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<title><![CDATA[Ground Truth - US Civil Affairs in Iraq - Winning Hearts and Minds in an unconventional environment - Fotopages.com]]></title>
<link>http://lzxray.fotopages.com/</link>
<description><![CDATA[Friends, Family, & Supporters of C/96th CA Bn (Airborne) and their ongoing operations in Iraq,

	After many requests, we have started this fotolog to showcase in a visual format some of the activities that make up the typical days of a Civil Affairs unit in Iraq. The intent is to give everyone a tiny picture of what these dedicated soldiers experience and endure on a daily basis as well as a snapshot of the Iraqi people themselves whom we are here to support. 

	For those who are not acquainted with us already, C/96th CA (Airborne) is unique organization within the United States Army’s Special Operations Command (USASOC.) Part of the only active duty Civil Affairs Battalion in the Army (almost 97% of all Civil Affairs are found in the Army Reserve), it is organized into several, highly trained, four man tactical teams who act as the link between coalition forces and the civilian population. With a combination of seasoned Team Leaders and professional non-commissioned officers; including Special Forces and special operations trained medics and engineers; our CAT-A’s (Civil Affairs Team – Alpha), bring a mature, culturally aware, and linguistic expertise to an uncertain and often insecure environment.

I won’t attempt to talk about anything political here. Whether you supported or not the decision to come to Iraq is irrelevant to those of us who have to carry out the decisions of our elected leaders. Those of us who have chosen to serve our country are all volunteers and intend to do the best job we can regardless of the conditions. I see it every day in the reports and pictures from my teams who work tirelessly in the goal of bringing security and a basic standard of living to people who have suffered for so many years. There is so much positive going on and you never hear about it. The old standard “if it bleeds, it leads” is going stronger than ever. Everything else is ignored or minimized. 

	If you know of other individuals or organizations that would like to contribute to our efforts, we will gladly accept and take responsibility for distributing what they send. Everything we get makes our job a little easier. If you prefer something in particular go to a soldier, please indicate so.
	
Our most critical/popular needs are:

	Sports equipment
		Soccer & Volleyballs (deflated)
		Air pumps & needles
		Soccer shirts (youth sizes)

	Toys & school supplies 
(We tend to get mobbed so smaller is better so we can give everyone something)
		Party favor toys	
		Bags of assorted figures 
		Coloring Books
		Colored Pencils & Sharpeners (crayons melt!)
		Dolls (again smaller is better)
		#2 pencils
		Notebook Folders
		Pens
		
	Health & Welfare
		New hairbrushes & combs
		Bags of individually wrapped hard candy is best (nothing meltable)

Bottom line, we will take whatever we can get and appreciate it.

You can send any donations or letters of support to:

Commander
C/96th Civil Affairs (Airborne)
APO AE 09347

You can E-mail us at Lzxray14@yahoo.com


All pictures have been taken by members of the unit and are the sole property of the same.]]></description>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jan 2010 13:12:06 GMT</pubDate>
<lastBuildDate>Mon, 04 Jan 2010 13:12:06 GMT</lastBuildDate>

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<item>
<title><![CDATA[More flora and fauna...]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=160744</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Base Camp Critters # 2]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[Note. Our little friend here was moved away from where some heavy machinery was operating and released outside the wire...]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=160738</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Base Camp Critters #1]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=160731</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Lake Dokkan - Northern Iraq]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[No wonder the Kurds want to keep this AO...]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=156129</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Adubah & Al Taliyah]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=153839</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 08 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Local Children]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[Local Children with smiling faces as they receive gifts from US Soldiers]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=151280</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=151265</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 03 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Northern Iraq]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=151258</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Jul 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Grand Opening of a new local health clinic]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[Just one of literally hundreds of projects the we are doing to help improve the quality of life in the province. At this level, the taxpayer's money is being well spent and has a real impact.]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=147124</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jun 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[A visit to As Sulaymaniah]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[Sulaymaniah is the capital of As Sulaymaniah governate and one of the two regional centers (the other being Erbil) of the Kirkuk Regional Government. This area has been mostly self-governing since the end of the Gulf War in '91. This is the historical power base for the Talabani tribe and his PUK (Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.) 

Looks alot like Lebanon or northern California.....]]></description>
<guid isPermaLink="true">http://lzxray.fotopages.com/?entry=145210</guid>
<pubDate>Sun, 27 Jun 2004 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
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