President Donald Trump on Wednesday nominated Birmingham-born Lt. General Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr. to take over U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and be promoted to a four-star general.
CENTCOM, based in Tampa, is responsible for American military operations throughout the greater Middle East, including Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
McKenzie is currently the Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. After being raised in Alabama, he graduated from The Citadel in 1979 and was commissioned into the Marine Corps and trained as an infantry officer.
He will take the helm of operations in the Middle East at a pivotal time with much volatility in the region.
While, per the Military Times, ISIS has been defeated in major cities including Raqqa, Syria and Mosul, Iraq, the threat of a resurgence in rural sectors of the war-torn region is still very credible. Iran also remains a major tipping point with its forces and “proxy militias” spread across Syria, Iraq and Yemen.
The last time a Marine commanded CENTCOM was in 2010 with General Jim “Mad Dog” Mattis — President Trump’s current Secretary of Defense.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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