"This will be the first time dealing with an airport," said Jordanian Maj. Ayman Othman Al-Shibly. "This will be an interesting experience for me and my soldiers."
Made up of volunteers from the Jordanian military, the SECFOR 240 B Sharana 2 assumed the security of FOB Sharana, May 8, 2013. They manned the towers to allow U.S. Forces to focus on the security force advise and assist mission.
"[The Jordanian soldiers] were given the difficult mission of providing tower security on FOB Sharana," said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Christopher Wendland. "[which required] steadfast attention for hours on end, 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week and...[the Jordanian Armed Forces]…protected the Soldiers and civilians on the FOB, sometimes more than 3,000 people, in all environmental conditions and even without food and water during the daylight hours of Ramadan."
The ceremony took place inside of the FOB Sharana morale welfare and recreation building. 2/10 Security Force Assistance Brigade command team, U.S. Army Col. Dennis Sullivan and Command Sgt. Maj. Hector Font, along with Task Force 2-15 Field Artillery and Task Force 1-89 Cavalry command teams took seats as the honored guests to the joint coalition force ceremony.
"I like working with U.S. Forces," said Al-Shibly. "Capt. Gilbert Pearsall is a very good commander. He knows about our culture and tries to always take care of us. If he doesn't know something, he asks. He looks always for knowledge." Pearsall was the U.S. company commander partnered with the Jordanian security force.
The ceremony highlighted the bonds between ISAF partners on FOB Sharana, which included a video slide slow highlighting the close relationship shared between the JAF and Company A, 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, an infantry company who controlled the overall security of FOB Sharana and whose Soldiers were the closest to the Jordanian soldiers.
"The Jordanian Armed Forces are a highly professional group of Soldiers, who were courteous of American customs, as were my Soldiers to theirs," said U.S. Army 1st Sgt. Bryan Pritchett, Company A, 2-14 Infantry. "Overall, the working relationship was very professional."
The Jordanian soldiers learned from this close relationship, as did the U.S. Soldiers assigned to work with the Jordanians.
"We have incorporated with the U.S. Soldiers, and they want to know a lot about our culture, religion, and military," said JAF Sgt. Hazem Jbor. "I like how the U.S. Soldiers obey all the rules. Seeing them follow the rules makes me want to as well."
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