Focus in Diyala shifts to community building

U.S. and Iraqi army soldiers are busy speaking with villagers in the
southern part of Diyala's Balad Ruz district now that they are finished
with the searching and clearing phase of the Iraqi government's latest
operation against an insurgent stronghold, said Maj. Cameron Cantlon,
executive officer for 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment.

The work marks a shift in Operation Saber Pursuit from a combat focus to
community building. Multi-National Division - North launched the
operation to establish a foothold in an area that's been a persistent
haven for enemy fighters and financiers.

Soldiers began Saber Pursuit by rounding up all the men in the village
and questioning them to find out if any were insurgents. They initially
found that insurgents had already fled the villages and cleared out many
of their weapons cache sites. But they encountered more people as they
worked their way through the area, Cantlon said. While many villages
were entirely devoid of military-aged males, one recent 400-person
village had 75 when coalition forces arrived.

These people have also helped the soldiers uncover the insurgents'
hidden weapons. Iraqi soldiers with 18th Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army
Division and American soldiers with 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry
Regiment unearthed 12 caches near Hamud, Iraq. The caches contained 60
mm mortar rounds with a mortar tube, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher
with various grenades and several AK-47 assault rifles.

"It shows a commitment of the people themselves," Cantlon said about the
resident's tips.

Soldiers are now assessing the communities to find out what they need
and to propose solutions to their problems. Iraqi soldiers are also
meeting with local officials and residents.

Insurgents had previously returned to the area after coalition forces
swept through. But commanders say they won't be able to do that this
time because Iraqi soldiers will be staying behind and more Iraqi police
will be hired to help them.

Work has already begun on new checkpoints and platoon-sized patrol
bases, Cantlon said. Trucks have delivered barriers for the construction
of the new sites.

With work in the Balad Ruz district shifting to a new phase, leaders are
already looking ahead to future operations in the province.

"There are operations planned to continue to separate the insurgents
from the people," Cantlon said.

Nearly 50,000 Iraqi police and soldiers are also involved in operations
against al-Qaida in Iraq throughout Diyala province, a senior provincial
official said Wednesday.

House-to-house search operations are focused on the provincial capital
of Baqouba, but will be extended to rugged areas near the Iranian
border, Ibrahim Bajilan, the head of the regional council, told The
Associated Press.

The crackdown will take about two weeks "and then law will be imposed in
all Diyala," Bajilan said, according to the AP, providing details about
an operation that began Tuesday.

The Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman, Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari, told
AP that 35 "wanted insurgents" have been apprehended so far and a number
of weapons seized in Diyala.

U.S. military spokesman Brig. Gen. David Perkins said the main
challenges in Diyala were the hot summer temperatures and the abundance
of hiding places and enclaves in palm groves and other agricultural
areas.

"It just takes a lot of physical effort to go through this difficult
terrain in very hot and demanding conditions," Perkins told a joint news
conference with al-Askari.