300 Iraqis Line Up to Join Police Force
Goal for new recruits was 185; the strong turnout resulted in the selection of 240 new recruits.
By U.S. Army Pfc. Mike Pryor /
82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs
BAGHDAD, IRAQ, Jan. 13, 2005 — The line of people stretching out the doors of the Baghdad Convention Center recently wasn’t for tickets to a concert or a major sporting event. It was for the chance to become an Iraqi Police Officer.
Approximately 300 Iraqis from all over the country showed up at the convention center Jan. 11 to take part in the try-out process, which was administered jointly by the Iraqi Police Force and soldiers from the 1st Cavalry Division, the 82nd Airborne Division and other units.
Similar try-outs are held once every month, said U.S. Army Cpl. Samantha Samora, 443rd Civil Affairs Battalion, one of the event’s staffers. Each month, a goal is set for a certain number of recruits to be selected. The goal set for the Jan. 11 try-outs was 185 new recruits, but due to the strong turnout, they were on pace to finish with more than 200, said Samora.
“I want to secure this country and fight the terrorists. I will sacrifice with my life to save this country!” Chasim Mijbel, during Iraqi police recruit try-outs |
The try-outs began outside with a physical fitness test that included push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups and a run. A physical training test is not an unusual thing for the soldiers who were present as testers, but it apparently came as a surprise for the would-be recruits. Many of them arrived in dress shoes and slacks and had no athletic wear to change into. But they didn’t let that stop them. The men kicked off their shoes and socks and ran barefoot when they had to. Some even went further than that.
“That guy is definitely highly motivated,” said Pfc. Brendan Lind, a paratrooper with C Company, 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, as a man jogged past him wearing nothing but his underwear.
Once the testing began, some of the men breezed through the events, while others struggled. Chasim Mijbel, who, with his red, curly hair resembles the actor Will Ferell, became a favorite of the soldiers grading the events. When it was his turn at the pull-up bar they all cheered him on. Unfortunately, Mijbel was unable to complete the required number of repetitions. He was sent to the back of the line for a re-test.
As he waited nervously for his next attempt, Mijbel explained his failure by saying that he hadn’t known about the physical fitness test beforehand. He fretted that his chance to become a police officer might have slipped away.
“I want to secure this country and
fight the terrorists,” he said suddenly, “I will sacrifice with my life
to save this country!”
Perhaps inspired by his own bold words,
Mijbel strode to the pull-up bar and executed the exact number of
pull-ups he needed to pass.
Afterwards, Mijbel and everyone else who passed the physical training test were escorted inside the convention center into a large auditorium. They took seats and were each handed a sheet of paper. This was the literacy test portion of the try-out. The literacy test consisted of a short written passage in Arabic and ten questions about the passage, explained Sarmad J. Danno, an Army translator who was grading the tests. To pass, each applicant had to answer seven of the ten questions correctly, Danno said.
The
next segment of the try-out was a security check. Iraqi police agents
and soldiers asked the applicants a series of questions about their
backgrounds and allegiances.
After that came a medical exam to
screen out those with disqualifying illnesses. Those who were not
disqualified went to see Samora, who completed the final paperwork
making them official Iraqi Police Force recruits.
When the day was done, more than 240 new recruits had been chosen. Mustafa Khalid was one of them.
“Even as a child I always wanted to be a police officer,” Khalid said after his try-out was over, “It is my dream.”
