Operations
Other Conflicts
Defense Policy / Programs
News Reports

Current Operations

• Iraq: U.S. Wrestles With Intelligence Questions As Attacks Intensify RFE/RL 29 Oct 2003 -- Who is responsible for the recent wave of deadly attacks in and around Baghdad? U.S. military officials in Iraq seem to be of two minds. One version largely puts the blame on former Ba'ath Party officials. Another points to foreign infiltrators.
• PENTAGON/TERRORISM VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- A senior defense official says consideration is being given to pulling intelligence assets off the hunt in Iraq for weapons of mass destruction and assigning them to counter-terrorism efforts.
• DoD Foresees No Change in Iraq Survey Group Mission AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- American officials have no plans to move personnel or other assets from the Iraq Survey Group to bolster counterterrorism efforts, a senior Defense Department official said here today.

• Transcript: Comptroller and Undersecretary of Defense Dov Zakheim briefs on Iraq Donors Conference 29 Oct 2003 -- Obviously, we're very, very pleased with the outcome, for a number of reasons. First, 73 countries is, as I recollect, the most that have ever come together for anything like this. Second, the amount of money that was raised, 13 (billion) to 18 billion (dollars) -- and I'll explain what the range is about -- is the most that's ever been raised at a conference of this kind, or even, I'm told, with respect to some of the Balkan conferences, multiple conferences, of this kind.Third, what these numbers do not include, but are certainly not insignificant, are the contributions in kind of technical support, of export credits, of all kinds of educational support."
• 3 U.S. Soldiers Killed, 7 Ukrainians Wounded in Iraq AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- Two soldiers were killed and one was wounded Oct. 28 when their Abrams main battle tank struck a land mine or a roadside improvised explosive device, Combined Joint Task Force 7 officials in Baghdad, Iraq, said today.
• Common Commitment Unifies Multinational Division Troops AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- It's probably one of the most diverse military units ever established: a 10,000-man division made up of soldiers from 21 countries who speak 17 different languages and have different equipment, operating procedures and rules of engagement.
• Snipers Bring School to Iraqi Desert AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- For most people, the U.S. Army Sniper School at Fort Benning, Ga., conjures up images of soldiers in camouflage sneaking around the densely wooded training grounds of western Georgia, learning to kill the enemy stealthily with high-powered rifles.
• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- An attack north of Baghdad late Tuesday left two U-S soldiers dead and another injured. The deaths pushed to 117 the number of American soldiers killed in Iraq since President Bush declared major combat operations over May 1st.
• Iraq: U.S. Soldiers In Tikrit Say They Are Staying On Mission RFE/RL 29 Oct 2003 -- U.S. troops based in Tikrit say they have found hardship as well as a few unexpected pleasures serving in Saddam Hussein's former hometown. They also say they are tired of the U.S. media's description of coalition forces as frustrated and demoralized. To the contrary, they say, they are ready to stay in Iraq until their mission -- defined by some as "helping the Iraqi people" -- is complete.
• Iraq: Bush Says U.S. Troops Not Intimidated By Attacks RFE/RL 29 Oct 2003 -- U.S. President George W. Bush said yesterday the United States will stay the course in Iraq and will not be intimidated by a new wave of deadly bombings.

• Base Improvements: A New Look for Kandahar AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- After three years, four rotations, and who knows how many thousands of troops, Kandahar Air Field here is getting a facelift.
• STRUGGLING AFGHANISTAN - PART 2 VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- With the fall of the Taleban, dramatic change came to Kabul, though certain influences linger on. If the Taleban are gone, they are by no means forgotten.
• Sappers in Afghanistan expand role of Army engineers AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- Every day the soldiers of Company B, 41st Engineer Battalion, 10th Mountain Division, perform a job where death is potentially only one step away.
• AFGHANISTAN FIGHTING VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Afghanistan is bracing for more attacks from militant insurgents, despite hopes that the fighting would ease during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which began Monday. A series of U-S casualties have marked the start of the holy month.
• UNHCR: More than 2.5m Afghans have returned home IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- The United Nations refugee agency announced Tuesday that more than 2.5 million Afghans have returned to their homeland since a repatriation program began in March last year, said a press release issued by the United Nations Information Center here on Wednesday.
• EDITORIAL: AFGHANISTAN TAKES A STEP FORWARD VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- In the past quarter century, the Afghan people have endured military coups, brutal occupation by the former Soviet Union, bloody civil war, and the tyranny of the Taleban, who tried to impose their extremist interpretation of Islam on the country. But now, the Afghan people are making the difficult transition to peace, security, and self-rule.
• AFGHAN/OPIUM VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- The United Nations drug office says opium production in Afghanistan has increased this year and is threatening peace and security in the region.
• U.N. Report Urges International Aid for Afghan Drug Control Washington File 29 Oct 2003 -- With opium poppy cultivation increasing during 2003, Afghanistan remains the world's largest source of illicit opium, a new United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) survey reported October 29.

• Northern Command Sending 14 Aircraft to Battle California Fires AFPS 29 Oct 2003 -- U.S. Northern Command is sending all eight of the Defense Department's C-130 aircraft equipped with the Modular Airborne Firefighting System, or MAFFS, and six CH-53 helicopters with fire suppression buckets to support the wildland firefighting effort in California.

