However, they might check ID’s more often. From AP, with thanks to Anthony:
CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq – American commanders are fully aware that Iraq’s insurgents exploit their policy of employing locals on U.S. military bases but insist the practice will not stop, though some security measures may be tightened.
The vulnerability of the American stance was exposed on Dec. 21, when an Iraqi suicide bomber dressed in a military uniform detonated his explosives at a mess hall at Forward Operating Base Marez in Mosul, killing 22 people including 14 U.S. servicemembers.
Since then, security has been tightened at chow halls in some camps, with military guards demanding proof of identification more often and not allowing backpacks. Officials say they are constantly reviewing procedures to make sure such an attack doesn’t happen again, but insurgents infiltrating camps is unavoidable.
“They’re trying to infiltrate the base as much as possible, taking pictures, videos drawing diagrams, grabbing people who are coming off base to intimidate them into giving them locations where different facilities are located on the base or torturing them until they do tell them,” said Lt. Col. Dan Wilson, deputy for current operations for the 1st Marine Division. “We know it is active and ongoing.”…
One aspect the insurgents also appear to have exploited is the American desire to give Iraqi security forces a greater role, to treat them more as equals and to try to get them to do their jobs on their own, without U.S. supervision.
While Iraqis who work on bases are vetted, Americans acknowledge that they don’t do security checks on Iraqi forces on base, instead leaving that task to their Iraqi counterparts.
“We don’t do a systematic vetting process on Iraqi security forces, their government that does that,” Wilson said. “There’s a certain trust factor that goes along with the Marines working with them.”…
American troops on the bases express widespread distrust about the Iraqis that work there, and have remarked that they all believe contractors are relaying intelligence back to insurgents on the outside.
But that won’t lead to a change in policy, said Marine spokesman Lt. Lyle Gilbert.
“Contracting locals helps the economy. That’s something we want to do,” Gilbert said. “We want the Iraqi economy to flourish. We want them to have jobs, to have money, to get back on heir feet.”
Gilbert said that closing off bases to Iraqis would be like “everybody in America closing their doors in fear and not going anywhere.”