In Iraq, the U.S. Marine Corps, the nation's amphibious assault specialists, 
pushed further inland than ever before


2nd Marine Division

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Deployed: Al Anbar Province, Iraq

Units: The 2nd Marine Division is comprised of more than 15,000 enlisted 
Marines and sailors and 1,000 officers. The division includes the following 
units, most of which are currently deployed:
• The 2nd 6th and 8th Marine Regiments are the division's infantry units.
• The 10th Marine Regiment is the division's artillery force.
• 2nd Tank Battalion
• 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion
• 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion • Headquarters Battalion
• 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion
• 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion 

Duties: The 2nd Marine Division's headquarters assumed responsibility for 
operations in Al Anbar Province in western Iraq from the 1st Marine Division 
in March 2005. The province is part of the "Sunni Triangle," where the Iraqi 
insurgency has been very active, and includes the cities of Falluja and 
Ramadi. 

The 2nd Marine Division is the backbone of 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, 
which is assuming command of Marine forces in Iraq. A Marine division is 
typically organized into three infantry regiments, one artillery regiment, one 
tank battalion, one anti-aircraft battalion, one combat engineering battalion and 
one light-armored battalion.



15th Marine Expeditionary Unit

Home camp: Camp Pendleton, California

Deployed: Iraq

Units: The roughly 2,000 Marines of the 15th Marine Expeditionary 
Unit (MEU) returned to Iraq in March 2005. The MEU consists of 
Battalion Landing Team (1st Battalion), 1st Marine Regiment, 
Medium Helicopter Squadron 165 and MEU Service Support Group 
15. 

The 15th MEU previously deployed to Iraq before the war began, 
leaving Camp Pendleton on January 7, 2003, aboard the amphibious 
assault ships USS Tarawa, USS Duluth and USS Rushmore. The 
regularly scheduled deployment was not a part of the overall buildup 
of forces in the Persian Gulf. About 1,900 sailors also were included 
in the deployment.

Duties: The MEU is deployed at a forward operating base in the 
greater Baghdad area and are conducting what the Marine Corps calls 
"security and stabilization operations." 

In its 2003 deployment to Iraq, the 15th MEU helped capture the Iraqi 
port facilities at Umm Qasr and Az Zubayr. The unit then advanced to 
Nasiriya, where it occupied the Iraqi 11th Infantry Division compound 
on the city's outskirts. While in Nasiriya, the 15th MEU's Maritime 
Special Purpose Force assisted in the rescue of Army Pfc. Jessica 
Lynch from Saddam Hospital by conducting a coordinated attack at a 
nearby enemy headquarters as a diversionary tactic. 

A MEU is the smallest of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces and 
consists of approximately 1,900 Marines and 100 naval personnel. It is 
usually deployed aboard an amphibious assault ship, a dock landing 
ship and an amphibious transport dock. An MEU is typically organized 
as follows:
• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and is 
typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious 
assault vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support Group

In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of a larger 
Marine air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.




2nd Marine Expeditionary Force

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Deployed to: Western Iraq. Units began deploying in late 2004 and 
early 2005.

Units: For Operation Iraqi Freedom II, the 2nd MEF is built around a 
division-sized Marine Air-Ground Task Force that includes units from the 
2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and 2nd Marine Logistics 
Brigade. 

2nd Marine Division: Units of the 2nd Marine Division currently deployed to 
Iraq are: The 2nd 6th and 8th Marine Regiments; 10th Marine Regiment as 
the division's artillery force; 2nd Tank Battalion; 2nd Reconnaissance 
Battalion; 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion; Headquarters Battalion; 2nd 
Assault Amphibian Battalion; and 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance 
Battalion. 

2nd Marine Aircraft Wing: The core of the forward deployed 2nd MAW is 
Marine Aircraft Group 26 reinforced by units and individual augments from 
U.S. Marine units across the nation, and rounded out by Marine Wing Support 
Group 27, Marine Air Control Group 28 and Marine Wing Headquarters 
Squadron 2. The wing is based at Al Asad, Iraq. 

2nd Marine Logistics Brigade (Forward): The brigade assumed operational 
control of Marine Corps logistics forces in Iraq from 1st Force Service Support 
Group on March 14, 2005. The brigade includes the following units: Combat 
Logistics Regiment 25; Combat Logistics Battalion 2; Combat Logistics 
Battalion 8; 8th Engineer Support Battalion and Headquarters and Service 
Battalion. The 2nd MLB provide general logistics support to all Marine forces 
in the II MEF area of responsibility. The brigade is supported by the 2nd 
Battalion, 36th Infantry Regiment, a reserve Army provisional infantry battalion. 

