Army's newest Rangers say they're ready to fight in Iraq if asked

FORT BENNING - For two months, they were on the move constantly, ate little and slept less -- learning what it took to become a member of one of the most storied military units in U.S. history. <br> <br> Yet if the recent past for 119 of the newest Army Rangers was grueling, their immediate future -- possible combat in Iraq -- is no less difficult. <br> <br> Many of the latest Army Rangers will return to their military units. Others are members of the Army&#39;s 75th Ranger Regiment based at Fort Benning along with the training school led by the 4th Army Ranger Training Brigade. <br> <br> During their two-month training, Iraq was constantly in the back of their minds, but seldom discussed. <br> <br> Without newspapers or television, and only an occasional letter to link them with the world, the trainees wondered what was going on -- and when they might become involved. They say they have received support from each other and their superiors when there was talk of deployment. <br> <br> Rangers are light infantry soldiers trained to move in small units to ambush the enemy or conduct reconnaissance missions. They are often used for missions that require lightning strikes. <br> <br> The Rangers were the first soldiers to scale the cliffs at Omaha Beach on D-Day during World War Two. They parachuted into Panama in 1989 and went to Somalia in 1992-93. During that mission, 18 Americans -- including six Rangers from Fort Benning -- were killed in a failed attempt to capture a Somali warlord. <br> <br> Rangers are put through punishing training that includes five-mile runs at six to seven minutes per mile, 15- to 30-mile marches with 90-pound rucksacks and at least one parachute jump each week. They practice urban warfare in mock villages. <br> <br> <br>

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