FARGO, N.D. - About 30 North Dakota Army National Guard soldiers will be honored Saturday before beginning a yearlong mission in Cuba. The soldiers, who serve in the 191st Military Police Company, will be formally sent off on the mission during a ceremony at 11 a.m. Oct. 27 at the Fargo Armed Forces Reserve Center.

The soldiers are a portion of the unit, which is based in Fargo with detachments in Bismarck and Mayville. Under the leadership of Lt. Col. Mark Tibor, of Bismarck, N.D., they will join with about 120 U.S. Army Reservists as part of the greater 1,000-personnel-strong mission at Joint Task Force Guantanamo. Maj. William Nels, of Surrey, N.D., will serve as deputy commander while 1st Sgt. Dean Richter, of Bismarck, is North Dakota's senior noncommissioned officer on the deployment.

Among those expected to speak during Saturday's ceremony are Gov. Jack Dalrymple, Maj. Gen. David Sprynczynatyk, North Dakota adjutant general, and Congressman Rick Berg.

The mission of Joint Task Force Guantanamo is to conduct safe, humane, legal and transparent care and custody of detainees, including those convicted by military commission. The Task Force also conducts intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination for the safety and security of detainees and personnel employed at the facilities as well as in support of ongoing overseas contingency operations.

The 191st Military Police Company provides police, detainment and stability operations in order to enhance security and enable mobility. The unit most recently deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, from January 2008 to January 2009. During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, the 191st Military Police Company guarded and processed enemy prisoners of war.

In addition to the wealth of training the military police conduct on a regular basis, the unit will receive in-depth training at the mobilization station in Fort Bliss, Texas, on detention facility operations as well as extensive on-the-job training with the unit it will replace upon its arrival in Cuba.

The deploying soldiers hail from 15 communities and more than half have previously deployed.


WHO: About 30 soldiers with the North Dakota Army National Guard's 191st Military Police Company
WHAT: Send-off Ceremony
WHEN: 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 27, 2012
WHERE: Fargo Armed Forces Reserve Center, 3920 31st St. N.W., Fargo, N.D.
MEDIA: No precoordination required. Staff Sgt. Amy Wieser Willson
(701-412-6895) will be on site to assist.