Meal with a sheik seals friendship

Reporter's Notebook By Travis J. Tritten, Stars and Stripes

Sheik Jassim Zeydon Khalef al-Dulaymi, background, hosts soldiers while an assistant carries a tray of chai tea on Dec. 29 in Taji, Iraq. Purchase reprint
Travis J. Tritten / S&S
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brandon Tipton, of Company B, 2nd Battalion, 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, pilots a Chinook helicopter during a nighttime mission around Baghdad. Purchase reprint

TAJI, Iraq — The sheik’s reception room was the size of a banquet hall. Colorful rugs covered the floor and the ceiling was hung with ornate golden chandeliers. The walls were lined with stuffed couches and tables decorated with glass elephants.

Sheik Jassim Zeydon Khalef al-Dulaymi, dressed in the traditional Arab dishdashah robe and shumagg head scarf, greeted some of the U.S. soldiers with a kiss on each cheek. He is an important man in Taji, north of Baghdad, and everything about him says so.

Meeting with sheiks is still a key job for soldiers on the front lines in Iraq. On this day in early January, the sheik had prepared a special treat for members of the 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division — a lunchtime meal of broiled fish.

Many soldiers relish the lunches of Iraqi delicacies, even though it often means days of digestive distress.

“We don’t consider you occupiers, we consider you friends, especially since the new security agreement was signed,” said the sheik, a reserved man with intense eyes, before servants brought out a large tray of food.

The giant fish had been split down the center, topped with onions and tomatoes and broiled until the top turned brown and crunchy. It had been caught in the ancient Euphrates River, he said.

Eating in typical Iraqi fashion, the soldiers dipped their fingers into the soft oily meat and piled the fish onto pita bread.

The sheik pointed out what is considered the tastiest part of the fish, an area of dark salty meat near the brain.

“We are now partners,” he told the soldiers.