In March 2003, the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry, deployed to Iraq with the 4th Infantry Division as a part of its 1st Brigade. Originally commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Mark Woempner from March through June 2003, the battalion secured Tikrit in northern Iraq. After changing command in the "Birthday Palace" in Tikrit 11 June 2003 was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Steven Russell and was instrumental in the hunt and eventual capture of Saddam Hussein during Operation Red Dawn, on 13 December 2003. It was decorated with a Valorous Unit Award for its service during this period. The battalion redeployed from Iraq to Fort Hood, Texas in April, 2004. Steven Russell wrote a book about the time in Iraq entitled "We Got Him!: A Memoir of the Hunt and Capture of Saddam Hussein".