2009.05.09
Iraqi Army-Wide Personnel Inspection
Recently, the Iraqi Army began a thorough inspection of all Soldiers including personnel records, literacy and physical condition. The goals of the inspection are to complete records, bring discrepancies up to standards, and, in some cases, separate those not meeting standards from the service.
In May 2003, the United States dissolved the Iraqi Army as a means of marking the end of the old power. In August of the same year, the new Iraqi army began training its new recruits at a rapid rate with the purpose of combating extremism. The fast pace of recruiting resulted in lenient standards and less than complete records.
The first step in the personnel inspection was comparing a national photo ID card called a jensia to the Soldiers' own face. After confirming that a Soldier was on record under the correct name, the inspectors scanned his personnel files. Soldiers filled out all necessary forms and completes any missing information on the spot. From there the Soldiers went through a physical examination that differed sharply in one noticeable way from a US Soldier's exam: the entire exam was completed in one's undergarments.
Iraqi Soldiers stripped to their underpants where they went to a series of stations: vision check, height, skin examination, joint check, and weight measurement. The entire process was in one large room, containing dozens of inspectors in uniform, several onlookers and one or two Soldiers. Soldiers with a weight problem were noted and put on weight control. Soldiers with physical injuries or ailments were handled in a case-by-case basis, considering service and sacrifice to the Soldier's country. Also, tattoos were considered, as hateful or beyond normal ones resulted in separation.
After the Soldiers put their clothes back on, they took a reading/writing test, which consisted of reading a paragraph from a newspaper and writing a few sentences. The test largely ensured that Soldiers did not have someone else take the test for them when they entered the service.
In the end, Soldiers' information and pictures were taken and added to a large database. Records were squared away, and the Soldiers separating from the service made room for new recruits, as the Government of Iraq recently capped their army at about a quarter million troops.
Soldiers wait in line to have their records scanned for missing data.
Iraqi Soldiers wait outside for the first part of the inspection. Being in such an enclosed place with so many unfamiliar, non-US Soldiers, all speaking Arabic, can put one on edge.
This Soldier came back from leave to take his literacy test. The inspector turned the page of the newspaper after awhile, and eventually hear the entire publication.
Last stop, records and pictures are not only complete, but they are captured digitally.
