Elements of 82nd Airborne Division have Middle East deployment extended to one year

Elements of the 82nd Airborne Division will remain deployed in the U.S. Central Command area of operations for a total of one year, according to a memorandum signed on Sunday.

The deployment extension will keep the following units in the Middle East for a year:

• Parts of the division’s headquarters
• Artillery units
• Sustainment brigade
• 3rd Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment
• 307th Engineer Battalion

Additionally, soldiers in the division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team and Combat Aviation Brigade will also be deployed for up to a year, according to the memo.

Task and Purpose and Stripes first confirmed the memorandum. The 82nd Airborne Division referred Military Times’ requests for comment to the Army Communication and Outreach Office.

The memo, addressed to the North Carolina-based division’s families, stated that “operational requirements” called for an extended deployment.

Amid escalating tensions with Iran in March, the Pentagon confirmed that members of the division — which serves as the Army’s rapid-response force — would deploy to the region but did not provide details about specific locations or the number of troops.

U.S. Central Command oversees a region spanning 21 countries, from Egypt to Kazakhstan. The area is also the epicenter of the U.S.’s war with Iran, which has now stretched beyond six months.

The extension comes as prolonged deployments have become more common for U.S. forces operating in the Middle East. The Navy has extended several ships beyond their planned deployments in response to the war with Iran. Sailors on the USS Gerald R. Ford, for instance, set a post-Vietnam War deployment record this year, returning to Norfolk, Virginia, in May after 326 days deployed.

About the Author

Eve Sampson is a reporter and former Army officer. She has covered conflict across the world, writing for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Associated Press.