Law and disorder
Too many robbers and too few cops create lawless conditions in Baghdad
New role. For these combat-hardened soldiers, it has been a difficult shift to peacekeeping. Many are exhausted from their brutal dash through the desert. Outlaw Platoon lost four soldiers in the first suicide bombing of the war, yet now find themselves rubbing elbows with Iraqis. They respond to everything--determined looters, property disputes, and managing massive lines for gasoline. They started guarding girls schools last week after a drunken man--newly free to consume in public--accosted several girls on the way to school."All the families need Americans to take care of safety because they are all afraid," says Iptisam Zamil, the headmaster of the Al Wafa secondary school for girls.
But the ultimate solution rests with Iraqis. And after weeks of complaints, some of Iraq's returning police force were finally issued weapons, mostly pistols. American military police and Iraqi police launched their first joint patrols. Many Baghdad cops, however, are still afraid to operate against Iraq's criminals, who are often armed with AK-47s. They also have to counter their image as a marginal and corrupt force. "Many people see us as Saddam's police, so we don't have help from them," says Brig. Gen. Jamal Abdullah, patrol chief for Baghdad's new police department, adding that the police are wearing new uniforms and painting their white patrol car doors blue. "We have to make them like us and trust us. That takes time."
With Mark Mazzetti
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