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Current Operations

• COALITION AND IRAQI PEOPLE WORK TO MAKE IRAQ SECURE CENTCOM 14 Aug 2003 -- Iraqi citizens continue to cooperate with Coalition forces, preventing attacks and breaking up a counterfeit operation.
• IRAQ / PROTEST VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- U-S troops killed one demonstrator and wounded several others in Baghdad when they were attacked by an angry mob.
• IRAQ / APOLOGY VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- The commander of U-S forces in Iraq, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, says U-S troops have apologized for removing an Islamic flag that was near a mosque in Baghdad. One demonstrator was killed during the Wednesday incident and several were wounded.

• U-N-H-C-R / AFGHAN SUSPENSION VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- The U-N Refugee Agency says it has suspended operations in Afghanistan's eastern Kunar Province because of growing security problems.
• Afghanistan: UN Envoy Presses Security Council To Expand Force RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi has urged the UN Security Council to authorize the expansion of international forces beyond Kabul, saying it is crucial to the success of the political reform process.
• Afghanistan: U.S.-Led Coalition Expands 'Provincial Reconstruction Teams' RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- NATO is rejecting calls for an immediate expansion of the UN-mandated International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, saying it needs several months to settle into its role as ISAF commander before discussing deployments outside of Kabul. But the U.S.-led antiterrorism coalition in Afghanistan is expanding a reconstruction program that brings multinational forces to areas outside of the Afghan capital without any UN resolution.
• Afghanistan: Interior Minister Calls For Outside Security Help RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- Afghan Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalali said Afghanistan needs more outside help to deal with massive security problems and an upsurge in deadly violence.
• AFGHANISTAN POLITICS VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai is removing the powerful warlord Ismail Khan from his position as a local military commander, as part of a major reshuffling of key provincial posts. The move appears aimed at reining in Mr. Khan and other powerful commanders.
• RFE/RL Afghanistan Report, Vol 2, Number 29 14 Aug 2003 -- FOR KING AND COUNTRY / NATO TAKES COMMAND OF ISAF... / ...EMPHASIZING THAT MANDATE REMAINS THE SAME / AFGHAN FOREIGN MINISTRY WELCOMES NATO, URGES ISAF EXPANSION / AFGHAN WOMEN CALL FOR ISAF EXPANSION... / ...AS NATO SAYS IT WILL BE 'MONTHS' BEFORE THAT TOPIC IS ADDRESSED... / .BUT OUTGOING ISAF COMMANDER HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR SECURITY / TWENTY KILLED IN ATTACK ON AFGHAN BORDER POST / LARGE GROUP OF AFGHAN SOLDIERS REPORTEDLY KILLED... / .LEADING TO UN SUSPENDING ROAD TRAVEL IN SOUTH / TALIBAN THREATEN U.S. SUPPORTERS, AID WORKERS WITH DEATH... / ...AND AFGHAN LEADER RESPONDS IN KIND / REPORT SAYS NEO-TALIBAN CONTROL MOST OF ZABUL PROVINCE... / ...AND ARE REPORTEDLY EYEING TARGETS IN NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN / U.S. TROOPS REPORTEDLY KILL PAKISTANI SOLDIERS NEAR AFGHAN BORDER... / ...IN FIRST SUCH INCIDENT SINCE U.S. FORCES ARRIVED IN AFGHANISTAN / AFGHAN, PAKISTANI, AND U.S. OFFICIALS DISCUSS SECURITY / AFGHAN TRIBAL LEADERS PLEDGE TO SUPPORT BORDER POLICE / MAN KILLED IN MINE BLAST ON JALALABAD-KONAR ROAD / KABUL DAILY WANTS CRIMINALS FROM AFGHANISTAN'S PAST WARS TO BE TRIED / BELGIUM WILL NOT CHANGE STANCE REGARDING AFGHAN REFUGEES / HRW WARNS WESTERN GOVERNMENTS NOT TO REPATRIATE AFGHANS BEFORE SECURITY IS ESTABLISHED / AFGHAN PAPER ACCUSES IRANIAN AUTHORITIES OF ABUSING AFGHAN REFUGEES / UN REPORT DETAILS DRUG USE IN KABUL / TAJIK PRESIDENT, U.S. MILITARY OFFICIAL DISCUSS AFGHANISTAN / RIGHTS GROUP OUTRAGED AT CONFIRMATION OF JOURNALISTS' DEATH SENTENCES / AFGHAN ROYALISTS CALL FOR RETURN TO CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY / AFGHANISTAN: THE ILL CONFRONT MISERY OF MEDICAL CARE IN REMOTE GHOR PROVINCE / THIS WEEK IN AFGHANISTAN'S HISTORY
• AFGHANISTAN: Special report on insecurity in the south IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Surrounded by armed bodyguards - all on alert status, with fingers on triggers - Maulavi Pir Mohammad seemed embarrassed. Just hours earlier, a deadly terrorist attack killed six Afghan soldiers, as well as a local staff member of an aid agency, in the Dishu District of Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan.
• UN envoy lands in Liberia; rebels handover vital port to peacekeepers UN News Centre 14 Aug 2003 -- The United Nations envoy for Liberia arrived today in the capital Monrovia, where rebels handed over control of the vital port area to Nigerian peacekeepers, paving the way for food and other aid to start flowing again to the famished, overcrowded city.
