Hoosier Soldiers Heading to Iraq

Families bid farewell to

3400 National Guard troops

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - More than 3400 National Guard troops set to deploy to Iraq were sent off with a bang Wednesday afternoon. A special ceremony was held for the troops and their family and friends at the RCA Dome.

Over the last couple of weeks, guard members have been gathering at Camp Atterbury. They will deploy to Iraq in March as the 76 brigade combat team. It's the largest deployment of National Guard troops since World War Two.

But before they head overseas, they must first deploy to Fort Stewart Georgia for more training. Half of the combat team will head to Fort Stewart after the sendoff ceremony. The other half will return to Camp Atterbury and then deploy to Fort Stewart on Thursday.

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