thedrifter
01-04-06, 07:39 AM
22nd MEU helping rebuild Iraq's Al Anbar province
January 04,2006
BY CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit ended up right where it expected to be - in the middle of the fray.
The MEU, which departed Camp Lejeune in early November, landed in Iraq's western Al Anbar province in late December. After establishing a base in the city of Hit, members of the unit are fighting insurgents and working to rebuild the infrastructure in their area of responsibility.
"The entire MEU came ashore," said Col. Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie Jr., the commanding officer of the roughly 2,200 Marines and sailors with the unit. "We are settling in and working very hard."
The unit includes Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines; Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 261; MEU Service Support Group 22; and a command element. Before deploying to Iraq, the MEU floated aboard the USS Nassau, Austin and Carter Hall with Expeditionary Strike Group 8.
The troops left Camp Lejeune knowing only they were accepting the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, which extends from the Horn of Africa through the Middle East and into Central Asia.
Now that they are in Iraq, McKenzie said the primary mission is two-fold: engage the enemy in counter-insurgency operations while also working to provide an environment where the Iraqi people can live in relative comfort.
"It's really a full spectrum of operations," McKenzie said. "We are prepared to engage the enemy forces trying to destroy Iraq and (are) working a large number of civil military affairs operations."
While Marines have already clashed with insurgents a number of times, McKenzie said they've also begun to take on the ravaged area. On New Year's Day, for example, Marines with the MSSG took to the roads around Hit and began filling in potholes and craters caused by the explosion of roadside bombs.
"The holes in the road were just crippling traffic," McKenzie said. "We're trying to offer (the Iraqi people) something concrete that gives them measurable improvements in the short term."
Another task the Marines will take on is helping the fledgling Iraqi security forces. McKenzie said they are working with an Iraqi battalion and helping them work through the kinks of company and battalion-level operations. It's a job that requires patience, he said.
"The biggest task ahead of us is making sure we put the Iraqis in a position where they can take responsibly for their security," he said. "And that's a very hard thing to do. "Those things take time. (The Iraqi troops) are eager. There is certainly no shortage of courage."
For the time being, Iraq is the stage for the MEU, McKenzie said. While he doesn't know what the future will hold, McKenzie said they will work to complete their missions to the best of their ability.
"We're here now, just not certain how long we're going to be here," he said.
The fact that a significant number already have combat experience gives the Marines and sailors a "quiet confidence" that they'll get through their deployment safely.
"Morale is very high," he said. "We've got a lot of returning lettermen coming back for second time."
McKenzie did have some good news for families and friends of the MEU's Marines.
"We do anticipate returning home on schedule," he said.
For more information and updates about the 22nd MEU, log on to www.usmc.mil/22ndmeu.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or at 353-1171, Ext. 229.
January 04,2006
BY CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit ended up right where it expected to be - in the middle of the fray.
The MEU, which departed Camp Lejeune in early November, landed in Iraq's western Al Anbar province in late December. After establishing a base in the city of Hit, members of the unit are fighting insurgents and working to rebuild the infrastructure in their area of responsibility.
"The entire MEU came ashore," said Col. Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie Jr., the commanding officer of the roughly 2,200 Marines and sailors with the unit. "We are settling in and working very hard."
The unit includes Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines; Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 261; MEU Service Support Group 22; and a command element. Before deploying to Iraq, the MEU floated aboard the USS Nassau, Austin and Carter Hall with Expeditionary Strike Group 8.
The troops left Camp Lejeune knowing only they were accepting the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, which extends from the Horn of Africa through the Middle East and into Central Asia.
Now that they are in Iraq, McKenzie said the primary mission is two-fold: engage the enemy in counter-insurgency operations while also working to provide an environment where the Iraqi people can live in relative comfort.
"It's really a full spectrum of operations," McKenzie said. "We are prepared to engage the enemy forces trying to destroy Iraq and (are) working a large number of civil military affairs operations."
While Marines have already clashed with insurgents a number of times, McKenzie said they've also begun to take on the ravaged area. On New Year's Day, for example, Marines with the MSSG took to the roads around Hit and began filling in potholes and craters caused by the explosion of roadside bombs.
"The holes in the road were just crippling traffic," McKenzie said. "We're trying to offer (the Iraqi people) something concrete that gives them measurable improvements in the short term."
Another task the Marines will take on is helping the fledgling Iraqi security forces. McKenzie said they are working with an Iraqi battalion and helping them work through the kinks of company and battalion-level operations. It's a job that requires patience, he said.
"The biggest task ahead of us is making sure we put the Iraqis in a position where they can take responsibly for their security," he said. "And that's a very hard thing to do. "Those things take time. (The Iraqi troops) are eager. There is certainly no shortage of courage."
For the time being, Iraq is the stage for the MEU, McKenzie said. While he doesn't know what the future will hold, McKenzie said they will work to complete their missions to the best of their ability.
"We're here now, just not certain how long we're going to be here," he said.
The fact that a significant number already have combat experience gives the Marines and sailors a "quiet confidence" that they'll get through their deployment safely.
"Morale is very high," he said. "We've got a lot of returning lettermen coming back for second time."
McKenzie did have some good news for families and friends of the MEU's Marines.
"We do anticipate returning home on schedule," he said.
For more information and updates about the 22nd MEU, log on to www.usmc.mil/22ndmeu.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or at 353-1171, Ext. 229.