US Military Units Involved in Iraq War (2003-present)

Credit: This information is from CNN.COM

3rd Infantry Division

Soldiers: 15,000
Home forts: Fort Stewart, Hunter Army Air Field and Fort Benning, Georgia
Units: After playing a key role during major combat and then return home, the 3rd Infantry Division has returned to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom III.

25th Infantry Division (Light)

Soldiers: More than 8,000
Home fort: Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
Units: The 2nd Brigade of the 25th Infantry Division (Light) deployed to Iraq in February 2004 to relieve the 173rd Airborne Brigade in northern Iraq. The division's 1st Brigade -- the Army's second Stryker brigade -- relieved the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, in northern Iraq in fall 2004. The division's 3rd Brigade is currently deployed to Afghanistan.

2nd Infantry Division

Soldiers: More than 7,000
Home fort: South Korea and Fort Lewis, Washington
Units: According to the Pentagon, the South Korea-based 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division has deployed to Iraq for one year as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom 3. The division's 3rd Brigade recently returned to Fort Lewis after a year-long deployment in Iraq. The light-infantry brigade is the Army's first Stryker Brigade Combat Team, fielding the new Stryker wheeled armored vehicle.

42nd Infantry Division

Soldiers: Approximately 3,000
Home fort: Various Army installations
Units: The 42nd formally took control of north central Iraq from the 1st Infantry Division on February 14, 2005. The division is the first National Guard contingent to be in charge of an entire area of operation in the Middle East.

278th Armored Cavalry Regiment

Soldiers: 4,000
Home forts: Various Tennessee installations
Units: The regiment is part of Task Force Liberty, which also includes the Idaho Army National Guard's 116th Brigade Combat Team and the 1st and 3rd Brigade Combat Teams from the Fort Stewart, Georgia-based 3rd Infantry Division.

3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment

Soldiers: 5,200
Home fort: Fort Carson, Colorado
Units: The 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment returned to Iraq in February 2005 for its second tour of duty.
 

11th Armored Cavalry Regiment

Soldiers: 2,200
Home fort: Fort Irwin, California
Units: The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment is deployed to Iraq to train Iraqi security forces.
 

256th Infantry Brigade

Soldiers: Approximately 3,500
Home forts: Various Louisiana installations
Units: In Iraq, the 256th Infantry Brigade of the Louisiana Army National Guard is under the command of the 3rd Infantry Division.

1st Infantry Division

Soldiers: 13,000
Home fort: Vilseck, Germany
Units: The division deployed to northern Iraq in February 2004 and relieved the 4th Infantry Division. The division transferred authority over north central Iraq to the 42nd Infantry Division on February 14, 2005.

1st Armored Division

Soldiers: Up to 17,000
Home fort: Wiesbaden, Germany
Units: The 1st Armored Division includes four brigade-sized units plus an artillery unit and a division support command. The division was set to go home in April 2004 but its tour of duty in Iraq was extended for three months after attacks by Iraqi insurgents increased. The extension affected 14,500 soldiers in the division plus about 3,200 support troops. On July 4, 2004, the division cased its banners and flags, signifying its departure from the Iraqi area of operations.

82nd Airborne Division

Soldiers: 5,000
Home fort: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Units: The 2nd and 3rd battalions of the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, the 82nd's Division Ready Brigade, began deploying to Iraq on December 3, 2004. The roughly 1,500 paratroopers will be in Iraq for roughly four months to support security efforts during the election period

10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry)

Soldiers: 2,600
Home fort: Fort Drum, New York
Units: In July 2004, the division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team deployed to Iraq for one year. The brigade was attached to the 1st Cavalry Division for one year at forward operating bases throughout Baghdad. Roughly 600 10th Mountain soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, and 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, returned home from Iraq in April 2004.

2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment

Soldiers: 3,700
Home fort: Fort Polk, Louisiana
Units: The 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment a light armored regiment, consisting of three Humvee-mounted cavalry squadrons, an aviation squadron and a combat support squadron. The unit was scheduled to be relieved by a brigade from the 1st Cavalry Division in March and April 2004. But the tour of duty for about 2,800 soldiers of the regiment was extended by three months in April 2004. The 2nd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division or the 11th and 24th Marine Expeditionary Units will deploy to relieve those soldiers sometime in 2004.

1st Cavalry Division

Soldiers: 17,000
Home fort: Fort Hood, Texas
Units: The heavy-armor division, the Army's largest, was initially ordered to deploy on March 3, 2003, but the deployment order was canceled. In late 2003, the division deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom II to relieve the 1st Armored Division and 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Baghdad.

173rd Airborne Brigade

Soldiers: 1,800
Home fort: Caserma Ederle, Vicenza, Italy
Units: The 173rd Airborne Brigade is a rapid-reaction unit that serves as the U.S. European Command's only conventional airborne strategic response force. The brigade parachuted into northern Iraq on March 27, 2003, to seize the Bashur airfield and then helped provide security in the city of Kirkuk. The brigade returned to Italy on March 12, 2004.

101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)

Soldiers: 20,000
Home fort: Fort Campbell, Kentucky
Units: Ordered to deploy on February 7, 2003, the division includes three brigades, plus two aviation brigades with 270 helicopters, an artillery unit and several supporting units. The division returned home in March 2004.

4th Infantry Division

Soldiers: 18,000
Home fort: Fort Hood, Texas
Units: The entire 4th Infantry Division and elements of the 13th Corps Support Command, including transportation, engineering and medical units, were ordered to deploy on January 20, 2003. The division was relieved in April 2004 by the 1st Infantry Division and an attached Army National Guard infantry brigade.

V Corps

Soldiers: More than 8,000
Home fort: Heidelberg, Germany
Units: A number of V Corps units deployed to Kuwait for the war in Iraq. The corps held a ceremony on March 19, 2004, to mark the official end of its yearlong deployment in Kuwait and Iraq.

32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command

Soldiers: 1,100 to 1,200
Home fort: Fort Bliss, Texas
Units: Members of the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command's missile defense program, charged with operating Patriot missile batteries, have been sent to the Persian Gulf region for at least the fourth time in the last four years. About 850 soldiers were in the region in mid-January as was most of the unit's equipment, with another 300 ordered on January 13, 2003, to deploy to the region.

Army Forces Central Command

Home fort: Camp Doha, Kuwait
Units: Already based in Kuwait before the Persian Gulf buildup of U.S. forces, the 3rd Army serves as the command headquarters of Army units within U.S. Central Command. In this capacity, the 3rd Army is known as Army Forces Central Command (ARCENT). Units with the command include six Patriot missile batteries based around the region, an Apache helicopter squadron and engineering, medical and other command units. Since the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom, ARCENT also has been the command in charge of all coalition land forces in Central Command's 25-nation area of responsibility.

Army Reserve

Soldiers: More than 10,000
Units: Army Reserve units from all 50 states have been called up in support of U.S. military operations in Iraq.

Army National Guard

Soldiers: More than 8,000
Units: National Guard units from all 50 states have been called up in support of U.S. military operations in Iraq. On September 26, 2003, the Pentagon announced that two National Guard infantry brigades will mobilize in October 2003 and will deploy to the Iraqi theater as relief forces for the 4th Infantry Division and 1st Armored Division. The North Carolina-based 30th Infantry Brigade and the Arkansas-based 39th Infantry Brigade are expected to be in the Iraqi theater for up to 12 months. The Army also has announced that the 81st Army National Guard Infantry Brigade from Washington has been alerted in support of operations in Iraq.

 

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