Dealing with the Iraqi Populace: An Arab-American Soldier's Perspective
Abstract
Although coalition forces have been in Iraq for over three years, some commanders still do not fully understand how important cultural and human factors are to the success of the counterinsurgency. Commanders need to realize that the unconventional fight primarily revolves around the Iraqis, not the insurgents, since the Iraqis are the center of gravity in this war. As long as coalition forces continue to measure their daily progress solely on the number of terrorists killed and the number of suspects in custody, real progress will be delayed. If coalition forces react only to the insurgency and fail to mobilize the Iraqi people, then the insurgency potentially will be a long one. How can we get the Iraqis to support us in the counterinsurgency fight? The answer is very simple improve the quality and increase the quantity of our cultural training prior to deployment, so that Soldiers and commanders will be able to understand and respond to the needs of the Iraqi people.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA593540
Entities
People
- Mounir Elkhamri