An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

News | March 3, 2011

Seventh cohort of Afghan National Army military police soldiers graduate

By MCC (SW) Maria Yager , Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435

CENTCOM

Afghan National Army Brig. Gen Safiullah Safi, commanding general of Parwan and Pol-e-Charki Military Police Brigade, presents an Afghan National Army Soldier with a certificate during a March 2 graduation ceremony from the Detention Operations Transition Course. Photo by U.S. Navy Chief Mass Communication Specialist (SW) Maria Yager.

PARWAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan (March 3, 2011) — Under a steady snowfall, nearly 400 Soldiers of the seventh cohort graduated from the Detention Operations Transition Course Wednesday, March 2, 2011, the first of two phases of instruction required to serve as military police in the Detention Facility in Parwan.

“Our capabilities have increased because of your efforts and you have shown great dedication to our country,” Afghan National Army (ANA) Brig. Gen Safiullah Safi, commanding general of Parwan and Pol-e-Charki Military Police Brigade, told graduates during the ceremony.  “Enforce international and Afghan regulations so that when the detainees are released from the DFIP, they may be a productive asset to the society and tell their communities that ANA Soldiers are doing a great job for their country.”

The Parwan and Pol-E-Charki Military Police Brigade is responsible for the confinement of detainees, prisoners and national security threats. As part of the conditions-based agreement to transition detention operations from U.S. to Afghan control, more than 1,600 ANA military police are training for an assignment to the guard force and headquarters staff at the DFIP.

Cohort 7 students arrived at the ANA Logistical Support Area in Parwan in January to begin the advanced individual training required for the DFIP, following completion of ANA basic military training and basic military police training in Kabul.

This first phase of training included six weeks of classroom instruction on standards of conduct for duty, and emphasized safe, secure, humane care and custody of detainees and prisoners in accordance with international standards and Afghan law. Soldiers also received training in daily housing unit operations, including manning over watch stations, searching cells for contraband, escorting prisoners to and from appointments and overseeing recreation, and daily hygiene and meal service for prisoners.

The second and final phase consists of on-the-job training in the DFIP, where the new graduates will be matched with an experienced guard force member for additional training and evaluation.

“I liked being here and learning the skills,” commented one graduate. “I would like Afghan people to put their hands together in order to rehabilitate and rebuild our country.”

The DFIP, a state-of-the-art theater internment facility located several kilometers from Bagram Airfield, was completed in September 2009 and occupied by detainees in late December 2009.  The DFIP is equipped with a medical facility, on-site family visitation center, vocational facilities and educational classrooms.  The design of the DFIP accommodates detainee reintegration efforts and enables Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435 to better align detainee operations with the overall strategy to defeat the extremist insurgency in Afghanistan.

CJIATF-435 actively partners with Afghan forces in preparation for the responsible transfer of military detention operations to the government of Afghanistan.