BLACKOUT
Narrator:
I’m an independent reporter and this is the third time that I travel to Iraq to cover the conflict that has broken up this country. There is almost no Western journalist remaining in Iraq.
Aranzadi. That’s my name. I can get on the airplane. Behind every war, there is money, business. In this one too. But this doesn’t make it less blood-curdling, less perverse. This plane, which is taking us from Kuwait to Baghdad, is full of interests. Not only soldiers are flying. Most of them are businessmen, several are professionals, mercenaries. Their moment has come. Their business opportunity in the dangerous Iraq. I obtained the permit to leave together with American soldiers off the advanced base Mackenzie. It is the first time that a journalist is going to accompany them on their routine. These soldiers leave for the tragically famous Sunni triangle. The main zone that opposes with greatest resistance the American occupation. To them, the word war is a reality that remains in use.
Advanced Base Mackenzie
Molina, this Hispanic soldier, is the guide of the base that has been assigned to me. Mackenzie is a city isolated from the world. It has its own rules and everyone living here has to strictly obey them. As will I from now on. Molina shows me the neuralgic centre of Mackenzie. This is the only place that the soldiers have for their leisure time. It’s forbidden to drink alcohol, and to have sexual relations. The canteen ??? is a big television screen that only broadcasts sports and is unpolitical. The inhabitants of the base live in information limbo, free from misfortunes and unpleasant news.
Molina:
I am from Puerto Rico.
Narrator
Oh, from Puerto Rico? And what are you doing in Iraq, here in this Mackenzie base?
Molina
I am a mechanic.
Narrator
Mechanic in the Mackenzie
Molina
Yeah, fixing the army vehicles
Narrator
And how is the job here?
Molina
It is good, we have a lot of work helping them to pursue their mission.
Narrator
How do live here in Fort Mackenzie?
Molina
Well, the situation could be better, but it is good.
Narrator
But your job is risky, isn’t it?
Molina
Yes, we have attacks like everyone.
Narrator
A couple of weeks ago there was an incident with some contractors that were lost with the truck
Molina
Oh, yeah. Some trucks came back here, we lost some. But they were not ours as we do not fix those vehicles.
Narrator
But a contractor died, right?
Molina
I am not sure about that. I was… I am not sure.
Narrator:
The Internet access is also for control the lack of communication is even greater when a soldier dies or is injured in combat, in that moment it starts up a blackout an information blackout of 48 hours in which all communications with the outside are cut off. Their objective is to avoid interference of interminaries so that it is the whole army that informs all of what has happened to the victim’s families.
Molina explains it to me in his own way
Molina.
Something like…
Narrator
When a soldier dies, isn’t it?
Molina
Yes, yeah
Narrator
It is a little bit hard to say the word “dead” here or to face this possibility, which is not very remote here.
To die by an ID grenade, or in an improvised explosion… or anything like that.
Molina
Many of them do not like to talk about that. Many others talk about it like if it was a game. I do not know why. Like me, I talk about it like playing around with it.
Narrator
To play down the importance of it…
Molina
Yes.
Narrator
…Not to dramatize it and to make a little bit of therapy, right?
In your unit, there was a guy who died?
Molina
Yes, one.
Narrator
And yesterday, from the same brigade, five soldiers died, isn’t it?
Molina
Oh! I do not know…I do not know…. They do not say anything to me.
Alpha Company
Its 6am and I’m going out for the first time in a battle with the Alpha company soldiers.
Narrator:
You praying before, no, that’s like a ceremony that you use.
Man:
Yeah every time we go on mission I say a prayer before we go out its worked so far, so I’m going to stick with it.
Narrator:
It’s down to the streets of resident’s neighborhood; they are full of support for Saddam and prevalence of his regime are now the main suspects of supporting the hiding members of the resistance.
Soldier:
Ask him if he knows where they went, when they left for Ramadan, do you know where they went to?
Man:
I don’t know, which one of them?
Soldier:
Firouze Hussein
Man:
Forasa, I don’t see him but I see his bigger brother.
Soldier:
What’s his bigger brother’s name?
Man:
His bigger brother, Qusay.
Soldiers:
Qusay
Man:
I see him before, about one week.
Soldiers:
Do you know who lives near the school, who lives on the other side of the school?
Man:
I lost my baby yesterday so I don’t know anyone there, I don’t exit from my home since two days because I lost my baby.
Soldiers:
I’m sorry to hear that.
Okay thank you for your time.
Narrator:
As in all wars it is a painful routine.
Soldier:
We tried to find the guy who lives here and the females who live in the house are lying and basically we know they are lying as we saw his brother about three weeks ago, three houses away we found a bunch of ammunition back here for Ak47 probably about 5 or 600 rounds.
Soldier:
Bottom floor cleared.
Soldier:
Its snuff, its like tobacco
Narrator:
Oh, I see.
Soldier:
Some people smoke, we can’t, nobody can drink over here so you got to have something. This is a smokeless tobacco so it’s a bad habit.
Narrator:
Sent in black suddenly has to stop, the helicopter over us has detected movement, the tension they have to stand is brutal. It is a blind wall the attack can come in any moment from anywhere a rule when turning a corner, hit and run. That is how the game is.
Soldier:
The most frustrating thing that I think is around here is the fact that they will put an IV anywhere they don’t care, in the middle of town, or they will put it out in the middle of the country. It doesn’t matter they don’t care and its frustrating because I have to worry about my guys and make sure they don’t get hurt. When an IV blows up believe me it really wakes you up in the morning.
Narrator:
It is 8am, they just woke up the wife is preparing breakfast the kids are sleeping, all of a sudden a group of soldiers armed burst into your home.
Soldier:
We got a guy here.
No problem! No problem!
Come on Come on!
Man:
Baby in the bedroom, baby.
