The doctrine of counter-insugency calls for the military to clear, hold and rebuild. In Fallujah, where the Marines sacrificed much blood and treasure in November 2004 when Operation Phantom Fury cleared the city, over 1,200 bad guys were killed during that fighting as well as 100 Marines. More than half of the city's buildings were damaged or destroyed. During the cleanup, Fallujah remained an dengerous place, but new security measures were implemented and the rebuilding started.
Militarily, things gradually improved during 2006. Indicative of this is when
Bravo Company 2/136 Infantry, of the Minnesota National Guard and the 34th Brigade Combat Team Redbulls was assigned to the Marine Corps base at Camp Fallujah, Iraq to provide security for the base. At the time Camp Fallujah was receiving indirect fire mortar and rocket attacks on an almost daily basis, and on average one person a month was being killed by these attacks...
During their first six months at Camp Fallujah, Bravo Company continued this mission as it had been defined by their predecessors. That changed in August 2006 when 40 insurgents in armored dump trucks launched a brazen daylight attack against combat outpost Flanders. The attacked was decisively repulsed by 10 Bravo Company soldiers who killed over half the attacking insurgents with only one of their number being seriously wounded.
Bravo Company got aggressive and their
proactive offensive operations proved to be highly effective. In the six months following the attack on Flanders, Bravo Company soldiers killed 25 insurgents and captured over 50 in their small area of operations. They also captured large quantities of weapons and explosives.
By the Summer of 2006, the city was pretty secure. Though al Qaeda assassinations of city leaders opposed to the Islamists did occur occasionally, the US military continued to rebuild infrastructure.
With the help of local residents, they fixed the sewers
A new sewer system is taking shape in Fallujah.
Involving hundreds of Iraqis in the workforce, it’s the biggest construction project the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers oversees in Al Anbar Province of Iraq.
Fallujah’s new facility will use the construction of pump stations trunk mains and a treatment plant to serve as the backbone for a city-wide system. This is the initial phase that will eventually connect every home in the city.
And they fixed the power
Fallujah is rebuilding its electrical distribution network, and so far more than 45,000 utility poles, 2,200 transformers and 2,400 kilometers of cable have been purchased.
Fallujah city officials and Ministry of Electricity personnel are working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on the $57 million project.
“One of the city’s two existing 33kV substations is being rebuilt and two brand new 33kV substations added to ensure Fallujah has a reliable, stable system,” said Chip Nieman, the deputy resident engineer for USACE’s Fallujah office. The work also includes rehabilitating a 132kV substation replacing two of the three transformers.
Neighborhood distribution networks — many with broken poles, snapped lines, damaged transformers — are being replaced one area at a time with Ministry of Electricity personnel getting that accomplished. The corps is also hiring additional crews to help.
“The city’s old dilapidated system just didn’t have the capacity to meet the community’s needs,” Nieman explained. “It’s great to see real progress taking shape.”
Meanwhile, Fallujah’s Electrical Department is getting a new $2.8 million maintenance facility that will include two warehouses, a workshop, and an administrative office.
“We’re interacting with Fallujah officials on a daily basis. Their head of the electricity department, engineer Isam Kareem Hamadi, has been great to work with. He appreciates our efforts,” said Nieman.
In all, Neiman’s office is overseeing 87 projects in Fallujah and the surrounding area including health-care clinics, sewage lines and pump stations, street lighting, and potable water treatment facilities.
“Fallujah is a great place to work. It’s a fast-paced, challenging environment and also rewarding — you get to see how your efforts are helping people,” said Nieman who is nearing the end of a yearlong assignment in Iraq. “I believe in what we’re doing or I wouldn’t be here.”
Nieman said that hiring residents is a priority. Fallujah, a city of 200,000 residents, has about 40,000 homes and businesses. “It’s a tremendous benefit to Fallujah’s economy,” he said.
Yet another positive story the media fails to tell