Other Conflicts

• Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and Middle East Democratization Raise Questions Washington File 29 Oct 2003 -- The U.S. push for democracy in the Middle East and strategies for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict raised more questions than answers at the 57th Annual Conference of the Middle East Institute held at the National Press Club in Washington October 22-23.
• UN commission to meet again on Cameroon-Nigeria border dispute UN News centre 29 Oct 2003 -- A United Nations-chaired panel set up to peacefully resolve the border dispute between Cameroon and Nigeria is holding its sixth meeting today and tomorrow.
• UN blocked in attempt to check reports of Rwandan troops in DR of Congo UN News centre 29 Oct 2003 -- The United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reported that it had been stopped in its effort over the last few weeks to check on reports of Rwandan troops being stationed inside the Congo.
• UN humanitarian programmes continue in Liberia UN News centre 29 Oct 2003 -- While negotiations for access to remote areas in Liberia are underway, United Nations humanitarian agencies continue to distribute aid where they can outside the capital Monrovia, a UN spokesperson said today.
• Appeals chamber of Sierra Leone special court to hold first hearings Friday UN News centre 29 Oct 2003 -- The Appeals Chamber of the Special Court for Sierra Leone will conduct its first hearings on Friday when defence counsel for a number of suspects, including former President Charles Taylor of Liberia, are expected to present arguments about immunity and other issues.
• BOSNIA WAR CRIMES VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- War crimes prosecutors have asked judges to sentence a former Bosnian-Serb army officer to between 15 and 20 years in prison for his role in the Srebrenica massacres. But lawyers for Momir Nikolic, who admitted his role in the execution of more than 75-hundred Muslim men, want him to serve no more than 10 years.
• POWELL-SENEGAL VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell discussed African issues, including peace efforts in Sudan, Liberia and Ivory Coast Wednesday with Senegalese Foreign Minister Cheikh Tidiane Gadio.
• Vajpayee rules out integration of Naga inhabited areas in Nagaland IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee Wednesday ruled out any integration of Naga-inhabited areas in the northeastern state of Nagaland, saying there was no "political consensus" on the issue.
• INDIA/NAGALAND VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has wrapped-up a three-day visit to the remote northeastern state of Nagaland - the scene of the country's longest-running rebellion. The Indian leader tried to boost efforts to negotiate peace with separatist groups.
• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Israel may begin easing restrictions on the Palestinian population after a month of closures and curfews in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
• LIBERIA-TIMBER VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Liberia's power sharing government and the country's timber industry are trying to get international sanctions on Liberian timber lifted, now that the four-year civil war has ended. Lifting the sanctions would bring revenue to the new government.

Defense Policy / Programs

• USS Columbus Deploys to Western Pacific Navy Newsstand 29 Oct 2003-- The crew of USS Columbus (SSN 762) said aloha to their friends and families Oct. 28 as they departed their homeport of Pearl Harbor, and headed to the western Pacific (WESTPAC).
• Remains of U.S. Servicemen Repatriated from North Korea 29 Oct 2003 -- Remains believed to be those of eight American soldiers missing in action from the Korean War were recovered by two teams of U.S. specialists and repatriated to U.S. control in ceremonies at Yokota Air Base Japan Oct. 28.
• Dr. J.D. Crouch Returns to Academia 29 Oct 2003 -- The Department of Defense announced today that Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy, Dr. J.D. Crouch II, will depart from his current position effective October 31, 2003.
• U-S / MIDEAST VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- President Bush says he will stay the course in Iraq, vowing not to pull American troops out of the country despite an increasingly dangerous situation where American soldiers are being killed almost every day. It was 20 years ago this month that another American president vowed not to pull troops out of another Middle Eastern nation -- Lebanon, where hundreds of Americans were killed as well. But the United States has much more at stake in Iraq than it did in Lebanon two decades ago.

• INDIA / MISSILE VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- India has successfully tested a supersonic cruise missile developed in cooperation with Russia.
• India test fires supersonic anti-ship cruise Brahmos missile IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- Brahmos, the supersonic anti-ship cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia, was on Wednesday successfully tested from the Interim Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near Balasore in the Eastern Indian State of Orissa, India`s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) sources said.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 29 Oct 2003 -- Lord Robertson to visit President Bush / NATO can do more in Iraq, but Afghanistan is a priority / Gen. Jones dismisses morale problems in Iraq / Arabs blame United States for Baghdad bloodbath
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 29 Oct 2003 -- Report: France seeking to ease U.S. fears over NATO role in any EU-led Bosnia force / German strategy paper considering EU police mission in Iraq, Afghanistan / Bundeswehr looks for deployment readiness

• Senator Hagel Outlines Five Priorities for U.S. Foreign Policy Washington File 29 Oct 2003 -- Senator Chuck Hagel has laid out five priorities he sees for an American foreign policy and strategic world vision that includes: redefining and strengthening global alliances, redefining the strategy for the global war on terrorism, strengthening public diplomacy, enhancing energy security, and improving the international trade and the global economy.
• CONGRESS / CUBA VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- U-S lawmakers are urging President Bush not to make good on his threat to veto legislation containing language that would effectively lift the ban on travel to Cuba by Americans.
• U-S / CENTRAL ASIA VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Members of Congress are expressing concern that a perceived lack of legitimacy is undermining the efforts of Central Asian countries to combat radical Islamic insurgencies. Lawmakers and government officials discussed the matter during a hearing on Capitol Hill.
• TURKEY/REPUBLIC DAY VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Millions of Turks waving the national flag demonstrated Wednesday to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Turkey's emergence as a modern republic. But the day's festivities are being overshadowed by fresh debate over the ban on the Islamic style headscarf in public buildings and state run schools.
• PHILIPPINE IMPEACHMENT VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is trying to head off a battle between Congress and the Supreme Court over the constitution. At issue is whether the court can stop lawmakers from impeaching the chief justice.
• AUSTRALIA / ASYLUM REPORT VOA 29 Oct 2003 -- An Australian government immigration report shows most asylum seekers who arrived on the continent illegally, between 1999 and 2000, have been given visas to stay. The finding challenges claims by human rights groups that the conservative government has turned away hundreds of genuine asylum seekers - claiming there were economic migrants.