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45 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, April 14, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend March 16, 2004 Ashland-based Guard battalion prepares for Iraq duty By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune Roughly 120 Oregon Army National Guard members from Southern Oregon could be leaving for Iraq as early as Saturday. Friday marks the anniversary of the start of the war. The local citizen soldiers are part of the Guard’s 1st Battalion of the 186th Infantry who volunteered to augment the 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry, which is based in Cottage Grove. The 1/186th, whose headquarters are in Ashland, has units in Medford, Grants Pass, Klamath Falls and Roseburg. Since November, the 705-strong combined Guard unit has been training with the Army’s 39th Brigade at Fort Hood, Texas, and Fort Polk, La. They were activated in October. Advertisement Beginning Saturday, the units will be on a "lockdown" at Fort Polk, meaning they are restricted to the base until they board planes bound for Iraq, according to Maj. Arnold Strong, spokesman for the Joint Force Headquarters in Oregon. "Departure should be no later than the 25th," he said, adding the exact departure time is not being released. "The unit is really motivated — they are ready to go to Iraq," Strong said. The members of the Oregon Guard will be on the ground in Iraq for a full year, he said. They originally had been scheduled to deploy during the first week in March, but the departure was delayed for several weeks because there was no room at a U.S. military staging area in Kuwait, he said. As a result, many members of the Guard were allowed home on a short leave, Strong said. The deployment of the Oregon Guard is part of an effort by the military to increase the citizen soldier ratio serving in Iraq, according to the Department of Defense. About 25 percent of the 130,000 U.S. troops in Iraq are currently citizen soldiers. When the total number of those serving there is cut to about 110,000 later this year, about 40 percent of the replacement troops will be members of the Guard or reservists, officials said. They offer skills and resources such as linguists, military police and civil affairs specialists that are not available in sufficient numbers in the active-duty force, defense officials explained. Under federal law, National Guard and reservists’ jobs are protected unless re-employment is unreasonable or impossible. The law also prohibits employer discrimination against veterans and reservists because of their military service or obligations. As of Monday, 564 U.S. service members have died since the beginning of military operations in Iraq, defense officials report. Since the war started nearly a year ago, 2,814 U.S. service members have been wounded as a result of hostile action, according to Defense Department’s figures. Non-hostile injured numbered 427. The wounded include half a dozen people in uniform from Jackson and Josephine counties, including one woman. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times