Narrator:
What do you think about this guy do you think he is clean… or?
Soldier:
He could be everybody’s got a chance to be a bad guy down here.
Narrator:
The weapons that this citizen owns are legal, but the soldiers find military material hidden in a toilet.
Soldier:
Is this his house?
Is this his toilet?
Soldier translator:
Yes
They are all there…
Soldiers:
That doesn’t answer my question why were they hidden in a toilet and covered up.
Man:
I did not hide anything…
But someone with bad intentions could have come from outside…
As well as you hate me, and you want to hurt me, you can come and leave objects that could harm me.
This is what I have, the regulated weapons allowed by the government.
Soldiers:
Ooh that was a big one.
Narrator:
What was that?
Soldiers:
You hear that explosion?
Narrator:
Yes.
Soldiers:
We will find out here in about 2 minutes.
Narrator:
These kinds of devices are they the worst for you know,
Soldier:
Yep, cause you don’t where they are or when they are going to go off
You haven’t got a choice you could drive into it then boom!
Soldier:
We were in Bradley it wasn’t that big of an IV but it still, still shook us up pretty good.
Soldier:
They got small ones big ones they all hurt. I remember when we was at an explosion, came back later on and two guys blew themselves up making a 9D.
Soldier:
We was down here, as a matter if fact.
Soldier:
Were we?
We went to the house and the house was all rubble they were in the backroom, crossed the wrong wires I guess.
Narrator:
They both died?
Soldier:
Yes. They both died.
Narrator:
And what did you think at that time?
Soldiers:
I thought it was funny. It’s what they did.
Soldiers:
This is one of the nicest houses we have been into.
Soldiers:
It’s probably the second nicest house we have been into, you got the floor, concrete slabs, carpet.
Soldiers:
This is nice. I like this. It’s a nice house. Beautiful.
Soldiers:
What we are going to do is, us guys are going to finish looking around your house for our safety and yours. And once we have done searching the house, everyone else is going to leave, ill have your family stay in one room, and my guys in the house will watch this area for a while, okay? We are just going to occupy one or more rooms upstairs, I need all your family to stay inside and be quite, okay? And they are going to stay downstairs.
Narrator:
Sergeant Black ordered us to stay in the house of this family, it is a good spot to watch a near objective and detect movements that can be seen hidden in the area.
Hey guys, how are you?
And what are you covering now?
Soldier:
We are covering a mosque.
A mosque is known to have AIF in it, not necessarily right now but in the past and they use it for meetings and stuff.
Narrator:
And how do you feel when you shoot one target like that?
Soldier:
Relief
Narrator:
Relief?
Soldier:
Cause I know that if I take them down their not going to come back a shoot one of us, we have had several casualties since we have been here, my friend died on May 8th. I don’t really look at the inter-means of a person, The things they do they are animals to me. It doesn’t bother me.
Narrator:
Terry, the sniper is the veteran of the group. Some kind of leader that transmits security and joy to his companions. He is a tough guy with experience. The young ones know that it is good to remain by his side.
Narrator:
Sometimes the snipers, they have or you have a reputation that you need to be cold, what do you think about that opinion?
Soldier:
That’s pretty much what everybody out here, we’re not, its not that you’re cold. Its just when you see someone that’s hurt and stuff like that you know that you have to get rid of the enemy. If you don’t kill them they are going to kill you, its not like we go out courteous of people we don’t fire on anyone unless they fire on us first so I’m only thinking out evil demeans. It’s just a job, someone has got to do it.
Narrator:
Terry participated in the 2003 invasion, he knows what it is to go back home and no one understands what he has lived, not even his family. His wife with whom he has a daughter has decided to get a divorce maybe that is why he didn’t care in coming back to Iraq.
Soldier:
It’s a really dangerous situation in some places and when I first got here I was fighting for what I believe in and know I’m fighting for my buddies. You just fight to survive and get out of here. In the beginning it was all this patriotic, I’m a soldier, I’m a hero type of thing and now its just I want me and my buddies to get out of here. If that means shooting somebody that’s fine with me as long as its not one of us getting shot.
Soldier:
It’s a weird feeling, its, you kind of get scared as soon as you know there’s shooting. As soon as you pull the trigger it’s like relief and you relax and you’re in like a zone and it just, and you feel a little bit more comfortable knowing you’ve got something else going back at them. It’s something you can’t explain really and until you have done it and even then it’s hard for people to understand.
Narrator:
So do you feel safer when you shoot?
Soldier:
Oh yeah. You go from scared little girl to superman.
Narrator:
You take control?
Well you try to.
Soldier:
No you take control. You don’t ever think that your trying to take control, you just, I am taking control and you just do it.
Soldier:
That’s probably the most stressful part of the job other than getting shot at.
Narrator:
And you can’t go back home if you want, or not do you have to finish the division.
Soldier:
No, we have to stay, we have no choice to go home. You only go home if you are in a coffin or on a stretcher.
Narrator:
We returned to the base.
Soldier:
The rocket came through the roof right here, knocked down this lighting unit and it went out the wall and landed down. There was a guy sleeping right here when this happened but he made it through that was a good thing.
Priest:
It is important to understand that this man in every way and every shape was a sinner but it wasn’t the man that was the problem it was the sin it had got to a point where he couldn’t control it and it was so dangerous that no one even wanted to travel with him.
Soldiers in every conflict have always griped, they gripe about the food they gripe about the living conditions they will gripe about the conditions that they are surrounded in. but soldiers, American soldiers while that have the support of the American people which they do now are willing to fight and are always willing to do their duty.
Narrator:
You seem like you feel that they feel they are winning the war or that they are losing it?
Priest:
Oh, oh absolutely I feel the soldiers are winning the war, I don’t ever hear a soldier speak or say how they are going to lose this thing or that we don’t have enough equipment or tools or the right training that’s something I have never heard from the soldiers.
