As the ground combat element of II Marine Expeditionary Force, the 2nd Marine Division is made up of a tough-as-nails infantry. The “Follow Me” division’s soldiers are experts in the art of pinpointing the enemy and closing in with supreme stealth.

More than 15,000 Marines and Sailors from infantry, artillery, reconnaissance, combat engineering, and amphibious assault are proud members of the 2nd Marine Division. The experience and expertise of the unit is a powerful combination of forces that excels at launching desert, jungle, mountain, and urban assaults.

The 2nd Marine Division has a history of successful, multinational peacekeeping missions. The unit provided integral support to operations in Beirut, Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia and Liberia. The 2nd also stormed the scenes of Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada, Operation Just Cause in Panama, Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf, Operation Enduring Freedom, and currently, Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The 2nd Marine Division is based in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Back to top

The fully trained but ever-evolving Iraqi soldiers of the 2/4 are fully integrated with the 2nd Marine Division in its mission dubbed Operation Spear.

Comprised of nearly 100 soldiers, this division of the Iraqi Army has proven its combat-readiness in large-scale operations involving dangerous covert operations, but US forces have found the Iraqis an invaluable weapon on the open streets. There has been an enormous increase in the number of credible tips provided by the residents of troubled villages, and the US knows it’s due in large part to the Iraqi’s own people patrolling the neighborhoods.

Taking the lead in raids and operations across Iraq, the men of the 2/4, and Iraqi soldiers throughout Iraq, are pulling their weight on the battlefield by capturing insurgents, securing weapons caches, and leading the way through the streets of Iraq. Welcome home, soldiers. Back to top

Formed around 1988 by Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda helped finance, recruit, transport and train thousands of fighters from dozens of countries as part of the Afghan resistance against the Soviet Union. The resulting group turned into an international terrorist network after the war, and in February, 1998, it issued a statement declaring war on all US citizens and allies, everywhere they could be found. It’s strength further increased in June, 2001, when it merged with an Egyptian terrorist group headed by Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Al Qaeda has sophisticated tactics for assassination, bombing, hijacking, and kidnapping, with good operational security, and long-range planning. Many reports and statements from bin Laden himself indicate that the group is determined to build or steal biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. Their targets tend to be prominent symbols and public buildings, high-profile buildings. According to CIA head George Tenet, the organization has increasingly focused on developing puppet groups to carry out attacks in which bin Ladin's fingerprints are not detected.

With a global financial network, dozens of affiliated groups, and several thousand recruits, the organization has provided training and support for terrorists fighting in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia, Chechnya, Eritrea, Kosovo, the Philippines, Somalia, Tajikistan, Yemen, Kosovo, as well as North and South America. Back to top