Marines deliver firepower to Ramadi Police Academy
Submitted by: 1st Force Service Support Group
Story Identification #: 200410135369
Story by Sgt. Luis R. Agostini



ABU GHRAIB, Iraq (Oct. 11, 2004) -- Marines with Combat Service Support Company 115 delivered more than 18,500 weapons, ammunition and supplies to the Ramadi Police Academy Oct. 11, 2004.

The Ramadi Police Academy will use the weapons, ammunition and supplies to train their recruits in handcuffing procedures and weapons familiarization, said 2nd Lt. Brendan A. Rome, CSSC-115's motor transportation platoon commander, who led the convoy to the weapons pickup site.

The company, comprised mostly of truck drivers, picked up the weapons and other gear at a warehouse on the morning of Oct. 10.

Although the drivers with CSSC-115 oversaw the weapons pickup and delivery as just another convoy operation, one of three they completed within the past 36 hours, the combat service support staff's role is vital in the quality of training of Iraq's National Guard and police forces, said Marine Maj. Joseph N. Raftery, logistical coordinator for the Iraqi Security Force.

CSSC-115, part of the 1st Force Service Support Group, directly supports Marines operating in hotspots like Fallujah and Ramadi. The 1st FSSG is responsible for providing logistical support, such as food, ammunition and medical supplies, to all Marine forces operating in Iraq.

While combat service support units are delivering weapons and supplies to future Iraqi law enforcers, U.S. and Iraqi forces have launched joint operations throughout Iraq in the past week, moving against multiple targets across the central Iraqi province in a continuing campaign to restore security and stability here.

On Oct. 11, 2004, an Iraqi SWAT team, backed by elements of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, killed two insurgents and seized 10 more suspects in a skirmish near the south-central Iraqi city of Lutafiyah, according to a Marine Corps statement.

More than 100 suspected insurgents have been captured in the Northern Babil province since Oct. 5, when Iraqi and U.S. forces launched a fresh operation to capture or kill anti-Iraqi forces and disrupt their activity, according to the statement.

Joint operations like these are the result of U.S. efforts to train and supply Iraq's National Guard to stabilize and secure their country on their own.