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Minnesota is sending 102 National Guard troops to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait for five months. The soldiers, volunteers from various units, have been formed into three security platoons of 34 men each and designated Company B, 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry. Two of the platoons will guard Patriot missile batteries in Saudi Arabia, and the third will guard a similar battery in Kuwait. This is the largest deployment of Minnesota National Guard troops since the Gulf War and the first time that Company B has been on active duty since the Korean War.--Stephen V Cole