A team of 13 Camp Pendleton Marines made history Friday as the last Marine Corps unit to leave Iraq, according to our media partner North County Times.
The men from Iraqi Training Team 03 left their base in the southern city of Umm Qasr after spending the past several months training the Iraqi troops.
"It feels pretty good being the last team out," Staff Sgt. Jayson Heck of Oceanside said. "I think we accomplished our mission."
They were there as part of Operation New Dawn, which began in September 2010.
As the U.S. nears the deadline to withdraw all its forces from Iraq, only a few American Marines remain in the country.
Heck said his team was never fired upon and it didn’t encounter any roadside bombs during the patrols it conducted. The only violence he was aware of was occurring in areas far north of where he and his men were stationed.
"I'm proud," he said. "We did what we set forth to do."
Read the full story at North County Times.
