Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Government Statements and Transcripts
US Domestic Responses
International Responses
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

November 28, 2001 Airstrikes

Operations

• AFGHAN/BOMBING VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- The Pentagon says it is too early to say when the final pockets of Taleban and al-Qaida resistance in Afghanistan will fall
• Preparing To Go 26 MEU (SOC) Public Affairs 28 Nov. 2001-- Marines of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) are getting their gear and their minds ready for decisive action as an integral part of the new phase of "America's war on terrorism" in Operation Enduring Freedom. For these Marines, their journey to the North Arabian Sea began November 11th when they "got the call" to join Camp Pendleton, Calif.'s 15th MEU (SOC) for operations deep into Afghanistan. In nearly no time at all, Brig. Gen. James N. Mattis, a Marine veteran of 32 years and the commander of Combined Task Force 58, had nearly 9,000 Marines and Sailors, including two Marine Expeditionary Units under his command and ready to project American resolve and combat power ashore.

  
  
  

  Video footage of airstrikes, used during DoD news briefing
  Click on the small image to view a larger version
  The two clips above, shot from Navy F-14 aircraft, are of a series of airstrikes from Nov. 25, 2001, against an armored column that was on the move in southern Afghanistan heading east. The airstrike took place at about the time that the Marines were infiltrating into southern Afghanistan. According to DoD, by the size of the secondary explosions, the vehicles destroyed were apparently fuel and ammunition in this convoy
  The two videos above are from Nov. 27, 2001, and taken from F-16 gun cameras, and show airstrikes on reported Taliban leadership locations near Kandahar, using multiple precision guided munitions dropped by a B-1 bomber. The first video shows a macro-view of a Taliban complex, with numerous hits taking place around the compound, both in the upper left and lower right corner of the screen. The second video is a zoomed-in view of one of the complexes that was bombed, and virtually destroyed

  
  

Defense Policy / Programs

Government Statements and Transcripts

• Transcript: DoD News Briefing - Rear Adm. Stufflebeem 28 Nov. 2001 -- "We continue operations and focus on building pressure on al Qaeda and the Taliban through strikes on fixed and emerging targets. We also continue to increase the number of our Marines on the ground in southern Afghanistan. We conducted airstrikes yesterday in four planned target areas, concentrated against al Qaeda and Taliban cave and tunnel complexes and support infrastructure in the Jalalabad area, as well as emergent targets in the South, which included command-and-control elements and Taliban military forces. Yesterday we used about 120 strike aircraft, of which about 100 were tactical from sea-based platforms, about 12 to 14 were land-based tactical jets, and between six to eight were long-range bombers".
• Transcript: Powell, UN Secretary General Discuss Afghanistan, Middle East 28 Nov. 2001-- Powell: The President said that the Iraqi regime should allow the UN inspectors back in to complete their very, very important work. And when the President was asked, and what if they don't, what will happen, what he said was, "He'll find out." And I think that's a pretty good statement. I'll leave it stand. I don't think it requires any amplification at this point.
• Text: CIA Confirms Death of Officer in Afghanistan 28 Nov. 2001-- Central Intelligence Director George Tenet announced November 28 that 32-year-old Central Intelligence Agency officer Mike Spann was killed in the uprising at Mazar-e Sharif fortress in Afghanistan where Taliban prisoners were being held and questioned.
• Statement by George J. Tenet, Director of Central Intelligence, on the death of the a CIA Officer in Afghanistan 28 Nov. 2001 -- "It is my sad duty to announce that one of our officers at the Central Intelligence Agency has died in the line of duty in Afghanistan"
• Transcript: State Department Noon Briefing, November 28, 2001 28 Nov. 2001-- Boucher: The President himself has said quite clearly, first things first. We're going after al-Qaida and that network, and we continue to keep our eye on Iraq and watch them very, very closely. So that's what we're doing. If anybody wants to know what we're doing, that's what we tell them.
• Text: Leahy Opens Senate Hearings on Bush Anti-Terrorism Moves 28 Nov. 2001-- Leahy: Rather than respect the checks and balances that make up our constitutional framework, the Executive Branch has chosen to cut out judicial review in monitoring attorney-client communications and to cut out Congress in determining the appropriate tribunal and procedures to try terrorists.
• Transcript: Bush, UN Secretary General Discuss Aid to Afghanistan 28 Nov. 2001-- Bush: The degree of difficulty is high. There's no question we've got a large task ahead of ourselves. We've got ample money, and the United States government has been a major contributor of that money. We've got the food. The fundamental question is, in an environment that is not very secure, how do we get the food to the people. And that's what we're working on. And I'm convinced that we can do a very good job of meeting that objective.
• Excerpt: Nepal Has U.S. Support Against Maoist Rebels 28 Nov. 2001-- "We've called on the Maoists to pursue any goals they might have peacefully within the Nepalese constitution, and we've said we clearly support the Nepali government efforts to protect its citizens and officials," Boucher said.
• Transcript: Adm. Blair Says Intelligence Sharing Helps Fight Terrorism 28 Nov. 2001-- Blair: The exchange of intelligence among countries in the region is unprecedented. I would also add that the exchange of intelligence between organizations within governments is much greater than it was before. For instance in the United States our exchange of our military intelligence with FBI investigations is much deeper than it was before. And in Malaysia, in Indonesia, in the Philippines, in Thailand, we are all comparing and exchanging information to a much greater extent than we were before.
• Byliner: Senator Specter on Questioning the President's Authority 28 Nov. 2001-- Op-ed from The New York Times 11/28/01

