1-star: Special Forces in Iraq for long haul

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U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers fire on militia positions in the Jamhoori district during Operation Jackal in Diwaniyah, Iraq on June 3, 2007.


1-star: Special Forces in Iraq for long haul
By Kevin Maurer - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Nov 3, 2008 18:01:42 EST

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Brig. Gen. Michael S. Repass was the second to last American serviceman off the island of Grenada after the 1983 invasion.

Repass anticipates the same thing is going to happen to a Special Forces soldier in Iraq when the war ends.

“I am well aware that we are the last guys out and we turn off the lights. Special Forces will be there with the Iraqis as long as the Iraqis want us and need us,” Repass, himself an Iraq combat veteran, said Monday in his first interview since becoming commander of U.S. Army Special Forces Command in June. “We’ve been with these guys from the get-go.”

Repass commands about 10,000 soldiers in the Army’s five active-duty groups. Special Forces teams perform raids and long-range reconnaissance in search of terrorist suspects. They also work closely with local leaders to undermine the insurgency.

But its role training native soldiers is what makes the unit unique. Green Berets have been very successful in Latin America, especially Colombia, where decades of training has created a capable army, evident from a successful hostage rescue months ago.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/11/ap_iraq_special_forces_110308/%2e