Hostile Territory
Narrator:
We are still have not abandoned the base perimeters and the first mortars already sound. The road settlements are samples of wars and preparations each one of them is a colourful explosion.
Soldier:
That’s where a bomb went of this morning.
In August we had two guys getting injured up here when they through parachute grenades, through them off the top of a building and landed on top of a track, blow up and injured one of my NCOs and one on my soldiers. Had to take both of them back to the states.
Narrator:
What do you think of the Americans here, good or not good?
Man:
They come to defend Iraqi freedom.
Narrator:
What do you think Mr? Of the Americans here?
Man:
Everyday Americans get into the houses with violence…
Arresting people. The situation is not good here.
Man:
The Americans… like this like that.
There are strong confrontations… What can I tell you!
Man:
The situation… is difficult.
The situation is difficult.
24 hours in state of siege.
Man:
There is no commercial market.
Man:
There is no commercial market.
The market is expensive.
Man:
I mean… the Americans…
Narrator:
Saddam good?
Man:
Saddam?
Man:
Saddam is gone!
Saddam is gone!
The situation is difficult. At the time of Saddam Hussein the rice kilogram was 250… the market… is expensive. Ever since the Americans are here they raised the prices.
Narrator:
The situation is?
Man:
The situation of markets are a lot of markets, is very expensive now. Before this time, the time of Saddam, the potatoes or tomatoes the prices are lower than prices now.
I have told him there is no difference between Shiites and Sunnis.
Man:
Iraq is one! There is no difference between Shiites and Sunnis.
Americans are the ones making the difference. They are making the difference between us. They create hatred.
Man:
We are Muslims. We are Arab. There is no difference between a Sunni, a Shiite, a Kurdish, a Turkoman, and a Christian.
There is no difference! We are all Iraqis.
Man:
There is a curfew from 7pm to 6am. People cannot go out of their houses.
Man:
People do not dare to go out of their houses… they are afraid of the thieves and of the Americans…they do not know who is coming. You do not know who is waiting for you on the road.
Man:
If you go out at 8pm the snipers could shoot you in your forehead.
Narrators:
We are going towards the police station the police formed by volunteers are greeted by the American soldiers nether the less for once the army do not trust them. The soldiers want to assure that everything is in order that there is no trace of concern here. For the moment they have not found anything suspicious but they do not lower the bar. These children who openly show their support for Saddam are the policemen’s sons.
So they think that the Americans are making occupation?
Soldier:
Yes.
Narrator:
But they think that Saddam is even better or worse than the Americans?
Saddam is better than Americans?
Soldier:
Yes they said that Saddam is better than Americans.
Narrator:
Why?
Soldier:
They say that Saddam Hussein is a president like their president and no one is about to hate their president.
Soldier:
Thank you, very much.
Narrator:
The Alpha Company receive orders from their superiors, they cannot return to the base they have information of the near by presence of intelligence that they have been looking for a long time. There is no rest.
Narrator:
Do you think that the mission is risky?
Soldier:
They are always risky. Some of these people over here don’t like us. They want nothing better than to shoot and kill me.
Soldier:
Yeah we are going to go ahead now, if they want us to go ahead and do it we’ll do it. Get to the school clear it out. Come back up to the inter section here and across the road again right over here and hold up, all right?
Narrator:
There is no trace of the enemy, but the orders are infadic, they must follow until they find them, they have been more than 24 hours without resting the wearing down is enormous. They are convinced that the rebels are close they want to stay in a house near by from where they can watch out so they can suggest to the owner to let them borrow it.
Man:
I truly … my father is not here… and I cannot tell you. I do not have permission to decide over this house. My father is the responsible.
Soldier:
Your father is in charge?
Man:
He is not going to be able to come until the elections.
Soldier:
That is just the same… you are like your father.
Man:
So what do you want me to say?
Do you want me to show it to you then?
Soldier:
The worst thing is being out here and getting shot at or someone possibly getting killed and always thinking about, worrying about whether someone will get shot. Trying to keep security up at all times all day is stressful.
Soldier:
There is somebody down the end of that road.
Soldier:
Hey can we shoot too?
Soldier:
There’s some smoke over there you can see.
Soldier:
Our vehicles are on the road right there, they shot at us and we returned fire and now the helicopters are checking it out, looks like he’s going to fire.
Soldiers:
Come on shoot the rockets… It’s going up and down and whoa…
Man:
They do not know how to eat!
Narrator:
Do you feel that he is in a risky situation doing this?
Soldier:
I don’t really think he cares, I think appreciates what we are doing.
Soldier:
41 do you know what your missing?
It’s delicious.
Man:
Stir it…stir it.
Soldier:
What?
Stir it!
You should have just said so.
Soldier:
Look at that. That’s fresh... Its still open that’s just weird it’s a gunshot wound in there.
Soldier:
Sometimes its just usually just people in the area who have gotten hurt and they come and know the Americans have doctors with them so we can take care of them if its real serious, he’s walking on it so.
Translator:
Maybe two years ago someone attacked them and shot everywhere.
Soldier:
Two of our guys have gotten hit with a grenade it’s the only injuries I have had to take care of the two guys who got hit with a grenade they through a grenade of a building it landed hit our Bradley blow up and hurt them pretty bad, they both went home it was scary you know those were my friends so they are my brothers we are all a big family and then two of your friends, two of your brothers are hurt and you have to take care of them because you’re the one that knows what’s going on its pretty scary
Soldier:
Hey, where are you going?
Soldier:
We’re moving!
Soldier:
White man Jess you got a white man?
66Alpha he’s moving down the road, it’s the 3 storey building far back, its about 600 meters away from my position right now.
