A 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment soldier peers into a courtyard at the Babylon Ruins site. The soldier is part of a team surveying the site for a renovation project in the Babil province of Iraq. Photo by Staff Sgt. Mark Albright

What’s old will become renewed as the Babylon Historic Ruins Museum undergoes a facelift. Local contractors have begun the renovations under the coordinating efforts of museum officials and the Babil Provincial Reconstruction Team.

“We are working hand-in-hand with the Provincial Governor and we are just doing one step at a time,” said Lou Simonetti, Infrastructure Essential Services Team Lead Engineer of the Babil PRT.

The project focuses on the renovation and restoration of the museum, the exhibits, archeological artifacts, and upgrading security at the gates. Once complete, the project will benefit the economy of the province by boosting tourism there, said Simonetti.

The project will also provide a benefit to students of all age groups as they come to visit the ruins and learn about its history, said Lt. Col Brian Radliff, Regimental Deputy Commanding Officer, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment

The project is scheduled for completion in three months at the cost of just over $200,000. The site contains Nebuchadnezzar’s Palace, Alexander the Great’s Palace, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and several other temples.

“Our current focus in the last stage of our operation here is to continue to develop the Iraqi economic infrastructure within the local communities,” said Radliff. “Improving tourism, and specifically, ecotourism, with projects like the Babylon Ruin Museum will have economic benefits.”

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Story by Staff Sgt. Mark Albright

Juan Alsace (right), an embedded Provincial Reconstruction Team leader, examines a piece of clay pottery found at the Sobbar Abu Habba historical site near Mahmudiyah, Nov. 4. Alsace joined Soldiers of the 120th Combined Arms Battalion, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, and officials from the Iraq Ministry of Antiquities and Tourism to survey ancient historical sites to build protective fences to discourage looters. Photo by Sgt. Jon Soles

What may look like large, weathered mounds of dirt in rural farmland near Mahmudiyah are actually artifact-filled ruins of an ancient civilization.

Soldiers of the North Carolina National Guard’s 120th Combined Arms Battalion, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, surveyed the sites, here, recently, with officials from the Government of Iraq’s Ministry of Antiquities and Tourism to examine ways to preserve and protect two ancient Sumerian sites from looters.

The complexes of dirt mounds — Tal Aldair and Sobbar Abu Habba — were once Sumerian city walls outside of what is today Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad. Pottery and clay tablets with the world’s first form of writing, Cuneiform, are known to be in the mounds. The Sumerian culture is the oldest civilization in the world, dating back to the 6th century B.C.

“It’s for the world and not just Iraq to preserve these world heritage sites because a lot of folks know it as the cradle of civilization,” said Morrison. “These [Sumerians] were the first people we know of in history to be able to write and keep records and those are the kinds of artifacts that are here today.”

The sites have already seen looting, and the GoI officials and archaeologists want to prevent more plundering by erecting security fences and a guard shack at the mounds.

“It has been identified as one of those sites that have been an easy target for looters over the years because of close proximity to Baghdad and because of turbulence in Iraq’s history,” said Maj. Charles Morrison, executive officer for the 120th CAB. “We’re working with the Ministry to secure the site for preservation and future excavation. It’s important for the Iraqi people, especially to preserve their heritage.”

Morrison, an infantry officer from Nashville, N.C., is taking a lead in the project. A self-described history buff, Morrison formerly worked for the North Carolina of Archives and History. He said he is particularly interested in helping the Iraqis preserve a site that is 4,000 years old.

Nouri Obeyd Kathem, an archaeologist with the Ministry of Antiquities and Tourism, led Morrison over the mounds. Thousands of years of erosion have worn down the once city walls and temple structures, exposing countless pieces of clay pottery and other artifacts. Many more are still buried in the centuries-old mounds.

“They have been with us today to make sure we don’t damage any of the archaeological sites when we emplace the fence and scope of work,” said Morrison. “We’re trying to work hand in hand with the government to make sure we do what they want in terms of preserving the site.”

The plans call for security fences and possibly guard shacks to protect the sites. Signs would also be erected to let Iraqis know about the historical significance of the sites.

One of the legacies American Soldiers can leave behind in Iraq as the troop drawdown continues is a fence that will help preserve an ancient site that will continue to be a symbol of the nation’s ancient history and culture.

Story by Sgt. Jon Soles
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A chaplain's assistant reads while Soldiers tour St. Elijah's Monastery, June 11, at Contingency Operating Base Marez, Iraq. Photo by Sgt. Chad Menegay

The abandoned, sixth century St. Elijah’s Monastery of Ninawa province, Iraq, once a center for the regional Christian community, served the Army chaplain community, June 11, and brought two old friends back together in study and prayer.

