Iraq commander: Iraqi army needs Fort Irwin-type training

FORT IRWIN — Lt. Gen. Ali Ghaidan Al-Atbi hopes to take more than just the cooler High Desert temperatures back with him when he returns to Iraq.

The commander of Iraqi forces attended Wednesday’s assumption of command ceremony for his friend Brig. Gen. Dana J.H. Pittard at Fort Irwin and marveled at some of the training techniques used in this desert.

Speaking through Army interpreter Sgt. Mohammad Rouissi, Al-Atbi said the Iraqi army needs training and facilities to more effectively fight the enemy in his country. He said soldiers lack training in military intelligence and defeating improvised explosive devices, skills taught at the National Training Center and Fort Irwin.

“We need to start bases like this in Iraq,” he said. “When bases are good, we’ll have good soldiers and good officers.”

He said training is limited for soldiers in Iraq. Soldiers receive little training in military history, ways to counter the weapons used by insurgence and equipment to find IEDs. Soldiers do not need more training on guns and tanks, he said. Above all, he said, the Iraqi army does not have sufficient intelligence-gathering capabilities.

“We train with what we have,” he said. “With military intelligence and accurate and correct information, we can find the enemy.”

He said the Iraqi army is beginning to set up training fields in Iraq similar to the desert of Fort Irwin and conduct similar training.

Al-Atbi first met Pittard when Pittard was a colonel serving in Iraq. He said he and Pittard learned a lot from each other and that he wishes Pittard the best in the future.

As for the future of his country, Al-Atbi was upbeat.

“It’s going to be good,” he said. “The future of Iraq must have a positive end.”