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Calm day's violent end

Jan-31-2005 » Filed Under: TF Freedom

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BY DIONNE SEARCEY, STAFF CORRESPONDENT
January 31, 2005

MOSUL, Iraq - The metal gates were just clanking shut at the elementary school serving as a polling place, and the U.S. military commander was congratulating election workers for a job well done, when a boom rang out a short distance away.

Insurgents had lobbed a grenade at U.S. snipers perched on the roof of a building overlooking another schoolyard and wounded seven - leaving some howling in pain, the others just dazed.

It was the violent cap to what had been an unexpectedly peaceful election day in this restive city. The forecast had been for suicide bombers, rocket attacks, and even a drenching rain, but all had failed to materialize. Instead, a steady trickle of voters cast their ballots, cursing the name of Saddam Hussein and cheering their foray into democracy.

For Lt. Col. Chris Gibson and his paratroopers of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, it was a day of vivid contrasts. Starting at 7 a.m., he had cruised neighborhoods known to harbor terrorists with a Humvee that blared get-out-the-vote calls.

"Citizens of Mosul, the historic day has come," the recorded message said. "The streets are safe. Come out and vote for a free Iraq."

One man in a black dishdasha robe opened the gate in front of his home to check out the fuss, and Gibson seized the moment to try to recruit him as the first voter of the day at a polling station across the street. The man, whose wife stood behind him, hesitated. He said he would vote later.

"What are you scared for? I'll lead the way," Gibson said. "I'll take you there."

Just then an explosion in the distance rattled windows. The man's wife grimaced and ducked inside her gate. Gibson kept smiling. "We'll be OK. We'll be all right. We'll stand up to these guys," he said.

The man looked Gibson in the eye, took a deep breath, and stepped off his stoop toward the polls. Gibson, a former professor at West Point, and a Long Island native, cheered.


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