BAGHDAD — An Iraq Army commander has urged the U.S. military to end
what he termed its heavy-handed tactics in the insurgency war.
The criticism by the Iraqi commander was rare in that it was approved by
the U.S. military. Last week, the military arranged for journalists to meet
the commander at Camp Taji, north of Baghdad.
"When you first came here, you passed out chocolates to the children,"
Col. Malik Mohammed Hussein Al Jabouri said. "Now you trust no one."
"Sometimes troops shoot when there is no threat and no need," Al Jabouri
said. "All this does is drive Iraqis to the terrorists — [give] more candy,
fewer bullets."
Al Jabouri commands the 1st Battalion 1st Brigade of the Iraq Army's 9th
Division. In 2004, he was arrested and held for two days by U.S. forces in a
case of what he termed mistaken identity.
"It was a mistake," Al Jaburi recalled. "They could not differentiate
between me and those who mean harm to us."
The colonel, echoing complaints from other Iraq Army officers, said U.S.
troops often blanket an area with gunfire to drive away insurgents. He said
Iraqi civilians have resented this practice and became more sympathetic to
the insurgency movement.
The colonel called on the U.S. military to learn Arabic and Iraqi
culture. He said this would result in a flexible policy that is not limited
to force.
So far, Al Jabouri said, the U.S. military often uses what he terms the
fist when in Iraq. A veteran of 24 years, the colonel said U.S. troops have
detained numerous Iraqis on false charges.
"They need to understand the people they are among," Al Jabouri said.
"They need to learn even a few words of Arabic to help form relationships
with the people."
The U.S. military has sought to include tribal sheiks in its
counter-insurgency strategy. Last week, U.S. commanders brought 50 sheiks to
Camp Taji for a meeting open to reporters.
The meeting — meant to continue on a monthly basis — was headed by an
Iraqi and U.S. commander. Officers said the sheiks agreed to establish a
communications system with both the military as well as each other in an
effort to improve security.
"There is good cooperation from the Iraqi police and army to establish
security in the area," Haday Hameed Al Sultan, a sheik whose village was
struck by mortars, said. "They are very responsive when you call them. If we
have the close communications between Iraqi forces and coalition forces, we
will be able to control the area and keep it safe."
For his part, Al Jabouri recommended that U.S. troops treat Iraqis with
dignity. He warned that Iraqi tribal sheiks must be accorded special
treatment to ensure cooperation with their constituents.
"Do not insult our sheik," Al Jabouri said. "That is something that will
spread and all members of the tribe will know of it."
