CAMP AL QAIM, Iraq -- Lt. Col. Christopher Woodridge, commanding officer of 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment officially transferred authority of Camp Al Qaim and their area of operations to Lieutenant Colonel T.S. Mundy, commanding officer of 3rd Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment in a ceremony held here March 9.The battalion is here to continue stability and security operations in and around Al Qaim for roughly seven months, which was the same amount of time 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment was in the area."Seven months is a normal rotation for an infantry battalion. The Marine Corps has found that seven months in one area is the right length of time for an infantry battalion in this type of environment," Mundy explained.According to Mundy, this is an important area of the country because of the heavy flow of insurgents and terrorists across the Syrian boarder.The battalion's primary mission will be to continue assisting the Iraqi Security Forces in preventing this influx into Iraq by helping them assume responsibility for their region.This will be accomplished assisting the ISF in conducting vehicle searches, personnel check points, route security and cordon and knocks, which is the isolation and search of an objective."I look forward to seeing the Marines and Sailors of the battalion perform their mission to the ability that I know they have," Mundy said. "We spent a long time training to get here. I feel the battalion is well-trained and the Marines are going to be successful."Mundy and his battalion entered this area with a positive attitude and a strong desire to accomplish their mission."It's good to be able to see young men step up to what we expect them to do here. "We're happy to be here," he explained. "That may sound strange, but the Marines have worked hard to get here and they'll do good work to help this country."