free elections in the country since the fall of the regime. Over the subsequent nine months, the regiment rebuilt the city's hospitals, schools and water system. It also built a regional police force that became the model for the rest of the country. Under the watchful eye of the soldiers from the 502d, former Iraqi military personnel were paid for their service and the new Iraqi Dinar was introduced. Above all, the regiment fostered a secure environment that allowed the citizens of Mosul to live in a free and safe city which became a beacon of hope throughout Iraq. Upon their redeployment to Fort Campbell, the 502d underwent transformation as part of the 2d Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. The newly formed 2d Brigade Combat Team deployed again to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in fall 2005 for 15 months. While deployed, the soldiers of the 502d continued to improve security conditions within their assigned area of operations and began to train Iraqi security forces within Southern Baghdad and the infamous area of Mahamudiyah, Lutafiyah and Yusifiyah. During their deployment, the Strike Brigade lost 67 soldiers with numerous wounded in combat operations in an area where over 4,200 IEDs were found during their tenure. In March 2006, five 502nd soldiers participated in the rape and murder of 14-year-old Abeer Qasim Hamza. Strike soldiers once again deployed for 13 months in late 2007 north of Baghdad where they continued to train Iraqi security forces while fighting the Jaish al-Mahdi paramilitary force. On 31 August 2016, Clarksville Online reported U.S. soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 502d Infantry Regiment, Task Force Strike, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), took charge of a Ranger training program for qualified volunteers from Iraqi security forces at Camp Taji, Iraq. The Ranger training program, led by Company A, 1-502d, is designed to lay the foundation for an elite Iraqi unit. War in Afghanistan In 2010, the 2nd Brigade deployed to Kandahar Province, Afghanistan as part of the troop surge into the most unsecured areas. "Strike" Brigade successfully flushed out the Taliban fighters from the birthplace of the Taliban. Strike Brigade continued operations that had become the first American battalion to occupy areas within Zhari District of Kandhar Province. After relieving the 5th BCT, 2d Infantry Division in place, the Strike Brigade breached further into the "green zone," a fertile area that borders the northern bank