FORT LEWIS, Wash. – The 17th Fires Brigade will case their colors Thursday, at 10 a.m., during a deployment ceremony at Watkins Field in preparation for the units’ upcoming deployment to Iraq. 17th Fires Brigade will deploy more than 1,000 Soldiers in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The brigade will partner with the Iraqi Security forces and provincial reconstruction teams to develop civil capacity and defeat extremist networks in their area of operations.
Soldiers of the brigade will team up with other brigade elements that have already deployed, to conduct missions throughout Iraq. They will also partner with Iraq Police forces, Iraqi border enforcement units, and the Iraqi Army to coach, train, and support the Iraqi Security Forces in securing the Iraqi borders and the Iraqi people.