No Cellphones, Laptops Were Allowed to Go With U.S. Paratroopers Deploying to Middle East

Paratroopers deploying to the Middle East were told to leave behind their cellphones, laptops, tablets and other personal electronic devices, according to Army 82nd Airborne Division officials.

The move was made to ensure operational security was maintained during the emergency deployment, which saw 3,500 paratroopers from 1st Brigade Combat Team begin to fly out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, over the first week of January.

“Anything considered a personal electronic device. All those things,” Lt. Col. Mike Burns, division spokesman, told Army Times. “But banned is a harsh word. The decision was made so soldiers weren’t put at risk.”

Burns confirmed that the decision was intended to both ensure that sensitive information pertaining to the deployment and mission was not shared outside official channels, and also to prevent any potential cyberattacks against the soldiers. . .

The paratroopers began deploying to the region following a rapid increase in tensions between the United States and Iran in early January, which culminated in a Thursday night U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian Quds Force commander Gen. Qassem Soleimani. Pentagon officials said at the time Soleimani was “actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members,” but has yet to provide proof to support that claim. (Read more from “No Cellphones, Laptops Were Allowed to Go With U.S. Paratroopers Deploying to Middle East” HERE)

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