The 1st Infantry Division assumed command of the Combined Joint
Forces Land Component Command – Operation Inherent Resolve from the 101st
Airborne Division during a Transfer of Authority ceremony Nov. 17 at Forward
Operating Base Union III in Iraq.
Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin, 1st Inf. Div. and Fort Riley commanding general,
replaced Maj. Gen. Gary J. Volesky, commanding general, 101st Abn. Div. (Air
Assault) and Fort Campbell, as the commander of the multinational land
component command working by, with and through the government of Iraq to
defeat ISIL in Iraq.
Presiding over the ceremony was the Combined Joint Task Force – Operation
Inherent Resolve commanding general, Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend. Townsend
spoke of the extraordinary accomplishments of the 101st Abn. Div. during its
tour in Iraq.
“Most remarkable was CJFLCC’s support to the Iraqi’s with training,
equipment, intelligence, advice and fires that enabled them to prepare for
and begin their counterattack to liberate Mosul,” Townsend said, “a battle
now fully joined. CJFLCC’s support made it possible for Iraqi forces to
begin liberating the second largest city in the country and deny ISIL its
claim to a capital in Iraq.”
In partnering with the government of Iraq, CJFLCC-OIR is also partnered with
the Iraqi security forces, which include the Iraqi army, the Iraqi air
force, the Counter Terrorism Service, the federal police and the Kurdish
Peshmerga. CJFLCC’s mission extends beyond military operations. It also
includes the full range of the Coalition’s national power, including
diplomatic, informational, economic, law enforcement and other aspects of
national power – all in an effort to eliminate ISIL and help provide
security to the people of Iraq.
This marks the second tour for the “Big Red One” in support of Operation
Inherent Resolve. The Fighting First became the first division to lead
CJFLCC-OIR in 2014. This deployment also coincides with the centennial
celebration for the U.S. Army’s longest-tenured division, having been in
service since its activation in support of World War I in 1917.
Townsend concluded his remarks with some encouraging words for the new
command team, as well as all those in attendance.
“Iraq will be liberated from the threat of terrorism and ISIL’s brutal and
tyrannical methods,” Townsend said. “The liberation of Mosul is on the
horizon and you will help our Iraqi brothers to reach it.”