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« Tightening the Belts | Main | A happy ending? »

January 12, 2009

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SoI: Diyala

By Greyhawk

Continuing a series begun here.

As 2008 drew to a close, Adam Weinstein, MNC-I Public Affairs, sent us the following update on the transfer of the Sons of Iraq program to Government of Iraq control.

*****

Progress for Peace: Reconciliation
Diyala Sons of Iraq transfer underway

By Adam Weinstein Multi-National Corps – Iraq
December 30, 2008

BAGHDAD – Along with a new year, Iraq is ringing in an important step toward national reconciliation and sovereignty on Jan. 1, 2009. On that date, the nation’s government will take over control of the Sons of Iraq from Coalition forces in four key provinces across the country -- including Diyala, one of the most diverse provinces, where al-Qaeda in Iraq once terrorized and intimidated local residents.

In all, 76 percent of the nation’s SoI members will be under Iraqi government responsibility by New Year’s Day.

“We are beyond the tipping point with the Sons of Iraq,” said Lt. Col. Jeffrey Kulmayer, the chief of reconciliation and engagement for Multi-National Corps – Iraq. “They have invested in the future of Iraq. And the Iraqi Government is offering them hope in the future. They’re going to be part of that.”

The transfer marks a dramatic turnaround in Diyala province in particular. “Diyala is a small Iraq,” said Iraqi Army Maj. Gen. Muzhir al-Mawla, vice chairman of the Iraqi Follow-Up Committee for National Reconciliation. Home to Kurds as well as Sunni and Shi’a Iraqis, the region is more varied than Baghdad, where SoI members have already been successfully transferred to Iraqi control.

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Retired Iraqi Army Maj. Gen. Muzhir al-Mawla, left, vice chairman of the Iraqi Follow-Up Committee for National Reconciliation, speaks at a meeting on Forward Operating Base Gabe in Diyala province Dec. 23 to discuss the transfer of responsibility over Sons of Iraq from Coalition forces to the Government of Iraq, as Maj. Gen. Michael Ferriter, deputy commanding general, Multi-National Corps – Iraq, looks on. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Eric J. Martinez)

In 2007, this mostly Sunni area northeast of Baghdad had been considered one of the most dangerous provinces in Iraq, and it lacked an infrastructure to support many basic services for its residents. But, as AQI’s targeting of innocent men, women and children in areas like Diyala took its deadly toll on residents, concerned local citizens joined a movement called the Awakening and organized neighborhood watches to roll back terrorist gains in their communities.

The following year, the movement’s members -- who came to be known as the Sons of Iraq -- joined forces with the Coalition to fight AQI, with spectacular results. The addition of more than 100,000 SoI members helped to thicken the security forces and enabled the improved security environment experienced today.

“They have been critical to finding caches, bringing down IEDs, keeping al-Qaeda out of the towns, because they know everybody,” Kulmayer said. “They know who’s who in their towns and villages.”

Now, after helping bring greater stability to the region, 20,000 SoI members in Diyala, Babil, Wasit and Qadisiyah provinces will have opportunities to serve their country in new roles. In early December, they began to register with the Iraqi government to receive their regular paychecks. As responsibility for the SoI transfers to the government on Jan. 1, the group’s members will transition into a variety of meaningful jobs intended to secure the nation’s future. Twenty percent are slated to join the Iraqi Army or Police; the rest will enter public or private employment in a variety of roles, from civil engineering to electrical maintenance to working in the government’s multiple ministries.

“The goal of this program is to eventually hire these people into meaningful jobs,” said Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin III, commanding general of MNC-I. “While many of them are working in security positions right now, ultimately they’ll transition and go into other meaningful jobs, and that’s the goal.”

The program has met with a number of challenges. Before working with the Coalition, many of the SoI actively resisted it. Some members worry that their previous activities might be held against them.

So far, though, the SoI and the government have interacted well, confirming that this is “the leading edge of reconciliation,” according to Maj. Gen. Michael Ferriter, deputy commanding general of MNC-I.

