Operations
Other Conflicts
Defense Policy / Programs
News Reports

Current Operations

• Berlin confirms deployment of elite anti-terror commando in Iraq IRNA 03 Nov 2003 -- A German Interior Ministry spokesman Monday confirmed that "specially equipped forces of the Federal Border Guard" have been deployed in Iraq to protect German aid workers.

• Bush Welcomes Approval of Funds for Iraq, Afghanistan Washington File 03 Nov 2003 -- President Bush welcomed final congressional approval of legislation to provide $87.5 billion to support security operations and rebuilding efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and said he would sign the bill.

• Chinook Tragedy Won't Deter Troops' R&R Program AFPS 03 Nov 2003 -- The Nov. 2 downing of a U.S. military helicopter that was flying troops en route to stateside leave won't affect a recently expanded rest and recuperation leave program, according to U.S. Central Command.
• Another Soldier Dies From Fallujah Shootdown AFPS 03 Nov 2003 -- A soldier succumbed to his wounds today, raising the total of those killed in the Chinook shootdown to 16, Pentagon officials said.
• IRAQ / EXPLOSIONS VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- series of explosions rocked Baghdad Monday night, but apparently caused no casualties, according to the U-S military in Baghdad.
• Iraq: Specter Of More 'Terrible Days' Forcing U.S. To Reassess Security Situation RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- The continuing death toll for U.S. soldiers in Iraq, including 19 killed yesterday, is changing the way the media and many U.S. officials speak about the military situation in the country. Early talk about attacks on U.S. troops as isolated incidents is now increasingly giving way to assessments that Washington is facing a determined armed resistance bent on challenging the U.S. in a protracted guerrilla conflict.
• IRAQ / WEAPONS VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- U-S military personnel have begun hauling away the wreckage of the helicopter shot down Sunday in Iraq. Sixteen American servicemen were killed and 20 injured in the crash. It is believed the helicopter was hit by a surface-to-air missile. Such missiles remain a significant threat to coalition aircraft.

• White House Hails Release of Afghanistan's Draft Constitution Washington File 03 Nov 2003 -- Following is the text of a November 3 White House press statement noting the public release of Afghanistan's draft constitution
• Security Council delegation meets with leaders in western Afghanistan UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- The Security Council mission to Afghanistan today completed a daylong visit to the western city of Herat, meeting with senior leaders and civil society for talks on a number of key issues, including peace and security and human rights.
• Work Begins on Jalalabad Reconstruction Team Site AFPS 03 Nov 2003 -- With a little bit of luck and a landmine detour, the Combined Joint Civil Military Operations Task Force team based in Jalalabad found a good home recently for the future Provincial Reconstruction Team site in the eastern Afghan province of Nagarhar.
• Afghanistan: Status Of Dari, Pashtu Languages A Sensitive Topic RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- The status of the Dari and Pashtu languages has always been a sensitive issue in Afghanistan. Both Dari -- also called Farsi -- and Pashtu belong to the Indo-European family of languages. Pashtu is the mother tongue of Afghanistan's largest ethnic group, Pashtuns, while Tajiks, the second-largest ethnic group, speak Dari. All modern Afghan constitutions, including the new draft presented to Hamid Karzai today, have provided equal status to Dari and Pashtu. In reality, however, many Pashtuns say their language is discriminated against.
• Afghanistan: Constitutional Commission Chairman Presents Karzai With Long-Delayed Draft Constitution RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- The long-awaited draft constitution for post-Taliban Afghanistan was official unveiled in Kabul today after a two-month delay reportedly caused by political wrangling.
• AFGHANISTAN/CONSTITUTION VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Afghanistan's transitional government has unveiled the long-delayed, post-Taleban draft of a new constitution. The document intends to build a political system that will help unite Islamic and secular groups in the war-ravaged nation.
• Afghanistan: Draft Constitution For Post-Taliban Era Released RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- An Afghan commission today officially unveiled a draft constitution for post-Taliban Afghanistan. The document was formally handed to Afghan Transitional Authority Chairman Hamid Karzai (pictured) at a ceremony in Kabul.
• Final Draft: The Constitution of Afghanistan 03 Nov 2003 -- "We the people of Afghanistan (...) Have adopted this constitution in compliance with historical, cultural, and social requirements of the era, through our elected representatives in the Loya Jirga dated / /1382 in the city of Kabul." [MSWord 201 Kb]

• Iraq/Afghanistan: U.S. Report Raises Questions About American Contracting RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- Antiwar activists accused the Bush administration of waging war in Iraq in part to profit from that country's vast petroleum riches. But a new study on American government contracts awarded in Iraq and Afghanistan shows that the real riches -- some $8 billion worth -- have gone to 70 U.S. companies for contracts to rebuild the country. Those same firms also have close ties to U.S. officials and contribute heavily to Republican and Democratic election campaigns.

