Some Troops In Iraq Get OK For Beer During Super BowlBy James Warden, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Sunday, December 21, 2008
BAGHDAD — Baghdad-based sports fans have one more reason to look forward to this season’s Super Bowl.
Multi-National Division–Baghdad has received permission to let its units enjoy an honest-to-goodness beer on game day instead of the near-beer soldiers usually quaff in downrange DFACs. The approval comes with plenty of time for the beer to be shipped into theater.
General Order No. 1 has banned U.S. forces from drinking alcohol in Iraq since troops deployed to the Middle East. There has been at least one previous instance in which units could drink in Iraq, but it is not known exactly how many times this has been done in the past.
This Super Bowl will be a strictly controlled exception to the long-standing policy. Exact procedures have not been developed. But troops will be limited to two drinks, and the beer will be consumed in the dining facility where soldiers can watch the game.
MND–B stressed that it is always on duty and vigilant, and that it never relaxes its posture. But some soldiers still worried about how the beer would affect readiness.
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