The slum remains Sadr's stronghold, and his clerics still serve as the acknowledged authority in town. On any day, from 2 to 4 p.m., Ibrahim Jabri, a handsome man in black turban, fields requests from scores of supplicants gathered in the courtyard at the Sadr office, along one of the slum's main streets: a few dollars for rent or food, help in cracking down on car thieves, action against renegade militiamen. Sometimes he boisterously jokes with them; other times he whispers in an ear. Few in the slum doubt that the militia -- even with a lower profile, its weapons now hidden -- would answer another call to arms from him or the other clerics.
"In an ideal world, that's where we want to get to -- that the hope for the future will outweigh the desire to fight," said Andrysiak, a tall, sturdily built environmental engineer from Austin.
A U.S. soldier provides security at a Sadr City gas station while Iraqis wait in line. Residents say militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Moqtada Sadr were organizing such lines until the U.S. military forced them to leave.
(Reuters)
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Arriving in March, Holmes, Andrysiak and the battalion felt they were making tangible gains by July, before the second round of fighting broke out. They didn't begin working in earnest again on the slum's 30-year-old infrastructure until Nov. 7 -- a three-month interruption. As frustrating as that was, Holmes now exudes an exuberant optimism and insists they have progressed past July's mark.
"As long as we're not fighting, we'll keep going," he said.
Of the $138 million, most is being spent on what the battalion calls "swet" -- $29 million on sewage, $49 million on water, $22 million on electricity and $12.5 million on trash disposal. Even with that investment, the battalion sees a need for $214 million more, nearly all of it for electricity and water systems for more than 1.2 million people.
So far, the money has put to work 16,000 people, digging trenches along medians cleared of gray, soggy trash. Boys push wheelbarrows past twisted and now-rusted carcasses of cars destroyed in the fighting. Heavy machinery rumbles down streets laying asphalt, bordered with new curbstones and graced by black banners marking the anniversary of the death of Sadr's father.
On a tour this week, Holmes and Andrysiak surveyed the work of the past month with a sense of accomplishment.
"Is this your first time here, Pete?" Holmes asked his chief operations officer as they toured a spotless, sprawling $52 million utility that, when completed, will have the capacity to distribute half the country's electricity.
"Yes," Andrysiak answered, shaking his head in appreciation.
"What do you think?" Holmes excitedly asked.
And on they went -- a bridge being built across the Diyala River, a new complex for local government, power lines to 750 homes, the renovated Habibiya pumping station, and 15 overhauled sewage lift stations, powered by usually uninterrupted electricity.
"Any problems or concerns here?" Holmes asked Haifa Zamil, who manages one of the stations.
Zamil, carrying her year-old daughter, Rotana, pointed out that electricity was interrupted for seven hours the day before.
"Other than that?" Holmes asked, steering the conversation, as rifle-toting soldiers surrounded the two.
