Iraq – Task Group Taji – ANZAC Day 2016 Patch
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On 25 April 2016, Australian and New Zealand Defence Force personnel deployed to Iraq with Task Group Taji commemorated the Task Group’s first Anzac Day at the Taji Military Complex, Iraq. The dawn service marked the 100th anniversary since the first Anzac Day service in 1916. To commemorate the day, a special one-off patch was produced by a Sydney based company for the troops serving with Task Group Taji.
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Personnel from Australia and New Zealand based at the Taji Military Complex in Iraq were part of the broader international Building Partner Capacity (BPC) mission training members of the Iraqi security forces. The training included weapon handling, building clearances and obstacle breaching techniques; as well as training in the Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for squad through to company-level operations to use in their fight against Daesh/ISIS.
Task Group Taji’s BPC contribution is part of Australia’s broader Defence contribution to Iraq, codenamed Operation OKRA, which included a Special Operations Task Group and an Air Task Group.
In June 2020 the task group concluded its mission in Iraq after five years on operations, training and assisting the Iraq Security Forces (ISF). The Australian and New Zealand combined task force contributed to the US-led Operation Inherent Resolve, training more than 47,000 Iraqi troops through 10 periods of instruction.