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Maj. Gen. Michael Ferriter, left, deputy commanding general, Multi-National Corps – Iraq, and other Coalition forces leaders meet with Iraqi Army Lt. Gen. Abdul Kareem, right, Diyala Operations Center commander, on Forward Operating Base Gabe in Diyala province Dec. 23 to discuss the transfer of responsibility over Sons of Iraq from CF to the Government of Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Eric J. Martinez)

In the past three months, more than half of the country’s SoI have already been transferred smoothly to Iraqi control, including all the group’s members in Baghdad. SoI registration in Anbar Province is nearly complete, in preparation for a Feb. 1 transfer to Iraqi control. Ninewa, Kirkuk and Salah Ah Din provinces are scheduled to transfer in early spring. Authorities said a rehearsal of the Diyala transfer on Dec. 23 went off without a hitch.

“Diyala is considered to be a very complex province, but in fact the registration of the SoI has gone very well,” said Kulmayer, adding that nearly 9,000 SoI members would register with the government in the province. “We have a very large turnout there. It’s exceeding the expectation of how many would come in and register.”

“The Sons of Iraq feel as if they’re being taken care of,” Austin said. “They’re apprehensive, but that’s to be expected. This is new and building trust takes time.”

Civil Service Corps projects continue to be the main focus of non-security job efforts, with more than 4,100 SoI currently enrolled in various apprentice programs. Iraqi-led jobs programs for the SoI, such as CSC and public works projects, remain in development. The government of Iraq is also looking at opening a number of job-training centers around the country to address the needs of unskilled SoI members.

“Those results have come about because of determined leadership,” Austin said.

Ferriter echoed those comments, adding that, at the end of the day, all the parties were on the same page. “We have a common goal: We don’t want the Sons of Iraq to turn to al-Qaeda,” he said.

“The Coalition forces don’t want that; the Iraqi Prime Minister doesn’t want that. Together, we’ll make this work.”

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Brig. Gen. James C. Nixon, left, deputy commanding general, Multi-National Division – North, speaks with Iraqi Army Brig. Gen. Khalid, commander, 5th Iraqi Army Division, at a meeting on Forward Operating Base Gabe in Diyala province Dec. 23 to discuss the transfer of responsibility over Sons of Iraq from Coalition forces to the Government of Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Eric J. Martinez)
*****

Now that transfer has occurred...

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Diyala Governer Ra'ad al-Tamimi (left), greets Lt. Gen. Abdul Kareem (right), commander, Diyala Operations Center, prior to signing the security agreement outlining how the transfer and payment of the Sons of Iraq in Diyala province from coalition forces to the Government of Iraq will be carried out , Jan 4. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Joy Pariante)
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Diyala Governer Ra'ad al-Tamimi (left) and Lt. Gen. Abdul Kareem (right), commander, Diyala Operations Center, sign the security agreement outlining how the tranfer and payment of the Sons of Iraq in Diyala province from coalition forces to the Government of Iraq will be carried out, Jan 4. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Joy Pariante)
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Lt. Gen. Abdul Kareem (second from the right), commander, Diyala Operations Center, and Diyala Governer Ra'ad al-Tamimi (left) and Lt. Gen. Abdul Kareem (right), shake hands with local leaders after signing the security agreement outlining how the tranfer and payment of the Sons of Iraq in Diyala province from coalition forces to the Government of Iraq will be carried out, Jan 4. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Joy Pariante)


Next: Anbar.


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Posted by Greyhawk / January 12, 2009 12:14 PM | Permalink

2 TrackBacks

Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and other sources around the world. If you're a blogger, you can join the conversation. If you link to any of these stories, add a li... Read More

SoI: Anbar from Mudville Gazette on January 12, 2009 8:16 PM

Third in a series, previous entry here. More from Adam Weinstein, on the near-future of the Sons of Iraq program. Anbar grassroots movement reaches milestone: Sons of Iraq registration underway By Adam Weinstein MNC-I Public Affairs December 26, 2008 B... Read More

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March 19, 2010


Dawn Patrol 03/19/2003
[Greyhawk]
Bookmark and Share - via email, facebook, twitter, etc.

"Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various sources around the world."

Mudville was founded in March, 2003. Our efforts to bring the thoughts, words, and deeds of milbloggers to a wider world evolved to become The Dawn Patrol in March, 2005. With today's entry we're going to reset the clock - but not re-write the history - and recreate the world as it was - on a day the world changed...

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(More front pages here.)

Updating... more to follow....

MILBOGS

Andrew Olmsted, 19 Mar 2003, Stateside: It would appear that the liberation of Iraq has begun.

Greyhawk, 18 Mar 2003, Germany: A united world could have, just maybe, brought down Saddam without firing a shot. We will never know. 19 Mar: We'll never know what a united world could have achieved... the UN could not agree on anything, the situation degenerated, and here we are. Status quo was not working. The French were too desperate for oil and trade at any cost. Well-intentioned Americans were led into the streets by Communists (and others) with an agenda. The media distorted the split. Many in America and abroad thought they could manipulate the situation to their personal gain. They miscalculated. The fire is lit.

Pontifx ex Machina, 18 Mar, undisclosed location: Rolling out the gate, the guard gets a quick "hook-em, horns" sign as we weave through the barricades. Then we're off, cruising through the desert in a battered-up SUV. On the eve of war, only one thing passes through our minds: is there going to be any appropriate music on the radio?

Lt Smash, 19 Mar, undisclosed location: Read the President's speech today. The clock is ticking.

Chief Wiggles, 22 Mar, Kuwait: The war started Wednesday morning for us right after the president gave a speech to the American people that lasted about 4 minutes. We were all very anxious for this whole thing to be either over or get it on its way.

Will, 22 Mar, en route: I am going to Baghdad to personally shoot that paper hanging son of a bitch!

Lt Smash 20 Mar, undisclosed location:
From: Public Works Department
To: Saddam Hussein
Subj: BLASTING OPERATIONS IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

Sgt Stryker, 20 Mar, Stateside: Iraq to File U.N. Complaint About Attack

Primary Main Objective, 30 Mar, undisclosed location I Dare Kofi to Come Get Me.

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BruceR, Flit, 19 Mar, Canada: AND SO IT BEGINS. Godspeed, Yanks. Come home safe and soon.

Andrew Olmsted, 20 Mar 2003, Stateside: The most important thing to remember over the next few days is this: the first reports are almost always inaccurate. First reports are generally submitted in the heat of battle before any real analysis can take place. Therefore, they're highly subjective, based on limited information, and rarely hit the mark. So as the first reports of 'surgical strikes' on Iraqi forces come in, it's best to take those reports with a grain of salt...

Iraqi Blogs

Salam Pax, Baghdad: The bombing aould come and go in waves, nothing too heavy and not yet comparable to what was going on in 91. all radio and TV stations are still on and while the air raid began the Iraqi TV was showing patriotic songs and didn't even bother to inform viewers that we are under attack. at the moment they are re-airing yesterday's interview with the minister of interior affairs. THe sounds of the anti-aircarft artillery is still louder than the booms and bangs which means that they are still far from where we live, but the images we saw on Al Arabia news channel showed a building burning near one of my aunts house...

American Blogs

Glenn Reynolds has a ton of links.

Newpapers

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Updating... more to follow....


(The Dawn Patrol's Archives are here.)



Posted 2:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)


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The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
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The Mudville Gazette is written and produced by Greyhawk. Unless otherwise credited, the opinions expressed are those of the author, and nothing here is to be taken as representing the official position of or endorsement by the United States Department of Defense or any of its subordinate components. Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house.

I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email.

Original content copyright © 2003 - 2009 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed.

Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com

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