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20,000 more troops headed to Iraq

May- 5-2004 » Filed Under: Iraq News

[Link to Full Article]
By Vince Crawley, Times staff writer

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is sending another 20,000 troops to Iraq this summer to replace those on emergency extensions, and the Pentagon plans to keep a force of 135,000 in the county through all of 2005.

The 2nd Brigade of the Army’s New York-based 10th Mountain Division will go to Iraq by mid-July, as will the 11th and 24th Marine Expeditionary Units, officials announced Tuesday.

The units represent about 10,000 troops, and officials said they will soon identify another 10,000 support and combat-support personnel who will deploy to Iraq ahead of schedule to maintain a larger force.

Rotation plans set out last year envisioned reducing the force in Iraq to 115,000 troops this spring. However, President Bush in March approved the request of Gen. John Abizaid, chief of the U.S. Central Command, to delay the homecoming of 20,000 troops who had already served a year in Iraq.


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