US Begins 6th Year in Iraq
(Ebru News/AP)As the sixth year of the Iraqi war starts a new generation of American soldiers is facing the prospect of a prolonged war and the heavy burden of repeated deployments to deadly conflict zones. Already, the war has lasted longer than the U.S. fight in World War II and Korea.
Marines and Sailors said their heartfelt farewells to their families at Camp Pendleton Marine Base outside of San Diego last week.
Tears flowed as dozens of family members gathered to say goodbye to their military loved ones.
Beverly Covert, mother of Corporal Joshua Elliot:
"You come back in one piece, ten fingers and ten toes."
Beverly Covert, the mother of Corporal Joshua Elliot, worries about her son's safety on his second tour in Iraq saying she has the concerns any parent would in this situation.
Beverly Covert, mother of Corporal Joshua Elliot:
"I know that they are well trained and will take good care of each other, so I have to trust in that and trust that God will keep them safe."
For some of the marines it will be their fifth tour in Iraq.
Military analyst, Lawrence Korb, a former Assistant Secretary of Defence during the Ronald Reagan's Administration says the cost to the troops and their families is tremendous and grows with repeated deployments.
Lawrence J. Korb "After the second tour the number of mental problems goes up. After the third tour up even farther. The divorces are up higher than they have ever been. Suicides up, desertions are up. It is going to take the Army particularly and also the Marines at least a decade to recover from this."
For the Pentagon, it's about trying to build up a credible Iraqi security force while struggling to support its own troop levels in a military strained by nonstop warfare since 2001.
But for many Americans, the war is about a rising toll of nearly 4,000 US military deaths and more than 60,000 wounded with no end in sight.
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