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FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER, Iraq (July 11, 2008) - The
commander of 9th Iraqi Army Division and leaders from the 1st
Armored Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team met here July 8 to
assess the security of the Madain Qada region.
Iraqi Maj. Gen. Jassem Nazal Qassim shared concepts for further
increasing the Iraqi security forces' capabilities in the region
with Army Col. Pat White, commander of 2nd BCT.
"No matter the operation, [the Iraqi security forces] are
capable of providing the necessary forces," Qassim said. "For any
needs that arise, we are ready."
Qassim also discussed terrorism and extremist activity in the
region and compared previous years to the current state of
security.
"When coalition forces came to the Madain Qada, terrorism
covered much of the qada," Qassim said. "Now, because of the joint
efforts of coalition and ISF, it has dropped significantly."
White, of Apple Valley, Calif., told Qassim that he would like
to implement weigh stations in the region, much like those on
highways in the United States. "By doing this," he explained, "we
will be able to monitor shipments entering the qada by creating a
station the trucks must stop at to be weighed, scanned and possibly
searched to ensure that nothing is entering that shouldn't."
The leaders said they see continuing success in the cooperative
efforts between Iraqi and coalition forces.
"ISF performing and leading operations are becoming a common
occurrence," Qassim said. "Nearly all planning and operations are
being done by ISF with support from coalition forces. With our
cooperation, we can continue to work toward our shared goal to get
terrorism out of the Madain."
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