DAPHNE, Ala.—Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Amber L. Deus, daughter of Paula M. and Marty E. Hart of Daphne, along with more than 2,200 Marines and sailors of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., returned from a seven-month deployment to the Navy’s 5th and 6th Fleets’ area of operations in support of Maritime Security Operations and the Global War on Terror aboard ships of the USS Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, Norfolk, Va.

While deployed, the MEU supported regional security and stability operations in Iraq and the Horn of Africa as well as conducted theater security cooperation exercises with regional allies and impromptu counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia. The MEUs CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters were detached for six months to support Marine Aircraft Group 16, Al Asad, Iraq. The Marines also conducted bilateral training for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief as well as noncombatant evacuation operations.

The U.S. secretary of the Navy, the U.S. ambassador to Spain, the Spanish minister of defense, former Marine and actor R. Lee Ermey as well as officers from countries throughout the 5th and 6th Fleet visited the Iwo Jima and the MEU to foster moral and continued international cooperation.

During the past seven months, MEU Marines traveled through the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Gulf and visited the countries of France, Italy, Spain as well as many nations surrounding the Arabian Peninsula. Marines participated in community relations projects including improvement of the grounds of the Cassa Della Beneficenza Orphanage in Floridia, Sicily, and in Rota, Spain, the Marines improved landscaping at La Cartuja Monastery and delivered sports equipment and school supplies to the Hogar Nuestra Sra Del Rosario Orphanage.

Deus is a 2006 graduate of Daphne High School and joined the Marine Corps in October 2006.