• Wetter, Cooler Weather Lets DoD Support to Calif. Fires Stand Down AFPS 03 Nov 2003 -- Wetter, cooler weather have helped firefighting efforts in California so much that a battalion alerted for firefighting duty has been released, Pentagon officials said.

Other Conflicts

• Security changes already made and more on the way, Annan says UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan today said that the United Nations was examining security reforms suggested in a recent independent study, had already made some changes and was going to take further measures worldwide.

• Secretary-General welcomes Burundi protocol as move towards peace UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today welcomed the signing of a protocol between Burundi's transitional government and the country's largest rebel group, the CNDD/FDD (le Conseil National pour la Défense de la Démocratie/Force pour la Défense de la Démocratie).
• Somali leaders should continue search for inclusive government - Annan UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has urged Somali leaders to continue their yearlong search for agreement on a viable and inclusive national government.
• UN officials examine banned weapons cargo that arrived in Liberia UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- United Nations officials have opened and inspected a 40-foot container carrying tons of assorted weapons imported, despite a Security Council arms embargo against Liberia, by former President Charles Taylor just days before he went into exile in Nigeria, the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) said.
• Annan welcomes some positive developments in Abkhazia, Georgia UN News Centre 03 Nov 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan issued a report today welcoming some positive developments in the situation in Abkhazia, Georgia.
• Chechnya: Nine Russian Soldiers Killed, More Wounded RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- An official in the Chechen administration said today that nine Russian soldiers were killed and 16 wounded during the past 24 hours by attacks and mines laid by Chechen separatists.
• KASHMIR TOURISM VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Kashmir has enjoyed a tourist surge this year - despite the on-going conflict in the region claimed by both India and Pakistan.
• UNICEF/LIBERIA VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- The U-N Children's Fund is launching a back-to-school campaign in Liberia to get hundreds-of-thousands of children to return to their studies. The agency estimates nearly 50-percent of school-age children have not enrolled in classes in the past two years, and all schools were closed during the civil war.
• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- A Palestinian suicide bomber has lightly wounded an Israeli soldier near the West Bank town of Qalqilya. VMeanwhile Palestinian militants say they are prepared to discuss the possibility of a halt to suicide bombings inside Israel.
• RUSSIA / SHARON VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who is on a two-day official visit to Moscow, is expected to urge (is urging) Russian President Vladimir Putin to keep up the pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.

Defense Policy / Programs

• UNITAS Builds Up Multinational Force Interoperability Navy Newsstand 03 Nov 2003-- UNITAS 45-04, conducted Oct 16-28 in the South Atlantic, brought together naval forces from Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Spain, Uruguay and the United States to conduct coalition operations in a highly technical training environment.
• Eielson's Icemen hone skills in Singapore PACAF News 03 Nov 2003-- -"Blue Foxes" of the 18th Fighter Squadron and support personnel deployed to the Republic of Singapore Oct. 29 to participate in Commando Sling, an annual combined air-to-air combat training exercise.
• US Army's New Stryker Debuts VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- The U-S Army's first new armored vehicle in twenty years is about to make its combat debut. The expensive, eight-wheel-drive troop carriers are rolling off transport ships at an undisclosed Persian Gulf port. Troops with the 2nd Infantry Division from Fort Lewis, Washington will ride the vehicles from there into Iraq.

• The Role of NATO in the 21st Century NATO 03 Nov 2003 -- Speech by NATO Secretary General, Lord Robertson at the "Welt am Sonntag Forum"

News Reports

• State Department Briefing, November 3, 2003 Washington File 03 Nov 2003 -- Iran, Serbia/Montenegro, North Korea, United States, Iraq, Russia, Syria, Israel/Palestinians, Egypt, War Crimes, Georgia, Department

• GEORGIA VOTE VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Supporters of Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze are holding a slim lead in first returns from parliamentary elections. But the gap with the opposition is closing, as more votes are counted. Western observers say the balloting was rigged.
• BURMA/CORRUPTION VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- An international anti-corruption group says it is imposing sanctions on Burma for failing to crack down on money-laundering.
• ZIMBABWE / POLITICS VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- In Zimbabwe, the opposition court challenge to the 2002 presidential election is underway.
• EU: Israel, U.S. Top Poll On Threats To Global Peace RFE/RL 03 Nov 2003 -- An opinion poll conducted in October puts Israel at the top of a list of countries considered a "threat to world peace" by citizens of the European Union.
• GEORGIA VOTE VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Early returns from Georgia's weekend parliamentary elections give a pro-government bloc supporting President Eduard Shevardnadze a slim lead.
• MAURITANIA / ELECTIONS VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Opposition candidates in the largely desert West African country of Mauritania are mounting a strong challenge to the country's long-serving president in campaigning for elections on November seventh.
• MALAYSIA / PRIME MINISTER VOA 03 Nov 2003 -- Malaysia's new prime minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, has delivered his first speech to Parliament since taking the oath of office on Friday. Malaysia's first new leader in 22 years unveiled no surprises.