# Multi-National Force West

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Multi-National Forces West The logo for MNF-W Active March 2004 – January 23, 2010 Disbanded January 23, 2010[1] Country United States of America Allegiance United States Marine Corps Branch United States Marine Corps Type Division Role Expeditionary combat forces Size 37,000 (Peak in February 2008)[2] Part of Multi-National Force – Iraq, Multi-National Corps – Iraq Garrison/HQ Camp Fallujah (2004–2008) Al Asad Airbase (2008–2010) Engagements Iraq War – Al Anbar campaign * Operation Vigilant Resolve * Operation Phantom Fury Commanders Notable commanders James T. Conway John F. Kelly

Military unit

**Multi-National Forces West** (MNF-W) or **United States Forces West** (USF-W) was one of the coalition headquarters under [Multi-National Force-Iraq](/source/Multi-National_Force-Iraq). It was headquartered by either I or II U.S. [Marine Expeditionary Force](/source/Marine_Expeditionary_Force) that rotated on a 12-month basis. Their area of operations was primarily the [Al Anbar](/source/Al_Anbar) province which includes the cities of [Ar Ramadi](/source/Ar_Ramadi), [Fallujah](/source/Fallujah), [Al-Qa'im](/source/Al-Qa'im_(town)), and [Haditha](/source/Haditha). The force was the most important U.S. unit to take part in the [Iraq War in Al Anbar Governorate](/source/Iraq_War_in_Al_Anbar_Governorate).

Among the smaller multinational units operating within MNF-W was a platoon from the [Azerbaijani Armed Forces](/source/Azerbaijani_Armed_Forces).

## Commanders

During the Iraq War, the Marine Corps regularly rotated command of MNF-W between the 1st and 2nd Marine Expeditionary Forces.

MEF Commander From To I MEF James T. Conway March 2004 September 2004 I MEF John F. Sattler September 2004 February 2005 II MEF Stephen T. Johnson February 2005 February 2006 I MEF Richard C. Zilmer February 2006 February 2007 II MEF Walter Gaskin February 2007 February 2008 I MEF John F. Kelly February 2008 February 2009 II MEF Richard Tryon February 2009 January 23, 2010

For convenience, these [changes of command](/source/Change_of_command) are listed below and the Marine command in MNF-W is simply referred to as "MEF":

I Marine Expeditionary Force March 2004 – February 2005 (James T. Conway/John F. Sattler) March 2006 – February 2007 (Richard C. Zilmer) February 2008 – February 2009 (John F. Kelly) II Marine Expeditionary Force March 2005 – February 2006 (Stephen T. Johnson) February 2007 – February 2008 (Walter Gaskin) March 2009 – January 2010 (Richard T. Tryon)

[3]

As the Marine Corps withdrew from [Al Anbar Governorate](/source/Al_Anbar_Governorate), by September 2009 they were replaced by a single brigade, the 1st Brigade of the [82nd Airborne Division](/source/82nd_Airborne_Division). The brigade was bolstered with an additional 16 advisers, though this did not reach the 48 assigned advisors that were supposed to be part of an 'Advise and Assist' brigade.[4]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** [Marines transfer Anbar command, exit Iraq](http://www.centcom.mil/en/news/marines-transfer-anbar-command-exit-iraq.html) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20100205025050/http://www.centcom.mil/en/news/marines-transfer-anbar-command-exit-iraq.html) 2010-02-05 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-CSMonitor_Anbar_2-0)** [U.S. hands over Anbar, Iraq's once-deadliest region](https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2008/0902/p01s01-wome.html)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-MarineTransfer_3-0)** ["Marines transfer Anbar command, exit Iraq"](http://www.centcom.mil/news/marines-transfer-anbar-command-exit-iraq) (Press release). 82nd Airborne Division, United States Army. 25 January 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Gordon, Michael R.; Trainor, Bernard E. (2012). *The Endgame: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Iraq, from George W. Bush to Barack Obama*. New York: Pantheon Books. p. 603. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-307-37722-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-307-37722-7).

## External links

- [Official Public Website for Multi-National Forces - West](https://web.archive.org/web/20090215100517/http://www.mnfwest.usmc.mil/)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Multi-National Force West](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-National_Force_West) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-National_Force_West?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.