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Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 20 Apr 2007 [PDF]
• ROCKET HITS FOB MAHMUDIYAH
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• Small arms fire targets MND-B patrol
• April 19 airpower: Horn of Africa mission continues AFPN 20 Apr 2007 -- Coalition airpower supported coalition ground forces in Iraq and the International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF, in Afghanistan in the following operations April 19, according to Combined Air and Space Operations Center officials here.
• Coalition Forces Kill, Capture Terrorists; Car Bomb Kills Iraqis AFPS 20 Apr 2007 -- Coalition forces killed 10 terrorists and detained 42 in operations throughout Iraq today, and a car bomb detonated in Baghdad yesterday, killing five Iraqis and wounding 10, military officials reported.
• Reconstruction Teams Help Accelerate Progress in Iraq AFPS 20 Apr 2007 -- U.S. provincial reconstruction teams are helping accelerate progress in many provinces of Iraq, Rick Olson, the director of the PRT national coordination team, said here.
• Training and Technology Combine to Save Lives in Iraq AFPS 20 Apr 2007 -- Expanded training in combat life-saving procedures has enabled a greater than 98 percent survival rate for U.S. troops injured in Iraq, a coalition surgeon said yesterday.
• Submariners Return Home to Naval Station Norfolk from Iraq Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- Navy Customs Battalion ROMEO, a group of reservists including submariners from all over the continent, returned to Naval Station Norfolk from a deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom on April 17.
• U.S. Military Builds Barrier To Separate Sunni, Shi'a RFE/RL 20 Apr 2007 -- The U.S. military says it is building a 5-kilometer wall to separate a Sunni enclave from the surrounding Shi'ite neighborhoods in Baghdad.
• Afghan, Pakistani Troops Battle Over Border Fence RFE/RL 20 Apr 2007 -- The Afghan Defense Ministry says Afghan troops were tearing down the fence near the Durand Line that separates the two countries when they were fired on by Pakistani forces early yesterday.
• Pakistan, Afghan Forces Exchange Fire Along Disputed Border VOA 20 Apr 2007 -- Pakistani-Afghan relations have taken a dramatic turn for the worse after the countries' forces exchanged fire along a remote stretch of their ill-defined border

Defense Policy / Programs

• Decommissioning Ends USS Saipan’s 29 Years of Service Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- The Navy bid farewell to the amphibious assault ship USS Saipan (LHA 2), April 20 in a decommissioning ceremony at Naval Station Norfolk.
• Ronald Reagan Strike Group Returns Following Deployment Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- Thousands of family members and friends crowded the pier at Naval Air Station North Island on April 20 to welcome home the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group (CSG) following a three-month deployment in support of operations in the Western Pacific.
• Chosin, Chung-Hoon Deploy With Bonhomme Richard ESG Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- Guided-missile cruiser USS Chosin (CG 65) and guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93) departed Naval Station Pearl Harbor on April 16, joining the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) to conduct operations in the U.S Pacific and U.S. Central commands areas of operation.
• George Washington Fuels Up for Move Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- USS George Washington (CVN 73) (GW) took another step closer to completing the Planned Incremental Availability plus Docking with the onload of 39,000 gallons of jet propulsion fuel (JP-5) on April 14.
• “Golden Hawks” celebrate 40 years Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- The “Golden Hawks” of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 112 celebrated their 40th anniversary April 18, starting with an award ceremony held on the fo’c’sle aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), followed by a cake-cutting ceremony in the Golden Hawks’ ready room.
• Oklahoma City First Sub with New VMS Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723) took the next step in technological advances this April, adding the Navy’s newest navigational tool to its arsenal.
• Nassau Continues to be the Binding Force Navy NewsStand 20 Apr 2007 -- USS Nassau (LHA 4) continued strengthening maritime partnerships when the ship sponsored an Amphibious Air Traffic Control Center Pilot Brief (AATCC), April 11 for the 11 countries participating in exercise Phoenix Express 2007.
• Red Flag-Alaska ends on positive note AFPN 20 Apr 2007 -- The year's first Red Flag-Alaska ended April 20 after two weeks of intense, air-combat training over Alaska's mountain ranges.
• Air Support Ops keep control at Atlantic Strike V AFPN 20 Apr 2007 -- The 682nd Air Support Operations Squadron Airmen from Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., provided tactical command and control as the Air Support Operations Center during Atlantic Strike V April 14-20 at the Avon Park Air Ground Complex at Avon Park, Fla.
• Russia/U.S.: Pentagon Chief To Visit Moscow For Missile Talks RFE/RL 20 Apr 2007 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates faces delicate talks with his Russian counterpart, Anatoly Serdyukov, when he travels to Moscow on April 23.
• U.S. Must Maintain Superiority in Space, General Says AFPS 20 Apr 2007 -- Maintaining superiority in space will go a long way toward protecting U.S. national interests, the commander of the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center said here.
• US Fails to Persuade Russia to Support Missile Defense Expansion in Europe VOA 20 Apr 2007 -- The United States has briefed NATO and Russia together Thursday for the first time about its proposals for expansion of missile defense into Europe
• NATO Allies Agree Missile Defense Necessary RFE/RL 20 Apr 2007 -- NATO allies have agreed that Europe should defend itself against potential missile threats, and named Iran as one source of such threats.
• Air Force official testifies on UAV executive agent issue AFPN 20 Apr 2007 -- The deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance explained why Air Force leaders support the idea of creating an executive agency for unmanned aerial vehicles before the House Armed Services air and land forces subcommittee April 19 here.
• U.S., NATO Countries Agree on Need To Maintain Defense Linkage Washington File 20 Apr 2007 -- U.S. Under Secretary of Defense Eric Edelman, citing successful coupling of NATO and U.S. defense programs during the Cold War, said April 19 that such partnerships remain a good idea today “even though we’re now in a post-Cold War era, facing new challenges and new threats.”
• US Lawmakers Call on India to Halt Military Cooperation with Iran VOA 20 Apr 2007 -- A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has asked India to cease its growing military cooperation with Iran
• Press Gaggle by Dana Perino The White House 20 Apr 2007
• Press Gaggle by Dana Perino US Dept. of State 20 Apr 2007

