Saddam Army and Republican Guard From Globalsecurity
Tallil Military Base The new Iraqi Army of 40,000 persons require basing facilities at 18 locations. Prospective Military Bases to re-construct include Tallil
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- The Republican Guard: outgunned and outnumbered, but they never surrender
- How will they fight
- Special Republican Guard
- Jihaz Al-Amn al-Khass (Special Security Organisation)
- Himaya al-Rais (Presidential Protection)
- Saddams Fedayeen
Tallil Military Base The new Iraqi Army of 40,000 persons require basing facilities at 18 locations. Prospective Military Bases to re-construct include Tallil.TSP Whitford / Camp Whitford In late May 2003 the 984th MP Company from Ft Carson CO running exterior security for the Enemy Prisoner of War camp at Tallil, called it Camp Whitford. After that until early October 2003, the Company rotated every three weeks with another MP company from the EPW camp back to convoys. Enemy prisoners of war held at a facility on Tallil Air Base were moved to a larger compound in June 2003. The 85 EPW's were moved via tactical vehicles, and guarded by the 744th Military Police Battalion and the 320th Military Police Company to their new area. The new facility is more secure and is larger. The new facility can hold thousands of EPW's until they are moved to the main compound in Umm Qasr. They usually only spend about 72 hours there. It also has the potential to be a full facility. Sometimes, EPW's have children with them when they are brought in. The MP's take the children in and provide them with food, water, shelter and medical attention as well. It is a way of making sure the children are safe and their basic needs are met while their caretakers are under investigation. It protects them from being victimized. The larger, more secure facility is an improvement for the military police personnel and the EPW's alike.Camp Cedar I As of early 2003 Camp Cedar was home to, among others, the 260th Quartermaster Battalion, an active duty unit from Hunter Army Airfield, Ga., and Reserve units the 394th Quartermaster Bn. from Puerto Rico, the 362nd Quartermaster Bn. of Kinston, N.C., and the 346th Transportation Bn. out of Savannah, Ga. Since arriving in the theater on March 31, the four battalions were instrumental in moving 66 million gallons of fuel throughout Iraq. When they moved into Iraq from Kuwait, they operated from the hastily constructed original Camp Cedar. However, the pounding high winds and fine, loose grit caused by the constant heavy truck traffic made for visibility and equipment problems at Cedar I. At Cedar's old location there was nothing but a dust bowl.Camp Cedar II The Talil field exchange, which opened 05 April 2003 inside a gymnasium on the former Iraqi air base near Nasiriyah, is just one of several shops the Army and Air Force Exchange Service has set up recently in Iraq. Others are in Umm Qsar, Baghdad International Airport and Camp Cedar (a convoy pit stop near Talil). Camp Cedar is located about 20 minutes drive from Talil. There is another US encampment at the nearby Ammo Supply point. Since June 2003 life has improved dramatically for service men and women serving in southern Iraq as a dry, plain landscape has been transformed into a vibrant tent city on a mile stretch of Iraqi desert approximately six miles from historical Ur. Engineers looking for a more suitable site, based on geographical and tactical considerations as a permanent camp for years to come, found it 15 kilometers to the north, near Tallil Air Base. The ground there is less sandy, more solid and has a little vegetation that helps break the winds and hold the dirt. The engineers graveled the area in June and contracted Kellog, Brown and Root to work on the camp's infrastructures. This son of Cedar I now featured a dining facility, air-conditioned force provider tents, air-conditioned mobile latrines, a post exchange, a chapel and morale, welfare and recreation tents to accommodate more than 5,000 servicemembers and government civilians and contractors. The camp had a humble beginning. When the troops first arrived, they had no air-conditioning units. Before they got a DFAC (dining facility) in mid-July, troops had UGRA (unitized group rations - type A) field rations. Personell had to line up at a mobile kitchen, get a plate and move somewhere to eat it. People sometimes had to wait an hour or two. Of course, they also had MREs (meals ready to eat), and they set up microwaves so they could have hot meals without having to use MRE heat packets. Before they had air-conditioned force provider tents, soldiers lived and worked out of general-purpose tents, which had no floors and were not well suited to the dust and windy