The first Army reservists in Hawaii have begun training for year-long deployments to Iraq, in one of the largest such call-ups for the US state since the Vietnam War.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reports that nearly 700 reservists have arrived at Schofield Barracks in Honolulu to begin training in combat skills.
It reports that several months of training will be completed before the reservists are sent to Iraq.
Forty-five soldiers from American Samoa were due to join the training in Hawaii today.
The reservist soldiers are said to have been "activated" for eighteen month long tour of duty, to include a year in Iraq. Some will also be deployed to Afghanistan.