Soldier:
You see the second opening hole if you just move into the left, he’s right inside that bush around by that grey building
Soldier:
I got him.
Soldier:
You got him?
Soldier:
He’s by that tree. See where that tree is, you see the grey building see the big bush next to it he’s right in there.
Soldier:
It’s a lady it’s a lady.
It’s not a lady.
Soldier:
There is a white man. He’s right next to a kid. Make sure that’s him don’t shoot yet. Rodger I know there’s a woman in the way, hold on.
As soon as he moves pop him pop him.
Soldier:
He’s running he’s running.
Soldier:
I’m kind of, you know, got up and a bullet zipped right passed both our heads, got back down like this, he got up and identified, shot at him missed him.
Soldier:
He had short hair moustache no beard.
Narrator:
So you’re lucky!
Soldier:
Very lucky so is sergeant Morgan lucky too, it was really load.
Narrator:
How do you feel now?
Soldier:
Err, kinda shaky but then again you know we identified the guy.
Narrator:
Terry the sniper and others from the unit went to capture one of the guys, this time they do not let me accompany them.
Soldier:
Shot down, I’m soaking wet!
Soldier:
Woops sorry.
Solder:
I believe it was our interrogation techniques.
Soldier:
Dude I was going to kill that guy.
Narrator:
So you said you wouldn’t kill him.
Soldier:
No, I said I was going to kill the guy that shot at us.
Soldier:
It was all about interrogation.
Soldier:
The people lie they see the bad guy and they lie, they say they didn’t hear any gunshots, they didn’t see anybody run and we watched the guy run past him and they say oh we weren’t here but we saw you standing right here and we are here to help this country have a better life and they watch our friends die and lie to us, its very, very aggravating. Very aggravating. Like I said yesterday you have got to push all those feelings down of love and compassion and understanding and all that stuff it’s gone. And you see your friends hurt that’s just gone, no place for it out here, it’s not my job.
Narrator:
And do you trust these people and this house?
Soldier:
I wouldn’t say, I wouldn’t totally trust anyone out here, but I think they are good people. I myself in my honest opinion these people are good when we first got here the man took us onto the roof and pointed to the houses that were bad in this neighbourhood and the houses that were good and the people that we were interrogating and were caught were at the bad houses, so I think the man here was telling the truth. And I think they are good people but as I say you never know, they will be good to you one day then you will catch them setting up an IV the next day cause I mean a bad guy isn’t going to say hey I hate you I’m going to kill you later you know they will be like, no I love America, America’s great so you just never know very dangerous out here, very dangerous.
Narrator:
Outside in the garden a missionary waits to be interrogated, I asked them why do they keep him hooded.
Soldier:
The reason we put the bag over his head is so that he can’t see us and its easier for us to move him and keep control of him that way and has a less likely chance to run and so we don’t have to chase him down like that. We will try and get some information from him then process it and try to send him up to the Iraq prison.
Narrator:
He doesn’t look to worried.
Soldier:
They’re usually not worried because they know that most of the time they get away.
Narrator:
Where are you going now?
Soldier:
I’m off to guard, watch out you know, watch the position.
Soldier:
People in the other countries do the same thing get paid the same thing and they are driving around in civilian clothes and they’re getting paid the same.
Soldier:
In Kuwait?
Soldier:
Yeah people in Kuwait do the same thing get paid the same and don’t get shot at.
Never get shot at.
Narrator:
Will you be compensated when you get back to the states, how they treat you, because they think you are …
Soldier:
That’s the thing people are, thank you for the first week, but after your back for the first week it’s all back the same like you never went. You can’t explain to the civilians back home what its really like to experience this.
Soldier:
I don’t tell my mum nothing when I call her she asks how I’m doing I tell her the guys are great, I’m going on patrol she asked me if I got shot at I said a little bit, I don’t tell her that RPGs are blowing up in front of the tracks and guys are falling down and I’m thinking they are dead I just leave out all the details so yeah you know we have had a bad week we get shot at a lot I said we have had a bad week its been kind of ruff but we are all ok we will all make it through, I ask her how my dogs doing.
Soldier:
The civilians might make triple of what the army makes they make up to $120,000 to $150,000 a sniper can get $200,000 for one year over here plus $15,000 bonus every three months plus you get to go home for 10 days every three months.
Soldier:
$200,000, how much do we make $20,000, $25,000. That’s $235,000 for what we are making now. We got a guy who catches flies and rats who makes $80,000.
Soldier:
A guy who changes my light bulbs makes $80,000 that’s $7000 a month.
Soldier:
To change light bulbs!
Soldier:
Not that we don’t appreciate it thanks guys that change light bulbs.
Soldier:
But hey, oh its April 30th coming around.
Soldier:
I have seen my daughter six times in the past two and a half years and I don’t think I could spend another year away from her miss them a lot.
Narrator:
After four days on mission they return to the base.
Soldier:
It’s always a relief to be back here.
Narrator:
What are you going to do now?
Soldier:
Take a shower.
Narrator:
And later?
Soldier:
I’m sorry?
Narrator:
Later?
Soldier:
Most likely sleep then we will have more work to do.
Soldier:
Is he all right?
Soldier:
He got burnt.
Soldier:
One of my guys.
Soldier:
He’s got 3rd degree burns from here down his gear is burnt.
Narrator:
Ned has fallen may wake up with wounds from an attack as he was returning to the base.
Soldier:
He was burnt from the top to the bottom.
Soldier:
All his skin was like everything was totally burnt from all the way down including his face.
Soldier:
He looked like white guys.
Soldier:
All the skin from here down was hanging off.
Narrator:
They said a soldier has died and many others are in serious conditions the blackout starts as of this moment and for the next 48 hours all the communications with the outside world will be cut off, as of me they do not allow me to continue recording.