environment. As of August 2003 troops from the 28 countries that have committed forces to support the International Coalition in Iraq have begun assuming more and more duties. Dutch and Italian forces, working together at Tallil Air Base in southern Iraq have provided internal airfield security - the Dutch conducting roving patrols with the Italians manning checkpoints and providing a quick reaction force for the airfield. When they catch an intruders, they turn them over to the American Security Force. No intruders have approached the airfield -- yet, and the role of the Coalition force reinforces but does not duplicate security provided by Americans in the area. In addition to airfield security, both Dutch and Italian forces have their own helicopters at the airfield. Their helicopter missions are similar in scope and range from force protection and security to medical evacuations. Chaplains from four different battalions joined pastoral forces for a dedication on 14 September 2003 of the first "Freedom Chapel" built at Camp Cedar II in Iraq. Before the consolidation, the chaplains had performed their services separately in four different battalion Morale, Welfare and Recreation tents. The MWR tents confused many soldiers who sought chaplain assistance. Sometimes they discovered it was not a place dedicated for worship due to scheduling conflicts. Kellogg, Brown and Root, the company contracted to build the chapel, started construction in June. The original floor plan called for nothing more than the erection of a general-purpose empty tent. However, the chaplains gathered together their needs and wishes and asked KBR to include additional specifications. The happy outcome includes seating for 200 worshippers, two private offices, three decorative tables, a waiting room, a lectern, an altar, columns, light fixtures, ventilation frames and a colored 'Freedom Chapel' sign in front of the chapel. On 24 October 2003, AAFES opened its second Burger King in Iraq at Tallil. The new mobile facility, co-located with an AAFES-operated Pizza Hut, provided another Burger King restaurant so that more servicemen and women serving in Iraq could, if only for a moment, forget about the task at hand in the desert and get a whiff of that familiar scent that takes them back home. 
Camp Adder Camp Adder is located on Tallil Air Base. In late March 2003 Camp Adder was the southernmost Army resupply point in Iraq. Camp Adder in south-central Iraq is a dusty, middle-of-nowhere place. It assumed great importance in the Iraq war, with a motley collection of just about every kind of truck imaginable, from fuel tankers and water carriers to five-ton haulers. Taking a cue from private logistics masters like FedEx and Wal-Mart, the Army went high-tech in this war, equipping each supply truck with radio sensors that signal exactly where it is at all times. At Camp Adder, soldiers are housed in trailers, and they get to sleep on real beds with relatively new mattresses. Operating out of Camp Adder in February 2006, the 48th Brigade Combat Team's Iraq— Medical Community Assessment Program founded a temporary clinic in a nearby school, bringing basic medical services to the Iraqi people where none existed before.Camp Whitehorse Camp Whitehorse, a Marine-run detention site near Nasiriyah, was located outside the southern city of Nasiriyah in Southern Iraq. The facility, a former Iraqi military compound, was a small, makeshift jail for possible enemy prisoners rounded up during raids. The prisoners were held at Whitehorse until they could be interrogated by a Marine "human exploitation team," which would determine whether the detainees should be released or transferred elsewhere. Prisoners were forced to stand 50 minutes of every hour, in heat sometimes topping 120 degrees, for up to 10 hours at a time. Prisoners were forced to stand until interrogators from the Human Exploitation Team arrived. If the team failed to get the information it wanted, prisoners were forced to continue standing. In October 2003 the US military charged eight US Marine reservists, including two officers, with brutal treatment of Iraqi prisoners of war that may have resulted in the death of one Iraqi man. The eight fought in Iraq as part of the First Marine Division and were detailed to guard a prisoners at Camp Whitehorse. Military prosecutors allege that an Iraqi man named Nagem Sadoon Hatab died at Camp Whitehorse in early June 2003 following a possible beating by US guards. The Baath party official had been caught with a gun from the ambushed army unit that included Pvt. 1st Class Jessica Lynch. Maj. William Vickers, was accused of dereliction of duty for failing to prevent the alleged abuses at Camp Whitehorse. Although Vickers had received no training on how to run a detention facility, he was commended by numerous officers on the performance of his job. Vickers was in charge of the facility during April and May 2003. He was charged because prosecutors believe he trained or allowed guards to act in a way that caused later abuses