2nd MEF Command Element: This includes from 8th Communication Battalions; 
2nd Radio Battalion; the 1st and 3rd Force Reconnaissance Companies; and 
the 2nd Air and Naval Gunfire Liaison Company. 

5th Civil Affairs Group: The 5th CAG relieved the 4th CAG and will operate in 
Al Anbar Province on current civil affairs projects. 

Duties: The 2nd MEF relieved the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Operation 
Iraqi Freedom III, officially taking over control of Multi-National Force-West, which 
oversees Najaf, northern Babil, Karbala and Al Anbar provinces in western Iraq 
on March 27, 2005. 

U.S. Marine forces deploy as an integrated Marine Air-Ground Task Force 
(MAGTF) grouped into four core elements: a command element, an aviation 
combat element, a ground combat element, and a combat service support 
element. The basic structure of the MAGTF never varies, though the number, 
size, and type of task force is always mission dependent. 




31st Marine Expeditionary Unit

Home camp: Okinawa

Deployed: The unit left Al Anbar Province, Iraq, in February 2005 to 
return to Okinawa after a six-month deployment.

Units: The 31st MEU includes 2,200 Marines and sailors. The 
Marines in the 31st MEU include its command element; 1st 
Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Battalion Landing Team; Marine 
Medium Helicopter Squadron 265 (Reinforced); and MEU Service 
Support Group 31. 

Naval support is provided to the MEU by Amphibious Squadron 11 
and the ships of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group, including the 
amphibious assault ship USS Essex, the dock landing ship USS 
Harpers Ferry and the transport dock ship USS Juneau. 

Duties: The 31st MEU is the Marine Corps' only permanently 
forward-based MEU. In mid-August 2004, the unit was ordered to 
deploy to Iraq to support Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 31st MEU 
was based in Al Anbar, Province, and assigned to 1st Marine Division, 
1st Marine Expeditionary Force. The MEU participated in the November 
2004 offensive to eliminate insurgents based in Falluja. 

A MEU is the smallest of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces and 
consists of approximately 1,900 Marines and 100 naval personnel. It 
is usually deployed aboard an amphibious assault ship, a dock landing 
ship and an amphibious transport dock. An MEU is typically organized 
as follows:
• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and is 
typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious assault 
vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support Group

In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of a larger 
Marine air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force




11th Marine Expeditionary Unit

Home camp: Camp Pendleton, California

Deployed: Western Iraq

Units: The 2,200 Marines in the 11th MEU are part of Battalion Landing 
Team 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment; Marine Medium Helicopter 
Squadron 166 (Reinforced); or MEU Service Support Team 11.

Duties: In Iraq, the 11th MEU has been part of the recent battle in Najaf 
against the Medhi Army militia loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. 
The MEU assumed operational control of Najaf and Qadisiyah provinces 
from the U.S. Army during a ceremony at Forward Operating Base Duke 
on July 31, 2004. 

A MEU is the smallest of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces and consists 
of approximately 1,900 Marines and 100 naval personnel. It is usually 
deployed aboard an amphibious assault ship, a dock landing ship and an 
amphibious transport dock. An MEU is typically organized as follows:
• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and is 
typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious assault 
vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support Group

In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of a larger Marine 
air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.




24th Marine Expeditionary Unit

Marines: 2,200

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Deployed: Babil Province, Iraq

Units: The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) 
arrived in Babil Province, Iraq, in July 2004 to relieve U.S. Army units 
being sent elsewhere in Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom 2. The 
MEU consists of Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine 
Regiment, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 263, Marine Service 
Support Group 24 and the U.S. Navy's Amphibious Squadron 2. 
According to the Marine Corps, the MEU also will be strengthened with 
additional forces, including 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, and 
Alpha Company, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion. 

During major combat in 2003, the 24th MEU played a significant role in 
securing Route 7, a major supply road running from southern Iraq all the 
way to Baghdad. They also conducted vehicle checkpoints and successfully 
completed several raids in which the Marines captured large amounts of 
weapons and ammunition. 

Duties: A Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is the smallest of the Marine 
Air Ground Task Force and consists of approximately 1,900 Marines and 
100 naval personnel. It is usually deployed aboard an amphibious assault 
ship, a dock landing ship and an amphibious transport dock. An MEU is 
typically organized as follows:

• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and is 
typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious assault 
vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support Group

In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of a larger 
Marine air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.




1st Marine Expeditionary Force

Home camp: Camp Pendleton, California

Deployed to: Anbar Province in western Iraq. Units began 
deploying in February 2004.

