4th ID boss: 'Mistakes' made sending injured Carson troops back to battle

The commander of the Army's 4th Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, said Thursday "mistakes" were made in sending injured Fort Carson soldiers to Iraq.

Hammond, who now oversees all troops in Baghdad, gave an upbeat report on war progress in a satellite news conference Thursday, but admitted problems with ordering soldiers to war who had been deemed medically unfit to fight, including some who were unable to get medical care they needed in the Middle East.

"I take full responsibility for their deployment," Hammond said. "The decision to deploy those soldiers was made in the best interest of mission, soldier, family, team."

Commanders had said the soldiers would fill desk jobs and gave assurances that troops could get the same rehabilitation in Iraq and Kuwait that would be available at Fort Carson. Seventy-nine soldiers from a pool of 130 who had been judged temporarily unfit for war duty were re-evaluated and pressed into rear-echelon jobs, from counting soldiers entering chow halls in Iraq to straightening out paperwork at bases in Kuwait.

Some of the soldiers, though, didn't get the help they needed in Iraq and Kuwait to recover from their injuries, Hammond said.

"I made those mistakes in deploying those soldiers," Hammond said. "I sent those soldiers home as soon as we realized we couldn't care for them in Kuwait."

In January, commanders at lower levels took responsibility, but Thursday's admission was Hammond's first on the subject.

Hammond didn't dwell on the issue, moving to his division's successes in Baghdad. While the city has been more violent in recent days, including the bombing deaths of two Fort Carson soldiers, Hammond said soldiers are making a dent in insurgent groups.

"We're making a difference," Hammond said.

He said in the past three months, soldiers have killed or captured nearly 500 insurgents aligned with Sunni groups, including al-Qaida in Iraq, and violent Shiite splinter organizations.

He said a top priority for his division is to strengthen Iraqi police and army units in Baghdad so they can take a bigger security role.

"Our responsibility now is to shift the balance to provide sustainable security," Hammond said.

Hammond was joined in the news conference by Fort Carson's Brig. Gen. James M. Milano, who is working to spur Iraqi government rebuilding efforts in the city.

He said he's seeing signs of improvement in the much-criticized government, which has taken heat from Iraqi citizens for not using the security provided by Americans to improve living conditions.

"The government of Iraq is taking decisive ownership of this challenge," Milano said.

Among projects on tap in Baghdad is a move to ease unemployment and repair water, sewer and electric systems by forming a government jobs program aimed at reconstruction, Milano said.

Progress, though, doesn't mean the 3,600 soldiers in Iraq with Fort Carson's 3rd Brigade Combat Team will come home early. While units now being sent to the region are on 12-month tours, the brigade is scheduled for 15 months, Milano said.

"That's exactly what it is until we hear otherwise," Milano said.

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