As US and British troops meet with fierce resistance, an expert on the Iraqi army profiles Saddam Hussein's elite security forces and warns they have the potential to be formidable opponents
The Republican Guard consists of three armoured, one mechanised and two infantry divisions, with between 65,000 and 70,000 soldiers. Almost all of Iraq's top-of-the-line Soviet made and also Iraqi-assembled T-72 main battle tanks, some 600-700 of them, are to be found in the guard divisions. The regular army has to settle for the relatively antiquated T-55 and T-62 tanks. The guard remains a viable force although it has been eroded since the Gulf war. In recent years Saddam Hussein has begun to turn it into his private army. Since the late 1980s the guard has been the regime's means of dealing with two problems presented by the regular army and especially its officer corps: the army's diminishing capability and fighting spirit, and its doubtful support for the regime. There have been sporadic reports of dissent within the guard, but in essence it remains loyal to the regime and leader. The guard has invariably proved more able at fighting than regular army units, and unlike many army units, has never surrendered or fled from the battlefield in the face of a superior enemy. Many officers in the guard hail from Tikrit, from President Saddam's clan, Albu Nasir, and from other friendly tribes, mostly Sunni muslim. Since 1988 the guard, under the direct command of the presidential palace rather than the general staff, has been granted special perks, transforming its officers into a relatively privileged class. As of late 2002, its commander was an experienced field commander, Lieutenant General Sayf al-Din Fulayyih al-Rawi, a Sunni muslim whose family hails from Rawa, west of the capital. Its secretary general was Major General Kamal Mustafa abd Allah Sultan, President Saddam's paternal relative, and, according to one source, also his son-in-law. He is a far less experienced field officer, as his main expertise is internal security (he is former commander of the Special Republican Guard), but his loyalty to President Saddam is solid. Armoured units of the guard, notably the Hammurabi and Madina divisions, will begin the defensive battle outside Baghdad, possibly from Karbala, the Shia holy city south of the capital. Their job will be to defend essential crossing points and slowdown the American forces. The more loyal units will eventually be ordered to withdraw into the city, and fight while using civilians as shields. How will they fight? The guard's armoured divisions' fighting against the American forces in 1991 may serve as an illustration. They were usually well placed and dug in but they were badly outgunned. The American M-1s could penetrate the Soviet-made T-72s' armour from over two miles; the T- 72s could penetrate the frontal armour of the M-1 only at a very close range. With far-superior night vision equipment, the US tanks could destroy an Iraqi tank at night from a distance of a mile. The tanks thus became death traps for the Iraqi crews. On the other hand, the guard demonstrated impressive tenacity and no unit withdrew without authorisation, in contrast to the regular army units, many of whose tank crews deserted. The tactical shortfalls of the guard officers are substantial, but tenacity can go some way to make up for lack of professionalism, especially when Iraqi soldiers are shootiusing civilians as a shield. This is already constraining British and US forces in Nassiriya, Umm Qasr and Basra. Special Republican Guard The SRG is divided into four brigades and 14 battalions, and numbers around 20,000-25,000. It is a commando force armed mostly with light and medium weapons but it also has two tank battalions (70-90 T-72 tanks), three artillery batteries and three air defence batteries. Its main task is to maintain calm in the capital and put down any revolt or coup attempt. It also has security duties in four presidential palaces in Tikrit. It is equipped with a large number of anti-tank weapons. The SRG command falls under the office of the special security organization, President Saddam's personal protection unit. Most officers and soldiers in the SRG hail from President Saddam's clan and from his hometown of Tikrit, as well as some neighbouring and friendly clans and towns, like Dur and Beiji. Most officers know President Saddam personally; in their bar racks, posted by their beds, they have photographs