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Current Operations

• Transcript: Video-teleconference Briefing from Baghdad 22 Aug 2003 -- Video-teleconference from Baghdad. Participating were Sgt. Maj. Kenneth O. Preston, Command Sgt. Maj., V Corps; Sgt. Maj. Michael Bush, U.S. Army 1st Armored Division; and Sgt. Maj. Charles Fuss, U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division
• DoD Reports Progress in Pneumonia Investigation 22 Aug 2003 -- The Department of Defense announced today progress on the investigation of a number of cases of pneumonia among military members deployed for military operations in Southwest Asia.
• COALITION REORGANIZES DAY-TO-DAY ISSUES CENTCOM 22 Aug 2003 -- Coalition soldiers are assisting with the reorganization of Iraq's day-to-day economy by negotiating with Baghdad's vendors to move their booths from the streets back into marketplaces and by accepting claims from Iraqis to pay for damages incurred by the actions of U.S. forces.
• Troops Doing "Magnificent Job" in Iraq Say Senior Leaders AFPS 22 Aug 2003 -- Americans can be proud of the work U.S. soldiers are doing in Iraq, said 5th Corps Command Sgt. Maj. Kenneth O. Preston during a video teleconference from Baghdad today.
• Two U.S. Service Members Killed in Separate Incidents in Iraq AFPS 22 Aug 2003 -- One American soldier was killed and six were injured in Iraq Aug. 21 during a fire at a Baghdad small-arms shooting range, according to a U.S. Central Command press release.
• Coalition Soldiers Try To Learn From Baghdad Terrorist Attacks Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- In the wake of the August 19 attack on United Nations headquarters and the August 7 attack against the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad, U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major Kenneth Preston says American soldiers serving in Iraq are trying to learn from the techniques and tactics "the enemy has used to conduct these terrorist attacks."
• Eyewitness gives account of attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad UN News Centre 22 Aug 2003 -- A United Nations official who was inside the world body's headquarters in Baghdad at the time of this week's terrorist bombing described today the first moments of the attack as an "extraordinary thud" followed quickly by the terrible smell of gunpowder and the screams and moans of people injured by showers of shattered glass.
• State Department Announces Capture of Iraq's "Chemical Ali" Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- The State Department has formally announced the capture of Ali Hasan al-Majid, also known as "Chemical Ali" by Coalition Forces in Iraq.
• Iraq: 'Chemical Ali' Likely To Face War Crimes Trial RFE/RL 22 Aug 2003 -- The U.S. capture of Ali Hassan al-Majid, dubbed "Chemical Ali" for his past use of poison gas on civilians, puts one of the most notorious members of Saddam Hussein's former regime behind bars.
• IRAQ/DEATHS VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Two American soldiers have been killed and a half-dozen wounded in separate outbreaks of violence in Iraq. The latest casualties come as investigators into Tuesday's bomb attack on United Nations headquarters in Baghdad begin to examine whether Iraqi security guards were involved in the attack.
• 1 AD SOLDIER DIES DUE TO FIRE CENTCOM 22 Aug 2003-- A 1st Armored Division soldier died, and six others were wounded in a small arms range fire. The fire broke out at a range in Baghdad's Karadah district at 4:30 p.m. on August 21.
• SERVICE MEMBER KILLED IN AL HILLAH CENTCOM 22 Aug 2003-- A U.S. service member on duty with the I Marine Expeditionary Force died after being shot on Aug 21 in Al Hillah by an unidentified gunman.
• Afghanistan: Girls' School Burned Down RFE/RL 22 Aug 2003 -- Suspected Taliban loyalists have burned down a girls' school in Afghanistan's Logar Province.
• Afghanistan: Refugees Return Home From Iran RFE/RL 22 Aug 2003 -- Despite the prospects of security threats and a failing economy, Afghan refugees living in Iran are choosing to come home.
• Afghan President Karzai Observes Progress on Road Reconstruction Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai paid a visit to Afghanistan's Wardak province near Kabul August 20 to observe progress on the reconstruction of the Kabul-Kandahar highway.
• EDITORIAL: NATO IN AFGHANISTAN VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Fifty-four years ago, NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was formed to stop the spread of Communism in Europe. Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, NATO has been taking new actions to meet new threats.
