ARLINGTON, Va. — The Defense Department announced on Monday the latest rotation of U.S. troops into Iraq, sending about 25,000 servicemembers into the country by the end of the year.
Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman stressed the troops will replace U.S. forces now in Iraq, not add to the U.S. presence there. The units going to Iraq are:
172nd Infantry Brigade, Schweinfurt, Germany;25th Infantry Division Headquarters, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii;1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Wainwright, Alaska;2nd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.;3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii;2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.;3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.;3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.All of the units will have had 12 months of "dwell time" at home between deployments before they are sent back overseas, Whitman said.
The units are expected to begin deploying in the fall. All units headed to the U.S. Central Command theater of operations after Aug. 1 are expected to serve 12-month tours.
The Defense Department also announced that four Army National Guard units have been alerted that they are scheduled to deploy in spring 2009.
The 14,000 troops have yet to receive deployment orders, but they are being notified early to give them the most time to prepare for the upcoming deployments, Whitman said.
Those units are:
72nd Brigade Combat Team, Texas National Guard;2nd Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania National Guard;256th Brigade Combat Team, Louisiana National Guard;278th Brigade Combat Team, Tennessee National Guard.The National Guardsmen are expected to serve as security forces, conducing route clearance and base security, Whitman said.
As with the active-duty troops, these forces will replace troops already in Iraq, not result in an increase of U.S. troop strength in the country, he said.
In addition to the Iraq deployments, the Defense Department announced that the 86th Brigade Combat Team, Vermont Army National Guard, has been alerted that it is scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan in spring 2010 to train Afghan security forces.
Related story:Germany-based units going to Iraq