of themselves and their families standing proudly beside the president. So far there have been no reports of coup attempts hatched within the SRG, a distinction that sets it apart from the regular army, air force and guard. In battle, even when the advantage of the American forces is clear to all, the SRG will certainly fight. They are trained in house-to-house fighting and their task will be to inflict losses that the American commanders will regard as unacceptably high. This, President Saddam hopes, will enable him to start negotiations and save his regime. In the first instance, they will use Iraqi civilians as shields, posing a dilemma for US commanders. If the Americans want to save their own soldiers' lives, they will have to use their firepower, but this will necessarily cause many civilian casualties. It may be possible to persuade many to give themselves up, but only after heavy fighting and once they realize that all is lost. The SRG may be ordered by President Saddam or other leaders to use artillery chemical shells. Jihaz Al-Amn al-Khass (Special Security Organisation) The SSO was created in the late 80s as a small (a few hundred strong) force of mostly officers. Their main task was to coordinate all security bodies and the army for the protection of the president and his family. They were brought in from all army units and the Republican Guard, but most of them were natives of Tikrit or hailed from President Saddam's clan. The SSO also helped with the procurement and protection of weapons of mass destruction and the technology necessary to produce them. After the 1991 Gulf war this force was enlarged and is now about 2,000 strong. The SSO is the most feared body of all the Iraqi security forces. It is under the direct command of President Saddam's younger son, Qusay, and General Abed al-Hamid Mahmud, the president's personal secretary and clansman. Another responsibility is to execute military men and internal security operators regarded as risks to the regime. They are effective and very loyal. As a fighting force they do not count for much, but when hiding behind civilians they may present the allied forces with a dilemma. Himaya al-Ra'is (Presidential Protection) The Himaya al-Ra'is protects the president and his family and his closest associates, including the ruling party's luminaries. It consists of a few thousand young men mostly from President Saddam's clan and region. The Himaya, between 3,000 and 5,000 in total, are recruited straight from Uja, Tikrit, Beiji, Dur and their environs. At the age of 15 or 16, they are brought to the republican palace in Baghdad and trained for three years in the use of weapons, in survival and other skills before becoming bodyguards. At the heart of the Himaya are 40 security men who belong to a little known unit named al-Murafiqin (the companions). These are the people who accompany the president carrying loaded weapons. They are the inner ring protecting President Saddam, and there has never been any report of disloyalty. They are well trained, loyal, and young, they admire President Saddam and fear him, and they are not well educated, which means they have little hope of success elsewhere. As a final incentive to fight, some have committed crimes in the president's service. They have many enemies waiting for their downfall to avenge the blood of relatives. His downfall may also be theirs. As long as their command system is more or less intact, they may be expected to put up substantial resistance. If they believe that President Saddam is dead, or has fallen into enemy hands, and if promised fair treatment, many may surrender. Still, the SRG and the Himaya are likely to put up strong resistance. It is likely that the forces still sniping at coalition forces in Basra, Umm Qasr and Nassiriya are Republican Guard and Special Republican Guard. Saddam's Fedayeen This unit was established around 1995 by President Saddam's elder son Uday and trained by General Muzahim Sa'b Hasan, the ex-air force commander and a member of President Saddam's clan. Today it numbers around 20,000 but they are lightly armed and badly trained. They serve as an internal security body, mainly arresting and executing people suspected of opposition to the regime. According to some sources, they sever the tongues of those accused of criticising the president and decapitate women whom they accuse of prostitution. Many are poor and from the country, and are said to have used women and children as shields in Nassiriya. · Amatzia Baram is professor of Middle Eastern history at the University of Haifa and fellow at the Saban Centre of the Brookings Institution in Washington. Download 0.72 Mb. Share with your friends:
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