Minnesota National Guard Red Bulls to be deployed to Middle East
Published 8:53 am Wednesday, September 19, 2018
- Soldiers of the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division wash and stage our vehicles for loading onto rail-cars at Camp Ripley's rail head. The vehicles will travel to a port where they will then be loaded onto a ship to be taken to the Middle East for the Divisions deployment. Photo by Sgt. William Boecker
More than 650 soldiers from the Minnesota National Guard’s 34th Red Bull Infantry Division are being activated for a 10-month-long deployment to the Middle East later this month.
The troops will be taking part in Operation Spartan Shield, where they will partner nation military capacity across the region, promoting regional self-reliance and increased security. This operation will span 10 countries.
The soldiers, representing 220 communities across Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota and several other states, trained for a month at Fort Hood, Texas and after deployment are expected to complete their mission in July of next year.
A dinner for the 34th Red Bulls, family and friends will be held Tuesday in St. Paul in Roy Wilkins Auditorium.
The 34th Red Bull Infantry Division provides command and control to several brigade combat teams. A division headquarters organization deploys roughly 700 soldiers and would likely oversee brigades other than those normally assigned. While in normal drilling status, the division provides training and readiness oversight for 23,000 citizen-soldiers across eight states.