CNN - US To Send 128,000 Replacement Troops To Iraq. [View All]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/11/06/sprj.irq.main/index.html

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About 85,000 active duty forces, including three National Guard combat brigades, have been notified they will be sent to the Iraq region, and 43,000 other Reserve and National Guard troops have been told they will be activated, Pentagon sources said.

Pentagon officials said it may be days before the public learns which Army National Guard and Reserve units face call-ups.
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Talk about "sucked into the intake". That's nearly the entire force commitment in Iraq being rotated in the next 6 months. These guys will be relative greenhorns, to occupation, in Iraq. This is not a wise decision and I fear for their safety much more than for the battle hardened vets who are there now.

Jay

NOTICE TO MODS: The title of this story comes from its' link as posted on the front page of CNN.com. Once the link is accessed the name of the story changes to "U.S. announces plan to rotate troops in Iraq". This is a trend that is on the increase and If you feel the need to lock because of this, so be it. In addition: although this story has been covered elsewhere it is the first time that I have seen the number of troops being represented as a total rather than differentiating between active duty and reserve forces. Once again lock at your discretion.