“The real and lasting victories are those of peace, and not of war.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
The war in Iraq has been hard-fought and costly. Billions of American dollars have been spent and more than 4,000 of America's best and brightest have paid the ultimate price to bring freedom and democracy to that nation. Recent events show their sacrifice has not been made in vain.
Violence is down throughout Iraq. President George W. Bush recently announced the reduction of future combat tours from 15 to 12 months and talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have begun regarding a time horizon for the removal of U.S. troops.
In fact, the situation in Iraq appears so good it prompted this statement from Ryan Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq: "Very clearly, the insurgency is in no position to overthrow the government or, really, even to challenge it," he said. "It's actually almost in no position to try to confront it. By and large, what's left of the insurgency is just trying to hang on."
That said, there is still work to be done. The Iraqi Army needs training to become the primary security force of their nation; infrastructure and basic services need to be created, repaired or replaced; and the hearts and minds of the people of Iraq still need to be won.
Unlike previous wars where opposing forces wore identifiable uniforms, this one involves combatants that look and dress like the population. They hide among civilians looking for a chance to strike, indiscriminately attack, killing armed forces and civilians alike, and seamlessly blend back into that populace.
In some areas, Islamic customs and values are vastly different from Western ways and can represent a figurative minefield if steps aren’t taken to understand and plan for interacting with the culture.
Joint Readiness Training Center Operations Group actively addresses that issue by employing native Iraqi citizens as role players and teachers.
A cultural awareness class was held Aug. 4 at the Special Operations Training Detachment theater on North Fort.
Sgt. 1st Class James Kilraine, senior NCOIC for Civil Affairs teams, said Soldiers that get their knowledge of Islam and Muslims from TV or the movies have a distorted image.
“Cultural awareness training lets them know the true facts about the Iraqis they are going to be dealing with and not what Hollywood tells us they are like,” he said. “We teach them that we are the same in some ways –– if you cut us, we all bleed –– and we teach them that being an Iraqi is not synonymous with being a terrorist.”
There is a perception in some areas of the civilian world that cultural awareness training is political correctness gone overboard. Kilraine said that is not the case when it comes to the war in Iraq. Cultural misunderstandings and mistakes can have serious, if not grave, consequences.
“I hope (students) come in and take this training seriously. They can make mistakes here and they can be fixed,” he said. “Once they deploy, certain cultural mistakes could cost their lives.” 
Some of the differences covered in the class include the way Iraqis interact with each other. Greeting an Arab is different than greeting an American. An Arab’s “personal space” is smaller than an American’s. While most Americans are comfortable with a handshake and verbal greeting, Arabs are more inclined to hug and kiss on both cheeks, even among members of the same sex.
The way Arabs shake hands is also different. It is not a test of strength, but soft and gentle. At the end of the handshake, an Arab may put his right hand over his heart –– a gesture that literally means “from the heart” and is expected to be returned. You should also be prepared to be touched repeatedly when speaking with an Arab. On the other hand, one should never attempt to greet a woman with a handshake, hug or kiss.
In America, and certainly in the military, when a meeting is called, participants are expected to be on time. When the meeting gets underway, it is usually done in a straightforward, businesslike manner. In the Arab world, people tend to be more casual about time.
If an Arab official, such as a village mayor, tells you he will meet you at 1 p.m., it will depend on “inshallah,” Arabic for “If God wills it.” In other words, if he is on time, God willed it. If something comes up to delay him, that is God’s will also.
Arabs do not tend to get straight to business. According to Kilraine, commanders and others may spend the first half hour of a meeting engaging in small talk.
Other topics taught in the cultural awareness class include use of alcohol, smoking, protection and key phrases Soldiers should know. It is explained that good faith efforts to respect the culture and try to adapt to it, including speaking the language, go far in gaining the respect and cooperation of key players downrange.
Second Lt. Clay Johnson is a team leader for the 412th Civil Affairs Battalion, an Ohio Army Reserve Unit on rotation at JRTC and student in the class. He said the training would help his team during deployment.
“It will help us engage the civilian population to work with the military, non-governmental agencies and other organizations to improve the situation there,” he said. “This will help us understand how we fit into the mix over there so we can make better decisions on the ground.”
Sgt. Tyler Hart, 412th CA Bn team leader, said that learning the lessons taught at JRTC will help his team avoid insulting the local population, which will make it easier for him to accomplish his mission. “If we make cultural mistakes, we will not be able to shape the battlefield and talk to the leaders we need to get things done,” he said. “We need to have credibility with them. It’s all about respect –– do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Hopefully, if we do that, we will eventually work ourselves out of a job.”
A unique aspect of the class is the employment of expatriated Iraqi citizens. They left Iraq as refugees, made America their home and are now employed as role players and interpreters for JRTC Ops Group. These men and women are experts who teach rotating Soldiers the way life is in Iraq and make the training as realistic as possible.
Husamuddin Sadalla is a former Iraqi school teacher who came to America in 1996. He earned his citizenship and now acts as a role player, playing a mayor of a village in the JRTC training area known as “the box.”
He said he came to the JRTC to thank the U.S. for what it has done for him and his former country. “We want to do our part to keep Soldiers from making mistakes in Iraq which will ensure success in the mission with the least amount of bloodshed and sacrifice,” he said.
“I get feedback from Soldiers and also Iraqi people. (Since we started this program,) there is a great improvement in the relationship between the two parties. Fewer (cultural) mistakes are being made and the Iraqis are very happy with the U.S. military working in Iraq.”
Shivan Zubair is another Iraqi citizen working at JRTC. He’s been in the U.S. since  2001. He began working at Fort Polk in 2004 and is in the process of earning his U.S. citizenship. “I love this country and want to serve the Army. I think it’s important for me to be here to teach the differences between our cultures. It could help save American lives,” he said.
He said he sees a marked improvement in the situation in Iraq since the war began. “When Saddam was in power, he killed a lot of people including 5,000 Kurds that he gassed to death,” he said. “Since the beginning of the war, a lot of things have improved –– security is better, rebuilding projects are ongoing, the education system is improving –– there are a lot of good things happening today.”
Zubair said he sees a day in the near future when Iraq will have a strong democratic government but believes that Iraq will still need America’s help in an advisory capacity.
Until then, you will find him in a classroom or in the box at JRTC helping save Soldier’s lives by educating them in the customs of his culture.