Homecoming

Redeployment Ceremony, April 22nd 2008

Fort Riley Troops — R&R Earned

Fort Riley Troops — R&R Earned
Topeka Capital-Journal
Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Welcome-home celebrations for soldiers returning from Iraq have become a regular occurrence at Fort Riley this month.

More than 3,400 soldiers with the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division who were deployed to Iraq 15 months ago are returning to the fort, and to their families and friends, in groups of several hundred at a time. More than 3,000 had returned by Monday, and the remaining 300 are expected to arrive today.

Fort Riley officials say the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team during its 15 months in the Rashid Security District of southern Baghdad conducted operations that resulted in the capture of more than 200 "high-profile targets" and reduced the number of enemy cells in the area from 20 to five. The team also repaired sewer, water, medical and education facilities and electrical projects.

By all reports, it was a job well done.

Deployment of the brigade was part of a large troop buildup in Iraq designed to combat increasing violence from and among the different Muslim sects and by terrorists.

We join the soldiers, their families and friends in rejoicing at their safe return. We also express our condolences to the families of those soldiers who didn't make it back safely. A spokeswoman for Fort Riley said the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team lost 38 soldiers in the war.

Since the war began March 20, 2003, with the invasion of Iraq, more than 4,000 members of the U.S. armed forces have died there.

That human toll, coupled with the absence of any indication our forces won't be fighting and dying in Iraq for a long time to come, has contributed mightily to the public's growing concern that the country has become bogged down in a civil/religious war that has no end.

The emotional strain the war in Iraq and the war against terrorism being fought in Afghanistan are placing on our men and women in uniform is another source of growing concern across the nation. Any soldier who has been in uniform any length of time likely has served at least one tour of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan. Some have served two or even three tours in those hostile environments. National Guard units in Kansas and across the country also have been called upon regularly to contribute.

The Fort Riley spokeswoman said the Army's goal is to give soldiers returning from a 12- or 15-month deployment at least 12 months in the states before they are deployed again.

But repeated deployments to a war zone in a relatively short number of years can weigh heavily on even the bravest, and the families who can only stand and watch as one of their own heads once again toward danger.

We admire the courage of the soldiers and their families and honor the sacrifices they make.

It's our hope that members of 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team receive the time they need to decompress from the rigors of war and reconnect with family and friends before they are sent into battle once again.