Stars and Stripes
By Jennifer Hlad
Published: January 17, 2014
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.
A young Marine and his wife embrace moments before the sunrise departure of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 13, 2014.
Like tens of thousands of Marines who went before them, the Marines and sailors of I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) have prepared for their deployment to Afghanistan by studying everything from marksmanship to Afghan culture.
But this deployment will be different.
This unit will not be patrolling villages looking for insurgents or looking to coax Afghan elders into supporting the Afghan government.
The California unit — part of which deployed this month — is the last major Marine command to deploy to the country in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Some 4,000 Marines and sailors will serve under the I MEF banner in Afghanistan over the coming year. They’re charged with supporting Afghan forces, safeguarding the April presidential elections, shutting down sprawling Camp Leatherneck in Helmand province, sending equipment home and preparing for a possible postwar presence.
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i see the army and wife pict, its make me cry :(
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