31 July 2002 Military News

AFGHANISTAN HEARING VOA 31 Jul 2002-- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld tells Congress the U-S-led war on terrorism is closer to the beginning than the end
U-N-H-C-R / AFGHANISTAN VOA 31 Jul 2002-- The U-N refugee agency says it is working to get shelter materials to hundreds-of-thousands of Afghans before winter
Rumsfeld, Franks Update Congress on Terror War Progress AFPS 31 Jul 2002-- Despite the successes to date in the war on terror, the al Qaeda terrorist network "has not lost its will to conceive, to plan and to execute terrorist operations worldwide," Army Gen. Tommy Franks told senators this afternoon
PHILIPPINES / U-S EXERCISE ENDS VOA 31 Jul 2002-- The United States has formally ended a six-month anti-terrorism training exercise in the southern Philippines aimed at wiping out the al-Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf rebels

ISRAEL BLAST VOA 31 Jul 2002-- Israeli police say a bomb has exploded at a crowded cafeteria in Jerusalem's Hebrew University. Initial reports from the scene say seven people were killed and more than 40 wounded
SUDAN / FIGHTING VOA 31 Jul 2002-- The Sudanese government is denying claims that it has launched a massive offensive in southern Sudan
NIGER VIOLENCE VOA 31 Jul 2002-- Security forces in Niger remain on alert following what the government says is an escalation of bandit attacks in the northern Agadez region
LIBERIA / REBELS VOA 31 Jul 2002-- Liberian President Charles Taylor has renewed his offer to meet with the rebel group Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy, or LURD. The rebels, who said this month they would be willing to support a ceasefire, have also said they are open to dialogue.

Lincoln Carrier Battle Group Deploys With Numerous Innovations Navy News Service 31 Jul 2002-- Sailors and officers aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) are headed to the Arabian Sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
New Technology Helps Shape Future of Navy's Forces Navy News Service 31 Jul 2002-- Transforming the Navy. Force protection. Innovation and technology.
Squadron Exercise Provides Realistic Mine Warfare Training Navy News Service 31 Jul 2002-- USS Champion (MCM 4) was underway, participating in one of the most demanding and challenging military exercises on the Gulf Coast.
NNS020729-24. RIMPAC 2002 Ends: Allies Head Home Navy News Service 31 Jul 2002-- They came to Hawaii as allies -- they leave as friends. Eight nations came to the bi-annual Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises to combine strategies and tactics, to teach and to learn.
Some AEF deployments will be longer than 3 months AFPN 31 Jul 2002-- While Air Force leaders remain committed to the current air and space expeditionary force construct of three-month deployments in a 15-month window, about 10 to 15 percent of the deployed force will be gone longer, based upon current requirements, Air Force officials said.

ASEAN / SECURITY VOA 31 Jul 2002-- Southeast Asian nations and 13 other countries in the Pacific Rim have pledged to construct an anti-terror financial network, aimed at cutting off the money that funds extremist attacks
INDONESIA / U-S TERROR VOA 31 Jul 2002-- As part of its drive to combat possible terrorist infiltration in Southeast Asia, the United States plans to give 16 million dollars to Indonesia