82nd to begin Baghdad ops by February

Army News, Special Reports, Frontline Photos, This Week's Army Times - Army Times: "82nd to begin Baghdad ops by February

By Steven R. Hurst - The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday Jan 21, 2007 11:11:12 EST

BAGHDAD — A newly arrived brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division, the first of the 21,500-troop buildup ordered by President Bush, will be ready to join the fresh drive to quell sectarian violence in the capital by the start of next month, the American military said Sunday.
The 2nd Brigade of the 82nd Airborne has 3,200 soldiers who will “assist Iraqi Security Forces to clear, control and retain key areas of the capital city in order to reduce violence and to set the conditions for a transition to full Iraqi control of security in the city,” the military said in a statement.82nd to begin Baghdad ops by February