European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 14, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A amps  British army col. Tony Trells Center listens As the son of a Village Leader tells the history of Avene. From the cover up with the coalition you go Down a Street and you hear them yell hey  Lorden is with provide comforts Zachko based military coordination Center. Members of the Center were in the three vehicles heading out of Zachko on a recent october morning. Several Miles beyond the City limits the two land cruisers and a Hummer left the paved Road and headed Down a bumpy Trail. The Small Convoy crept through grass 5 or 6 feet High Over Small streams and up Steep Hills. Coordination Center members make Many such forays throughout Northern Iraq. _ seeing the people finding out How they Are doing How resettlement efforts Are progressing and determining the conditions of roads and Bridges Are part of the coordination centers Mission. Members pass on information they gather during such trips to provide Comfort Headquarters at in Ciurlik a Turkey where the majority of the coalitions 1,700 troops Are based. A your Mission is to see and be seen to be amongst the people a . Army col. Gerald Thompson said. The centers Mission includes monitoring iraqi compliance with . Resolutions and the no Fly zone in Iraq North of the 36th parallel Thompson said. Less than two dozen service members from France Turkey the United kingdom and the United states Are assigned to the Center where most people serve for Between three and six months at a time. Personnel assigned to the coordination Center Are the Only members of the provide Comfort combined task Force who regularly meet the people the operation was established to protect and  the recent trip into the Countryside each service member carried disown  kurdish guards carrying assault rifles Rode Shotgun on the backs of each of the cruisers. Another manned a mounted machine gun on the Hummer. Despite the obvious weaponry people the service members met seemed Happy to see them. A a we re what a left of the provide Comfort ground element a said British army col. Tony Travis the centers British co commander. A a we re a Symbol of the coalition on the ground. People see us As what is left of the big humanitarian Effort.�?�. At a Village named Derish i several of the villages Homes a Stone and mud or Cement structures a were recently rebuilt. But a House levelled to its foundation indicated the extent of the destruction iraqi troops inflicted on Derish i. A a that a actually a lot left a said Thompson the american co commander of the coordination Center. A when the Village was destroyed in the fall of 1988,30 families lived Here. Twenty families have resettled. I did no task where the other 10 families  is slated to return to his Job in the european come in Early november. Heading farther into the country the soldiers spotted another Community on a nearby Hillside. They stopped at a Lone House to ask about the Community. Its name is Avene the residents of the House told the members of the Convoy. If the soldiers wanted to go to Avene they would have to continue on foot. Leaving the vehicles near the House coordination Center members headed for Avene to talk to the villagers. To Cross a fast flowing Stream on the Way members of the group had to climb a tree walk across a crude log Bridge and climb Down another tree on the opposite  Avene the soldiers sat on Mats spread on the floor of a porch with Community members and listened As the son of the Community a Leader or Mukhtar told the villages Story. A Young Man offered the visitors a Yogurt drink As a woman heated water for Tea Over an outdoor fireplace that comprised a Kitchen. Through a translator the Mukhtar a son told his a amps Gary Miller kurdish refugees without Homes. Guests that life was going Well for the 80 or 90 families in Avene until 1987 when iraqi government troops began destroying villages and moving people to collectives. Ten families have returned to their Homes in recent years. A even though the Village spokesman said the Community a men had to work on local construction projects for More than a week Toi make enough Money to buy a bag of flour he repeatedly invited the visitors to stay for lunch. Thompson refused the offer explaining that the groups schedule prevented it from staying Long enough for a meal. A these people Are As honest As the Day is Long a a said chief warrant officer 3 George Germak also a member of the 10th special forces group. A a they la give you anything they have a he said As the group left the Village. Although the coalition Effort to protect and resettle the people of Northern Iraq continues events in Bosnia and Somalia have superseded provide Comfort on the worlds to screens and newspapers. Americans have forgotten that us. And Allied troops still protect Northern iraqis from Hussein a forces and Aid the refugees resettlement Lorden said. A people Back in the states have no idea there Are still americans Here Quot Lorden said. A even if i Tell them they have no concept of what we re doing or what these people do to  struggling to survive has been a Way of life in Northon Iraq since Long before provide comforts humanitarian efforts began. Since the 1970s, the Baghdad government has ordered the harassment and relocation of kurd. A most Guys you talk to Here will have at least three experiences in relocation a Thompson said. A after the Iran Iraq War the Effort culminated in the a1 in Faal Campaign which some consider an Effort in genocide a Thompson said. The iraqi governments defeat in the Gulf War encouraged the kurd to stage an uprising that Hussein a forces quickly and violently suppressed. Fearing further retaliation from the iraqi military kurd fled to Turkey. A a that a when the american people became aware of the situation in april 1991. The original provide Comfort was intended to literally save lives on the mountains Quot Thompson said. As people came Down from the mountains and began resettling private organizations took Over the Job of supplying food and other necessities to the refugees Thompson said. A he added a with humanitarian assistance programs oriented toward Basic sch tenancy and the combined task Force oriented toward monitoring compliance with . Resolutions people will feel sufficient Security in their lives and  Page 4 sunday november 14,1993