St. Louis Police Mentor Iraqi Cop Delegation

There's a punch line (or two) in the following press release sent out today from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

If you find it, feel free leave it in the comment section below.

Now, without further ado:

U.S. Military Selects Metropolitan Police Department to Host Visiting Iraqi Police Officials

The Metropolitan Police Department, City of St. Louis ("the department") was honored to be selected by the United States Military as a host department for a group of Iraqi Police leaders from the Baghdad Police College in Iraq. The visit occurred today and focused on the fundamentals of police training in the U.S. and assisting the Iraqi police leaders in improving their police training centers, colleges and academies.

Four Iraqi Police leaders who are among the most experienced police leaders in their country, accompanied by a language interpreter, visited the department:

• Major General Dr. Jassim Hassan Attia is the Chief of the Training and Qualification Institute at Baghdad Police College. The 51-year-old has 28 years of experience in Iraqi Police service.
• Major General Ezat Nuail Aziz is the Director General for the Delegations Institute, overseeing out of country training for Baghdad Police College.He is also 51 years old and also has 28 years of experience in Iraqi Policeservice.
• Major General Riyadh Abdulbaqi Salman is the Dean of the three-year college program at Baghdad Police College. The 48-year-old has 18 years of experience in Iraqi Police service.
• Colonel Sabah Hoshi Mohammed is the Director for the Police Qualifications Center at Baghdad Police College. The 43-year-old has 24 years of experience in Iraqi Police service.

The Iraqi Police leaders are being escorted by U.S. Army Colonel Randall Twitchell, who is currently stationed in Baghdad. Col. Twitchell is a chief advisor to the Baghdad Police College, working with Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Jassim in a collaborative effort to better the college.

In addition to visiting with Chief Daniel Isom and other department commanders, the Iraqi Police leaders toured the department, and witnessed demonstrations of equipment utilized by units such as Bomb & Arson and Mobile Reserve. They also participated in roundtable discussions regarding how the department operates overall and how the department trains and equips its commissioned officers.