| This was the day the terrorists said the streets would run red with blood of the Iraqi people if they came out to vote. The thugs and lawless scum that had grappled with the Iraqi people for control of Iraq intended to use the threat of violence to dampen the election turnout. The liberal media picked up the chant predicting a sparse turnout and therefore an illegitimate election. Surely this would be the most crucial day for the Iraqis.
Plans for the elections had been flawlessly put into motion. No cars or trucks of any kind other than peacekeepers would be allowed on the streets to cut down on the threat of vehicle born I.E.D.'s. The ROE (rules of engagement) today allowed for our gunner on the 50 cal machine gun to take out any vehicle he saw moving if they did not immediately stop with their hands up. Snipers had been placed on rooftops all over Baghdad and other major cities. concertina wire and barricades further limited traffic near the voting places. In order to vote, the Iraqi's would have to walk - blocks and blocks - to their polling place in a no-mans-land environment.
Our convoy of 4 armored humvees left Fort Falcon at 5 am to begin a long day of patrols and SASO (security and stabilization operations). Some of these guys had gotten little sleep for days yet here came an 18 hour day with all the tension of the election and the threatened violence. Our sector was a virtual ghost town save the Iraqi National Guard and Iraqi Security Forces standing at the barricades and control points having been on duty for 36 hours at this point.
That scene gave us some hope that the Iraqi people would vote in defiance of the terrorists. The security forces would be the first ones to take casualties in any situation yet they didn't care - this was their chance - the first chance in 40 years to stand up for a free Iraq. I marvelled at their courage. However they had this annoying habit of firing warning shots if they saw anything, which made the scene a bit tentative to say the least.
At 0840 it began - a coordinated IED, car born IED, RPG, and AK47 attack near the Green Zone. The tactic was obvious. Give the TV folks a little show as they are all "holed-up" in the nice hotels in the protected Green Zone.
This would be the message they would relay to the world that the terrorists have begun their assault on the Iraqi people and the election will not work. The early reports I got from the States via sat phone were exactly that - CNN reporter gave it little chance to work. Politics makes strange bedfellows - the liberal media seems to willingly echo the statements of Al Qaeda leaders.
By 0920 the streets were still empty and I hadn't seen a voter. We stopped for TCP - traffic control at an intersection in our sector. There up ahead of us was a mother, father, and their young child. They were the first to boldly walk to the polling places.
A few minutes later another came out. Within minutes 2 turned to 4, to 8, to 16, and right before our eyes a crowd of determined Iraqis had followed this little family out onto the streets in defiance of the terrorists.
They rejoiced - we rejoiced - we clapped - we encouraged them in every way we could. And they came - and they came - and they came. They must have been hiding looking out their windows to see if anyone else would vote and found courage in the defiance of others.
Now the early ones came out of the polling places proudly displaying the purple ink stain on their right index finger that marked them as a voter. But they didn't rush home and try to wash it off. They stood on the street corners in defiance of the terrorists.
Today this became their Iraq - today they spoke as one.
The magnitude of this movement continued to increase as the street became a gathering place where children played and men discussed the politics and meaning of it all.
But the best sight was the Iraqi women. They stood strong in the face of this tactic of threatened violence and proudly came out holding their purple ink stained finger aloft for all to see.
I grabbed my camera and tried to capture each scene: an old man in traditional Arab dress, a family dressed in their best modern clothing to vote, a man on crutches with one leg missing walking blocks and blocks to vote, young, old, traditional, western culture - they all came.
The joy on the faces of our soldiers and the Iraqi National Guard and Security Forces told the whole story - it worked - it worked - the Iraqi people voted. This validated our armed services sacrifice of service and loss of limb or life. Our vehicle command - Lt. Brandon Titus - said this was the best day he had ever had in Iraq. Same country - same conditions - but now the Iraqi people stood up as one.
The radio crackled with occasional reports of suicide bombers but no one cared. In total 9 suicide bombers would make good on their threats to disrupt voting and take out those who defied their rule. But the Iraqi people had been threatened with worse - much worse - and it was clear the terrorists had overplayed their hand.
Now a report came through that 2 Iraqi men told a patrol convoy that they had killed 2 terrorists who lived on their block. They would keep that block clear from this day forward. The smoldering embers of freedom were fanned into precious flames - unstable in some ways - but burning and spreading non the less.
And so it went for the rest of the day. The Iraqis served us "chai" a strong hot tea loaded with sugar - that was really good. A little girl brought the tray out with a smile and gave it to Sgt. Morales who plays the tough guy but has a heart of gold. We played soccer with the kids, congratulated the adults, and soaked in the sounds of a new democracy being born into a waiting world.
I could have adopted 10 Iraqi children that day - my heart completely gone for a little boy named Mohammed. His smile was angelic and he loved the American soldiers. Our forces have won the hearts of the children in the months they've been there. Today we saw the fruition of that effort - the hearts of the Iraqi people.
At 1700 (5 PM) the polls closed. I went inside with my cameras and caught the last voter slipping his ballot into the box. The poll workers rejoiced and celebrated despite their exhaustion from the day. Now began the long task of counting the ballots.
This was a first for the Iraqi people - previous elections were decided before the 1st vote was cast - but this time the Iraqi people would decide their leadership. We stood guard over that school house for 3 hours while they counted and recounted their precious ballots. I snapped a picture of an Iraqi election judge counting ballots by candle light - it told the story of the day, and it was a great day indeed.
Posted By: Edd Hendee
Sunday, January 30
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