• AFGHANISTAN: Poor security frustrating aid and development work IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- The international and national aid community in Afghanistan is concerned over the phenomenon of increasing incidents, in the context of the bombing of the United Nations office in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. Such incidents had included security breaches affecting aid workers, several of whom had been killed in a recent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan, an official said on Friday.
• LIBERIA / HUMANITARIAN VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Ghanaian troops will be joining their Nigerian counterparts for peacekeeping operations in Liberia today (Friday) as rebels renew promises to allow free passage to aid workers delivering food.
• Liberia peace accord brings hope but disease, lawlessness grip capital - UN UN News Cente 22 Aug 2003 -- Amid hopes that Liberia's nascent peace process heralds the end of a bitter 14-year war, the United Nations warned today that lawlessness is sweeping the overcrowded, disease-ridden capital Monrovia and that the true extent of the country's humanitarian crisis is only starting to emerge as aid agencies begin to travel outside the devastated city.
• LIBERIA: LURD rebels promise to return stolen relief vehicles IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- The military commander of the LURD rebel movement has pledged to help recover vehicles stolen from the United Nations and relief agencies in Liberia and has promised aid workers free access to LURD-controlled areas of the country.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Personnel units help validate 3d ID redeployment Army News Service 22 Aug 2003-- )-"It was really quick compared to the (Soldier Readiness Process) in the states," Pfc. Anthony Tudela said. "It's a step closer to going home."
• Strategy change speeds new assault rifle development Army News Service 22 Aug 2003-- A strategy change at the Program Executive Office, Soldier has speeded up the development of a potential replacement of the Army's assault weapons.
• PSYCHOLOGICAL OPERATIONS UNIT ATTACHED TO V CORPS FIGHTS MISINFORMATION IN IRAQ V Corps Release 22 Aug 2003-- In a city where rumors are rampant, the opinions of Baghdad's residents might be easily swayed with misinformation.
• GW Successfully Completes Sea Trials Navy Newsstand 22 Aug 2003-- Following a six-month Planned Incremental Availability (PIA) at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) completed sea trials Aug. 15 and returned to the fleet four days early.
• High Speed Vessel SWIFT Joins Mine Warfare Command Navy Newsstand 22 Aug 2003-- High Speed Vessel (HSV) 2 Swift joined the fleet Aug. 15 when Commander, Mine Warfare Command, Rear Adm. Paul J. Ryan, and staff accepted the ship on behalf of the U.S. Navy from Incat Tasmania Pty. Ltd., in Hobart, Tasmania.
• UUV Use in Support of Operation Iraqi Freedom Recounted NAVSEA Release 22 Aug 2003-- Snaking north up the Tigris-Euphrates River delta from Iraqi's Al Faw Peninsula is the port of Umm Qasr. Unbeknownst to the Iraqi military, understood by a small number of Coalition forces, and undertaken by a hardy few, Navy service members were about to utilize unmanned underwater vehicles to make their job easier, and prepare an opening into Iraq from the open ocean. The Navy's Special Clearance Team (NSCT) One, along with Royal Navy and Australian forces, on March 24, handled the task of exploratory mine hunting to render the port safe for incoming humanitarian aid shipments. NSCT One accomplished its mission with the aid of Unmanned Undersea Vehicles (UUV). They also conducted additional UUV operations further up the river at Az Zubayr and Karbala, Iraq.
• Arleigh Burke-Class Destroyer USS Stethem Launches Tomahawks in West Coast Tests NAVAIR Release 22 Aug 2003-- Two successful test launches of U.S. Navy Tomahawk cruise missiles were conducted this week from the USS STETHEM(DDG-63), an ARLEIGH BURKE-Class destroyer underway in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of southern Calif. The new Tactical Tomahawk Weapons Control System (TTWCS) was utilized to prepare and launch the cruise missiles.
• Air Force reaches recruiting goal AFPN 22 Aug 2003-- The Air Force reached its enlisted-contract goal Aug. 22 with the signing of its 37,000th enlistment contract.
• Air Force teamwork saves U.N. lives AFPN 22 Aug 2003-- Airmen from several Air Force units at Baghdad International Airport rescued seven U.N. employees injured when a terrorist bomb exploded outside their headquarters here Aug. 19.
