John Abizaid
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{{Infobox Military Person
|name= John Abizaid
|lived= April 1, 1951 - present
|placeofbirth= Coleville, California
|placeofdeath=
|image= Image:John abizaid.jpg
|caption=
|nickname=
|allegiance= United States Army
|serviceyears= 33 years
|rank= General
|commands=3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne
504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
1st Infantry Division
United States Military Academy
United States Central Command
|unit=
|battles=Operation Urgent Fury
Operation Deliberate Force
Kosovo Conflict
Operation Iraqi Freedom
|awards= Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
|laterwork=
|portrayedby=
}}
John Philip Abizaid (born April 1, 1951) is a general in the United States Army and the Commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), overseeing American military operations in a 25-country region, from the Horn of Africa to Central Asia, covering much of the Middle East. The Central Command oversees 250,000 US troops. He succeeded General Tommy Franks to this position on July 7, 2003, and was also elevated to the rank of 4-star general the same week. Previously, he was one of two deputy commanders of CENTCOM during the major combat phase of the Iraq war.
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Personal and family background
Originally from Coleville, California, he is married and has three children.
Abizaid was born in the United States to a Christian Lebanese-American family, is fully fluent in Arabic, and is the most senior military officer of direct Arab descent. He was raised mostly by his widowed father. His nickname at West Point was “The Mad Arab.”[1] He started a program to put Arabic speakers on a fast track for promotions.
Education
General Abizaid’s military education includes the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York (Class of 1973); Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced courses, Armed Forces Staff College, and a U.S. Army War College Senior Fellowship at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University.
In his civilian studies, he earned a Master of Arts degree in Area Studies at Harvard University, and was an Olmsted Scholar at the University of Jordan in Amman, Jordan.
Abizaid greatly impressed his teachers at Harvard University. The director of the Harvard Center for Middle Eastern Studies held onto Abizaid's 100-page paper on defense policy for Saudi Arabia, the only paper of a masters student he has kept.
It was abolutely the best seminar paper I ever got in my 30-plus years at Harvard, said the director, Nadav Safran, a professor emeritus. [2]
Service career
General Abizaid was commissioned a second lieutenant of Infantry upon graduation from the USMA, Class of June 1973. He started his career with the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where he served as a rifle and scout platoon leader. He commanded companies in the 2nd and 1st Ranger Battalions, leading a Ranger Rifle Company during the invasion of Grenada. In 1983, he jumped from a helicopter onto a landing strip in Grenada and ordered one of his Rangers to drive a bulldozer like a tank toward Cuban troops as he advanced behind it -- a move highlighted in the 1986 Eastwood film.
General Abizaid commanded the 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Battalion combat Team in Vicenza, Italy, during the Gulf crisis and deployed with the battalion to Kurdistan in Northern Iraq to provide a safe haven for the Kurds.
His brigade command was the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division. He served as the Assistant Division Commander, 1st Armored Division, in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Following that tour, he served as the 66th Commandant at the USMA at West Point. At West Point, he reined in hazing rituals and revamped the curriculum. Later, he commanded 1st Infantry Division, the “Big Red One,” in Würzburg, Germany, which provided the first U.S. ground forces into Kosovo. He served as the Deputy Commander (Forward), Combined Forces Command, US Central Command during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Staff assignments include a tour with the United Nations as Operations Officer (G-3)for Observer Group Lebanon and a tour in the Office of the Chief of the Staff, U.S. Army. European staff tours include assignments in both the Southern European Task Force and Headquarters, U.S. Army Europe. General Abizaid also served as Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Director of Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5) on the Joint Staff and Director of the Joint Staff.
Following the 2003 Iraq War and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, he assumed command of Central Command from General Tommy Franks.
Awards and decorations
His decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal with one Oak leaf cluster, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Distinguished Service Medal (Army), the Legion of Merit with five Oak leaf clusters, and the Bronze Star Medal.
His awards include the Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge with Gold Star, Ranger Tab, and the Expert Infantryman Badge.