The U.S. is sending 2,500 troops to Kuwait, ready to step up the fight in Syria and Iraq
By: Charlsy Panzino and Andrew deGrandpre, March 9, 2017 (Photo Credit: Spc. Christopher Brecht/Army)
Editor's note: This story was updated Friday to include comments from U.S. military officials in Baghdad and the head of U.S. Central Command. It was first published Thursday, March 9, at 7:16 p.m., EST.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military is sending an additional 2,500 ground combat troops to a staging base in Kuwait from which they could be called upon to back up coalition forces battling the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
The deployment will include elements of the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, which is based at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. About 1,700 soldiers from the same unit are overseas now, spread between Iraq and Kuwait. They're focused on the U.S.-led effort to train and assist the Iraqi troops doing much of the fighting against ISIS there.
https://www.armytimes.com/articles/82nd-airborne-syria-iraq-kuwait-islamic-state
