By Spc. L.B. Edgar,

7th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Chesterton native Erik Peterson is leading the first Combat Outpost (COP) in Baghdad.

On the chaotic streets in the Ghazaliya district of Baghdad, victims of violence are common. That’s the environment in which Soldiers of Company C, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, operate.

On a disruption patrol the Soldiers of Co. C received fire from a rooftop. They subsequently positively identified the threat and returned fire.

After unsuccessfully pursuing their attacker, the platoon leader observed suspicious activity around a car. When the Soldiers approached the vehicle, the suspicious figures surrounding it scattered. AK-47 magazines and black hoods inside the vehicle prompted a thorough search, which revealed its contents: a human being, said Staff Sgt. Shelby Clement, tank commander for Co. C’s 2nd Platoon.

“In the trunk of the car there was an Iraqi national who had been bound and blindfolded. I’m sure the intent was not good for him,” Clement, a native of Hartville, Mo., explained. “This time, we did something and were actually able to save a guy’s life.”

Every day Soldiers of Baghdad’s first and only COP patrol the streets of Ghazaliya, there are opportunities to make a difference in the community, which is home to more than 50,000 people, said Capt. Erik Peterson, the company commander.

“I’m the only COP in Baghdad right now. I’m the first COP in Baghdad,” said Peterson, a 1996 graduate of Chesterton High School.

The COP is essentially several homes surrounded by barriers and fortified with concertina wire and thousands of sand bags.

Dubbed COP “Casino” because Co. C is known as the “Wild Cards,” the outlying base for operations houses U.S. Soldiers as well as Iraqi Army (IA) troops, said Spc. Michael Anderson, the company’s radio transmission operator.

Since the coalition moved inside the Ghazaliya community approximately three weeks ago, the residents have been more forthcoming in providing information, either in person or through the local tip line, said the native of Bay Minette, Ala.

“A lot of people have told us they are glad we moved into the neighborhood and they feel safer (since) we are here,” Anderson explained. “Since we live here, I think more of them are compelled to come down here.”

Every day the Soldiers of Co. C and their Iraqi counterparts are making the COP safer and more livable. As the Soldiers build up the COP, the residents are increasingly aware of its permanence, Clement said.

While the Soldiers are trying to train the Iraqi troops to perform missions independently, they are also trying to improve relations between the residents and their armed forces, Clement said.

For now, Soldiers patrol the streets of Ghazaliya daily enforcing the rule of law and improving the capabilities of the IA one step at a time.

Posted 2/7/2007