Seven years prior, 1st. Lt. Brandt Klawitter, chaplain with the 14th Transportation Battalion, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) and a Hermann, Mo., native, and Capt. Matthew Christensen, chaplain with the 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment and a Kalispell, Mont., native, studied biblical archaeology together, but never imagined that one day they would walk within the deteriorating walls of a possible archeological cache and pray at its altar.

It seemingly happened by chance.

As Klawitter scanned his ID card at the entrance to the dining facility at Contingency Operating Base Diamonback, Iraq, he looked up to see his friend, Christensen, wandering around looking for coffee.

The two had no idea one another was visiting troops at COB Diamondback at the same time. Klawitter’s office of operations is at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, and Christensen’s at Contingency Operating Base Taji, Iraq.

They caught up over breakfast.

Capt. Matthew Christensen -from left-, chaplain with the 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, and a Kalispell, Mont., native; 1st Lt. Brandt Klawitter, Chaplain with the 14th Transportation Battalion, 13th Sustainment Command -Expeditionary- and a Hermann, Mo., native; and 1st Lt. Geoffrey Whitaker, garrison chaplain with Regimental Fires Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 13th ESC and a Murphy, N.C., native, enjoy a tour of St. Elijah's monastery, June 11, at Contingency Operating Base Marez, Iraq. Photo by Sgt. Chad Menegay

Klawitter and Christensen met during postgraduate work in 2001 at Concordia University in Seward, Neb. They had Greek and Hebrew classes together. They continued studies at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis.

They also started Chaplain Basic Officer Leadership Course together.

“We were friends so we signed up for the same summer,” Klawitter said. “We rode down together in his minivan to Fort Jackson, S.C. I babysat his kids before. His Family came out to my Family’s house. He helped my dad and I put in a rail fence.”

Klawitter described Christensen, who was previously a diesel mechanic in the Army, as accomplished and squared away.

“He grew up in the mountains of Montana,” Klawitter said. “His dad runs mules and horses up at Glacier National Park.”

Christensen described Klawitter as both a people person and an intellectual.

“If you have any kind of issue, he’s one of the guys you could call at anytime,” Christensen said.

Klawitter said it is a real blessing to have a good friend in Iraq.

“He’s one of those friends you trust in, you depend on, you’ve been through different life experiences with,” Klawitter said. “I give him a call every once in a while just to say ‘hi.’ When we get together, we compare notes about what’s worked and what’s not.”

Of course, this time around the chaplains did more than just catch up; they visited a 1,500 to 1,700-year-old building together, the oldest, still standing Assyrian monastery in Iraq.

1st Lt. Geoffrey Whitaker, garrison chaplain for Regimental Fires Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) and a Murphy, N.C., native, leads weekly St. Elijah’s monastery tours at the southwest corner of COB Marez, a base connected to COB Diamondback.

He put together a VIP tour for Klawitter, Christensen and their chaplain assistants.

“The tours boost interest in spirituality,” Whitaker said.

Whitaker has been working to build interest in stabilizing the monastery to preserve the building and the Christian heritage it holds.

Recently, the RFS mayor’s cell’s coordination with Iraqi and U.S. agencies has paid off, as St. Elijah’s has made an Iraqi government list of sites to be preserved.

“The Iraqi facilities engineering team is working on a full blown plan with diagrams, a timeline and cost of materials,” Whitaker said.

Whitaker said the monastery is Iraqi history. As such, the Iraqis should lead the process of preservation, with Americans only helping.

1st Lt. Brandt Klawitter, chaplain with the 14th Transportation Battalion, 13th Sustainment Command -Expeditionary- and a Hermann, Mo., native, listens to a lecture during a tour at St. Elijah's Monastery, June 11, at Contingency Operating Base Marez, Iraq. Photo by Sgt. Chad Menegay

“In this day and age you don’t think of Iraq as having much to do with Christianity,” Klawitter said, “but there actually is a history over here, just like in Turkey there is a ton of Christian history.”

Klawitter said St. Elijah’s was something adventurous to check out.

“A lot of Soldiers now don’t go outside the wire and see much of the Iraqi culture and history,” he said. “To see something of cultural value, of religious significance, it reminds you of another side of this land that doesn’t have to do with the present war.”

Klawitter and Christensen said during the visit they felt tied historically to the Christians who came before them to the monastery.