• LIBERIA / WRAP VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- U-S Marines landed in Liberia on Thursday to assist West African peacekeepers in their efforts to bring stability to the war-ravaged country.
• LIBERIA / PEACE TALKS VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- The new president of Liberia, Moses Blah, is meeting in Ghana with Liberian rebel leaders in an effort to bring durable peace to the country. Meanwhile, peacekeepers have taken control of Monrovia's key port.
• LIBERIA/MARINES VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- About 200 U-S troops have arrived in the Liberian capital Monrovia to help peacekeepers secure delivery of humanitarian assistance. Meanwhile, as they had agreed earlier, Liberian rebels have handed over the capital's port to west-African peacekeepers.
• LIBERIA: WFP plans to ship 9,000 tonnes of food per month into Monrovia IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Thursday it was planning to send 9,000 tonnes of food per month into Liberia to feed an estimated 500,000 needy people, most of them in the capital Monrovia.
• LIBERIA: Nigerian peacekeepers occupy port of Monrovia, US marines land IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Nigerian peacekeeping troops took control of Monrovia's strategic port on Thursday as rebel forces withdrew from the city and United States marines landed at Liberia's international airport to provide extra firepower if necessary.
• LIBERIA: Mediators hope peace agreement will be signed on Saturday IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Liberia's new provisional president, Moses Blah, held talks with the leaders of the country’s two rebel movements in Ghana on Thursday about finalising a peace agreement to end 14 years of near constant civil war.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Transcript: Press Gaggle with Mr. Di Rita and Dr. Chu on Combat Pay Compensation 14 Aug 2003 -- Press gaggle. Participating were Lawrence Di Rita, acting assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, and David Chu, under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness
• U.S. Applauds, Supports Colombia's Efforts Against Terrorism Washington File 14 Aug 2003 -- The United States is committed to working with Colombia to rid that nation of the narco-terrorism that affects not only it but the entire Western Hemisphere, says Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
• Myers: Military Transformation Is Imperative to Meet Terror Threat Washington File 14 Aug 2003 -- Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Richard Myers says transformation of the U.S. military is "imperative" to meet the ever-present threat of terrorism.
• WolfPack Proves Strength in Numbers AFPS 14 Aug 2003 -- Doing more with less (power) may seem unusual, but that's exactly what the WolfPack program strives to accomplish.
• DoD Statement on Family Separation Allowance and Imminent Danger Pay 14 Aug 2003 -- In April, after the President's Budget was submitted, Congress authorized an increase in both the Family Separation Allowance (on a worldwide basis) and Imminent Danger Pay and legislated that these increases would expire on Sept. 30, 2003.
• Navy Announces Virginia Class Submarine Contract Award 14 Aug 2003 -- General Dynamics Electric Boat Corp., in partnership with Northrop Grumman's Newport News Shipbuilding, is being awarded a block-buy contract worth up to $8.7 billion for construction of six Virginia Class submarines.
• Navy Christens Newest Attack Submarine Virginia 14 Aug 2003 -- The U.S. Navy will christen Virginia, lead ship of the latest class of attack submarines, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2003, during an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony at Electric Boat in Groton, Conn.
• Colombia: Another Front in War on Terror AFPS 14 Aug 2003 -- The overall impression you get from the government and military in Colombia is the absolute determination to finally crush the narcoterrorists and reclaim the country.
• Chairman Thanks Central America for Anti-terror Help AFPS 14 Aug 2003 -- Joint Chiefs Chairman Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers concluded a whirlwind tour of Central America by thanking the people of the Dominican Republic for their contribution to Operation Iraqi Freedom.
• Central American Allies Aiding in Iraqi Peacekeeping AFPS 14 Aug 2003 -- Want to see why military-to-military contacts are important? Go to Central America.
• Rumsfeld: Anti-Terror War Drives DoD Transformation Efforts AFPS 14 Aug 2003 -- The ongoing war against global terrorism makes U.S. military transformation efforts an imperative goal, DoD's top civilian and uniformed officer said here today.

