#7 of 14
2006 Lebanon Evacuation
One of the fun parts of being the only global Superpower, as the U.S. is nowadays, is having a civilian population that’s wealthy enough and invested enough in other countries to travel to them and even live abroad. The U.S. has a significant minority of its citizens living in other lands helping to run our corporate interests, our humanitarian efforts, our educational exchanges, and, of course, our embassies, consulates, and other governmental programs. In 2006, as Lebanon was sinking into the war between the Israelis and the militant Islamic group Hezbollah, President Bush called upon the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit to travel to Lebanon and evacuate U.S. citizens who were trapped in the violence-torn country. This air-ground task force, which is used for quick responses to emergency situations, deployed its 2,200 members to save U.S. citizens. It was supported by the U.S.S. Iwo Jima, a Marine assault ship, which carried an additional 1,800 Marines and 1,100 sailors and their officers.