They said they thought back to their biblical archaeology class and wondered what they might dig up if they actually had the chance to excavate.

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Story by Sgt. Chad Menegay

Maj. Wolfgang Von Aspe, a KC-130 pilot with the VMGR-234 detachment here, admires a ceramic mosaic during a visit to an artisan village with his Marines. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Paul Greenberg. Click on pic for a larger image.

Marines deployed here for exercise African Lion stepped outside their comfort zone May 29 to travel several hundred kilometers by bus to visit the historic Moroccan city of Fes and indulge in the local culture.

A detachment of Marines and sailors from Marine Aerial Refueling Squadron 234, a Marine Forces Reserve unit based in Fort Worth, Texas, is here on a two-week reserve summer deployment in support of this theater security cooperation exercise.

Over the course of about 17 days in country, the Marines are conducting both day and night operations in their KC-130 aircraft with the Royal Moroccan Air Force, performing their primary mission of refueling the Moroccan F-5 jet fighters while in mid-air.

In addition, the squadron is a key logistical arm of the Task Force, moving hundreds of troops around and out of the country.

However, all work and no culture can make a deployment a drab experience to quickly forget.

“This is good for the Marines to learn something about Moroccan history and culture,” said Sgt. Khalid Tament, a Moroccan Gendarme who accompanied the Marines on the tour.

Tament, who is fluent in English, French and Arabic, formed friendships with the Marines in the squadron while working on the Royal Air Base here. He assisted the tour guide and gave the Marines advice on bargaining for the best price for artisan goods in the shops.

“Today, they don’t have to worry about missions,” said Tament. “Today they can relax and be tourists and experience the real Morocco.”

The Marines and sailors spent most of their day in the Fes el Bali Medina, which is one of the oldest in the country. It was constructed in its current configuration in the 9th Century, and remains both a world-renowned tourist attraction and a routine place of commerce for locals.

“When you hear the word ‘Balak!’ that means get out of the way,” instructed Mohammed, the troops’ tour guide. “When you hear that, it means that a donkey cart will be coming through.”

Although the narrow walkways of the medina are off-limits to all vehicle and bicycle traffic, donkeys laden with produce and other goods clopped along the pavement behind their masters.

The Marines heeded the instruction of their guide, and backed against the walls or jumped into doorways to stay out of the way of the animals.

While in the Medina, the Marines had the chance to visit a traditional leather tannery which dates back to the 13th Century. The guide explained the leather tanning process in detail, and handed each of them a sprig of mint. He instructed them to shove the mint into their nostrils to ward off the strong stench of the tanning dyes, which are made primarily from pigeon excrement, limestone and salt.

Next to the tanning vats was a multi-tiered store with a maze of narrow doorways and stairwells. The walls of each room were lined with leather goods. One floor had jackets; another pants; an entire room was filled with handbags and backpacks of indeterminate age and endless variety of design. One Marine described the store as “a scene out of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.”

Despite the aroma, which ranged from mild to noxious depending on the room’s proximity to the tanning vats, the Marines bargained with the vendors and bought leather jackets, backpacks and various other items.

Staff Sgt. Kevin Powell, a KC-130 power lines mechanic with VMGR-234, shops for ceramic pottery during a tour of an artisan village here May 29. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Paul Greenberg. Click on the pic for a larger image.

“It was really interesting,” said Staff Sgt. Seth Cavarretta, a squadron maintenance controller and airframes mechanic. “I really liked walking through the medina, seeing all the windy passages, artisans at work in the shops, the garments, and the spices.”

After several hours of touring the Medina, the troops were overdue for lunch. Their guide took them to a traditional Moroccan restaurant in the medina. They had their choice of couscous, tajine or pastilla.

“Too often, Marines go to foreign countries and only focus on the mission. They get stuck in their workspaces and don’t get out to really experience the culture. This is an important part of their deployment. They only get four days off out of the 25 days that we’re on this mission, and I wanted to make sure they got to see this,” said Maj. Mike Quirk, the VMGR-234 detachment commander.

“This is especially good for the maintenance Marines, who don’t get to deploy a lot,” said Quirk. “They spend most of their time back on the flight line in Fort Worth. So it’s really important that they get out and can experience this type of thing.”

After lunch, the group departed Fes, driving on a country road through lush rolling hills and fields of hay, vegetables, grazing livestock, vineyards and pungent olive groves.

“This looks just like central California,” commented Sgt. David Goldblatt, one of the squadron’s KC-130 loadmasters, who hails from the Golden State.

They passed through the city of Meknes and back into the country again, arriving at the final stop on their tour.

