MiTT Continues To Make Progress

By Spc. Alexis Harrison
2nd BCT, 1st Cav. Div. Public Affairs

FORWARD OPERATING BASE PROSPERITY — A few months ago, Haifa Street was considered one of the most notorious places in Baghdad. The 4th Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment Military Transition Team had been training for the opportunity to reclaim that area and fight alongside their Iraqi brothers from the 3rd Battalion, 5th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division.

As abruptly as the fighting ended, the team and its counterparts were reassigned to a different area in Hateen where they fought an equally aggressive enemy. After spending more than two months gaining trust and rebuilding the structure of the neighborhood, the Soldiers, both Iraqi and American, were called upon to move to another area.

Now, the team and the Iraqi army battalion patrol a predominately Shi'a sector just west of the International Zone. And after more than 90 days of tough lessons learned on Haifa, the team takes its training of their counterparts more seriously than ever.

(PHOTO: Barton, Vt., native and 4th Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment Military Transition Team commander, Maj. Chris Norrie, dismantles a makeshift sniper position atop a house where he and his team were shot at from March 19. Norrie and the team assisting the soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 5th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, came under contact during a routine patrol through the neighborhood. The sniper fled the scene but left behind evidence of his presence.)

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