Narrator:
I’m an independent reporter and this is the third time that I travel to Iraq to cover the conflict that has broken up this country. There is almost no Western journalist remaining in Iraq.
Aranzadi. That’s my name. I can get on the airplane. Behind every war, there is money, business. In this one too. But this doesn’t make it less blood-curdling, less perverse. This plane, which is taking us from Kuwait to Baghdad, is full of interests. Not only soldiers are flying. Most of them are businessmen, several are professionals, mercenaries. Their moment has come. Their business opportunity in the dangerous Iraq. I obtained the permit to leave together with American soldiers off the advanced base Mackenzie. It is the first time that a journalist is going to accompany them on their routine. These soldiers leave for the tragically famous Sunni triangle. The main zone that opposes with greatest resistance the American occupation. To them, the word war is a reality that remains in use.
Advanced Base Mackenzie
Molina, this Hispanic soldier, is the guide of the base that has been assigned to me. Mackenzie is a city isolated from the world. It has its own rules and everyone living here has to strictly obey them. As will I from now on. Molina shows me the neuralgic centre of Mackenzie. This is the only place that the soldiers have for their leisure time. It’s forbidden to drink alcohol, and to have sexual relations. The canteen ??? is a big television screen that only broadcasts sports and is unpolitical. The inhabitants of the base live in information limbo, free from misfortunes and unpleasant news.
Molina:
I am from Puerto Rico.
Narrator
Oh, from Puerto Rico? And what are you doing in Iraq, here in this Mackenzie base?
Molina
I am a mechanic.
Narrator
Mechanic in the Mackenzie
Molina
Yeah, fixing the army vehicles
Narrator
And how is the job here?
Molina
It is good, we have a lot of work helping them to pursue their mission.
Narrator
How do live here in Fort Mackenzie?
Molina
Well, the situation could be better, but it is good.
Narrator
But your job is risky, isn’t it?
Molina
Yes, we have attacks like everyone.
Narrator
A couple of weeks ago there was an incident with some contractors that were lost with the truck
Molina
Oh, yeah. Some trucks came back here, we lost some. But they were not ours as we do not fix those vehicles.
Narrator
But a contractor died, right?
Molina
I am not sure about that. I was… I am not sure.
Narrator:
The Internet access is also for control the lack of communication is even greater when a soldier dies or is injured in combat, in that moment it starts up a blackout an information blackout of 48 hours in which all communications with the outside are cut off. Their objective is to avoid interference of interminaries so that it is the whole army that informs all of what has happened to the victim’s families.
Molina explains it to me in his own way
Molina.
Something like…
Narrator
When a soldier dies, isn’t it?
Molina
Yes, yeah
Narrator
It is a little bit hard to say the word “dead” here or to face this possibility, which is not very remote here.
To die by an ID grenade, or in an improvised explosion… or anything like that.
Molina
Many of them do not like to talk about that. Many others talk about it like if it was a game. I do not know why. Like me, I talk about it like playing around with it.
Narrator
To play down the importance of it…
Molina
Yes.
Narrator
…Not to dramatize it and to make a little bit of therapy, right?
In your unit, there was a guy who died?
Molina
Yes, one.
Narrator
And yesterday, from the same brigade, five soldiers died, isn’t it?
Molina
Oh! I do not know…I do not know…. They do not say anything to me.
Alpha Company
Its 6am and I’m going out for the first time in a battle with the Alpha company soldiers.
Narrator:
You praying before, no, that’s like a ceremony that you use.
Man:
Yeah every time we go on mission I say a prayer before we go out its worked so far, so I’m going to stick with it.
Narrator:
It’s down to the streets of resident’s neighborhood; they are full of support for Saddam and prevalence of his regime are now the main suspects of supporting the hiding members of the resistance.
Soldier:
Ask him if he knows where they went, when they left for Ramadan, do you know where they went to?
Man:
I don’t know, which one of them?
Soldier:
Firouze Hussein
Man:
Forasa, I don’t see him but I see his bigger brother.
Soldier:
What’s his bigger brother’s name?
Man:
His bigger brother, Qusay.
Soldiers:
Qusay
Man:
I see him before, about one week.
Soldiers:
Do you know who lives near the school, who lives on the other side of the school?
Man:
I lost my baby yesterday so I don’t know anyone there, I don’t exit from my home since two days because I lost my baby.
Soldiers:
I’m sorry to hear that.
Okay thank you for your time.
Narrator:
As in all wars it is a painful routine.
Soldier:
We tried to find the guy who lives here and the females who live in the house are lying and basically we know they are lying as we saw his brother about three weeks ago, three houses away we found a bunch of ammunition back here for Ak47 probably about 5 or 600 rounds.
Soldier:
Bottom floor cleared.
Soldier:
Its snuff, its like tobacco
Narrator:
Oh, I see.
Soldier:
Some people smoke, we can’t, nobody can drink over here so you got to have something. This is a smokeless tobacco so it’s a bad habit.
Narrator:
Sent in black suddenly has to stop, the helicopter over us has detected movement, the tension they have to stand is brutal. It is a blind wall the attack can come in any moment from anywhere a rule when turning a corner, hit and run. That is how the game is.
Soldier:
The most frustrating thing that I think is around here is the fact that they will put an IV anywhere they don’t care, in the middle of town, or they will put it out in the middle of the country. It doesn’t matter they don’t care and its frustrating because I have to worry about my guys and make sure they don’t get hurt. When an IV blows up believe me it really wakes you up in the morning.
Narrator:
It is 8am, they just woke up the wife is preparing breakfast the kids are sleeping, all of a sudden a group of soldiers armed burst into your home.
Soldier:
We got a guy here.
No problem! No problem!
Come on Come on!
Man:
Baby in the bedroom, baby.
