BAGHDAD — When the combat outpost in northwest Baghdad known as Joint Security Station Hurriya 2 closes Sunday, it won't be a day too soon for the 180 or so U.S. soldiers based there.
"There's not much to do around here, and we go stir-crazy sometimes," said Army Spc. Corey Hessler, 22, who is looking forward to the fast-food outlets and air-conditioned barracks that await him on the vast Camp Victory base beside Baghdad's airport.
Hurriya 2, a cluster of small warehouses shared with a unit of the Iraqi army, may have provided little in the way of creature comforts, but the outpost has served its purpose: It put U.S. "surge" troops on the ground in two of the most dangerous neighborhoods in northwest Baghdad.
In fierce fighting more than a year ago, the Shiite Muslim militias that had controlled the areas of Shula and Hurriya were routed, and the current crop of soldiers, who arrived in October, have seen little in the way of action. Now they and thousands of other American military personnel are either packing up or have already redeployed under the terms of the security pact that requires U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraq's cities by June 30.
Their departure is a milestone in the 6-year-old war. More than the overall increase in the number of troops in the 2007 buildup, it was their deployment in the heart of Baghdad's communities that made the difference and helped turn the tide of the conflict, military analysts say.
The outposts' closure will provide the biggest test yet of the achievements of the surge: Are the Iraqi security forces ready to manage on their own? And have the security gains of the last two years gone far enough to endure?
1st Lt. Steven Pagoaga says they have. He's the executive officer of the Army 1st Infantry Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, Bravo Company, based at Hurriya 2, and he believes it is testimony to the progress made over the last two years that many of the troops say they are bored.
"In the past, guys were having a daily firefight, and now we're opening soccer fields," he said. "That's more impressive than saying we were taking daily contact."
Things have changed dramatically since his last deployment, in 2006, when the military also retreated from the cities, only to witness Baghdad's descent into sectarian chaos.
"We tried to leave in '06, and we ended up fighting our way back in because the Iraqi forces weren't ready," he said. "They're now far more capable than they were at that time."