• Military to Help Boost Security at US Camps ROK Ministry of Defence 14 Aug 2003 -- The Joint Chiefs of Staff released guidelines on Wednesday (Aug. 13) to prevent protesters from intruding on United States military sites.

• Israel/India: Sharon To Visit New Delhi To Boost Military Ties RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is due to visit India in early September, the first trip to New Delhi by an Israeli premier since the two countries established full diplomatic relations 11 years ago. Sharon, whose country has become a major supplier of arms to India, is expected to discuss counterterrorism, defense cooperation, and big-ticket defense deals.
• Fighting 13th Earns "SOC" Certification Marine Corps News 14 Aug 2003-- After two weeks at sea, Marines and Sailors of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit returned to Camp Pendleton and MCAS Miramar this week, having completed their final pre-deployment workup, the Special Operations Capable Exercise.
• Alpha Company kills two birds with one stone during SOCEX Marine Corps News 14 Aug 2003-- As reveille was sounded aboard the USS Ogden, Marines of Company A, Battalion Landing Team 1/1, quickly dressed and prepared themselves to join a simulated amphibious assault Aug. 5 at two suspected terrorist strongholds at training sites on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
• Coast Guard commissions new post Marine Corps News 14 Aug 2003-- The Coast Guard Port Security Detachment here recently became the Coast Guard Special Missions Training Center in a reassignment ceremony.
• Navy cargo ships bring U.S. war fighters' equipment home Military Sealift Command 14 Aug 2003-- Dust storms, extreme temperatures and port congestion are just some of the conditions that challenge the Navy's civilian-crewed cargo ships as they bring home some of the now damaged or unneeded military equipment that helped U.S. forces bring down Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraqi.
• Nothing but smooth sailing for Navy cargo ships transiting to Charleston Military Sealift Command 14 Aug 2003-- While most of his New Jersey high school classmates were spending their summers working at grocery stores and fast food restaurants, Tom D'Agostino was spending his time on the Jersey docks working with his grandfather.

Defense Industry

• SOSTAR-X Programme Reaches an Important Milestone EADS 14 Aug 2003 -- The European company Sostar GmbH, headquartered at Dornier GmbH in Friedrichshafen, has reached an important milestone with the Critical Design Review of the state-of-the-art Sostar-X radar demonstrator. Green light has been given by the five-nation Sostar Steering Committee, a body of the Ministries of Defence of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands.
• U.S. Navy Awards General Dynamics $8.7 Billion Contract for Six Virginia-Class Subs General Dynamics 14 Aug 2003 -- The U.S. Navy has awarded General Dynamics Electric Boat an $8.7 billion block-buy contract for the construction of six Virginia-class submarines, the largest submarine order in U.S. history. Electric Boat is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD).

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 14 Aug 2003
• UN envoy calls on Israel to stop over-flights of Lebanon UN News Centre 14 Aug 2003 -- Terming them "violations," the United Nations envoy for Southern Lebanon has called on Israel to stop its over-flights of Lebanese territory following a large number of such air incursions yesterday, "which were very visible and loud and appear to have taken place over large parts of Lebanese territory."
• UN anti-racism panel concerned by new Israeli marriage and citizenship law UN News Centre 14 Aug 2003 -- Concerned that a newly enacted Israeli measure on marriage and citizenship will adversely affect family life, an expert United Nations panel on anti-discrimination has urged the Knesset to revoke the law, which effectively bars Palestinians married to Israelis from living with their spouses in Israel.
• U-N/ISRAEL VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination unanimously called on Israel to revoke a new law that bars Palestinians who marry Israelis from becoming citizens or residents of Israel. Israel says the law is under court review and should not have been placed before the committee.
• ISRAEL PALESTINIANS VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- A senior official of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad was killed by Israeli forces in a raid on the West Bank town of Hebron Thursday morning.

• DRC: Interview with MONUC chief William Swing IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed William Lacy Swing on 22 May to serve as his special representative to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and to head the UN's peacekeeping operation there, known as MONUC. Swing arrived in the DRC on 5 July, succeeding Amos Namanga Ngongi at the end of his two-year mandate.
• DRC: Security Council extends pillage panel's mandate IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- The UN Security Council voted 15-0 on Wednesday renewing the mandate of a special panel that is investigating the plunder of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), UN News reported. The panel now has until 31 October to complete its work and submit a final report to the council.
• Kosovo: Police In 'Massive' Manhunt To Find Killers RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- Hundreds of UN police are conducting an intensive search in northwestern Kosovo for gunmen who yesterday shot dead two Serbian teenagers and wounded four others.
• Kosovo: Police In Massive Search For Shooters RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- Hundreds of UN police have been searching in northwestern Kosovo for the gunmen who yesterday shot dead two Serbian teenagers and wounded four others.