Narrator:
What do you think about this guy do you think he is clean… or?
Soldier:
He could be everybody’s got a chance to be a bad guy down here.
Narrator:
The weapons that this citizen owns are legal, but the soldiers find military material hidden in a toilet.
Soldier:
Is this his house?
Is this his toilet?
Soldier translator:
Yes
They are all there…
Soldiers:
That doesn’t answer my question why were they hidden in a toilet and covered up.
Man:
I did not hide anything…
But someone with bad intentions could have come from outside…
As well as you hate me, and you want to hurt me, you can come and leave objects that could harm me.
This is what I have, the regulated weapons allowed by the government.
Soldiers:
Ooh that was a big one.
Narrator:
What was that?
Soldiers:
You hear that explosion?
Narrator:
Yes.
Soldiers:
We will find out here in about 2 minutes.
Narrator:
These kinds of devices are they the worst for you know,
Soldier:
Yep, cause you don’t where they are or when they are going to go off
You haven’t got a choice you could drive into it then boom!
Soldier:
We were in Bradley it wasn’t that big of an IV but it still, still shook us up pretty good.
Soldier:
They got small ones big ones they all hurt. I remember when we was at an explosion, came back later on and two guys blew themselves up making a 9D.
Soldier:
We was down here, as a matter if fact.
Soldier:
Were we?
We went to the house and the house was all rubble they were in the backroom, crossed the wrong wires I guess.
Narrator:
They both died?
Soldier:
Yes. They both died.
Narrator:
And what did you think at that time?
Soldiers:
I thought it was funny. It’s what they did.
Soldiers:
This is one of the nicest houses we have been into.
Soldiers:
It’s probably the second nicest house we have been into, you got the floor, concrete slabs, carpet.
Soldiers:
This is nice. I like this. It’s a nice house. Beautiful.
Soldiers:
What we are going to do is, us guys are going to finish looking around your house for our safety and yours. And once we have done searching the house, everyone else is going to leave, ill have your family stay in one room, and my guys in the house will watch this area for a while, okay? We are just going to occupy one or more rooms upstairs, I need all your family to stay inside and be quite, okay? And they are going to stay downstairs.
Narrator:
Sergeant Black ordered us to stay in the house of this family, it is a good spot to watch a near objective and detect movements that can be seen hidden in the area.
Hey guys, how are you?
And what are you covering now?
Soldier:
We are covering a mosque.
A mosque is known to have AIF in it, not necessarily right now but in the past and they use it for meetings and stuff.
Narrator:
And how do you feel when you shoot one target like that?
Soldier:
Relief
Narrator:
Relief?
Soldier:
Cause I know that if I take them down their not going to come back a shoot one of us, we have had several casualties since we have been here, my friend died on May 8th. I don’t really look at the inter-means of a person, The things they do they are animals to me. It doesn’t bother me.
Narrator:
Terry, the sniper is the veteran of the group. Some kind of leader that transmits security and joy to his companions. He is a tough guy with experience. The young ones know that it is good to remain by his side.
Narrator:
Sometimes the snipers, they have or you have a reputation that you need to be cold, what do you think about that opinion?
Soldier:
That’s pretty much what everybody out here, we’re not, its not that you’re cold. Its just when you see someone that’s hurt and stuff like that you know that you have to get rid of the enemy. If you don’t kill them they are going to kill you, its not like we go out courteous of people we don’t fire on anyone unless they fire on us first so I’m only thinking out evil demeans. It’s just a job, someone has got to do it.
Narrator:
Terry participated in the 2003 invasion, he knows what it is to go back home and no one understands what he has lived, not even his family. His wife with whom he has a daughter has decided to get a divorce maybe that is why he didn’t care in coming back to Iraq.
Soldier:
It’s a really dangerous situation in some places and when I first got here I was fighting for what I believe in and know I’m fighting for my buddies. You just fight to survive and get out of here. In the beginning it was all this patriotic, I’m a soldier, I’m a hero type of thing and now its just I want me and my buddies to get out of here. If that means shooting somebody that’s fine with me as long as its not one of us getting shot.
Soldier:
It’s a weird feeling, its, you kind of get scared as soon as you know there’s shooting. As soon as you pull the trigger it’s like relief and you relax and you’re in like a zone and it just, and you feel a little bit more comfortable knowing you’ve got something else going back at them. It’s something you can’t explain really and until you have done it and even then it’s hard for people to understand.
Narrator:
So do you feel safer when you shoot?
Soldier:
Oh yeah. You go from scared little girl to superman.
Narrator:
You take control?
Well you try to.
Soldier:
No you take control. You don’t ever think that your trying to take control, you just, I am taking control and you just do it.
Soldier:
That’s probably the most stressful part of the job other than getting shot at.
Narrator:
And you can’t go back home if you want, or not do you have to finish the division.
Soldier:
No, we have to stay, we have no choice to go home. You only go home if you are in a coffin or on a stretcher.
Narrator:
We returned to the base.
Soldier:
The rocket came through the roof right here, knocked down this lighting unit and it went out the wall and landed down. There was a guy sleeping right here when this happened but he made it through that was a good thing.
Priest:
It is important to understand that this man in every way and every shape was a sinner but it wasn’t the man that was the problem it was the sin it had got to a point where he couldn’t control it and it was so dangerous that no one even wanted to travel with him.
Soldiers in every conflict have always griped, they gripe about the food they gripe about the living conditions they will gripe about the conditions that they are surrounded in. but soldiers, American soldiers while that have the support of the American people which they do now are willing to fight and are always willing to do their duty.
Narrator:
You seem like you feel that they feel they are winning the war or that they are losing it?
Priest:
Oh, oh absolutely I feel the soldiers are winning the war, I don’t ever hear a soldier speak or say how they are going to lose this thing or that we don’t have enough equipment or tools or the right training that’s something I have never heard from the soldiers.
