About 93 members of the New Hampshire National Guard are heading to the Middle East to support the fight against the so-called Islamic State.
Most of the members come from Headquarters Battery, 197th Field Artillery Brigade, which will deploy along with about 20 members of Echo Battery, 197th Field Artillery Regiment.
They will support Operation Inherent Resolve, which conducts strikes against ISIS fighters, and Operation Spartan Shield, which trains soldiers from military partners such as Kuwait and Jordan.
Lieutenant Colonel Greg Heilshorn says they'll undergo a month of training at Fort Bliss, Texas before deployment. "Roughly sometime in mid-spring we expect them to be in-country and doing their part," he says.
The Guard members are set to take part in a deployment ceremony Saturday/this afternoon in Manchester.
