Operation Cajun Fury

Operation Cajun Fury, an operation in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, was carried out by members of the US 35th Infantry Division serving with the Illinois National Guard (1st Battalion, 131st Infantry) from 9 July 2004 to 1 August 2005.

Members of the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion were mobilized from Fort Polk, Louisiana and sent over to Iraq, and the National Guard called upon the 131st Infantry to send a battalion of infantry down to Fort Polk in order to take over the duties of the 509th as OPFOR soldiers under the Joint Readiness Training Center (or JRTC). The 131st Infantry of Illinois served for 12 months with JRTC and trained over 20,000 US soldiers in preparation for various deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.