KIRKUSH, Iraq, 6 August 2004 — As the 711 Iraqi Army squad leaders stood at attention before graduating in this desert base near the Iranian border, the symbolism was plain to see. No American flag fluttered next to the Iraqi national colors. The visiting US general made no speech. Instead, an Iraqi officer saluted the graduates and called them the “bricks in a wall that will defend Iraq from its enemies”.
In line with handing power to an interim government on June 28, the US-led occupiers transferred to Iraq much of the responsibility for training its fledgling security forces.
At the Kirkush army base in the country’s east, Iraqi soldiers now put new recruits through drills, teach them how to fire weapons and battle insurgents who attack Iraqi security forces just as much as US-led coalition troops in the country.
“Virtually all the training is now being done by Iraqis. All you see coalition soldiers doing at this point is advising and assisting,” said Brig. Gen. James Schwitters, commander of the coalition’s Iraqi army training program.
Building a sizable, fully equipped army will take time, something Prime Minister Iyad Allawi has precious little of. Iraq holds landmark elections in January, and its security forces will have to play a key role in reducing car bombings and assassinations to ensure the vote is not disrupted.
The United States abolished Iraq’s 400,000 strong army in May last year, one month after ousting Saddam Hussein. Some critics say that helped fuel the insurgency by creating a large pool of disaffected men. The new army stands at just over 3,000 trained troops. The target is 27 battalions, or some 20,000 soldiers, by January.
After graduating from the squad leaders course yesterday, the 711 noncommissioned officers will eventually deploy to those battalions and take on many training duties themselves. While the tendency has been to rush police and National Guardsmen onto Iraq’s dangerous streets with minimal training — those forces number roughly 84,000 and 40,000, respectively — more time is being spent preparing the army.
Soldiers get eight weeks of basic training, compared to two to three weeks for National Guardsmen. But there is still a long way to go. When they pledged loyalty to Iraq yesterday, the noncommissioned officers swore to fight any enemy.
Asked who that enemy was, new recruits undergoing weapons training nearby said it was only foreigners, not Iraqis. “All the insurgents are from foreign countries,” said Nemit Kamal Ali, 28, a former mechanic who has been in basic training for eight days.
That presents a problem for officers who have to convince recruits that Iraqis are part of the insurgency, even if the spectacular attacks are often blamed on foreign militants. There have also been some setbacks.
Some Iraqi soldiers refused to join operations in Fallujah when US Marines laid siege to the rebellious city in April.
