US: Fort Lewis soldiers learn Arabic to better prepare for war

[Francis Hult]

The Seattle Times

 

Fort Lewis soldiers learn Arabic to better prepare for war

 

Kelmanskiy and 125 other soldiers assigned to Fort Lewis' newest Stryker Brigade Combat Team are part of a new program to teach soldiers rudimentary Arabic. The idea is that once deployed to Iraq, they'll be able to communicate with local Iraqis to help their units better distinguish between allies and enemies.

 

"It's a tough language," said Lt. Col. Jonathan Neumann, the battalion commander for the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. "I can introduce myself [in Arabic] and give a couple greetings, but after that, I'm pretty much out of steam."

 

Two groups of soldiers already have graduated from the class that teaches Modern Standard Arabic. Another group will graduate Friday. Graduates typically have the verbal and written skills of a fourth- or fifth-grade Arab child.

 

Full story:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008076838_arabic28m.html

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