Pentagon orders two infantry battalions to Iraq

[steve2470]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2005-08-24-more-deployments_x.htm?POE=NEWISVA

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon has ordered 1,500 additional troops to Iraq to provide security in advance of two upcoming votes, the military announced Wednesday.

Two infantry battalions from the 82nd Airborne Division will deploy to Iraq before the scheduled Oct. 15 referendum on the proposed constitution, and remain through the December national elections, officials said.

They will join the 138,000 U.S. troops already there. The battalions are expected to remain in Iraq for 120 days.

The military anticipates an increase in violence in Iraq in advance of the elections, with insurgents opposed to the U.S.-backed government trying to disrupt the process.

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