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Jun 16, 2008 8:08 pm US/Central
More Than 200 Minn. Marines Headed To Djibouti
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
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More than 200 Minnesota Marines have been deployed to Djibouti, Africa. They will arrive there in September.
CBS
Most troops on deployment lately are usually sent to Iraq or Afghanistan, but a ceremony was held Monday morning for more than 200 local Marines headed to Djibouti, a small country in eastern Africa.
The Marines will leave Tuesday for Camp LeJeune in North Carolina, where they will receive training before heading to Africa in September.
They are set to be there for seven months until next March, maintaining security for camps and other areas.
The troops say its a show of force from the United States in a region that has become very unstable. The Minnesota Marines will meet up with almost 100 others from across the country who will join their unit.
"I'm a little anxious, a little nervous. Don't really realize what's happening until that last goodbye," said deployed Marine Corp. Matthew Holsen, who is leaving behind an 8-month-old daughter.
"Up until about four or five months ago, we were set to go to Iraq, but the situation on the ground there has changed. And the global war of terrorism is spreading," said deployed Marine Sgt. Vincent Reynolds. "Djibouti's an important location for humanitarian aid."
There was some talk at the ceremony of how uncomfortable Camp LeJuene can be in July. One person remarked its good training because the average temperature in Djiobuti, which borders Ethiopia and Somalia, is 99 degrees.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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