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400 Iraqi Police Candidates From Al Anbar Province Arrive in Baghdad

CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, AR RAMADI, Iraq - Approximately 400 Iraqi Police candidates arrived in Baghdad early this morning from the Al Anbar Province to begin a ten week Iraqi Police training course.

Half of the men were recruited from the Al Qa'im region in western Al Anbar and the other half from the provincial capital, Ar Ramadi. On Jan. 5 a suicide bomber attacked the recruitment center in Ramadi killing more than 30 applicants. Despite that attack, the recruits returned en masse today.

There are approximately 1,200 Iraqi Police Officers patrolling the streets of Fallujah with 400 more attending the Baghdad Police Academy. This is the first large group of Iraqi Police candidates from Ramadi and the Western Euphrates River Valley to attend the Ministry of Interior's police training.

U.S. Soldiers from 2nd Brigade Combat Team (28th Infantry Division) assisted in providing security for the convoy to Baghdad.

Subsequent groups of candidates will attend this training course in the near future.

Source: USMC