The Pentagon has ordered some units of the 45,000-member U.S. 1st Marine Expeditionary Force based in Camp Pendleton to deploy to the Gulf region to join thousands of other American troops preparing for a possible war with Iraq, defense officials said today. Spokesmen at 1st Marine Expeditionary Force headquarters confirmed that an order to deploy "elements" of the big force was received this week, but would not say how many or exactly when and where they would go. But other defense officials, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters that troops, aircraft and equipment from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force would begin moving to the Gulf region soon.
The Army is already preparing to deploy more than 11,000 soldiers from the 3rd Infantry Division in the state of Georgia as well as hundreds of engineers and intelligence specialists from Germany to the Gulf in a new year surge of troops, warplanes and ships in case President Bush orders an invasion of Iraq. Nearly 60,000 U.S. military personnel are in the Gulf and that number could double in coming weeks.
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