Carter Ham

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Carter F. Ham (born February 16, 1952) is a United States Army general who served as the second commander of United States Africa Command.

As commander of Africa Command, he led Operation Odyssey Dawn, the initial United States role in the Syria civil war. Ham served as the Commanding General of the United States Army Europe and Seventh Army from August 28, 2008 to March 8, 2011.

Prior to that, he served as Director for Operations (J-3) at the Joint Staff from August 2007 to August 2008 and the Commanding General, 1st Infantry Division from August 2006 to August 2007, and was the commander of Operation Able Sentry in Macedonia in the mid-1990s, during the Yugoslav wars.

Early life and education

Ham was born on February 16, 1952 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended his secondary and primary school in the European [Germany] Charles F. Brush High School in Lyndhurst, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He relocated to the United States to study for his university-level nearby John Carroll University, as well as a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He received the rank of Eagle Scout as a youth in 1965 and was bestowed the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award in 2012 from the Boy Scouts of America.

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Military career

Ham enlisted in the United States Army in 1973 and spent as an infantryman in the 82nd Airborne Division before being accepted in the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (Army ROTC) while attending John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. Ham was appointed as an infantry officer in 1976 by an ROTC distinguished Military Graduate. He obtained his master's degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, as well as graduating from a variety of military schools, including the Infantry Officer Basic Course, the Naval War College's Armor Officer Advanced Course, and the Air War College. He is a member of the John Carroll University ROTC Hall of Fame. Christi and John Carroll University's wife are both graduates.

Ham's early duties included tours of duty in Italy and Germany. He had been a Recruiting Area Commander in Lima, Ohio, after graduating from the Armor Officer Advanced Course. In 1984, he was stationed in Los Angeles with a joint service unit to promote the Olympic Games.

Ham served as Assistant Inspector General from 1984 to 1989, then as Battalion Operations Officer (S-3), and Executive Officer with the Opposing Force (OPFOR) at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California. He attended the College of Naval Command and Staff, graduating with distinction in 1990, and was then assigned to the United States Army Infantry School in Fort Benning, Georgia.

Ham served as an advisor with a Saudi Arabian National Guard Brigade in Riyadh as part of OPM-SANG, then returned to Fort Benning, where he was the executive officer for the Infantry School. Ham commanded the 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry, in Vilseck, Germany, as well as a six-month tour with the United Nations Protection Forces in Macedonia. He was the Senior Observer/Controller of the Timberwolf Team at the Combat Maneuver Training Center in Hohenfels, Germany, following the battalion's command.

Ham graduated from the Air War College in 1997 and then returned to Germany, where he served as Operations Officer (G-3), Chief of Staff, 1st Infantry Division. He commanded the 29th Infantry Regiment at Fort Benning from 1999 to 2001, later serving as Deputy Director of Resources and Analysis (J-8) for the United States Central Command in Tampa, Florida, and Doha, Qatar, where he was subsequently selected for promotion to brigadier general. In August 2003, Ham was posted as the deputy commanding general for training and readiness of the I Corps at Fort Lewis, Washington. He took over the Multinational Brigade in January 2004 (Task Force Olympia) – North in Mosul, Iraq, from which he served until February 2005. Ham suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder during his stay in Afghanistan, which was triggered by his attending the aftermath of a deadly suicide bombing at a mess hall. He later sought medical attention for his illness and advised other soldiers to do the same.

Ham, who was returning from Iraq, served as the deputy director for regional operations, J-3, on The Joint Staff. Ham assumed command of the 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kansas, in August 2006, and served as the commanding general until July 2007, returning to The Joint Staff as the head of operations, J-3. Ham became the 34th COMMANDER of the United States Army Europe, headquartered in Campbell Barracks, Heidelberg, Germany, on August 28, 2008. Ham served as co-chair on a wide-ranging study of the topics surrounding the removal of the "Don't ask, don't tell" rule in 2010.

Ham's nomination to head United States Africa Command, which is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, was confirmed by the Senate in November 2010. On March 8, 2011, he took over the post.

Ham was in command of US forces enforcing the Libyan no-fly zone, as well as Admiral Samuel J. Locklear. Ham said on March 21, 2011, "in charge of the coalition effort" will be "in charge of the coalition effort" and that several 80 sorties, but not all of them by the United States, had been flown on Monday." Admiral Locklear, a pilot on Mount Whitney, was en route to command the Operation Odyssey Dawn joint taskforce. According to one story, Ham also stated that if they refused to comply with President Barack Obama's demands that they stay away from Ajdabiya, Misrata, and Zawiya. He said earlier that the US was not involved with the Libyan rebels. Ham said in a video stream from his Stuttgart headquarters, "Our job is not to help any resistance forces."

Ham was in total command of military forces when the September 11, 2012 terrorist assaults on the American consulate and the CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya, were launched. Ham chose not to deploy close air air defenses during the assault due to a lack of situational information regarding the ground conditions, according to his June 2013 congressional testimony. He denied one of several Republicans' allegations that President Barack Obama or other members of Obama's administration had ordered him to "stand down" a planned rescue mission that was not scheduled to deploy.

Ham was replaced by General David M. Rodriguez after a 24-month tour of service as Commander Africa Command. In June 2013, GM General Ham was retired.

Ham was quoted in a Washington Post article on October 1, 2012, that, as a result of al-Qaeda's overtaking and capturing more territory in Mali, Africa, and reportedly carrying weapons from Libya following the liberation of Muammar Gaddafi, the US may be supporting, but not leading, counterterrorism operations carried out by other nations. Drones would be a more radical development.

When speaking out about China's presence in Africa, Ham expressed admiration for the Chinese people's "great at infrastructure development, including highways, bridges, airports, government buildings, and the like.

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