1st Battalion 22nd Infantry Co C Security Operations West Rashid

1st Battalion 22nd Infantry

C Company Security Operations West Rashid

October 2008

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — Staff Sgt. Bryan Stewart, an armor crewmember from Rock Island, Ill.,
assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division,
Multi-National Division – Baghdad, checks a weapons permit for a former Sons of Iraq member Oct. 4
in the Hayy Jihad community of the Rashid district in southern Baghdad. Under a new initiative by the Government of Iraq
and Iraqi Security Forces, citizens of Hayys Jihad and Furat are not allowed a weapon without a weapons permit.
Stewart and Soldiers of Co. C conduct daily security patrols throughout West Rashid to disrupt enemy activity
and to assist Iraqi Security Forces transition into a lead role and provide security for the people of Baghdad.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, 1st BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B)

Regulars’ Charlie Co. Soldiers maintain security operations in West Rashid
Ready to expand operations across southern Baghdad

Staff Sgt. Brent Williams
1st BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B

October 11, 2008

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — The former bodyguard and security advisor
for a leading Iraqi politician extended full courtesy to the team of Soldiers knocking on his gated property,
where the man offered seats formed in a circle around a table of hot chai.
The conversation began with security in the local area and problems with power and water;
and quickly ventured into the upcoming U.S. Elections in November when the Iraqi asked the Soldiers
who would be the next American President.

“Military men don’t get involved in politics,” said Sgt. Kyle Lobdell, an armor crewmember,
assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team,
4th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad.
Soldiers follow the orders of those appointed over them, to include the Commander-in-Chief,
whoever it may be, assured Lobdell, a native of Fort Wayne, Ind.
The Soldiers of the “Regulars” Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt., conducting a security patrol
in West Rashid’s Jihad community Oct. 5, were checking-in with residents in the neighborhood,
visiting Sons of Iraq checkpoints and searching abandoned houses and alleyways for weapons caches.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — 1st Lt. Matt Cyr, an armor officer platoon leader,
assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, fills out an Iraqi Claims Card Oct. 4
for an Iraqi resident of Hayy Furat in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. The man's car was damaged earlier in the week
by Coalition Forces disposing of a weapons cache in the area.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, 1st BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B)

The Soldiers are checking on the progress of the Iraqi Security Forces operating in the area
to sustain the current security, said 1st Lt. Matt Cyr, platoon leader, assigned to Co. C., 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt.
The ISF were busy during the past few months enforcing Baghdad’s Rule of Law and, more recently,
the latest initiative by the Government of Iraq to keep the western Jihad and Furat communities free of weapons,
explained Cyr, a native of Dover, N.H. “Unless there is a permit, there will be no weapons,” Cyr said.
“This is counter to the GoI’s previous policy of one weapon per family.”
The Soldiers of Co. C assisted the ISF in accomplishing this mission, explained Cyr, a Sapper-qualified armor officer.

“The Iraqi Army unit that we have right now has really stepped it up,” said Sgt. 1st Class Troy Johnson,
platoon sergeant, Co. C, 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt. Since arriving at the combat outpost
in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad six months ago, the company’s primary mission is to keep the area secure,
patrolling the Jihad and Furat communities, and to support the ISF as it transitions into the lead for security operations
in southwestern Baghdad, said Johnson, who hails from San Antonio.
“I think the ISF are ready to step up to the plate, at least in this area,” Johnson said, “but with over watch.
“The IA, the ISF team in this area, is good,” he explained. “It’s got to be done sometime – why not do it now?
Now, six months from now or two years from now, but it has to happen.”
During his last deployment, Johnson said the ISF did not have a good working relationship with the Iraqi people
because of sectarian issues, which resulted in wide-spread violence. He credits the ISF
operating in his unit’s area of responsibility for the continuing security gains in West Rashid.
A new Iraqi Police Station in Furat and an IP Academy are good indicators that the ISF are making headway
with the local community. “Recruiting has gone well,” he said. “We’ve had 3,000 Iraqi show up
looking for jobs with the IPs alone.” The progress is important, Johnson explained, as the Soldiers of Co. C
will expand their operations in early November to include other areas across Rashid and move into an over-watch position
after an upcoming transition of authority from Coalition Forces to ISF occurs in West Rashid.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — Sgt. 1st Class Troy Johnson, a platoon sergeant from San Antonio,
and his Soldiers assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry, listen to concerned citizens Oct. 4 during a security patrol
in the Hayy Furat community of the Rashid district in southern Baghdad. Soldiers of Co. C conduct daily security patrols
throughout West Rashid to disrupt enemy activity and to assist Iraqi Security Forces transition into a lead role,
providing security for the people of Baghdad.

With a shift in operational priorities, switching from combat operations to a state of reconciliation,
the Soldiers of Co. C “have performed exceedingly well,” said StafSgt. Joel Olson, an infantry platoon sergeant
from Rapid River, Mich., assigned to 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt.
“My Soldiers have performed excellent work,” he said. “It is a complete change of mindset from what we’re used to,
but they have adapted well and overcome the obstacles that come with changing mission.”
As the mission developed from combat patrols to reconciliation activities, engaging the enemy to greeting
and interacting with the local population, the Iraqi Security Forces transitioned into a competent and capable force
and are taking responsibility for West Rashid, said Olson.
“My Soldiers are relentless in their pursuit of their mission accomplishment. I am sure it will take some adjusting,
some long days, some tired days, but they will do very well. I am sure that they will succeed and excel
as they have always done,” said Olson, in talking about how his platoon will fare moving to a new area of operations
and transitioning into an advisory capacity for the ISF.

Regardless of their mission, Soldiers will continue to improve the quality of life for Iraqis in West Rashid,
said Pvt. Kevin Slominski, an infantryman assigned to Co. C, 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Regt.
“We’re providing them with the means to help them better their lives,” said Slominski, a native of Savage, Minn.
“We help them and assist them better their way of life even though they have been doing their society
and way of life for many years.” The Soldiers are distributing microgrants to improve the economy,
rebuilding schools, bettering low-income housing in the area and removing concertina wire,
trash and obstacles from the local communities, he explained.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — Sgt. Kyle Lobdell, an armor crewmember assigned to Company C,
1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, walks the streets of Hayy Furat during a dismounted security patrol Oct. 4
in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. The Soldiers of Co. C operate out of a combat outpost in West Rashid
to maintain direct contact with the Iraqi people in the local communities and neighborhoods.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, 1st BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B)

“Yes, the Americans have leaped frog in establishing the peace and security,” said the Jihad resident
to the Soldiers drinking his chai. “That (Coalition Forces) have pushed toward a successful conclusion,
and it is still going on. That has really impressed the people – to know that they can go out at night and be safe,”
he said. If security continues to improve, then what is the next step for the U.S. Soldiers in the Rashid district,
asked the man. The answer, said Lobdell, is that Soldiers will continue working in partnership with the local ISF
to maintain the level of security in the area and work to return the Iraqi people’s lives to a state of normalcy.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — Staff Brig. Gen. Shakir Laftah Abdalretha Al Assadi,
commander of the 1st National Police (Mechanized) Brigade, and Staff Col. Ali Abood Thamir Rashid,
commander of the 1st Battalion, 53rd Brigade, 14th Iraqi Army Division, patrol the Hayy Furat community Oct. 4.
In early November, the Iraqi Security Forces leaders will assume the primary responsibility and authority
of providing security for the Hayys Jihad and Furat in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad.

(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, 1st BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B)

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