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1,215 re-enlist in massive ceremony in Iraq

It was standing room only Saturday at the Al Faw Palace in Baghdad as 1,215 service members raised their right hands in an unprecedented mass reenlistment ceremony.

The service members were brought to Camp Victory from forward operating bases and camps all over Iraq, according to a Multi-National Force-Iraq news release, which stated that it was the largest re-enlistment ceremony to take place since the all-volunteer force began in 1973.

MNF-I commanding general Gen. David Petraeus read the oath at the ceremony for the soldiers, Marines, airmen and sailors.

“Volunteering to continue to serve our nation, while deployed … is both noble and inspiring,” Petraeus said in the release. “It is, as award citations often state, in keeping with the finest traditions of our military services.”

The joint re-enlistment represents more than 5,500 years of combined additional service in uniform.

“We recognize the sacrifices they make and the sacrifices their families and communities make as they serve in Iraq,” MNF-I command sergeant major, Command Sgt. Maj. Marvin L. Hill said in the release. “These servicemembers know the cost of war and they are still re-enlisting.”