraq's urban centers by midnight on Tuesday under a bilateral security pact that also requires all troops...

Lt. Col. Timothy Karcher, commander, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, presents Sameer al Haddad, a representative from the Office of the Prime Minister of Iraq, a symbolic key signifying the transfer of responsibility of Joint Security Station Sadr City in northeast Baghdad during the official ceremony, June 20. Photo by Sgt. Shejal Pulivarti, 1st Cavalry Division. BAGHDAD — A common sense of triumph and accomplishment drifted in the air during a ceremony in northeast Baghdad’s Sadr City district June 20, as U.S. Soldiers returned Joint Security Station (JSS) Sadr City to the Iraqi Army (IA), in accordance with the U.S.-Iraq...

An Iraqi Soldier hoists the Iraqi flag during a transfer of authority ceremony to signify the opening of the Balad Joint Coordination Center, which was previously Forward Operating Base Paliwoda, June 15. Photo by Spc. Jazz Burney, 25th Infantry Division. TIKRIT — U.S. Soldiers lowered the American flag and Iraqi Soldiers raised the Iraqi flag to signify the reclassification of Forward Operating Base Paliwoda into the Iraqi-led Balad Joint Coordination Center during a ceremony near Balad, June 15. The Balad JCC combines Iraqi Army and Police coordination elements, along with civilian emergency response functions together in one center. A small...

BAGHDAD — Iraqi Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 54th Army Brigade, 6th Infantry Division, held a ceremony at Joint Security Station Kahdra on June 10 to celebrate the transfer of authority from Coalition forces. The transfer was a direct result of the Iraqi Security Agreement and the teamwork of the Iraqi Security Forces, Coalition forces and the Iraqi people. "The transfer of JSS Kahdra is another way of validating the work Iraqi Security Forces have done with the aid of Coalition forces for so long," said Capt. Maxwell Scott, an intelligence officer. "This ceremony not only represents the advent of...

BAGHDAD — As the June 30 deadline for U.S. Soldiers to be out of Iraqi cities draws near, U.S. forces under Multi-National Division - Baghdad handed over Joint Security Station (JSS) Hurriyah II to Iraqi Security Forces, June 9. "This is yet another step the sovereign state of Iraq has taken to provide for the security of the people of Baghdad and the progress that has been achieved together with the Iraqi Security Forces," said Col. Joseph Martin, commander, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team. "Iraq is now enjoying irreversible momentum toward a peaceful and prosperous future." Since October, elements of...

WASHINGTON, June 8, 2009 – Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq is working toward its mission to assist the Iraqi Interior Ministry in generating a professional and credible police force, one of the command’s deputy commanders said today. The command also is helping the ministry develop institutional capacity to acquire, train, develop, manage, sustain and resource those forces, Army Maj. Gen. James Milano, deputy commander of the MNSTC-I’s interior affairs directorate, said in a Pentagon news conference. “What we and the Iraqis are striving for is a condition known as police primacy,” he said. “Under police primacy, the Iraqi police forces...

WASHINGTON, June 3, 2009 – Though the Afghan National Police still face many challenges, they continue to make progress on a daily basis, a senior U.S. advisor said. “The police officers that I see and deal with on a daily basis are very dedicated to their cause and to their nation,” Army Col. Dave Harris, commander of Regional Police Advisory Command South, said during a “DoDLive” bloggers roundtable May 29. Harris oversees 19 teams in southern Afghanistan that mentor thousands of members of the Afghan National Police in the country’s Helmand, Kandahar, Uruzgan and Zabul provinces. The mentors live, train...

Lt. Col. John Vermeesch (right), commander of 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, prepares to sign transfer contracts with Samir Hadad, the secretary director for the Iraqi Prime Minister, at Joint Security Station Hurriyah, May 30. Photo by Staff Sgt. Peter Ford, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. BAGHDAD — An historic event took place here when Coalition forces (CF) transferred Joint Security Station Hurriyah to the Iraqi Army (IA), May 30. "The transfer of JSS Hurriyah from Coalition forces to Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) is one more step in the process of relinquishing control of...

WASHINGTON, June 1, 2009 – The United States continues to hand over authority to Iraqis in keeping with the terms of an agreement between Washington and Baghdad that took effect Jan. 1. American forces in Iraq last week transferred responsibility of a security base manned by coalition and Iraqi personnel and a vehicle maintenance center. “The U.S. forces leaving this base are giving the opportunity to the Iraqi forces to take their place and to take complete control of this base, which indicates a new era for the Iraqi armed forces,” Iraqi Army Lt. Col. Majid said in a May...

