The U.S. Army plans to send as many as 500 soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division Headquarters at Fort Riley in Kansas to Iraq this fall to help train, advise and assist Iraqi coalition troops and security forces.
The 1st Infantry Division Headquarters will relieve 101st Airborne Division troops and assume the role of Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command-Iraq as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the Army said Friday.
“Our Big Red One soldiers are well-trained and ready to continue the tremendous support the 101st Airborne Division and the Coalition are providing to our Iraqi allies,” said Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin, incoming commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley.
“We will assist in training Iraqi commanders, staffs, soldiers, and police officers as they plan and conduct counter-ISIL operations in both the Tigris and Euphrates River valleys, with a central focus on the City of Mosul,” Martin added.
