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    • Operation Crimson Sand

    Started on: 04/12/23 Ended on: 11/26/23

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    Deployable Units:

    • 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division "Spartans"
      • Alpha Company, First Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division
      • 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division
    • Coalition Support elements (US Forces & Turkish Forces)


    Territory Name:

    Turkey (Republic of Türkiye) is a NATO member state that sits as the western gateway to the Middle East. A large peninsula surrounded by the Mediterranean, Aegean, Marama, and Black Seas, its location gives the nation a strategic position in international affairs and global commerce. It also hosts the US military at numerous bases in-country, which allows for sustained strategic and tactical air and special operations across the Middle East. This includes a crucial segment of the NATO missile defense system.
     

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    The nation has several distinct regions with various terrains and climates. Çukurca District, located in the southeastern border region, is home to the Turkish 1st Mountain Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Division.
     

    Territory Intel:

    For over four decades, Turkey has been engaged in sustained counter-insurgency operations against militants from the nation’s Kurdish minority, who seek independence from Turkish rule.
     

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    More recently, and after Turkish military incursions into Syria to diminish several jihadist cells’ combat power, ISIS and al Qaeda-affiliated international terrorist organization Hurras al-Din (HAD) independently began to conduct operations against military installations in Turkey itself. This includes complex attacks with rockets, mortars, dismounted infantry, and VBIEDs against a Turkish Air Force base in the nation’s Southeast Anatolia province. This came as a surprise to some in Ankara, who had observed ISIS and HAD both decrease the number of attacks each had carried out in Syria since October 2022.
     

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    2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division "Spartans", Alpha Company, First Battalion 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division & 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division will be deployed near the the Turkey-Syria border, close to the Great Zab River.

    3rdID will have to secure the general area where ISIS terrorists have been increasingly active and deadly. S-2 has confirmed that these local cells are supported by ISIS forces in Syria and are part of an enemy strategy to target NATO sites in Turkey.
     

    Territory Factcheck:

    (1) Terrain

    Southeastern Turkey has very high mountains and a desertified landscape. It is dominated by sandy valleys, olive trees, and pine forests. In Çukurca, the majority of the population lives in the northern Çukurca Valley. The mountainous region to the south is home to small, scattered hill towns and winding dirt roads.

    (2) Weather

    The Turkey-Syria border region is characterized by high heat and low precipitation. The Mediterranean Sea provides occasional rain and humidity, but the weather is typically harsh. In the high mountains, nighttime temperatures can approach freezing. Çukurca has a Köppen classification of a hot summer subtype of the humid continental climate.

    Average temperatures in Çukurca are 0° C (32° F) in January and 34.5° C (94.1° F) in July. While summers are usually hot, winters can be very cold at high elevations.
     

    Background Timeline:
     

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    Following a NATO request to all member states in early January 2023, the Department of Defense has ordered 3rdID’s 2IBCT to deploy to bases in southern Turkey to secure US and NATO personnel, facilities, and interests in the region. While defensive in nature, this mission set includes offensive operations as needed within Southeast Anatolia to diminish ISIS and HAD capabilities that would disrupt or destroy US and NATO assets and operations. Alpha Company will deploy no later than 30 April 2023 to FOB Eagle Eye near Çukurca, east of Incirlik Airbase, a major hub for US and NATO operations.
     

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    The NATO mission comes in the aftermath of a 4.5 magnitude earthquake in the region, which has killed tens of thousands of people and made many more homeless. US forces are assisting with humanitarian operations to help victims of the disaster.
     

    Main Story Line:

    2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division "Spartans" will deploy 16 April 2023 to FOB Eagle Eye in the southeastern part of Turkey, where ISIS terrorists have threatened NATO assets. The border needs to be secured and terrorist operations must be destroyed.

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