Iraqi NCOs take oath of service

Iraqi NCOs take oath of service

Spc. Chris McCann
2nd BCT PAO, 10th Mtn. Div.

FOB MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq – Graduations are always proud moments, and there was perhaps none prouder than when ten Iraqi soldiers of the 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, were presented with certificates and officially became noncommissioned officers in a ceremony at the Iraqi army compound in south Mahmudiyah Oct. 14.
The battalion, known as the Desert Lions, has been working closely with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division’s 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery Regiment, training and conducting missions in the Mahmudiyah area.
Col. Ali, of the Desert Lions, and Lt. Col. Robert Morschauser, commander, 2nd Bn., 15th FA Regt., were both in attendance at the ceremony, as was Command Sgt. Maj. Anthony Mahoney, 2nd BCT.
“It was a challenging course,” said Alah Shimal Hassan, one of the graduates, “but there were many benefits, and we’re ready to take it on. We are pleased by the representation from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team and the distinguished Command Sgt. Maj. Mahoney and Col. Morschauser.”
“The toughest part was map analysis,” explained Hassan, “but we spent a lot of time on it.”
He said the soldiers had been thirsting for a chance to prove their mettle with such a course, despite the difficulty.
“We had wished for awhile to start to do the training,” he added. “Our instructor was steadfast and did not shrink from the training sessions.”
Several of the graduates mentioned the stark differences between the army training they recently received and the way things were run in the past.
Now that service is not rewarded by the same corrupt methods as it was previously, Muhammed explained, there has been a change in the outlook, and Iraqi security personnel don’t want corrupt promotions – only pay commensurate with their service.
“Our soldiers now associate service with pay,” Muhammed said. “In our training, we have emphasized the nature of the work and their status (as soldiers). We are grateful to the U.S. and to the Army for helping reinforce the self-confidence of the soldiers and reinforcing all the ethics associated with military service.”