In the small, impoverished neighborhood of Huzzeran, near Kirkuk, Iraq, jobs are few and far between. Drinkable water is not readily available, and the school in the area doesn’t have running water.

A week after a clearing operation led by an Iraqi emergency service unit and Iraqi Police in the neighborhood, Bravo Battery, 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment delivered essential supplies, Oct. 3, in this area, which is often referred to by local residents as the “Lost City.”

“Things are bad here – people here don’t have work or anything really,” said Mohammed Sadek, a teacher at the neighborhood’s school. “It’s very good that [U.S. Forces] are helping the people here who are without jobs.”

One of the goals of this mission was to assess the civil issues of the area and gather information about immediate needs.

“We need good water here in the school,” said Mohammed Sadek, “The children like coming to the school, but there are certain things it needs.”

The Soldiers were able to pinpoint 100 families in the area that were most in need, with the assistance of Brig. Gen. Hijran, commander of the Iraqi ESU, and Col. Adnan, the chief of the Adallah Iraqi Police district.

“Today was a great success,” said Capt. Tyler Donnell, the commander of Bravo Battery, 3rd Bn., 82nd FA Regt. “[U.S. Forces] have been doing this for years, but with the help of Col. Adnan and Gen. Hijran, we were able to help the people who need it most.”

The delivery presented an opportunity for the Adallah Iraqi Police, the emergency service unit and U.S. Forces to open lines of communication between the community, its civil leaders and local security forces.

“It is a great thing the [U.S. Forces] have done for the people of Adallah,” said Col. Adnan, the chief of the Adallah Iraqi Police in the area. “It is a way of reassuring the people that they are not forgotten by anyone.”

The humanitarian assistance drop was performed at the Hamza Bin Ab Al Mutlik School, a central point in the neighborhood.

“The school gave us a semi-secure location to do the delivery,” said Donnell. “We chose to do it on a Saturday because school would be out.”

Bravo Battery has tentatively planned future assistance drops and evaluations to further assist the people of this neighborhood.

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