Operations
Other Conflicts
Defense Policy / Programs
News Reports

Current Operations

• Soldiers guard sites for issue of new Iraqi cash Army News Service 20 Oct 2003-- Until recently, Iraqis had no choice but to carry a little reminder of Saddam in their pockets - a picture of his face was printed on Iraqi money.
• Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group to Return from Deployment Navy Newsstand 20 Oct 2003-- More than 4,000 Sailors and Marines attached to the USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) will return from deployment Oct. 24.
• Number of Troops in Iraq to be 'Event Driven,' Chairman Says AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- The decision on how many American troops will be needed in Iraq will be "event driven" and will not be made in some "mindless way," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers said Oct. 19.
• Insurgent Ambush Kills Two U.S. Soldiers, Wounds One in Iraq AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- Two American soldiers were killed and one was wounded Oct. 18 in Iraq during an insurgent-mounted ambush that took place west of Kirkuk, according to a U.S. Central Command news release.
• IRAQ/ATTACK VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- One U-S soldier has been killed and five wounded in an ambush west of Baghdad.
• Iraq: U.S. Soldier Killed In Attack In Al-Fallujah RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- The U.S. military command says one U.S. soldier was killed and five were wounded today when unknown assailants ambushed a foot patrol just outside Al-Fallujah, west of Baghdad.

• Civil Affairs Team Works to Establish Security, Stability AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- The lone "improved road" leading from Kandahar Air Field to Kandahar City is a stretch of highway notorious for obliterating axles and shredding the tires of unsuspecting motorists. Pitted with potholes and pavement irregularities, the five-mile trek challenges even the most experienced of drivers. On both sides of the road, herds of camels and goats roam freely on the desolate landscape. In the distance, the mountains, looming like angry gods, shadow the fading horizon.
• AFGHANISTAN/ U-S/TALEBAN VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- U-S led anti-terrorism coalition forces in Afghanistan say they have captured a senior member of the ousted Taleban regime.
• Afghanistan: Senior Taliban Commander Arrested By Coalition Forces RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- A U.S. military spokesman today said that coalition forces and Afghan militia have arrested a Taliban commander believed responsible for rocket attacks on coalition troops in the southern province of Uruzgan.
• Afghanistan: UN To Launch Long-Delayed Disarmament Program RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- The United Nations says it is ready this week to start implementing a long-delayed program aimed at disarming 100,000 Afghan militia fighters. A modest pilot project starts on 24 October with the goal of disarming 1,000 fighters in the northern Afghan province of Konduz.

Other Conflicts

• Annan urges Morocco to accept peace plan for Western Sahara UN News Centre 20 Oct 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today urged Morocco to accept a peace plan for the Western Sahara, but agreed to a Moroccan request for more time to study the proposals. He also recommended an extension for the UN mission there.
• Progress But Still Few Rays of Hope in Horn of Africa, Says Former US Diplomat Washington File 20 Oct 2003 -- Although there are a few rays of sunshine illuminating the prospects for peace in the Horn of Africa, the landscape remains bleak and conflicted, says retired Ambassador David Shinn during a discussion of the region sponsored by the School of International Service at American University October 15.
• KENYA/SUDAN/POWELL VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Participants in the Kenyan-sponsored talks to end Sudan's 20 year-long civil war are saying little about the progress of high-level negotiations, which began Friday. Secretary of State Colin Powell is scheduled to arrive Tuesday in Kenya, hoping to witness the signing of a final peace accord between the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army.
• ISRAEL-SHARON VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he is determined to see Palestinian President Yasser Arafat removed from the political arena. Mr. Sharon made his pledge in a speech to the opening of a new session of the Israeli parliament, in which he also re-committed himself to the international Roadmap to Peace plan
• Chechnya: After Kadyrov's Inauguration, Doubts Remain RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- Chechen President Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov was sworn in yesterday, amid tight security. But analysts say doubts remain about Kadyrov's legitimacy and his political record to date. They say it is unclear how capable the Kremlin-backed leader will be of effectively resolving the many critical problems facing Chechnya.
• ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Israeli aircraft carried out three air strikes in Gaza City within hours of each other, killing two suspected Hamas militants and a bystander, and wounding more than 20 others, including a number of women and children
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Israeli aircraft have struck a vehicle on a busy street in the Gaza Strip Monday, killing two Palestinians and wounding another five, including two children. The raid came just hours after a similar attack in Gaza that left seven people injured.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Israeli warplanes bombed a house in Gaza City early Monday that the military says was being used to manufacture weapons. The building was next door to the home of a senior Islamic Jihad leader, who escaped unharmed even though at least six other people, including two children, were injured in the attack.
• IVORY COAST/DISAPPEARANCES VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Opposition activists in Ivory Coast say 10 militants have been abducted by security officers in the southern commercial capital, Abidjan. There are fears that a power-sharing peace agreement between the government and northern rebels is collapsing.
• POWELL-KENYA-SUDAN VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell flies from Bangkok to Nairobi Tuesday to meet senior Kenyan officials and to encourage progress at Kenyan-sponsored talks aimed at ending the two-decade-old civil conflict in Sudan.

Defense Policy / Programs

• U.S.: Comments Raise Specter Of Religious Clash Within Terror War RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- Since 11 September 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush has insisted the war against terrorism is not a struggle between Judeo-Christian society and the Islamic world. Yet, one of his top defense officials has cast the war in just those terms. Meanwhile, the prime minister of Malaysia is making equally troubling remarks about Israel and its Western allies, telling an Islamic summit that Jews rule the world by proxy.

