Sadr-City, Iraq: An Insider's View of the Situation

This is an excerpt of an email that I received yesterday from a young SGT who is
currently serving a tour of duty in Sadr-City in Iraq -- an area with some of
the heaviest and ugliest fighting. He is 8 months into his tour with an
infantry division and who also served in Afghanistan previously. I met him on a
flight a couple of months ago (he sat next to me and we talked for several
hours), when he was on a brief leave at his halfway point of this combat tour. I
was extremely impressed with his overall knowledge of the situation and his keen
grasp of the political, social, religious and military aspects of the U.S.
efforts in both Iraq, Afghanistan and the War on Terror in general. He plans to
leave the Army on completion of this tour and is there now as a result of a
"stop loss." His response is quite different from what's portrayed in the
movies, though.

In my own experience as an infantry officer in the 1978 - 1983 time frame, I
don't recall having young soldiers of this caliber in my units. Frankly, the contrary was more often the case. We are lucky to have young men
and women like this doing tough jobs like these, that too few appreciate today
... hopefully, they will in the future. His comments below reflect sage wisdom
for one so young, who has seen much more than he should at his age -- 22 years
old. When I looked into his eyes during our discussion, I saw the pain and the
anguish of comrades lost, the ugliness of war and a fight that, in his worst
fears, ends up being for nothing if our country and its allies in this effort
don't have the stomach to finish the job that we started -- like the present
situation or not.

For his sake and security, I've removed his name and anything that might
identify him, since his comments are unusual and not the type of thing that
we'll read in the NY Times or the Washington Post. Let's also hope that they
are not prophetic.

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Mr Tronsrue,

Things do SEEM to be improving over here. BUT, because there are so many
variables that play into Iraq's stability only a fool would say this war has
been won. I can tell you this much; at least a couple times a week we ASSIST the
Iraqi Army or Iraqi National Police on ops. Although the IA or INP operate
nowhere near the level of efficiency of our troops, it would be impossible to
say they aren't improving on a daily basis. On the other hand, corruption is a
huge problem. Do I believe soon enough the snakes will be removed and the
Government of Iraq will be able to defeat any radical groups, most importantly Al-Qaeda, on their own. I don't
know. Only time will tell. But look on the bright side; If nothing else, the
government will have the upper hand through firepower and man strength!

Also, you have to attribute the recent lack of violence to cleric Mouqtada
al-Sadr's cease fire. It amazes me you don't hear more about this idiot in the
news. He has a militia (up to 40K men, all Shiite) that is being funded by Iran
and has the support of Hezbollah. AT THE SNAP OF SADR'S FINGERS, 100'S OF
MOSQUES IN SADR CITY AND ELSEWHERE IN IRAQ WILL AIR OVER THEIR LOUDSPEAKER--
DURING NOON PRAYER-- "KILL THE INFIDELS." I can tell you from experience, when
this happens, you better hold on to your seat! The media wants us to believe
al-Sadr has "renounced" violence and wants to find peaceful ways to end
disagreements (to justify himself as a "political" leader.) BULLSHIT! In my
opinion, al-Sadr (and Iran) finally realize that if they behave, we will
leave---and thousands of his men aren't killed in the meantime. With the majority of US Forces gone in a couple
years, al-Sadr's militia will attempt to overthrow the Iraqi Gov. I would hate
to be a Sunni when that day comes.

One last thing about al-Sadr---right now IRAN is giving him a safe haven---
interesting, huh?!?

And the elections, which were supposed to be held next month, will be lucky to
begin in November...but it's safer to say next year. Only time will tell!

Hope you and your Family are doing well, Sir. Thank you for your Prayers and Blessings. They never go unheard or unappreciated.


Sincerely,