Spartan Platoon Makes Positive Relationships Key To Success
Baghdad
The city streets are packed, and various vendors sell their different products to passing Iraqi’s. Traffic can be a literal nightmarish deal, and many of the homes and areas that have been rebuilt are almost on top of one another, with little privacy.
Life outside, in the Radwaniyah area is a lot different than this. Radwaniyah is a rural, quieter area. No streetlights are in use, and traffic is not much of an issue. The closest neighbor may be several fields away. Most of the citizens of the Radwaniyah area live in mud huts with very little electric service.
Iraqi Women hang out clothing and prepare food over small campfires provide heat and light.
One of the biggest problems in this area is low quality drinking water, and no electricity. Not having reliable or effective health care is also a large concern. Soldiers with the 320th Field Artillery Regiment are trying to change some of these situations for the better.
Soldiers from the Spartan platoon are installing a filtration system and a water pump for the region. Iraqi people have often taken their drinking water from the canal, which is polluted and unsafe for drinking.
For the most part, respect from the local Iraqi citizens has been earned. Outsiders in the region are now routinely pointed out to Coalition forces, and the insurgents no longer have a place to hide. It is a rural type area, and the people have been slow to trust. But by waiting and helping them with things they need, or giving assistance to the Iraqi people on a repeated basis, security for the area is now very good.
