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Tales from the Sandbox: A good lunch in Ramadi

Jan. 25, Ramadi, Iraq – I had a good lunch today, one that I didn’t think was possible – at least not for a number of years anyway.

Photographer James J. Lee and I, along with Capt. Bryce Hansen and the soldiers of Red Platoon, Alpha Battery, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery, ate together in the front yard of the home belonging to Maj. Thamir, an Iraqi policeman wounded in action.

We sat in plastic chairs arranged in a circle. We had home-cooked kebabs and soda, and we capped the meal with some sweet, hot chai.

With help from two interpreters, the soldiers chatted with Thamir and the other Iraqi policemen who had gathered for lunch.

The soldiers have trained and advised the Iraqi policemen for the past four months. They are all brothers, they said, and the Iraqis’ success in securing their neighborhood sets an example for others. There was no fear; there was no discomfort; there was no need to wear a Kevlar helmet.

The major, of Ramadi’s Abu Assaf district, was shot in both legs while on patrol Jan. 9 in Tamim, about 15 kilometers south of Abu Assaf. Hansen and his soldiers visited the major today, and platoon medic Pfc. Tim Kemberling brought the major some pain medication, a set of crutches and some clean bandages.

Hansen will soon return to his home station in Geissen, Germany. He’s going to miss the men of Abu Assaf, he said, the men who call themselves “The Lions of the Desert” because their district butts up against the desert where insurgents like to lie in wait.

As Hansen said to Col. Jabbar, the leader of the group, “You all thank us for what we do for you, but think about what you do for us and how easy you make our jobs.”

Jabbar heads up the police stations in Abu Assaf and Tamim. About 135 policemen, all local residents from the same tribe, are stationed in Abu Assaf. About 180 more were sent to Tamim to secure that part of Ramadi. Jabbar said he plans to increase the size of the Tamim police force to 350, and he predicted they soon will be able to conduct dismounted patrols, which are almost impossible now because of the threat from emeny snipers.

Earlier in the day, Jabbar led the soldiers to an isolated spot in the nearby desert to search for weapons caches. Armed with a mine detector, Sgt. 1st Class Marlow Parks searched the rocky, sandy terrain. As soon as the machine made a sound, Parks signaled for the Iraqi policemen, who shoveled furiously to unearth what was beneath the ground.

After about an hour, the soldiers and policemen found two rocket-propelled grenade launchers, one anti-personnel round, 10 anti-armor rounds, 10 rocket components, three rocket warheads, three fuses, wires, electrical tape, base plates and shell casings from AK-47s and PKCs.

The desert is a favored place for insurgents to hide their weapons, Hansen said.

Previous finds include about 400 pounds of explosives and more than 500 detonators.

“It’s like an insurgent garage sale,” he said.

The weapons discovered today were taken to the Al Jazeera police station, where they will be destroyed by U.S. soldiers specializing in explosive ordnance disposal.

Jabbar and his men are a strong example of success in Iraq, Hansen said.

“They’re not fighting for the money,” he said. “What’s fueling them is their personal stake in this.”

More Tales from the Sandbox

• Civil affairs troops help open new school (Jan. 24)

• On the ground in Iraq (Jan. 23)

• Slideshow: Transition teams

Staff writer Michelle Tan and staff photographer James J. Lee have just begun their two-month embed in Iraq.

Past blogs from Military Times reporters

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Gina Cavallaro was in Iraq at the end of February 2006 and covered U.S. military operations there through the third week of April 2006.

• Heartfelt thanks from a ground-pounder; you operate one hell of a taxi service (April 12, 2006)

• Taji Saturday night — the joint is jumpin’ (april 8, 2006)

• Between mortars and IEDS, life keeps strumming along (April 5, 2006)

• The dogs of war (April 4, 2006)

• Ibn Sina — where saving lives is an everyday event (March 24, 2006)

• Small comforts (March 24, 2006)

• ‘Squirrel’ had the heart of a lion (March 20, 2006)

• Life on the ‘frontier’ (March 18, 2006)

• Utopia is Green (March 15, 2006)

Christian Lowe was in Iraq from the first week of December 2005 through the third week of January 2006

Not so charming (Jan. 21, 2006)

Gear heads (Dec. 20, 2005)

Days in the dungeon (Dec. 15, 2005)

What kills? Complacency (Dec. 14, 2005)

Too much reality (Dec. 8, 2005)

Show you 'care' (Dec. 5, 2005)

We’re in Kuwait, drinking it in (Dec. 3, 2005)