ARI SHAPIRO, Host:
This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Sitting in for Steve Inskeep, I'm Ari Shapiro.
RENEE MONTAGNE, Host:
NPR's Corey Flintoff attended one sheik's council meeting for this report.
COREY FLINTOFF: Sheik Sallah Mahmoud Mohammad(ph) is in an ebullient mood. His son has been released from prison after being held on suspicion of insurgent activity, and his neighborhood has a few extra hours of electricity. He beams across a smoky, crowded room at the American Army captain who's his counterpart.
SHAPIRO: (Through translator) At the beginning of this meeting, I want to thank Captain Diokie(ph) for his help in getting more electricity for our neighborhood.
FLINTOFF: Sheik Sallah is an almost cinematic version of an Arab tribal leader: dressed in a white robe and headdress, presiding over the council meeting from behind his wide desk. In his business life, he's a car dealer. Captain Parsana Diokie(ph) is a dark, compact soldier who keeps his attention on the key players in the room as his interpreter speaks into his ear.
MONTAGNE: The purpose of the of the sheik's council is basically an outlet for the sheiks who represent the people to basically air their issues with the coalition forces. Actually, this meeting went pretty well, considering. Normally it's filled with complaints about power but in the last few weeks, we've actually made great steps in that.
FLINTOFF: The only time this meeting got heated was when it came to a dispute over the leadership of the local Sons of Iraq unit.
MONTAGNE: (Through translator) I was threatened by al-Qaida because I helped the Americans. I fought the terrorists, so why are you replacing me?
FLINTOFF: Mohammed Gurkan, known to the Americans by his nickname, Steve, has just learned that he is being replaced as the head of the SOI, the Sons of Iraq, a Sunni guard group that's been funded and trained by the Americans. Captain Diokie says it wasn't an easy decision because Steve was among the first to turn against al-Qaida, known as AQI.
MONTAGNE: When the SOI first set up, Steve was the guy who was there, said, hey, my family is all AQI. I'm not into that. Someone came over to my house, attacked me. They were AQI. I think it's time to stand up to AQI. So we said, sure, we'll support you on it.
FLINTOFF: Steve continues to protest that he worked with the Americans when the security situation was bad.
MONTAGNE: (Foreign language spoken)
FLINTOFF: That he risked his life while others, meaning the men who will replace him, merely sat by.
MONTAGNE: (Foreign language spoken)
FLINTOFF: Captain Diokie says Iraqi police and Army leaders don't fully trust Steve because he doesn't have a background as a military officer.
MONTAGNE: He's an excellent officer; he knows what he's doing, but in terms of making one of their constituents happy, I have to tell him to, you know, take a back seat and let this guy, you know, take the reins. You're still in the SOI, you still have a job, you're still able to control these guys, but we're making everybody happy this way.
FLINTOFF: It's a loss that's not easy for Steve to accept. Still, Sheik Sallah ends the meeting as he began it, with a thank you for Captain Diokie's help, something the captain says has never happened before. He says it's a big change from when he first took the job of dealing with local leaders.
MONTAGNE: I can actually shake their hands without cringing, like, it's going to be another one of those two-hour meetings where I'm going to just sit back and, you know, get blasted. It's actually gotten to the point where it's pleasurable to sit there and speak to him and know that the major issues are getting taken care of and now it's just the minor things are popping up.
FLINTOFF: Corey Flintoff, NPR News, Baghdad. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
