When banter beats bullets
In Afghanistan and Iraq, soldiers try new ways to gain support
In Baghdad's impoverished Abu Ghraib suburb, U.S. Army Capt. Scott Shaw picks his way on foot down the side of a rutted, sewage-filled street. It is after 11 p.m., curfew has fallen, and Abu Ghraib is dark save for a few fluorescent lights. The soldiers, members of the 10th Mountain Division's Task Force 2-14, peer through night-vision goggles, which bathe the streets in an eerie green glow. Their mission is to find hidden artillery shells, which insurgents use to mine the roads. But first, Shaw has another task: to pay a visit to a man whose son he arrested the week before.
After a 10-minute walk through the back alleyways, Shaw, a 30-year-old from Little Rock, Ark, arrives at the home of a man he calls Noori. A week ago, he found a cache of rockets on the property of the man's son. He raps loudly on the outer gate. An older, heavyset man opens the door. "Salaam aleikum, " Shaw says. "Hello, hello," Noori replies. As he recognizes Shaw, his face lights up. He grabs the American in an embrace and unleashes a barrage of Arabic. "All this area loves you," Noori says, according to Shaw's interpreter. "Tell him we are very good friends," Shaw replies. "Tell him we are cousins."
Crash courses. American officers train for years on infantry tactics, how to maneuver on an enemy and lead soldiers into battle. But some of the most crucial challenges for American soldiers today may be the human interactions for which they are often less prepared. In many cases, these have gone badly. Raids on Iraqi homes, for instance, have very likely generated as many enemies as they have captured. But the best young officers are finding ways, as Shaw has done, to turn even bad situations into opportunities. And, belatedly, the Army is adapting. Many of the officers most recently sent to Iraq have been given crash courses in how to work with local leaders to win their support.
It is a lesson the military has learned in part from its experience in Afghanistan. Although the insurgency there has proved far less virulent, military officers say successful partnerships with village leaders and efforts to bolster the central government may be the kind of experience that applies to Iraq. Maj. Gen. Eric Olson, who oversees day-to-day operations in Afghanistan, says the strategy has been to build goodwill for international forces and decrease support for the lingering insurgency. "It's classic counterinsurgency doctrine," Olson says. "It's separating the guerrilla from the population."
This winter, for instance, American forces in Afghanistan have found opportunity in adversity. Large snowdrifts and freezing temperatures created a humanitarian crisis. The United States and international forces shipped in aid that included 50,000 pounds of food, 50,000 blankets, and 33,000 clothing items, a count that does not include hundreds of boxes of private gifts distributed by soldiers. In addition to relieving the Afghans' suffering, the hope is that a careful approach to distributing the donations can bolster the power of village elders loyal to the central government and friendly to American troops.
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