Iraqi police defy danger

BAGHDAD — Terrorists routinely drag Iraqi policemen from their work or homes for grisly executions, or send car bombs to their stations to blow them apart.

But the recruits keep lining up for one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, putting their lives on the line to rebuild their shattered nation.

“If today they kill a police officer, tomorrow there will be more recruits, so they have done nothing,” said one veteran police officer who asked not to be named.

“The danger is everywhere, but to serve your country is much better than to be afraid and do nothing,” said the officer, who served in Saddam Hussein’s regime but welcomed American forces when they entered Baghdad.

Also, in a country with an unemployment rate of about 35 percent, few regular paying jobs are available.

Iraq’s fledgling police force is considered the cornerstone for defeating the criminal gangs, the political insurgency and bands of terrorists that penetrate deep into the country’s neighborhoods.

Insurgents and Islamic militants call the blue-uniformed police traitors for helping the U.S. occupiers. In the past few months, dozens of policemen each week have been assassinated. Hundreds more are maimed while standing in line outside police recruiting centers.

The Interior Ministry reported that at least 1,500 police have died since training began less than two years ago.

With a demoralized and ineffective police force, those bent on destabilizing the country can take over the city streets and highways, and continue to terrorize the population. The constant presence of police on the streets makes them easy marks for insurgents, who often are better-equipped.

The stocky 42-year-old officer said the death rate is high.

“I have lost a lot of my friends, who were shot. A lot of them were shot in their homes, others in the street. [Insurgents] set up ambushes near the homes of the officers. They know where they live,” he said, sitting behind a wide wooden desk in a Baghdad police station.

The officer said he hides where he lives so the insurgents can’t track down him or his wife.

Yet the constant threats have not been enough to stop the post-Saddam police force — estimated to be between 60,000 and 90,000, depending on which official is speaking — from patrolling the streets.

Iraqi police have been criticized for their inability to hold their own against insurgents armed with armor-piercing bullets and rocket-propelled grenades. But many new policemen receive only a few weeks of training in civil-order and human rights practices before being sent to patrol a war zone, where they often are the targets.

Until recently, they were poorly equipped and lacked the infrastructure needed to carry out their work.

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