• Colombian Ship Visits Little Creek Navy Newsstand 20 Oct 2003-- It's been more than 30 years since a Colombian warship has sailed into the Chesapeake Bay. When the Colombian ship ARC Valle del Cauca (Cutter 44) came to Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek in early October, it was for three things: training, training and more training.
• USS Chafee Joins The Fleet Navy Newsstand 20 Oct 2003-- On a crisp fall morning in Newport, R.I., friends, family, veterans and special guests gathered to watch as USS Chafee (DDG 90), the Navy's newest warship, was formally commissioned honoring the late Sen. John H. Chafee of Rhode Island.
• Firehawks Participate in Iraqi Freedom Navy Newsstand 20 Oct 2003-- The "Firehawks" of Helicopter Combat Support Special Squadron (HCS) 5 are currently in Iraq, mobilized and deployed for the first time since Operations Desert Storm/Desert Shield.
• Special Boat Teams: The 'Wave' of Future Fight Navy Newsstand 20 Oct 2003-- High speed, sharp turns, the ability to stop on a dime, stealth, and enough firepower to make the enemy think twice about attacking, make Mark-Five (MK-V) boats formidable weapons in the global war on terrorism. But it's the Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC -pronounced "swick") that make the MK-Vs, and other special operations surface craft, more than just boats.
• Air traffic controllers return from six-month deployment to Republic of Uzbekistan Marine Corps News 20 Oct 2003-- Friends and family waited nervously at the Air Terminal here, Oct. 8, as the Marines of Marine Air Control Squadron 4 Detachment B returned home from a six-month deployment to Southern Uzbekistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
• Airmen deploy for fuel-spill-response exercise AFPN 20 Oct 2003-- Airmen from the 611th Civil Engineer Squadron deployed recently to a remote radar site 250 miles northwest of here for an annual three-day fuel-spill-response exercise.
• DoD Wants More Hispanics in Civilian Workforce, Military Ranks AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- As the Hispanic population soars across the country, the Defense Department is hankering to increase their numbers in its civilian workforce and military ranks. But, so far, young Hispanics don't seem to be getting the message.
• Myers Asks Americans to Remain Committed to Terror War AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- In these challenging times, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asked Americans to remain intellectually involved in thinking of the war on terrorism.
• 22d MEU completes second at-sea training exercise Marine Corps News 20 Oct 2003-- The 22d Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) has taken another step toward deployment with the wrap-up of its Amphibious Squadron (PHIBRON)/MEU Integration Training (PMINT), the unit's second at-sea training evolution.

• Pakistan to counter Indian AWACS deal: daily IRNA 20 Oct 2003 -- Pakistan has claimed it can counter the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) India is poised to receive from Israel, local press reported Monday.

• NATO: U.S. Ambassador Burns Denies Tensions Over EU RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- At a recent conference on NATO and the Middle East held in Prague, delegates addressed new challenges facing NATO, including that of plans for a stronger defense policy within the European Union. While the U.S. expressed concerns over the possibility of greater cooperation within the E.U undermining NATO, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Nicolas Burns denied any growing tention between the U.S. and E.U.
• NATO: Prague Conference Convenes To Discuss Potential Alliance Role In Greater Mideast RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- What role, if any, should NATO have in the Middle East? And could such a role reinvigorate the trans-Atlantic alliance between the United States and its European allies? Politicians, analysts, and diplomats discussed this at a conference in Prague.

• Annan calls for universal adherence to chemical weapons treaty UN News Centre 20 Oct 2003 -- United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan today urged the three dozen countries outside the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) to sign and ratify the treaty as part of the international effort to head off terrorism.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 20 Oct 2003 -- U.S. ambassador: NATO and U.S. deserve credit for helping Muslims / Turkey says won't send troops to Iraq if unwanted / Serbian police to join U.S.-led mission in Afghanistan, official says / Elite German troops to leave Afghanistan / Five interior ministers meet on terrorism, illegal immigration
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 20 Oct 2003 -- NATO to address U.S. concerns over European defense plan / NATO to open new training center in Poland / Canada urges others to join Afghan peacekeeping

• Muslim Holy Month of Ramadan to Begin AFPS 20 Oct 2003 -- More than 1.2 billion Muslims worldwide will celebrate the start of Ramadan, Islam's holy month of fasting, on the October 26 or 27. The start and end dates for Ramadan may vary because the beginning of Islamic lunar months depends on the actual sighting of the new moon.
• ARAB DEVELOPMENT VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- A new U-N Development Program report has some harsh words of criticism for Arab countries.
• Bosnia-Herzegovina: Muslim Leader Izetbegovic Dies RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- Alija Izetbegovic, Bosnia-Herzegovina's wartime president, has died aged 78. Izetbegovic died in a Sarajevo hospital from complications sustained from falling down in his home last month. He was later admitted to the hospital's cardiac unit.
• BUSH MALAYSIA VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- President Bush has confronted Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed over anti-Semitic comments at a meeting of Muslim leaders. The two men spoke on the sidelines of an economic summit in Thailand.
• NIGERIA/FUEL VOA 20 Oct 2003 -- Labor unions have called for fuel sellers in Nigeria to adhere to their previous agreement to cap the pump price of fuel after the end of government subsidies.