Operations
Other Conflicts
Defense Policy / Programs
News Reports

Current Operations

• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- In Iraq, the U-S military says Friday's rocket attacks on the oil ministry and two hotels in central Baghdad were part of a larger plan by its opponents to cause widespread damage and casualties.
• Baghdad Rocket Attacks Are 'Militarily Insignificant' AFPS 21 Nov 2003 -- Unconventional rocket attacks that struck the Iraqi oil ministry and two hotels in Baghdad today indicate insurgents' increasing difficulty in carrying out assaults against U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq, according to a senior U.S. military officer.
• Task Force 1st Armored Division Troops Combine Efforts to Hire New Police Force AFPS 21 Nov 2003 -- Several hundred Baghdad-area residents arrived early in the morning Nov. 13 to begin what could be a career as an Iraqi police officer.
• Despite Attacks, Soldiers Continue Crackdown on Insurgents AFPS 21 Nov 2003 -- Though some attacks against them continue to take place, U.S. soldiers and Iraqi security forces continue to round up insurgents and their weapons.
• Iraq: Baghdad Hotels Rocked By Early-Morning Explosions RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- Two Baghdad hotels known to house Westerners and the Iraqi Oil Ministry came under rocket attack early this morning. The assaults, which come after several days of relative calm, claimed no lives. But they delivered an unmistakable message that foreigners are increasingly unwelcome in Iraq.
• Iraq: Operation Iron Hammer May Turn Many Iraqis Against U.S. Troops RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- U.S. troops have resumed a modified air war in Iraq, using satellite-guided bombs, and other heavy arms to battle guerrilla fighters in Operation Iron Hammer. But many Iraqis say the immoderate use of force is targeting more ordinary citizens than insurgents. They say in the end, Iron Hammer will make the situation even less secure and turn even more Iraqis against the American occupation.
• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- In Iraq Friday, several rockets hit two hotels used by American officials and foreign media in central Baghdad. The attacks on the hotels occurred minutes after eight rockets hit the oil ministry a few kilometers away.
• Iraq: Baghdad Hit By Rocket Attacks RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- Rockets hit two hotels as well as the Oil Ministry building in the Iraqi capital Baghdad this morning.
• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- In Iraq Friday, several rockets hit two hotels used by American officials and foreign media in central Baghdad. The attacks on the hotels occurred minutes after rockets hit the oil ministry a few kilometers away.

• Rival Militias Begin Disarming In Northern Afghanistan RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- Soldiers from two feuding militias in northern Afghanistan began disarming today, handing over their tanks and heavy weapons for storage.
• EDITORIAL: WOMEN IN AFGHANISTAN VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Successful societies protect freedom and ensure the rule of law. They guarantee religious liberty and secure the rights of property. And they recognize the rights of women. Putting these principles into practice, says President George W. Bush, is the goal of a draft constitution now being discussed by the Afghan people

Other Conflicts

• CONGO / RECONCILIATION VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Officials in the new Congolese government of national reconciliation say they have dropped an investigation into massive financial fraud by a leading politician in the government of ex-dictator Mobutu Sese Seko. The announcement comes as flocks of ex-Mobutu collaborators once involved in the systematic pillage of the country's finances, make their return to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• IVORY COAST / TALKS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- France is renewing diplomatic efforts to salvage a faltering peace deal in its former West African colony of Ivory Coast. The initiative follows recent mediation failures by west African leaders.
• INDIA MOSQUE BOMB VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- In India, a bomb blast at a mosque in the western city of Parbhani has injured more than 20 people and caused riots to break out. The bombing took place during weekly prayers to mark the Islamic holy day, Friday.
• KASHMIR/PEACE TALKS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Separatist leaders in Indian Kashmir have agreed to negotiate with the Indian government about the future of the region, wracked by a 14-year revolt.This would be the first high-level contact between Kashmir's separatist leaders and the Indian government since the insurgency erupted.
• UGANDA/PARLIAMENT VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Members of Uganda's Parliament from the north of the country are boycotting the legislature to protest continuing violence in the north.
• ISRAEL PALESTINIANS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Thirteen Islamic militant groups have agreed to meet in Cairo next week for talks on a ceasefire with Israel.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Air Force and Navy Join in Joint Tactical Radio Merger 21 Nov 2003 -- The Air Force and Navy service acquisition executives (SAEs) have jointly decided to merge their respective Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS Cluster 3 and Cluster 4) acquisition programs. Both Department of the Air Force and Department of Navy anticipate this merged acquisition will yield development and production efficiencies as well as interoperability advantages for the Department of Defense.

