FORWARED OPERATING BASE WARRIOR, KIRKUK, Iraq - In several sub-districts of Kirkuk city in northern Iraq, some of the less fortunate sometimes need a little assistance to occasionally make ends meet.
That assistance arrived in late July with the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the sub-district of Arafa and Aruba by Iraqi Police, with support from Soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.
The IP delivered bags of food to families and school supplies and toys to waiting children. On hand to assist in the delivery of the aid was the "Lion of Kirkuk", the official mascot of the Kirkuk IP, who has been visiting Iraqi children throughout the city.
First Lt. Mike Sim, New York City native and platoon leader in 3rd Bn., 82nd FA Regt., and his Soldiers supported the delivery.
"Operations like this just further illustrate Iraqi Security Forces' ability to operate on their own," Sim said.
Sim explained that he believes the IP delivering the aid helps build confidence among residents here in their government by showing their willingness to provide for the people.
"Over the past six years the nature of U.S. participation has gone through the full spectrum of change," Sim said. "Seeing us [U.S. forces] here in a support capacity with ISF up front demonstrates how far the ISF have come."
The chief of police for the Arafa sub-district, Lt. Col. Afram Jacob Jaji, selected the area to receive the distribution.
"I chose this [village] because it is very poor, the poorest in my area," said Afram. "I wanted the people to know that we [Iraqi government] have not forgotten about them."
According to Afram, he is involved in other projects to help the residents in his area by focusing on essential services like water and power.
"The reasons for these projects and the food delivery is not just to give food, but also to build a relationship between local residents and the Iraqi Police," Afram said.
Afram is also working on developing the Iraqi equivalent of a neighborhood watch program to gather information on criminal activities and other matters of concern to residents in his area.
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