Joint Task Force Lebanon
Encyclopedia
John Dickson Stufflebeem
John Dickson "Boomer" Stufflebeem, was a United States Navy three-star vice admiral and Director, Navy Staff. John Dickson “Boomer” Stufflebeem , is the Senior Vice President and founder of the NJS Group, LLC, a company specializing in strategic communications and planning as well as crisis...
, JTF Lebanon officially accepted the mission on August 23, 2006 from U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) units, which had been operating in the region since mid-July 2006 shortly after hostilities began between Israel and Hezbollah militants
2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict
The 2006 Lebanon War, also called the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War and known in Lebanon as the July War #Other uses|Tammūz]]) and in Israel as the Second Lebanon War , was a 34-day military conflict in Lebanon, northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. The principal parties were Hezbollah...
based in Lebanon.
Its area of responsibility focuses on a "joint operation area" (JOA) around the country of Lebanon to include a wide portion of the eastern Mediterranean Sea. JTF-L includes numerous ships and air assets, and more than 2,400 Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy active and reserve personnel. Most command element personnel are headquartered aboard the command flagship Mount Whitney (LCC/JCC 20)
USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20)
The USS Mount Whitney is a Blue Ridge class command ship of the US Navy; it is the flagship of the Sixth Fleet. She is also the command and control ship for the Commander Joint Command Lisbon and the Commander Striking Force NATO...
that is homeported in Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
, Italy.
Mission
Assist the U.S. government commitment to enhance regional stability by supporting U.S. joint interagency efforts involved in operations to aid Lebanon and protect American citizens. Specifically, JTF-L was tasked to directly support the American Embassy in Beirut and to help U.S. Department of State led humanitarian assistance efforts that are providing aid to the people of LebanonOrganization
JTF-L Task Force ALPHA, Air and Land Forces
Air Force Colonel Brad Webb leads Task Force “Alpha” consisting of air and land components and assigned more than 450 personnel from all branches of the U.S. military. As Commander, 352nd Special Operations Group, Colonel Webb arrived in the region on July 19, 2006 with more than 180 personnel from his home station at RAF Mildenhall, UK. Using Cyprus as a land-based headquarters, a group of MH-53M Pave Low heavy-lift helicopters completed an “air bridge” for taking people in and out of the American Embassy in Beirut, where a JTF-L Marine Corps Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team (FAST) is located. Task Force Alpha is also responsible for MC-130P Combat Shadow refuelers, a small logistics element, and "Big Windy" Army CH-47 helicopters based out of Ansbach, GE.JTF-L Task Force BRAVO, Maritime Forces
Commander, Destroyer Squadron 60, Navy Captain John Nowell leads Task Force “Bravo” consisting of maritime assets in the JOA designated around Lebanon. Although many ships have conducted "sea bridge" and "escort" operations supporting JTF-L during the course of operations, Task Force Bravo has a typical naval presence of approximately 1,800 Sailors, Marines and civilian mariners aboard platforms such as Gonzalez (DDG 66)USS Gonzalez (DDG-66)
USS Gonzalez is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She is named for Sergeant Alfredo Cantu Gonzalez, a Medal of Honor recipient in the Vietnam War.-History:...
, Barry (DDG 52)
USS Barry (DDG-52)
USS Barry is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, commissioned in 1992. Barry is the fourth United States Navy ship named after the "Father of the American Navy", Commodore John Barry . Barry is homeported at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. Several improvements over exist on this...
, Hue City (CG 66)
USS Hué City (CG-66)
USS Hué City is a Ticonderoga class guided-missile cruiser serving in the United States Navy. She is named for the Battle of Hue, fought in the city during the Tet Offensive 1968 by the 1st Marines during the Vietnam War...
, Trenton (LPD 14)
USS Trenton (LPD-14)
USS Trenton , an Austin-class amphibious transport dock, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the capital of New Jersey.-Building process:...
, Wasp (LHD 1)
USS Wasp (LHD-1)
USS Wasp is a U.S. Navy multipurpose amphibious assault ship, the tenth to bear the name, the flagship of the Second Fleet and the lead ship of her class. She was built by the Ingalls Shipbuilding division of Litton in Pascagoula, Mississippi. The Navy-Marine Corps team's newest amphibious warship...