• Iraq: U.S. Allows Arms Exports To Iraqi Forces RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- The U.S. State Department says it has repealed a ban on arms exports to Iraq so that the United States can supply weapons to a new army and police force.

• Authorization Act Pluses Up Pay, Creates New Civilian System AFPS 21 Nov 2003 -- The fiscal 2004 National Defense Authorization Act pluses up military pay accounts and creates a whole new civilian personnel system.
• PENTAGON/RUMSFELD VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has again acknowledged the war on terrorism will be long and costly. But Mr. Rumsfeld says that, in Iraq, despite fresh attacks, coalition forces will ultimately succeed.
• Task Force GTEP prepares for next cycle Marine Corps News 21 Nov 2003-- Marines and Soldiers from Task Force Georgia Train and Equip Program are near completion of the current training cycle and have begun preparation for the next phase of training for a mechanized infantry company. MajGen. Arnold Fields, Deputy Commander, Marine Corps Forces Europe, was on hand Tuesday to inspect the initial completion of pre-exercise maintenance for the Soviet T-72 tanks and BMP-1 armored personnel carriers required for the next cycle.
• Myers Says Failure Not An Option in War Against Terrorism Washington File 21 Nov 2003 -- Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Richard Myers says the danger of terrorism today "is the greatest threat we've ever faced" and failure is not an option.
• Bush, Blair at Sedgefield College: War Against Terrorism Not Over Washington File 21 Nov 2003 -- President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair visited Sedgefield Community College in northeast England November 21 at the end of the President's four-day state visit to the United Kingdom.
• Determination Leads Scientist's Drive to Develop Improved Protective Suit AFPS 21 Nov 2003 -- Fifteen years ago, Quoc Truong knew there had to be a better way to protect service members from chemical and biological agents.

• U.S.: Campaign 2004 -- Clark Advocates Strengthening Of NATO Charter RFE/RL 21 Nov 2003 -- Wesley Clark, the former NATO supreme allied commander in Europe and a current Democratic presidential hopeful, has called for a new Atlantic Charter that will include an agreement on collective response. In a speech yesterday at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, General Clark said that if he is elected president, his first national security priority will be the restoration of a strong alliance with Europe. Clark also reiterated his vision about the use of force only as an absolute last resort.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 21 Nov 2003 -- Istanbul attacks cloud unveiling of NATO's new strike force / Bombs will not split U.S. and Turkey / Kofi Annan condemns terrorist attacks, calls for international cooperation to fight terrorism / Pakistan bans three more Islamic groups as terrorist organizations / Kyrgyz court bans four terrorist groups, some linked to al-Qaida / Terrorist threat is alive in South East Asia / Bombings in Turkey show Muslims no longer safe from al-Qaida
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 21 Nov 2003 -- Purported Al Qaeda statement claims Turkish blasts / NATO stands firm on plans for Istanbul summit / NATO needs to help in Iraq, says U.S. politician

• BLAIR / BUSH VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- During President George Bush's four-day visit to Britain, Mr. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair discussed some contentious issues between the two countries. While Mr. Blair did not receive any public concessions from the American leader, he says ties between the Britain and the United States transcend their differences.

• EBOLA VACCINE VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- A registered nurse has made medical history as the first human volunteer to test an experimental Ebola vaccine. Thirty-six-year-old Steve Rucker was injected with a vaccine created by researchers at the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institutes of Health, who say the trial is a major step in developing an effective vaccine against Ebola. The need for such a vaccine is highlighted by the recent outbreak of the disease in the Mbomo region of the Republic of Congo.
• GUINEA/ ELECTIONS VOA 21 Nov 2003 -- Guinea's presidential election campaign has gotten off to a rocky start, with all but two candidates dropping out of the race.