Camp Taji
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Camp Taji Camp Cooke |
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The welcome sign at the main entrance
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 Camp Taji
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| Coordinates: 33°31′46″N 44°16′39″E / 33.52944°N 44.27750°ECoordinates: 33°31′46″N 44°16′39″E / 33.52944°N 44.27750°E | |
| Country | Iraq |
| Governorate | Baghdad Governorate |
Camp Taji is a military installation, also known as Camp Cooke used by coalition forces near Taji or Al Taji (Arabic: التاجي), Iraq. The camp is located in a rural region approximately 27 km (17 mi) north of the city of Baghdad in the Baghdad Governorate.
Al-Taji airfield, in the volatile Sunni Triangle, was originally an Iraqi Republican Guard base during the Saddam era. It was once a center for the manufacture of chemical weapons. UNSCOM found at Taji 6,000 empty canisters designed to be filled with chemical weapons for use in 122mm rockets.
According to the Gulf War Airpower Survey, there was a Sector Operations Center located at Al Taji. The airbase is served by a 1,700 m (5,600 ft) runway. Taji was also the largest tank maintenance facility in Iraq.
Taji was heavily bombed during Operation Desert Fox in which 13 different targets in the Camp were hit during the December 1998 air strikes.
The base came under American control following the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Apr 2003 Al Taji was an airfield and supply depot for Saddam Hussein's Iraqi Army prior to the invasion of Iraq. The 14th Combat Engineer Battalion and 5th Combat Engineer Battalion ("The Fighting Fifth"), attached to the 4th Infantry Division, pushed from Kuwait to Al Taji Iraq and cleared the majority of buildings an Al Taji. It was simply referred to as Taji. The 14th ENGR BN pushed further to Tikrit 5th Engr left C.CO and HHC on Taji pushing B.co and A Co. farther into Iraq. C.Co 5th Engr cleared and secured buildings and the perimeter of the Al Taji airfield along with an infantry Unit from a US National Guard, Co B, 1-179 IN, 45th iBCT, Oklahoma Army National Guard. After the C.co 5th Engineers and a National Guard infantry unit had already cleared the Airfield and supply depot. Several weapons and mortar caches were found and taken control of on Taji and the surrounding area. ( More to come have to talk to others who were actually there to make sure timelines are correct first)
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Wikipedia