Semper Gratus!

MNF-Iraq, BAGHDAD — In a well-lit meeting room in a government building in the Iraqi capital, 20 Iraqi women were sitting in a circle, intently watching the demonstration in the center of the room. They were dressed modestly but with some flair: bright pink and blue headscarves mixed in among the black chadors, chunky, designer purses resting on the floor beneath their seats.

The friendly, casual atmosphere in the room looked similar to a suburban book-club meeting, or maybe a Mary-Kay cosmetics party. Except that these women were not learning how to apply foundation, they were learning how to lock and load an AK-47.

“Who can show me how to do it?” asked the instructor, an Iraqi Army sergeant, holding up the weapon.

One of the women jumped up and took the automatic rifle, expertly disassembled it and put it back together. When she cocked it by loudly slamming the charging handle back, the rest of the women applauded.

They might well have been applauding themselves. As members of the first class of female security volunteers in Adhamiyah, all 51 women in the class were groundbreakers. The women will join hundreds of male residents that are already helping secure Adhamiyah by guarding important public sites like schools, hospitals, and government buildings.

Pretty cool, huh?

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