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for April 20, 2007
• GOVERNMENT-LOCKHEED MARTIN TEAM SIGNS CONTRACT WITH ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS Lockheed Martin 20 Apr 2007 -- In a brief ceremony yesterday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a Letter of Obligation to the Government’s Most Efficient Organization (MEO) to provide Information Management and Information Technology (IM/IT) services.
• U.S. Army Awards General Dynamics $31 Million for Combat Vehicle Work General Dynamics 20 Apr 2007 -- The U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command awarded General Dynamics Land Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), more than $31 million in three contracts for work related to the Abrams tank and Stryker eight-wheeled combat vehicle.
• General Dynamics Awarded $22 Million in Medium-Caliber Ammunition Contracts General Dynamics 20 Apr 2007 -- General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has received multiple contract option awards totaling $22 million for 20mm ammunition from the U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command at Rock Island Arsenal, Ill
• Boeing Pico-Satellite Mission to Advance Miniature Satellite Technology Boeing 19 Apr 2007 -- A pico-satellite developed by Boeing [NYSE: BA] to evaluate miniature spacecraft technologies was successfully launched to orbit on April 17 by an ISC Kosmotras Dnepr rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
• Boeing-Insitu ScanEagle UAV Logs 1,000 Combat Flight Hours with Australian Army Boeing 20 Apr 2007 -- ScanEagle, a fully autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed by Boeing [NYSE: BA] and Insitu, Inc., has surpassed 1,000 flight hours in support of Australian Army operations in southern Iraq.

Other Conflicts

• North-south peace deal in Sudan has reached ‘delicate stage’ – Secretary-General UN News Centre 20 Apr 2007 -- The comprehensive peace agreement ending the long-running civil war between north and south in Sudan has reached a delicate stage, with the full and verified redeployment this year of both sides’ forces critical to the deal’s chances of long-term success, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warns in a new report.
• Intensified fighting in Somali capital impedes access to those in need – UN UN News Centre 20 Apr 2007 -- United Nations agencies today said their efforts to deliver aid are being thwarted by the deteriorating security situation in Somalia, where hundreds of thousands of people affected by violence in and around the capital city of Mogadishu face a dire humanitarian situation.
• Western Sahara: UN envoy sees ‘window of opportunity’ to break impasse UN News Centre 20 Apr 2007 -- Acknowledging that Morocco and the Polisario Front have “irreconcilable views” on the future of Western Sahara, a senior United Nations envoy today said talks between the parties offer a chance to break through their long-standing dispute.
• SUDAN: New hope for Darfur as Govt accepts UN support package IRIN 20 Apr 2007 -- Sudan's long-awaited agreement to the United Nations-African Union (AU) "Heavy Support package" for Darfur has been cautiously greeted by the international community, but both the UN and AU admit that the task of setting up the operation has just begun.
• UGANDA: Stop using excessive force during disarmament, govt urged IRIN 20 Apr 2007 -- Uganda should review the forced disarmament of pastoralists in the northeastern Karamoja region because the army is using indiscriminate, excessive force during the controversial exercise, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said.
• Recruiting Begins For UN Darfur Mission VOA 20 Apr 2007 -- Five countries have offered to supply soldiers and police for a United Nations mission to support a beleaguered African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur
• Clashes in Somalia Kill At Least 30 VOA 20 Apr 2007 -- Residents in Somalia's capital say at least 30 people have been killed and at least 100 wounded in two days of intense fighting between insurgents and Ethiopian troops that support the government.

News Reports