Units: For Operation Iraqi Freedom II, the 1st MEF is built around a 
division-sized Marine Air-Ground Task Force that includes units from 
the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and 1st Force 
Service Support Group. 

1st Marine Division: The 1st Marine Division's Regimental Combat 
Team 1 and Regimental Combat Team 7 will deploy and are 
composed of the following units: 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment; 
2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment; 2nd and 3rd Battalions, 4th 
Marine Regiment; 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment; 2nd and 
3rd Battalions, 7th Marine Regiment; 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine 
Regiment; 3rd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment; 1st Light Armored 
Reconnaissance Battalion; elements of the 1st Tank Battalion; and 
elements of the 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion. 

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing: This includes portions of the following units: 
Marine Aircraft Group 16, Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16; 
Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 161; Marine Medium Helicopter 
Squadron 261; Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466; Marine Light 
Attack Helicopter Squadron 775; Marine Aerial Refeuler Transport 
Squadron 352; Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 234; Marine 
Wing Support Group 37; Marine Air Control Group 38; Marine Wing 
Communications Squadron 38; 3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion; 
and Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 2. 

1st Force Service Support Group: Units from the 1st FSSG include the 
headquarters element of Combat Service Support Group 3; Combat 
Service Support Companies 111, 117, 121 and 123; portions of Combat 
Service Support Groups 11 and 15; Combat Service Support Battalions 
1 and 7; 1st Medical Battalion; 7th and 8th Engineer Support Battalions; 
Brigade Service Support Group 1; and Headquarters and Service Battalion, 
1st Force Service Support Group. 

1st MEF Command Element: This includes elements from the 8th and 
9th Communication Battalions; 1st Intelligence Battalion; 3rd Radio 
Battalion; the 1st and 3rd Force Reconnaissance Companies; and the 
1st Air and Naval Gunfire Liaison Company. 

Duties: The 1st MEF relieved the 82nd Airborne Division in Operation Iraqi 
Freedom II, officially taking over control of Iraq's Al Anbar Province in 
western Iraq on March 24, 2004. 

U.S. Marine forces deploy as an integrated Marine Air-Ground Task Force 
(MAGTF) grouped into four core elements: a command element, an aviation 
combat element, a ground combat element, and a combat service support 
element. The basic structure of the MAGTF never varies, though the number, 
size, and type of task force is always mission dependent. The 1st MEF 
numbered roughly 45,000 Marines for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, 
but is down to 25,000 for Operation Iraqi Freedom II.




2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Deployed to: The brigade left Camp Lejeune on January 15, 2003, 
for Kuwait. The brigade returned home on June 22, 2003.

Units: The 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade is comprised of the 
2nd and 8th Marine Regiments, which include infantry, tank, 
reconnaissance and anti-aircraft battalions, and Marine Aircraft 
Group 29. The brigade came ashore on the amphibious assault 
ships USS Saipan, USS Bataan and USS Kearsarge, amphibious 
transport dock ship USS Ponce, amphibious support ship USS 
Portland and dock landing ships USS Gunston Hall and USS 
Ashland. 

Duties: The Marines and ships comprise what the Marine Corps 
calls an Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), in the current case 
named Task Force Tarawa. The 2nds Expeditionary Brigade 
consists of the following: 

• A Command Element
• Regimental Combat Team 2, a ground combat element built on 
an infantry regiment
• Marine Aircraft Group 29, an aviation combat element that can 
conduct offensive air and assault support, electronic warfare, 
control of aircraft and missiles, anti-air warfare and air 
reconnaissance.
• Combat Service Support Battalion 22, a brigade service support 
group, which can logistically support 30,000 Marines and sailors.

After arriving in Kuwait on February 15, Marine Aircraft Group 29 
left the 2nd MEB to augment the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force's 
(MEF) aviation combat element, the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

Combat Service Support Battalion 22 (CSSB), also went to the 1st 
MEF to augment the 1st Force Service Support Group, the MEF's 
combat service support element.

Regimental Combat Team 2, along with the 2nd MEB's command 
element and with CSSB-22 in direct support, formed Task Force 
Tarawa and became one of the 1st MEF's ground combat units. The 
2nd MEB helped capture the cities of Nasiriya, Amara, Diwaniya 
and Kut, and defeated the Iraqi army's 11th Infantry Division and 
remnants of the Iraqi 51st Mechanized Infantry Division and 
assorted paramilitary units.




