BASRAH — Iraqi Soldiers here recently learned skills from U.S. service members ranging from first aid to Humvee maintenance. Before their graduation, Oct. 15, the Soldiers first had to pass an intensive evaluation. During the evaluation, the "jundis" were separated into teams and sent to 3 stations: combat first aid, weapons, and vehicle maintenance. At each station, they were expected to know the subject well enough to teach it.
“This is it,” Navy Chief Petty Officer Edward Telles told the jundis during the medical portion of the evaluation. “You either know it or you don’t.” One by one, the jundis talked their way through an imaginary scenario, explaining what they were doing to Telles, who served as the evaluator.
Among the jundis was Pvt. Wesame Mahmoud, who said he joined the service because he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps. His father spoke English and Russian, and was a col. in the Iraqi Navy during the Saddam years. Mahmoud, an administrative specialist, said he found the medical training most beneficial. “The training is very good. We got a lot of info,” said Mahmoud, noting that he used his medical training to help a friend who was injured during a soccer match.
The positive attitude of the jundis made the job simple, said Army Sgt. Darren Macomber, who was placed in charge of weapons training. “They’re real easy to teach. They’re all energetic and they show up on time,” said Macomber, a mechanic with the 308th BSB. “They retained info fast and well, and they’re pretty much able to repeat everything I told them.”
“The most important thing we thought they learned from me was the safety aspect,” Macomber said. “They pick up something, figure it out on their own; it seems like a lot of times. So, I think it’s good they’re learning how to train each other on good habits.”
The third section of the evaluation was the vehicle maintenance station. Army Sgt. Ian Grant, a mechanic with 308th BSB, had been training the jundis on basic vehicle maintenance, “exactly what they’re looking for as far as leaks, and the troubleshooting they can do.”
When the evaluation ended, the eMiTT members were pleased to find that all the jundis passed. “They did excellent today,” Grant said. “They picked up well on the training. In fact, I put out more info to them than I thought I did, and they all retained it really, really well.”
Virgil addressed the graduates and said he now hoped they use their newfound knowledge to teach their peers.
