U.S. Military: ‘Force-Protection’ Unit Established in Iraq Is Not a Combat Unit — Yet

US Military: 'Force-Protection' Unit Established in Iraq Is Not a Combat Unit -- Yet (CNS News)

Fewer than 200 U.S. Marines have set up an outpost in an area where Iraqi fighters, along with their U.S. advisers, are massing in preparation for a battle to retake Mosul from Islamic State militants.

“This is the first time we've established a spot that's only American,” Army Col. Steven Warren, the spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq, told a news conference on Monday.

Warren said members of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit set up the outpost about two weeks ago “to provide force protection” for the American troops who are advising the Iraqi ground fighters in their battle to oust ISIS from the country.