CONTINGENCY OPERATING LOCATION DEASON, Iraq – Next door to their U.S. neighbors at Contingency Operating Station Al Mahmudiyah, engineers from 17th Iraqi Army Division worked alongside the Ohio National Guard’s 16th Engineer Brigade to build the new Combined Division Operations Center in just five months at the Iraqi-led COL Deason.
The operations center heralds a new partnership between the Iraqi Army and their U.S. counterparts, allowing for transparency of information and intelligence sharing, said Lt. Col. Joshua Potter, stability transition team commander for 17th IA Div., and U.S. advisor to Staff Maj. Gen. Ali Jassim Muhammad al-Furaiji, commanding general of 17th.
Assigned to 16th Eng. Bde., United States Division – Center, Capt. Thomas Race, the quality assurance/quality control officer in charge of this project was the lead designer of the building.
“We designed the structure, while the 1434th Eng. Company, 101st Eng. Battalion, constructed the building alongside Iraqi engineers,” Race said.
The project was truly a joint effort by U.S. and Iraqi forces, he said.
“There were about 12 to 15 Iraqi soldiers out at the job site swinging hammers, cutting lumber, raising the walls and installing the roof,” said Race. “It was great to be able to teach them how we do construction and build a structure that will help them rebuild Iraq.”
This new addition to the Iraqi Security Forces is expected to better prepare the Iraqi forces to counteract al-Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgent organizations and provide peace to the citizens in an area formerly known as the “triangle of death.” |
When Ali assumed command of this dangerous area, he started with just 10 trucks and 15 soldiers. Since then, he has developed the 17th into a force of more than 10,000 in an area spanning from the Tigris to the Euphrates Rivers, said Potter.
U.S. leaders say the growth of 17th IA Div., and the addition of the new operations center demonstrates a maturity in the security forces, with their capacity and capabilities steadily growing stronger.
The 3,150 square foot structure is equipped with a Command Post of the Future, which allows the ISF to communicate, track and direct their forces at more than 300 checkpoints on a single screen, according to Potter.
With more than 450,000 Iraqi citizens in the 17th IA Division’s jurisdiction, an area about the size of Rhode Island, the IA can now better track and provide support where it is needed more rapidly than ever before, said Potter.
“The Iraqi Army and citizens of Iraq are up to standard,” Ali commented. “We’re standing strong and we will hit AQI hard and show them that Iraq is not a place for terrorists.”
The opening ceremony included many influential attendees, including Maj. Gen. Terry Wolff, commanding general of USD-C, Brig. Gen. Kevin Mangum, deputy commanding general-Center of USD-C, Brig. Gen. Glenn Hammond, commanding general of 16th Eng. Bde., and Lt. Gen. Abdul Qadir Mohammed Jassim Obeidi al-Mifarji, the Minister of Defense for the Government of Iraq.
“The Americans are our heroes,” said Ali. “They’re not only our friends, but our brothers.”
“As [U.S. forces] continue our pace to withdraw from Iraq, the IA will continue to ramp up their efforts to protect their people,” said Potter. “We’ve taught them how to use technology to better support their citizens.” |