, HSV-2 Swift
HSV-2 Swift
HSV-2 Swift is a non-commissioned, hybrid catamaran originally leased by the United States Navy as a mine countermeasures and sea basing test platform. She is now privately owned and operated by Sealift Inc. and charted to Military Sealift Command. She is primarily used for fleet support and...
, Kanawha (T-AO 196) and the JTF Lebanon flagship Mount Whitney (LCC/JCC 20)
USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20)
The USS Mount Whitney is a Blue Ridge class command ship of the US Navy; it is the flagship of the Sixth Fleet. She is also the command and control ship for the Commander Joint Command Lisbon and the Commander Striking Force NATO...
.
History of operations
According to Joint Task Force Lebanon/Task Force 59 spokesperson Navy Commander Darryn James, since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah militants2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict
The 2006 Lebanon War, also called the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War and known in Lebanon as the July War #Other uses|Tammūz]]) and in Israel as the Second Lebanon War , was a 34-day military conflict in Lebanon, northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. The principal parties were Hezbollah...
began on July 12, 2006 the “sea bridge” and "air bridge" provided by U.S. Central Command and U.S. European Command assets helped nearly 15,000 American citizens safely depart Lebanon--one of the largest evacuations in U.S. military history. Dubbed Operation “Strengthen Hope,” Department of Defense (DoD) assets such as HSV-2 Swift
HSV-2 Swift
HSV-2 Swift is a non-commissioned, hybrid catamaran originally leased by the United States Navy as a mine countermeasures and sea basing test platform. She is now privately owned and operated by Sealift Inc. and charted to Military Sealift Command. She is primarily used for fleet support and...
were also instrumental in assisting in the distribution of millions of dollars (of a U.S. pledged 230 million) in humanitarian aid to the Lebanese people. Task Force 59 personnel, led by Marine Corps Brigadier General Carl Jensen
Carl B. Jensen
Major General Carl B. Jensen is a United States Marine Corps general officer who commands Marine Corps Installations East.-Biography:Carl B. Jensen graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism, and also holds a Master of Science degree in National...
, were the first to arrive in the “joint operation area” (JOA) region on July 16 where DoD assets evacuated 21 American citizens out of Beirut by helicopter on the first day. On July 21, DoD assets moved more than 3,000 people and brought the total of American citizens evacuated that week to more than 6,000. Sailors and Marines from the Iwo Jima (LHD 7)
USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7)
USS Iwo Jima is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship.Fabrication work for Iwo Jima began at Ingalls shipyard on 3 September 1996, and the ship's keel was laid on 12 December 1997. She was launched on 4 February 2000. USS Iwo Jima was christened by her sponsor, Mrs. Zandra Krulak, wife of General...
Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) including Nashville (LPD 13)
USS Nashville (LPD-13)
USS Nashville , an Austin-class amphibious transport dock, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the capital city of Tennessee. Her keel was laid down on 14 March 1966 by the Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Company of Seattle, Washington. She was launched on 7 October...
, Whidbey Island (LSD 41)
USS Whidbey Island (LSD-41)
USS Whidbey Island is a Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship of the United States Navy. She was named for Whidbey Island, in Puget Sound, Washington, the location of NAS Whidbey Island; the name ultimately derives from the sailor, explorer and engineer Joseph Whidbey.Whidbey Island was laid...
, Trenton (LPD 14)
USS Trenton (LPD-14)
USS Trenton , an Austin-class amphibious transport dock, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the capital of New Jersey.-Building process:...
and the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (24th MEU)
24th Marine Expeditionary Unit
The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 personnel...
arrived on station July 20 and began using utility landing craft (LCU) to safely transport American citizens wishing to depart Lebanon to avoid the hostilities. By July 24, more than 12,000 American citizens had been pulled out of Lebanon. Most of the American citizens were transported to the island nation of Cyprus. The transfer in military responsibility to the organization that would become JTF Lebanon led by Navy Vice Admiral John "Boomer" Stufflebeem
John Dickson Stufflebeem
John Dickson "Boomer" Stufflebeem, was a United States Navy three-star vice admiral and Director, Navy Staff. John Dickson “Boomer” Stufflebeem , is the Senior Vice President and founder of the NJS Group, LLC, a company specializing in strategic communications and planning as well as crisis...
, continued the DoD mission to protect American citizens, support the American Embassy in Beirut, assist the people of Lebanon through humanitarian aid, and help the multinational effort to provide lasting regional stability.