• Chechnya: Babitskii Says Rebels Better Armed, Leaning Toward Fundamentalism RFE/RL 14 Aug 2003 -- RFE/RL's veteran Russian Service correspondent Andrei Babitskii recently returned from a reporting trip to the mountains of Chechnya, where he interviewed rebels about their fight against Russian forces. Babitskii found the mountain rebels better armed than before and increasingly leaning towards religious fundamentalism.
• INDIA / BLAST VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- A bomb explosion in northeastern India has killed five people and injured at least 14 others on a passenger bus. Officials are blaming separatist militants for the attack, which comes a day ahead of independence day celebrations.
• ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: UN protests to Ethiopia over buffer zone incursions IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- The UN has made an official protest to the Ethiopian government after armed men in military uniforms illegally entered the off-limits security buffer zone.
• RWANDA: Genocide suspect transferred to UN tribunal IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- A former mayor suspected of involvement in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda was transferred on Wednesday to the Tanzania-based UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) after his arrest in Uganda, the tribunal reported.
• BURUNDI: Thousands, fleeing fighting, receive emergency food aid IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- A total of 12,000 people uprooted by recent fighting from their homes in Mutambu Commune, Bujumbura Rural Province, have now received 30-day food rations, the UN World Food Programme in Burundi reported on Wednesday.
• BURUNDI-DRC: Congolese flee fighting in South Kivu IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Some 98 Congolese crossed into Burundi's northwestern province of Cibitoke on Wednesday, fleeing renewed fighting in the eastern province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to local authority officials.
• COTE D'IVOIRE: UN says security improves, but obstacles to lasting peace remain IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Security has improved in Cote d'Ivoire following a peace agreement between the government and rebels which in January, but there are some "negative trends" in the West African country which threaten to undermine the peace process, the United Nations said.
• SIERRA LEONE: 1,000 soldiers to be retired this year IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- Sierra Leone's army has announced plans to retire 1,000 soldiers who have attained the mandatory retirement age of 55 as part of moves to make the force leaner and more efficient.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 14 Aug 2003 -- U.S. abandons idea of bigger UN role in Iraq occupation / Envoy urges security force beyond Kabul / U.S. to send Marine 'Quick Reaction' troops to Liberia / No sign of Mladic as NATO force raids home of mother / U.S. military pioneers death ray bomb
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 14 Aug 2003 -- German report highlights ISAF's head call for expansion of Bundeswehr mission / Turkish media view possible troop deployment plans for Iraq / Rotterdam port to get nuclear detectors / U.S. Marines land in Liberian capital

• U-S BLACKOUT (L-UPDATE) VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- A massive power blackout has struck the northeastern United States and eastern Canada. U-S government officials have reassured a nervous public that terrorists are not responsible.
• U-S BLACKOUT VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- A massive power blackout has struck the northeastern United States and eastern Canada as the region sweltered in August heat. Government officials have reassured a nervous public that terrorists are not responsible for the power loss.
• NY/EAST COAST POWER OUTAGE VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- Much of the Eastern Seaboard of the United States went dark Thursday afternoon.

• CUBA VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- A Cuban court has given prison terms to six Cubans who hijacked a boat in an attempt to reach the United States. The incident has stirred some political waves in the U.S. involving the Bush Administration.
• TURKMENISTAN / POLITICS VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- Turkmenistan's leader Saparmurat Niyazov, who had declared himself president for life, now says he doesn't intend to stay in power for the rest of his life, and even offers to move up the next presidential election. But Mr. Nayazov's promise is not being taken seriously.
• THAILAND/SAM RAINSY VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- Cambodia's opposition leader, Sam Rainsy, has been denied entry into neighboring Thailand, where he was to speak about Cambodia's recent parliamentary elections. The incident comes as Thailand and Cambodia are trying to repair their relations following anti-Thai riots in Phnom Penh last January.
• ZIMBABWE / FOOD VOA 14 Aug 2003 -- The European Union this week donated enough money for Zimbabwe to immediately import 60-thousand metric tons of grain. The United Nations said that, without aid, Zimbabwe would run out of food in two weeks.
• ZAMBIA: Impeachment motion defeated IRIN 14 Aug 2003 -- A motion to impeach Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa on charges of graft, nepotism and violating the constitution, was tossed out of parliament on Wednesday.