The Marines got out of their mini-buses and entered the site of the ancient Roman city of Volubilis.

Marines from VMGR-234 take a sightseeing tour of the ancient Roman city of Volubilis here during a day-long trip through Fes and the surrounding region May 29. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Paul Greenberg. click on pic for a larger image.

These crumbling pillars, walls and columns represent the remains of a bustling city built by the Romans more than 2,100 years ago.

The troops hiked and climbed around the site with the European tourists there, taking photos and reading inscriptions.

“It was pretty amazing that this was the Romans’ western outpost at one time,” said Sgt. Alan McBride, an Active Reserve Marine from Yuma, Ariz., who works in the squadron’s flight operations department. This is McBride’s first overseas deployment in his six years in the Marine Corps.

“I didn’t realize that the Roman Empire stretched this far south,” commented McBride. “This has really been a great trip.”

The troops headed back to Kenitra as the sun set over the horizon.

Shortly after their return, U.S. Navy Capt. John Howard, the squadron’s reserve flight surgeon, explained the importance of this trip for unit cohesion and morale.

“It was terrific, a great opportunity to get away from work for a day to see more of the Moroccan people we’re working with. On the airfield and up in the air, you see a limited view of the country,” said Howard, who has a private family medical practice at home in Clarendon, Texas. “To see the people that the military represent in Morocco is great. You work hard and you relax on deployment. It’s important to have a good balance.”

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By Maj. Paul Greenberg

The ziggurat at Aqar Quf rises 180 feet above the desert west of Baghdad. Soldiers of the 16th Engineer Brigade's Survey and Design Team traveled to the ancient ziggurat in Aqar Quf, March 11, to assess and verify the electrical needs of two modern structures on the site. The U.S. Army 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, and Iraq's Ministry of Antiquities is seeking to restore the modern buildings around the site in an attempt to revitalize tourism in the area. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. David Robbins)

Soldiers from the 16th Engineer Brigade Survey and Design team conducted a site assessment on several buildings at an historic site in Aqar Quf, 20 miles west of Baghdad to assess and verify the electrical needs of renovating two modern structures at the base of an ancient ziggurat there.

The ziggurat, a stepped, temple tower, is the Mesopotamian equivalent of the Egyptian pyramids. Aqar Quf’s ziggurat, rising 180 feet above the desert floor, was considered to be built more than three and a half millennia ago.

Recently, the Iraqi Ministry of Antiquities approached 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, for help with restoring some modern structures at the temple in order to attract visitors to the site which would revitalize the economy and preserve the temple.

The modern structures at the base of the ziggurat, built in the 1960s, functioned as a museum and administrative building throughout the second half of the 20th century. However, after years of war, the site is not what it once was.

“The administrative buildings have been degraded and looted,” said Sgt. 1st Class Kyle Markel, from Chillicothe, Ohio, a member of the survey and design team.

According to Markel, the ziggurat and temple areas have suffered no damage but the modern buildings are in need of restoration work. The restoration, still in the planning stages, will eventually be completed by local Iraqi contractors.

“We came to the site to look at the electrical installation and to validate the existing scope of work for the electrical project,” said Markel.

“The museum had nothing electrical left in it; no lights, no switches, and wires have been literally pulled out of the walls,” said Spc. David Robbins from Cincinnati, Ohio, a member of the team, also sent to assess the site.

According to Robbins, even the electrical panels were removed from the museum and administrative buildings at some point, leaving holes in the walls.

“This was a functioning facility,” said Markel. “It’s now not functioning at all.”

Providing security, a member of the U.S. Army 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, looks down from the steps of the ziggurat at Aqar Quf, March 11, during a site visit by Soldiers of the 16th Engineer Brigade Survey and Design Team. The engineers traveled to the ancient ziggurat in Aqar Quf to assess and verify the electrical needs of renovating two modern structures on the site. The ziggurat, more than 3,500 years old, was once a popular tourist destination in Iraq. The site now lays dormant. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. David Robbins)

During their visit to Aqar Quf, Robbins and Markel had the opportunity to explore the ruins. They said the experience deepened their understanding of the significance of the museum and administrative buildings.

They were awe struck after exploring the ancient ruins.

“When I climbed the steps and was able to see the monument up close and the fine details about how it was constructed; it’s impressive to think that 3,500 years ago someone had constructed this,” said Markel. “It’s an engineering feat because it is still standing after all these years.”

Both Robbins and Markel said they hope their work will help reopen this historical site someday and bring tourists back to the area; including them.

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By Spc. Brian Johnson