Dagger commander looks back at mission, forward to redeployment

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

08.31.2009

Courtesy Story

2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division Public Affairs

BAGHDAD — The leaders of the 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team "Dagger," 1st Infantry Division, Multi-National Division — Baghdad gave local media from the Fort Riley, Kan., area the opportunity to hear the accomplishments of the Dagger Brigade in their year-long support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and preparations for redeployment to Fort Riley next month.

Col. Joseph Martin, commander, 2nd HBCT and Command Sgt. Maj. Battle, the brigade's top enlisted leader, welcomed the media and their questions.

"It has been a year of change for this brigade and I'm going to tell you why. Since we arrived last October we witnessed 14 separate changes in operations this year, changes in our operational environment. Imagine living in Manhattan and experiencing 14 changes to your neighborhood to you and the city," he said.

"If you recall, the 1st of January was a landmark moment in Iraqi history as the U.N. Security Resolution expired and the new internationally recognized security agreement was implemented to the United States and our partners in Iraq. Our Iraqi security partners took the lead firmly at that point.

"We began to obtain warrants in order to detain insurgents and prevent violence. It was a critical time for the roles of the Iraqi security forces as they transitioned to the lead. After an amazing election at the end of January we found ourselves under the leadership of a new command here in the 1st Cavalry Division from Fort Hood, Texas.

"We began to add two new battalions- one from Fort Hood, the 2-8 Cavalry Regiment, and one from the Penn. National Guard, the 2-112 Infantry Regiment. We expanded our [area of operations] into Abu Ghraib, which is a rural area to our west. It's been known to have harbored insurgent activity, specifically al-Qaida.

"On the 1st of July, the combat forces of this team began to move outside of the city bases that the surge had necessitated and created. We're now fully partnered in commanding control centers with our city-bound Iraqi partners. We continue to target and capture insurgents in the countryside out in Abu Ghraib and support our partners within the city of Baghdad.

"Overall, our combined team has prevailed. The Dagger non-commissioned officers and junior leaders matured into confident and dependable teams that can tackle any mission anywhere, anytime day or night. We've now seen young, energetic Americans become battle-hardened veterans in one of America's greatest traditions in war fighting: the Big Red One. You can justifiably be proud of them just as we are right now. I implore each and every one of you to meet them, Command Sgt. Maj. Battle and me on the 22nd of October this year. That's when we'll proudly uncase our colors for this great brigade and continue our history that reaches back to 1917 in the muddy trenches of WWI, where the brigade was born. I can clearly tell you I am the proudest commander in Iraq right now because I am in command of an amazing organization made up of amazing people, who put together an incredible team.

"We can't forget our families who have waited so patiently at Fort Riley, Kan., nor can we forget the team back there of the local community and all of the institutions that make up the 1st Infantry Division and the Garrison at Fort Riley that have supported us throughout the duration of this conflict."

Martin was asked what was the biggest accomplishment of the Dagger Mission. He responded by saying the brigade adapted to the ever-changing mission.

"This required changes to the environment that necessitated leadership from the brigade all the way down to the unit that was affected," Martin said. "Our partners had changed, the security agreement was implemented, we went through an election period and the brigade adaptively adjusted to that environment."

Battle responded by saying the greatest accomplishment was getting to know the Iraqi soldiers and the civilian population.

"We worked side by side with our Iraqi counterparts," he said. "That has been a great accomplishment."

Martin was also asked about what the Dagger Brigade was going to upon return to Fort Riley.

"The way we look at this campaign is that it doesn't end when we come home; it goes beyond that," Martin said. "We have the last phase that is equally important to this phase of the campaign, and that is the reset phase."

Martin said the Soldiers will go through reintegration training and health screens before going on a well-deserved leave period.

"They will be reoriented into the environment back home," he said. "This is something they haven't experienced over a long period of time."

Battle said there will also be a big turnover of Soldiers going to a new duty station, separating from the Army or retiring from service.

"We will ensure that these Soldiers, as well as the Soldiers not going anywhere, are taken care of," he said. "There will be a lot of things that we have to accomplish and I think the first 60 days of this reset period will be the most important."

What also will be important to the Soldiers is the redeployment ceremony when they return, according to Martin.

"When the Soldiers' flight lands in Kansas, a crowd is going to form; people who have been waiting for a whole year to see their Soldier. These Soldiers are going to be called forward to the top of the hill and they are going to walk into a forum of screaming family members with music and celebration akin to what you would see in a Super Bowl," he said.

Martin concluded with a statement that wrapped-up what redeployment will be like for the Soldiers and their families.

"The Soldiers will think they are rock stars and the families will think they are at a rock star concert. They're going to join together and embrace; then they are going to go home and will be released on a 96 hour pass."

• Date Taken: 08.31.2009
• Date Posted: 09.01.2009 02:01
• Story ID: 38209
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