Hesco barrier removal along Abu Nuwas Street in the Rusafa district of Baghdad, May 28. Photo by Sgt. Rebekah Malone, 225th Engineer Brigade. BAGHDAD — Just as American teenagers hang out with friends on a hot summer night, Iraqi teenagers were doing the same, May 28, except their entertainment was watching U.S. Soldiers tear down barriers blocking a popular street in central Baghdad. Many cheered, gave a thumbs-up or simply said, "Good!" The walls surrounding the small Combat Outpost, known simply as 102, in the Rusafa district of Baghdad, came crashing down, further evidence of the implementation of the Security...

WASHINGTON, May 27, 2009 – Southern Iraq is “a much better place to live and raise a family than it was a year ago,” thanks to tremendous strides in security, governance, job opportunity and essential services, the commander of the 1st Cavalry Division’s 4th Brigade Combat Team said today. Army Col. Philip Battaglia described two major lines of progress he’s seen since his “Long Knife Brigade” arrived at Multinational Division South last year: one focused on security and the other, on local government. “The Iraqi security forces have developed into a professional, lethal force, capable of independently securing their citizens...

WASHINGTON, May 8, 2009 – From an overall perspective, security in Iraq remains improved, the Multinational Force Iraq commander said during a Pentagon briefing today. Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Force Iraq, provides an operational update briefing May 8, 2009, to the Pentagon press corps. DoD photo by R.D. Ward  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “We continue to see overall levels of violence at or near the lowest level since the summer of 2003 inside of Iraq,” Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno said. In addition, Odierno said, the capacity and capability of the Iraqi security...

TIKRIT — Several senior leaders from the U.S. Embassy and Multi-National Corps – Iraq recently visited Contingency Operating Base Speicher to review the progress achieved by the Salah ad-Din Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT). PRTs have often been hailed as crucial components in creating stability here. The team's relationship with the military units they serve with is a key part of their success -- the stronger the mutual support, the more effective both organizations are. In Salah ad-Din, that relationship is strong and growing daily. "The CG's priority is to support the PRTs," said Maj. Gen. James P. Hunt, deputy commanding...

MOSUL — The Commander if the Ninewa Operations Command (NOC), Iraqi Maj. Gen. Hassan Karim, hosted a joint assessment briefing recently to discuss current operations in the Ninewa province and the removal of Coalition combat forces from Iraqi cities by June 30. Gen. Ray Odierno, the commanding general of Multi-National Force - Iraq, took part in the briefing, which took place here at Forward Operating Base Diamondback. Joining the general were his top commanders as well as representatives from the Iraqi government and Police. During the meeting, Minister of Defense Abd Al-Qadir expressed the need to defeat the terrorist's network....

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, TIKRIT — The incoming governor of Salah ad Din province brought the provincial leadership to an orientation tour of the Provincial Joint Coordination Center in Tikrit, April 23. One of the most critical components to reposition forces, per the Security Agreement, is the joint coordination centers. The center brings local Iraqi Security Forces, government officials, emergency response managers and Coalition forces together to coordinate emergency response functions from a consolidated headquarters. There are a series of coordination centers spread across the major cities in Salah ad Din province. Retired Iraqi Army Staff Brig. Gen. Issa, the...

Major Dickie Head looks bemused as we emerge from the safety of an armoured Iraqi Army Humvee and walk towards what was one of the most dangerous parts of Basra - now a small, but busy, market. This is the first time he has returned to this area since a tour of duty which saw him and his men engulfed in a vicious and lengthy battle near the city centre. His unit was trying to recover the bodies of the five British service-personnel killed when a Lynx helicopter was brought down by insurgents on 6 May 2006.

AMARAH — Construction of the Iraqi Army’s (IA) new Maymona Location Command in southeast Iraq is on schedule for completion by September, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The $35.9 million project, overseen by USACE’s Gulf Region Division (GRD), will provide a base for 1,000 Iraqi Soldiers. “This location command will support Iraqi Army units stationed in our area,” explained Ali Abdul, the Iraqi engineer overseeing construction for the GRD. “It will ensure our Iraqi Soldiers have the supplies they need as they improve security in our area.” Shelly Carter, a GRD construction representative, says the Iraqi...