• Shore Patrol keeps devil dogs safe during UFL 2003 Marine Corps News 22 Aug 2003-- Whether at Camp Smith, Kaneohe Bay, or even the Republic of Korea, Leathernecks from Marine Corps Base Hawaii Military Police Company take every step to ensure the safety and discipline of Hawaii-based Marines, home and abroad.
• Marines receive spa treatment during UFL 2003 Marine Corps News 22 Aug 2003-- Thousands of miles separated from the U.S., some Marines and Sailors here have been longing for the familiar snip of their personal barber's clippers, or the soothing hands of a massage therapist.
• U.S. Air Force Lands at Moscow Air Show Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- For the first time, U.S. Air Force aircraft participated in the Moscow Aviation and Space Show at Zhukovsky airfield just south of Moscow.
• Iraq Site of "Continuing Battle" in War on Terror, Bush Says Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- White House Rep., Aug. 22: Iraq, Mideast, recess appointments, nomination

Defense Industry

• BAE SYSTEMS Purchases GKN'S 29% Stake In Alvis BAE Systems 22 Aug 2003 -- BAE Systems plc (BAE Systems) today announces that it has agreed to purchase 31,882,534 shares, representing approximately 29% of the issued share capital, in Alvis plc (Alvis) from GKN plc (GKN) for 73 million in cash (equivalent to 230p per Alvis share).
• KAI and Lockheed Martin's T-50 Successfully Completes Ultimate Loads Testing Lockheed Martin 22 Aug 2003 -- On Aug. 20, the T-50 Golden Eagle advanced supersonic trainer successfully completed 20 months of static structural testing right on schedule. The tests were performed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) in the modern test facility at Daejeon, South Korea.
• Lockheed Martin/Boeing Team Selects Courtland, Alabama, Facility for Kinetic Energy Interceptor Production Lockheed Martin 22 Aug 2003 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] today announced that it will conduct final assembly of its Kinetic Energy Interceptor (KEI) in Courtland, AL, if selected by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to proceed as prime contractor on the program. The KEI program is currently in the Concept Design stage, with Lockheed Martin and team member Boeing working under a $10 million study contract awarded by MDA in March 2003. The program's schedule calls for MDA to select a single contractor to perform the Development and Test phase of the program in late 2003.
• Northrop Grumman Begins Modernization of Ship Systems' Avondale Operations Northrop Grumman 22 Aug 2003 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) announced today that its Ship Systems sector and the state of Louisiana signed an agreement for an approximately $112-million modernization program at the sector's Avondale Operations.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 22 Aug 2003
• Bush Orders Assets of Hamas Leaders, Affiliated Group Frozen Washington File 22 Aug 2003 -- President Bush has ordered the Treasury Department to block and freeze the assets of six top Hamas leaders and five non-governmental groups that he says provide financial assistance to Hamas, according to a statement from the White House August 22.
• EDITORIAL: SEEDS OF PEACE IN THE MIDEAST VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- At a camp in the northeastern United States, one-hundred-sixty teenagers from Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Qatar, and Tunisia spent three weeks this summer living together, working to transform hatred and misunderstanding into friendship.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Palestinian militants carried out rocket and mortar attacks on Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and in southern Israel Thursday night and Friday morning. The attacks come as militants vowed to retaliate for Israel's killing of a senior leader of the militant group Hamas, following Tuesday's bus bombing in Jerusalem.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Tens of thousands of angry Palestinians turned out in the streets of the Gaza Strip for the funeral of the senior Hamas leader killed in an Israeli missile strike Thursday.
• NIGERIA/UNREST VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- The Nigerian Red Cross reports that about 100 people have been killed and around one-thousand others injured in the latest round of violence in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta region.
• NIGERIA: 100 die in Delta fighting, Red Cross says IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- The Nigerian Red Cross said on Friday about 100 people were killed in five days of ethnic violence that rocked the southern oil city of Warri.
• IVORY COAST/ARMS EMBARGO VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- A top Ivorian rebel turned cabinet minister wants an arms embargo imposed on Ivory Coast amid growing rumors of coup plots in the country.