1st Marine Expeditionary Force

Home camp: Camp Pendleton, California

Destination: Iraq

Units: The Pentagon ordered some units of the 45,000-member 
expeditionary force to deploy to the Persian Gulf region for the 
war with Iraq. The MEF has overall command of all Marine units 
in the Persian Gulf region and it includes elements of the 1st 
Marine Division and the 1st Marine Regiment plus Marine 
aviation units. Roughly 7,000 Marines from the 1st Marine 
Regiment and about 3,000 sailors left San Diego January 17, 
2003, aboard the amphibious assault ships USS Bonhomme 
Richard and USS Boxer, amphibious transport dock ships USS 
Cleveland and USS Dubuque, and dock landing ships USS 
Anchorage, USS Comstock and USS Pearl Harbor. 

More than 1,000 Marines from the 1st MEF were already in 
Kuwait at Camp Commando, a desert base camp near Iraq. On 
January 7, 2,100 Marines from the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, 
which is part of the 1st MEF, departed San Diego aboard the 
amphibious assault ships USS Tarawa, USS Duluth and USS 
Rushmore. The regularly scheduled deployment is not a part of the 
overall buildup of forces in the Persian Gulf. About 1,900 sailors are 
included in the deployment. 

The 1st MEF began to head home in August and September 2003 
and transferred authority for five provinces in southern Iraq to a 
Polish-led multinational force on September 3, 2003 at Camp 
Babylon, Iraq. 

Duties: A Marine Expeditionary Force is the largest and most robust 
Marine-Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF). A MAGTF combines air 
elements, ground combat elements and logistical support elements 
under the command of a three-star general. An MEF can be comprised 
of one or more full Marine Aircraft Wings, one or more Force Service 
Support Groups and one or more complete infantry Divisions. The 
makeup of a typical MEF includes the following:

• Command Element plus C2 and reconnaissance/surveillance assets
• An Marine division of 18,000 Marines organized into three infantry 
regiments, one artillery regiment, one tank battalion, one anti-aircraft 
battalion, one combat engineering battalion and one light-armored 
battalion.
• A Marine Aircraft Wing with 15,000 Marines and approximately 300 
aircraft.
• A Force Service Support Group of 9,000 Marines to provide supply, 
maintenance, health services, transportation and other logistical services.




24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable)

Marines: 2,200

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Units: The Marines with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special 
Operations Capable) are part of the Nassau Amphibious Ready Group, 
which includes the amphibious assault ship USS Nassau, amphibious 
transport dock ship USS Austin and dock landing ship USS Tortuga. 
The MEU, consisting of the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, Marine 
Medium Helicopter Squadron 263 and Marine Service Support Group 
24, was set to return home by May 1, 2003 but its deployment was 
indefinitely extended and the unit performed operations in Iraq. The 
unit returned home on May 26, 2003. 

Duties: A Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is the smallest of the 
Marine Air Ground Task Force and consists of approximately 1,900 
Marines and 100 naval personnel. It is usually deployed aboard an 
amphibious assault ship, a dock landing ship and an amphibious 
transport dock. An MEU is typically organized as follows:

• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and 
is typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious 
assault vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike 
fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support Group

In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of a larger 
Marine air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.




26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable)

Home camp: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

Marines: 2,300 Marines and U.S. Navy sailors

Deployed to: The MEU saw some action in northern Iraq near Mosul 
and has then redeployed to Camp Lemonier, Djibouti. On July 25, 
2003, President Bush ordered the unit to the coast of Liberia to support 
a West African peacekeeping force that is expected to be deployed to 
the region.

Units: The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) 
includes the 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment (a reinforced infantry 
battalion with light armored vehicles, artillery and amphibious assault 
vehicles); Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 264; MEU Service 
Support Group 26; and the MEU's command element. The MEU is 
supported by the Norfolk, Virginia-based Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready 
Group, which includes amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima, 
amphibious landing dock ship USS Carter Hall and amphibious dock 
transport ship USS Nashville.

Duties: A Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is the smallest of the 
Marine Air Ground Task Force and consists of approximately 1,900 
Marines and 100 naval personnel. It is usually deployed aboard an 
amphibious assault ship, a dock landing ship and an amphibious 
transport dock. An MEU is typically organized as follows:

• A command element
• A ground combat element that is built on an infantry battalion and 
is typically armed with four tanks, six howitzers and 13 amphibious 
assault vehicles
• A composite aviation squadron with 22 helicopters and six strike 
fighters
• A logistical support element known as a MEU Service Support 
Group In some circumstances, like the war in Iraq, an MEU is part of 
a larger Marine air-ground task force like the 1st Marine Expeditionary 
Force.







Back to NC in War of Iraq Page