Camp Cropper - History

History

Camp Cropper was established by the Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) of the 115th Military Police Battalion in April 2003. It is named for Staff Sgt. Kenneth Cropper, a member of the Maryland National Guard who died in March 2002 while supporting security operations at the Pentagon. Almost immediately after being established, it was designated as the site for the Corps Holding Area (CHA). Initially, the facility was meant to serve as "central booking" for the US forces operating in Baghdad and central Iraq, though detainees from northern Iraq were brought there as well. The original concept called for a small temporary camp that could hold up to 300 detainees for no more than 72 hours. After being processed at Camp Cropper detainees were supposed to be shipped to other detention facilities in Baghdad and throughout Iraq. However, in practice, this proved unworkable since most other prisons in Baghdad were badly damaged by looting after the fall of the Baath regime.

Additional units to operate Camp Cropper include:

• 439th Military Police Detachment, Army Reserve from Omaha, Nebraska.
• 324th Military Police Battalion, Pennsylvania Army National Guard from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
• 117th Military Police Battalion, Tennessee Army National Guard

In August 2006, a combat support hospital was opened on Camp Cropper that would treat both coalition soldiers and detainees from Camp Cropper. The hospital was initially staffed by members of the 21st Combat Support Hospital from Fort Hood, Texas who transferred to the new facility after the closure of the Abu Ghraib detention facility. The 21st CSH was later replaced by the 31st Combat Support Hospital from Fort Bliss, Texas.

On March 15, 2007 military officials announced plans to once again expand Camp Bucca and Camp Cropper. Officials stated that this increase in capacity would be necessary to handle the detainees generated from the increased security operations in Baghdad.

In the summer of 2010 the Camp Cropper facility was turned over to the Iraqi government and renamed Karkh Prison.