Hostile Territory
Narrator:
We are still have not abandoned the base perimeters and the first mortars already sound. The road settlements are samples of wars and preparations each one of them is a colourful explosion.
Soldier:
That’s where a bomb went of this morning.
In August we had two guys getting injured up here when they through parachute grenades, through them off the top of a building and landed on top of a track, blow up and injured one of my NCOs and one on my soldiers. Had to take both of them back to the states.
Narrator:
What do you think of the Americans here, good or not good?
Man:
They come to defend Iraqi freedom.
Narrator:
What do you think Mr? Of the Americans here?
Man:
Everyday Americans get into the houses with violence…
Arresting people. The situation is not good here.
Man:
The Americans… like this like that.
There are strong confrontations… What can I tell you!
Man:
The situation… is difficult.
The situation is difficult.
24 hours in state of siege.
Man:
There is no commercial market.
Man:
There is no commercial market.
The market is expensive.
Man:
I mean… the Americans…
Narrator:
Saddam good?
Man:
Saddam?
Man:
Saddam is gone!
Saddam is gone!
The situation is difficult. At the time of Saddam Hussein the rice kilogram was 250… the market… is expensive. Ever since the Americans are here they raised the prices.
Narrator:
The situation is?
Man:
The situation of markets are a lot of markets, is very expensive now. Before this time, the time of Saddam, the potatoes or tomatoes the prices are lower than prices now.
I have told him there is no difference between Shiites and Sunnis.
Man:
Iraq is one! There is no difference between Shiites and Sunnis.
Americans are the ones making the difference. They are making the difference between us. They create hatred.
Man:
We are Muslims. We are Arab. There is no difference between a Sunni, a Shiite, a Kurdish, a Turkoman, and a Christian.
There is no difference! We are all Iraqis.
Man:
There is a curfew from 7pm to 6am. People cannot go out of their houses.
Man:
People do not dare to go out of their houses… they are afraid of the thieves and of the Americans…they do not know who is coming. You do not know who is waiting for you on the road.
Man:
If you go out at 8pm the snipers could shoot you in your forehead.
Narrators:
We are going towards the police station the police formed by volunteers are greeted by the American soldiers nether the less for once the army do not trust them. The soldiers want to assure that everything is in order that there is no trace of concern here. For the moment they have not found anything suspicious but they do not lower the bar. These children who openly show their support for Saddam are the policemen’s sons.
So they think that the Americans are making occupation?
Soldier:
Yes.
Narrator:
But they think that Saddam is even better or worse than the Americans?
Saddam is better than Americans?
Soldier:
Yes they said that Saddam is better than Americans.
Narrator:
Why?
Soldier:
They say that Saddam Hussein is a president like their president and no one is about to hate their president.
Soldier:
Thank you, very much.
Narrator:
The Alpha Company receive orders from their superiors, they cannot return to the base they have information of the near by presence of intelligence that they have been looking for a long time. There is no rest.
Narrator:
Do you think that the mission is risky?
Soldier:
They are always risky. Some of these people over here don’t like us. They want nothing better than to shoot and kill me.
Soldier:
Yeah we are going to go ahead now, if they want us to go ahead and do it we’ll do it. Get to the school clear it out. Come back up to the inter section here and across the road again right over here and hold up, all right?
Narrator:
There is no trace of the enemy, but the orders are infadic, they must follow until they find them, they have been more than 24 hours without resting the wearing down is enormous. They are convinced that the rebels are close they want to stay in a house near by from where they can watch out so they can suggest to the owner to let them borrow it.
Man:
I truly … my father is not here… and I cannot tell you. I do not have permission to decide over this house. My father is the responsible.
Soldier:
Your father is in charge?
Man:
He is not going to be able to come until the elections.
Soldier:
That is just the same… you are like your father.
Man:
So what do you want me to say?
Do you want me to show it to you then?
Soldier:
The worst thing is being out here and getting shot at or someone possibly getting killed and always thinking about, worrying about whether someone will get shot. Trying to keep security up at all times all day is stressful.
Soldier:
There is somebody down the end of that road.
Soldier:
Hey can we shoot too?
Soldier:
There’s some smoke over there you can see.
Soldier:
Our vehicles are on the road right there, they shot at us and we returned fire and now the helicopters are checking it out, looks like he’s going to fire.
Soldiers:
Come on shoot the rockets… It’s going up and down and whoa…
Man:
They do not know how to eat!
Narrator:
Do you feel that he is in a risky situation doing this?
Soldier:
I don’t really think he cares, I think appreciates what we are doing.
Soldier:
41 do you know what your missing?
It’s delicious.
Man:
Stir it…stir it.
Soldier:
What?
Stir it!
You should have just said so.
Soldier:
Look at that. That’s fresh... Its still open that’s just weird it’s a gunshot wound in there.
Soldier:
Sometimes its just usually just people in the area who have gotten hurt and they come and know the Americans have doctors with them so we can take care of them if its real serious, he’s walking on it so.
Translator:
Maybe two years ago someone attacked them and shot everywhere.
Soldier:
Two of our guys have gotten hit with a grenade it’s the only injuries I have had to take care of the two guys who got hit with a grenade they through a grenade of a building it landed hit our Bradley blow up and hurt them pretty bad, they both went home it was scary you know those were my friends so they are my brothers we are all a big family and then two of your friends, two of your brothers are hurt and you have to take care of them because you’re the one that knows what’s going on its pretty scary
Soldier:
Hey, where are you going?
Soldier:
We’re moving!
Soldier:
White man Jess you got a white man?
66Alpha he’s moving down the road, it’s the 3 storey building far back, its about 600 meters away from my position right now.
