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This letter from our Marine adoptee arrived Saturday, March 15, 2008, from Hit, Iraq
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Family and Friends of the First Team,
As this is the final First Team update from Iraq, I would like to start out by thanking all of you for your endless support, generosity, and most importantly, your prayers. During our entire deployment we were nearly overwhelmed with care packages, letters, and cards from all of you and countless other Americans who just wanted us to know they supported us and our mission. After nearly five years of sustained combat operations, the American people are as supportive and generous as ever.
The support, care packages, letters, and prayers were truly appreciated by every Marine, Sailor, and soldier within the TF. I must specifically thank the Battalion’s Key Volunteer Network. These incredible women focused on ensuring every family was taken care of while their Marine or Sailor was deployed. Their efforts ensured we could focus on the mission here in Iraq as we knew our families were in good hands. The First Team could not have hoped for a better KVN. We are all indebted to them for all they have done for us and for our families.
The past seven months have been very busy ones for your Marines and Sailors. To say I am proud of them and their accomplishments would be an incredible understatement. During this deployment they have driven in excess of 150,000 miles under the constant threat of IEDs, they executed over 12,000 mounted and dismounted combat patrols in the cities, villages, and deserts of our AO, they discovered and removed from enemy hides over 20,000 pieces of ordinance that could have been used to make hundreds of IEDs, and they detained over 200 suspected insurgents. The massive amount of pressure put on the enemy by the TF’s sustained surge operations resulted in the tactical defeat of AQI and insurgent groups in our AO.
While the units that preceded us certainly set the stage for our eventual success, it was the unrelenting pressure and pace of the Marines and Sailors of 1/7, coupled with the continued development and improvement of the Iraqi Police and Army, which finally broke the enemy’s back.
But your Marines did a lot more then combat operations, and certainly more then what they were originally trained to do. They worked with the local government officials, mayors, and city councils to improve their processes and efficiencies in running a government and showed them that public service constitutes unselfishness and at times self-sacrifice. They spent hours upon hours teaching classes on the Iraqi Rule of Law, the Iraqi Constitution, and other civic functions to local leaders, police officers, and soldiers. They worked tirelessly to assist in getting Provincial support to repair phone lines, pave roads, build water treatment plants, and invest in the area’s infrastructure. They attended countless meetings to help develop innovative and efficient answers to a myriad of problems, issues, and complaints. They worked and pleaded with local businessmen to open new stores, expand their businesses, and contribute to the overall economic growth of the area. In short, your Marines and Sailors did everything and anything they needed to in order to help facilitate the success of the Iraqi Government, local leaders, and the economic growth and prosperity of the area.
In the long run, the ability to sustain this type of success will define our final victory. The Task Force was able to make great strides with both the Iraqi Police and Iraqi Army in our area. We lived with them, we ate with them, we shared hardships, we developed friendships, and we worked together to build and further develop their skills and capabilities as police officers and soldiers. All in all, these are incredibly brave and dedicated men who know that failure of CF and Iraqi forces means almost certain death for them and their families. Some of my more memorable moments came from watching the Marines work with their Iraq partners. The bond only found amongst combat veterans was clearly visible as they interacted, trained, and conducting combat missions together. While the Iraqi security forces certainly still need more time and training, they are unquestionably prepared to handle the current challenges that face them and they are ready, willing, and able to take the lead for security.
One of the many highlights for this deployment was on 14 February when TF 1/7 turned over primary security responsibilities for the City of Hit to the Iraqi Police and Army. Hit was the first major city within Western Iraq to make this transition. The Iraqis planned and executed an impressive ceremony that included Marines, Iraqi soldiers, Iraqi Police, the Hit Fire Department, the SWAT team, and Provisional Security Forces (like a county sheriff). The parade and ceremony was attended by about 1,000 people total to include all the main tribal sheiks, local and regional leadership, and the Governor of the Al Anbar Province. The Iraqis rehearsed for 3 days straight as they wanted to ensure everything was perfect. It was an important moment for 1/7 as it was one of our missions to prepare the Iraqi security forces for Iraqi control but it was even more important for the Iraqis.
This was a day they were extremely proud of as they took charge of their own security and in a sense their own destiny for the first time in over 3 decades. The immense pride in the faces of the individual police officer and soldier was truly priceless. For those of us present during the ceremony, we considered ourselves extremely fortunate to have witnessed that historical day. The Iraqi police and soldiers have continued to excel and have been putting forth a great deal of effort to maintain the peace, respect the civil rights of the civilians, and to keep the insurgents out.
How are they doing? As we prepare to depart, the average number of enemy attacks per day in Hit District is the lowest it has been since 2004. Your Marines are ready to come home but they leave here possessing a true sense of accomplishment. They have made real, tangible, and undeniable progress in all areas and perhaps more importantly, I believe they have given most of the Iraqis in our area something they have not had for quite sometime; hope. The average person we talked to throughout our AO, while he usually had some complaints about fuel or electricity, expressed hope that things were going to get better, that tomorrow and the day after tomorrow was going to be a brighter day for them and their families. A vast majority of them have confidence in their police and army to keep security and peace once the CF leave, and their confidence in at least their regional government was starting to improve as more and more reconstruction projects are being funded by the Government of Iraq vice the United States.
Your Marines have accomplished their mission and just as importantly, we are bringing home everyone we started with in once piece. This is a credit to the junior leadership in the Battalion from the corporal to the lieutenant as they ensured day in and day out no one got complacent and no got hurt or killed due to foolishness and/or carelessness. Thank you all again for your enduring support, generous care packages, and again and most importantly, thank you for your prayers as they certainly helped in our ability to bring everyone home and in our ability to accomplish the mission assigned to us.
Semper Fidelis,
JJD
LtCol JJ D., USMC
Commanding Officer
1st Battalion, 7th Marines
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