US Domestic Responses

• MAZAR / U-S REACT VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- U-S officials say hundreds of mostly-foreign Taleban fighters who were killed in a rebellion in the northern Afghan town of Mazar-e-Sharif died in a pitched battle and were not massacred.
• CONGRESS DEFENSE BILL VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- The Republican-led House of Representatives has passed a 20 billion dollar emergency package to respond to the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States. The action came in a vote approving an annual defense spending bill.
• U-S/IRAQ SANCTIONS VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Here in Washington, the Bush administration is welcoming a tentative U-S-Russian compromise in the U-N Security Council that would lead to an overhaul of U-N sanctions against Iraq within six months
• SPACE SHUTTLE SECURITY VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Security for the Thursday's scheduled lift off of the U-S space shuttle Endeavour is expected to be the tightest ever for an American space mission

International Responses

• AFGHAN SUMMIT VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Multi ethnic talks aimed at plotting the future of Afghanistan have opened in Germany near Bonn, and the American press is both reporting and editorializing on the talks.
• BUSH-UN-AFGHANISTAN VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- U-N Secretary General Kofi Annan says talks on the future of Afghanistan are off to a good start, and he is urging all parties to seize the moment and bring peace to their country
• AFGHANISTAN / RUSSIANS VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- A contingent of Russian troops has arrived in the Afghan capital, Kabul. This is the first visible presence of foreign troops in the war-ravaged city
• NORTH KOREA-AID VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- The United Nations is calling for new humanitarian aid for North Korea, warning that the country still suffers widespread malnutrition

Defense Industry

• Boeing C-17 Globemaster III Claims 13 World Records Boeing 28 Nov 2001 -- The Boeing-U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III set 13 world records during flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base Tuesday, including resetting two of the 22 world records that it claimed during initial flight testing in 1992-994.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY GENERAL United Nations 28 Nov 2001

News Reports

• ENERGY / TERRORISM VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- An environmental group is warning that President Bush's energy plan will make the United States more, not less, dependent on foreign oil and on risky nuclear energy
• Dateline: Rebuilding Afghanistan VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- The Northern Alliance and the U.S.-led coalition is continuing its fight against remaining Taleban forces and the al Quaida terrorist network led by Osama bin Laden. To date, thousands of Afghans have fled the fighting, resulting to a vast humanitarian crisis in the country. Some, according to observers, are already beginning to return. International aid agencies will be called upon to help feed, clothe and house those Afghan refugees, while working with the successor government to rebuild the country
• AIDS - TERRORISM VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Until September 11th, eradication of AIDS topped the agenda of many countries where the disease is rampant. But U-N officials say the terrorist attacks in the United States dealt a blow to worldwide efforts to raise money to fight AIDS.
• BUSH / SPAIN VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- President Bush Wednesday thanked Spain for arresting suspected members of the al-Qaida terrorist group
• MILITARY TRIBUNALS VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Democrats in the U-S Congress are stepping up their criticism of President Bush's decision to possibly use military tribunals to try non-Americans suspected of terrorism
• AFGHANISTAN / JANE'S VOA 28 Nov. 2001-- Military experts at the London-based Jane's Information Group say the conflict in Afghanistan has entered its final, crucial phase with the arrival of U-S Marines near Kandahar.

• Orbital's GEO Satellite Business Receives Boost From PanAmSat Order Orbital Sciences Corp. 28 Nov 2001 -- Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) received another major industry endorsement for its smaller-sized geostationary (GEO) STARTM satellite systems today when PanAmSat Corporation (NASDAQ: SPOT) exercised a contract option to purchase two additional company-built C-band spacecraft.