Soldier:
You see the second opening hole if you just move into the left, he’s right inside that bush around by that grey building
Soldier:
I got him.
Soldier:
You got him?
Soldier:
He’s by that tree. See where that tree is, you see the grey building see the big bush next to it he’s right in there.
Soldier:
It’s a lady it’s a lady.
It’s not a lady.
Soldier:
There is a white man. He’s right next to a kid. Make sure that’s him don’t shoot yet. Rodger I know there’s a woman in the way, hold on.
As soon as he moves pop him pop him.
Soldier:
He’s running he’s running.
Soldier:
I’m kind of, you know, got up and a bullet zipped right passed both our heads, got back down like this, he got up and identified, shot at him missed him.
Soldier:
He had short hair moustache no beard.
Narrator:
So you’re lucky!
Soldier:
Very lucky so is sergeant Morgan lucky too, it was really load.
Narrator:
How do you feel now?
Soldier:
Err, kinda shaky but then again you know we identified the guy.
Narrator:
Terry the sniper and others from the unit went to capture one of the guys, this time they do not let me accompany them.
Soldier:
Shot down, I’m soaking wet!
Soldier:
Woops sorry.
Solder:
I believe it was our interrogation techniques.
Soldier:
Dude I was going to kill that guy.
Narrator:
So you said you wouldn’t kill him.
Soldier:
No, I said I was going to kill the guy that shot at us.
Soldier:
It was all about interrogation.
Soldier:
The people lie they see the bad guy and they lie, they say they didn’t hear any gunshots, they didn’t see anybody run and we watched the guy run past him and they say oh we weren’t here but we saw you standing right here and we are here to help this country have a better life and they watch our friends die and lie to us, its very, very aggravating. Very aggravating. Like I said yesterday you have got to push all those feelings down of love and compassion and understanding and all that stuff it’s gone. And you see your friends hurt that’s just gone, no place for it out here, it’s not my job.
Narrator:
And do you trust these people and this house?
Soldier:
I wouldn’t say, I wouldn’t totally trust anyone out here, but I think they are good people. I myself in my honest opinion these people are good when we first got here the man took us onto the roof and pointed to the houses that were bad in this neighbourhood and the houses that were good and the people that we were interrogating and were caught were at the bad houses, so I think the man here was telling the truth. And I think they are good people but as I say you never know, they will be good to you one day then you will catch them setting up an IV the next day cause I mean a bad guy isn’t going to say hey I hate you I’m going to kill you later you know they will be like, no I love America, America’s great so you just never know very dangerous out here, very dangerous.
Narrator:
Outside in the garden a missionary waits to be interrogated, I asked them why do they keep him hooded.
Soldier:
The reason we put the bag over his head is so that he can’t see us and its easier for us to move him and keep control of him that way and has a less likely chance to run and so we don’t have to chase him down like that. We will try and get some information from him then process it and try to send him up to the Iraq prison.
Narrator:
He doesn’t look to worried.
Soldier:
They’re usually not worried because they know that most of the time they get away.
Narrator:
Where are you going now?
Soldier:
I’m off to guard, watch out you know, watch the position.
Soldier:
People in the other countries do the same thing get paid the same thing and they are driving around in civilian clothes and they’re getting paid the same.
Soldier:
In Kuwait?
Soldier:
Yeah people in Kuwait do the same thing get paid the same and don’t get shot at.
Never get shot at.
Narrator:
Will you be compensated when you get back to the states, how they treat you, because they think you are …
Soldier:
That’s the thing people are, thank you for the first week, but after your back for the first week it’s all back the same like you never went. You can’t explain to the civilians back home what its really like to experience this.
Soldier:
I don’t tell my mum nothing when I call her she asks how I’m doing I tell her the guys are great, I’m going on patrol she asked me if I got shot at I said a little bit, I don’t tell her that RPGs are blowing up in front of the tracks and guys are falling down and I’m thinking they are dead I just leave out all the details so yeah you know we have had a bad week we get shot at a lot I said we have had a bad week its been kind of ruff but we are all ok we will all make it through, I ask her how my dogs doing.
Soldier:
The civilians might make triple of what the army makes they make up to $120,000 to $150,000 a sniper can get $200,000 for one year over here plus $15,000 bonus every three months plus you get to go home for 10 days every three months.
Soldier:
$200,000, how much do we make $20,000, $25,000. That’s $235,000 for what we are making now. We got a guy who catches flies and rats who makes $80,000.
Soldier:
A guy who changes my light bulbs makes $80,000 that’s $7000 a month.
Soldier:
To change light bulbs!
Soldier:
Not that we don’t appreciate it thanks guys that change light bulbs.
Soldier:
But hey, oh its April 30th coming around.
Soldier:
I have seen my daughter six times in the past two and a half years and I don’t think I could spend another year away from her miss them a lot.
Narrator:
After four days on mission they return to the base.
Soldier:
It’s always a relief to be back here.
Narrator:
What are you going to do now?
Soldier:
Take a shower.
Narrator:
And later?
Soldier:
I’m sorry?
Narrator:
Later?
Soldier:
Most likely sleep then we will have more work to do.
Soldier:
Is he all right?
Soldier:
He got burnt.
Soldier:
One of my guys.
Soldier:
He’s got 3rd degree burns from here down his gear is burnt.
Narrator:
Ned has fallen may wake up with wounds from an attack as he was returning to the base.
Soldier:
He was burnt from the top to the bottom.
Soldier:
All his skin was like everything was totally burnt from all the way down including his face.
Soldier:
He looked like white guys.
Soldier:
All the skin from here down was hanging off.
Narrator:
They said a soldier has died and many others are in serious conditions the blackout starts as of this moment and for the next 48 hours all the communications with the outside world will be cut off, as of me they do not allow me to continue recording.