- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The
U.S. Army has ordered thousands of National Guard and Army Reserve forces
in Iraq and nearby countries to extend their tours of duty to a year, The
Washington Post reported Tuesday.
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- The new order, requiring 12-month tours, means many Guard
and Army Reserve troops could have their original year-long mobilizations
extended for anywhere from one to six months, the newspaper said, citing
unnamed Army officials.
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- The Army issued the new policy late Friday night, but
made no formal announcement of the change, the report said.
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- While defense officials have had authority since the
Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to activate Guard and reserve troops for two years,
most have been called up for only a year of total service, the newspaper
reported.
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- A Pentagon spokesman was not immediately available for
comment early Tuesday.
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- There are 122,000 Army personnel in Iraq, including 3,000
National Guard soldiers and 5,000 reservists, Army officials told the Post.
Another 5,000 Guard soldiers and 7,000 reservists are serving in Kuwait.
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- Army officials told the newspaper that the scarcity of
active-duty forces and security concerns in Iraq made it necessary to keep
a large number of Guard and Reserve troops in the region as long as possible,
The Post reported.
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- "Because of the dynamic situation in theater, we
had to take a look at our overseas forces to make sure we were maximizing
their deployment opportunity," one Army official was quoted as saying.
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- The newspaper reported that the new deployment policy
only applies to those now serving in Iraq and will not affect Guard and
Reserve troops deploying in the future, including two National Guard brigades
scheduled to deploy on six-month tours in coming months.
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