Colonel Brian Jones (Usa) Holds a Defense Department News Briefing Via Teleconference From Iraq

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Colonel Brian Jones (Usa) Holds a Defense Department News Briefing Via Teleconference From Iraq

DEFENSE DEPARTMENT NEWS BRIEFING VIA TELECONFERENCE FROM IRAQ

AUGUST 4, 2006

SPEAKERS: COLONEL BRIAN JONES, COMMANDER, 3RD HEAVY BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM, 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION

BRYAN WHITMAN, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS [*] WHITMAN: Thank you for joining us this evening.

And good morning to the Pentagon press corps.

Our briefer today is Colonel Brian Jones. He is the commander of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 4th Infantry Division.

And he assumed command for operations in his area in January of this year. The brigade includes some 3,700 servicemembers and the brigade is assigned to Multinational Division North, operating north of Baghdad.

He's coming to us via satellite today from Forward Operating Base Warhorse in Baqouba. And as is, kind of, our format, he's going to start with a brief opening and give you a sense of what his unit's been doing, and then is going to take some questions.

With that, Colonel, thank you again for joining us, and let me turn it over to you.

JONES: Great. Thanks, Bryan.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.

I want to thank you for this unique opportunity to tell the American people about the incredible accomplishments of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team and our brothers in the Iraqi army and Iraqi police forces that we support and train.

I think engagements such as this are extremely important to help explain and add clarity to what is happening over here from our perspective.

The 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team is organized as a joint and combined force with members of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force, soldiers from the U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard...

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