“I was very impressed with Colonel Francey, his leadership team and the mission that the 41st Fires have; a very important mission here in Wasit and what they’ve been able to do to build relations with all phases of the Iraqi Security Forces, as well as working on and building civil capacity,” said Nash. “They’ve made some real gains down here that certainly are easy for someone to see, go out and touch and see the results of it.”
Nash was able to see the stable security situation in Wasit province himself during a vehicle tour downtown and then a walkabout hosted by Maj. Gen. Rasheed Filayih, Department of Border Enforcement 7th Region commander; Brig. Gen. Abed Gabr Mazloum, 32nd Iraqi Army Bde. commander and Col. Dick Francey, 41st Fires Bde. commander.
The one thing that made this tour different was the American Soldiers were dressed like their Iraqi partners, wearing no body armor.
“I think it sends a very strong signal to all the Iraqi people that see us. We say that security has improved dramatically. Life is going on,” said Nash. “You see a very vibrant, in my estimation, economy. I saw a very clean city that people appear to care about. I did not feel intimidated at all.”
“It certainly was great to walk down the street, talk to the shop owners, seeing business going on and food being prepared and commerce really taking place,” said Nash.
After the tour, Nash and the group returned to FOB Delta for an Iraqi luncheon followed by a meeting with the Wasit governor Latif Turfah.
Nash said that the Soldiers of the 41st Fires Bde. should be proud of what they’ve accomplished so far.
“I think they ought to be very proud of the hard work they put in during this long arduous tour,” said Nash. “It’s going to get up to about 14 or 15 months for some of these Soldiers, and certainly what I’ve seen, it’s paid off. Their hard work has paid off and made a difference and I think all of the Iraqis. They see the same thing.”