• BURUNDI: Power-sharing talks adjourned IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- The first face-to-face talks between Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye and rebel leader Pierre Nkurunziza ended Thursday with all parties expressing satisfaction with the progress made so far, the office of South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma reported.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Bangui closes border with Congo IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- The government of the Central African Republic (CAR) has closed its border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), halting transportation of goods and people across the River Oubangui, state-owned Radio Centrafrique reported on Thursday.
• RWANDA: Khalida Khan sworn-in as judge at the International Criminal Tribunal IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- Judge Khalida Rachid Khan of Pakistan was sworn-in Friday at the International criminal Tribunal on Rwanda during a ceremony held in the northeastern Tanzanian town of Arusha, the tribunal reported.
• Great Lakes: IRIN interview with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Ruud Lubbers concluded on Thursday a two-day visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) after meeting with President Joseph Kabila in the capital, Kinshasa. This was the first stop in what was to have been a four-nation mission to Africa's Great Lakes region and Angola, but due to the bombing of UN headquarters in Baghdad, Lubbers traveled to Angola from where he will return directly to the agency's headquarters in Geneva on Sunday.
• SUDAN: Bashir urges negotiating teams to reach agreement "soon" IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- Sudanese President Umar Hassan al-Bashir has called on the negotiating teams at peace talks underway in Nanyuki, Kenya, to conduct the deliberations in an atmosphere of mutual trust and reach a final peace agreement soon, the Kenyan ministry of foreign affairs announced.
• Chechnya: Nine Russian Soldiers Killed In Bomb Attack RFE/RL 22 Aug 2003 -- Nine Russian soldiers were killed by a bomb that exploded close to their vehicle near Grozny.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 22 Aug 2003 -- Turkish foreign ministers says troops to Iraq possible
• BRITAIN-IRAN ENVOY VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- A former Iranian ambassador to Argentina will remain in custody in Britain pending a court decision on whether to extradite him to Argentina. Hadi Soleimanpur is wanted in Argentina for his alleged involvement in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center. The court adjourned the extradition hearing Friday and ordered the former envoy held until August 29.
• BRITAIN-IRAN ENVOY VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- A former Iranian ambassador to Argentina will remain in custody in Britain pending a court decision on whether to extradite him to Argentina. Hadi Soleimanpur is wanted in Argentina for his alleged involvement in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center. The court adjourned the extradition hearing Friday and ordered the former envoy held until August 29.
• ZIMBABWE / FOOD VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Zimbabwe is on a collision course with the donor community over the government's decision to take over the distribution of food aid. From Harare, The World Food Program says it will suspend food relief programs if the government interferes in its work.
• CHINA/BURMA VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- Southeast Asian nations hope China will use its influence over Burma's military government to break the current political impasse and end the detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. But it is not clear that Beijing will apply any pressure to its long-time ally.
• CHINA/NOKOR REFUGEES VOA 22 Aug 2003 -- The Committee to Protect Journalists is demanding that China release two South Korean journalists arrested in Shanghai this month. The two were detained while covering an attempt by North Korean refugees to gain asylum.
• RWANDA: Focus on ethnicity in the presidential election campaign IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- Ethnicity has emerged as a major campaign topic in the run-up to Rwanda’s first democratic presidential election, to be held on 25 August.
• Pratt & Whitney Delivers First Overhauled Space Shuttle Oxidizer Turbopump Pratt & Whitney 22 Aug 2003 -- The first overhauled Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) high-pressure liquid oxidizer (LOX) turbopump, which flew on six space shuttle flights during seven years of service, was delivered to NASA's primary SSME contractor, Boeing, by Pratt & Whitney (P&W) Space Propulsion, following a meticulous overhaul and repair process. The turbopumps are arguably one of the most critical components of the SSME.
• CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap IRIN 22 Aug 2003 -- A four-year-old girl died of bubonic plague on Saturday in the south-central Kazakh province of Kyzyl-Ordinskaya, while another 27 people who had been in contact with her were placed under observation. According to the Kazakh health ministry, the disease had been caused by the bite of a flea carrying plague bacteria; the child had lived in the village of Shomysh, located in a natural reservoir of the disease.