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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• SOLDIER DIES FROM NON-HOSTILE GUNSHOT WOUND CENTCOM 26 Aug 2003-- A 130th Engineer Brigade Soldier died on August 25 from a non-hostile gunshot wound.
• 4ID SOLDIER DIES IN TRAFFIC ACCIDENT CENTCOM 26 Aug 2003-- A 4th Infantry Division soldier died as a result of injuries sustained in a traffic accident between Tikrit and Forward Operating Base Anaconda in Balad at approximately 6:40 p.m. on Aug. 25.
• ONE SOLDIER KILLED, TWO WOUNDED IN IED ATTACK CENTCOM 26 Aug 2003-- One 3rd Corps Support Command soldier was killed and two wounded in an improvised explosive device attack on a military convoy near the town of Hamariyah at approximately 9:30 a.m. on Aug. 26.
• PENTAGON/IRAQ DEATHS VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Figures released on Tuesday by the Pentagon show that more U-S military personnel have been killed in Iraq since the end of major combat operations than during the actual war. Bu defense officials insist the rising toll will not undermine U-S resolve to create a stable and secure environment in Iraq.
• Myers Tells Vets U.S. Making 'Amazing Difference' in Iraq AFPS 26 Aug 2003 -- American service members are making "an amazing difference" in the lives of Iraqis, Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers said Aug. 25.
• Bomb Kills One U.S. Soldier, Wounds Two in Iraq AFPS 26 Aug 2003 -- Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker visited the Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa here Aug. 22 and 23 to meet with and to congratulate Marines, sailors, soldiers and airmen on a job well done.
• Iraq: U.S. Forces Raid Area North Of Baghdad RFE/RL 26 Aug 2003 -- The U.S. military say they staged overnight a massive raid in Iraq's restive "Sunni triangle" north of Baghdad hunting for guerrillas and criminals.
• Iraq: U.S. Soldier Killed, Polish Troops Fired Upon RFE/RL 26 Aug 2003 -- A U.S. soldier was killed and two others wounded today in an explosion in the town of Hamariyah, northwest of Baghdad.
• IRAQ / RAID VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The U-S military says one soldier has been killed and two wounded in an attack in Iraq. The attack follows a raid by U-S troops during which they arrested 24 suspected members of a local criminal gang in a town in central Iraq.
• As Marines go home, Bulgarians keep city secure Marine Corps News 25 Aug 2003-- After more than five months rebuilding the local infrastructure, the Marines of 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment are preparing to return to home after handing over to the Bulgarian Army Aug. 26.
• ASIA/EXERCISES VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- A first round of what promises to be lengthy negotiations about North Korea's nuclear-weapons program is scheduled to start Wednesday in Beijing. As the talks begin, a series of U-S led air and naval exercises is being planned for next month, which could demonstrate the type of containment strategy Washington might use against North Korea if the talks fail.
• Army Chief of Staff Visits Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa AFPS 26 Aug 2003 -- One American soldier was killed and two were wounded in Iraq by an improvised explosive device Aug. 26, according to a U.S. Central Command news release.
• AFGHANISTAN / PAKISTAN RELATIONS VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Traditionally strong ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan have been strained in recent months by almost daily border incursions. Afghan officials accuse Pakistan of failing to crack down on militants from the ousted Taleban regime, who use Pakistani territory to launch attacks on Afghan police and soldiers, as well as on U-S-led coalition forces. But both governments - fearing a growing conflict that neither can afford - are now trying to defuse the tensions, with some help from the United States.
• AFGHANISTAN: First drug interdiction unit established IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Afghanistan’s first drug interdiction unit came a step closer to realisation with the interior ministry and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) signing an agreement to establish the department within the ministry.
• Marines practice quick reaction in support of Nigerian QRF Marine Corps News 26 Aug 2003-- Marines and Sailors of Lima Battery, Battalion Landing Team 1/8, recently executed the third of a series of immediate action drills at Roberts International Airport with ECOMIL forces (Economic Community of West African States Military Forces) stationed here to maintain security for the airport.
• Lima recieves additional support from MSSG-26 Marine Corps News 26 Aug 2003-- Nearly 15 Marines of MEU Service Support Group-26, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable), arrived here early Thursday to establish an airfield control group to offload the first U.S. Air Force C-130 airplane to arrive in Liberia and to be prepared to handle flights from throughout the region.
• PENTAGON / LIBERIA VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The Pentagon has enhanced its intelligence-gathering capabilities in Liberia by quietly dispatching two surveillance aircraft to West Africa.
• Liberian capital calm but situation in countryside 'precarious' - UN UN News Centre 26 Aug 2003 -- With a fragile peace accord holding and a slight increase in the overall security in Liberia, life is slowly returning to normal inside war-ravaged Monrovia, but the United Nations today said it remained concerned about thousands of people still struggling for survival beyond the capital city's limits - and the reach of relief agencies.
• LIBERIA / FIGHTING VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Military and humanitarian aid sources say rebels in Liberia's interior are pushing toward the capital, Monrovia, driving thousands of civilians out of their homes. Tthe offensive is undermining the peace accord the leading rebel group signed with the government last week.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Officials Discuss Plans to Rebalance Guard, Reserve, Active Forces AFPS 26 Aug 2003 -- The days of the "weekend warrior" are gone, Thomas F. Hall, assistant secretary of defense for reserve affairs, said here today.
• Bush Vows 'No Retreat' In Global Anti-Terror Campaign AFPS 26 Aug 2003 -- President George Bush vowed today to continue the almost two-year-old war against global terrorism.
• Total Victory is Only Option in War on Terror, Bush Says Washington File 26 Aug 2003 -- Remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime and other terrorists are working to undermine Iraq's move towards democratic government, but they will not succeed, President Bush told the 85th annual American Legion convention in St. Louis, Missouri, August 26.
• 3ID returns from Operation Iraqi Freedom Army News Service 26 Aug 2003-- Fort Stewart's commanding general said it felt good having the majority of the 3rd Infantry Division home from Iraq during a welcome home ceremony Aug. 22.
• Army Gen. pins on fourth star before taking USSOCOM reins Army News Service 26 Aug 2003-- The U.S. Special Operations Command soon-to-be commander, Gen. Bryan D. Brown, pinned on his fourth star Aug. 25 at Fort Bragg, N.C.
• Navy's First Trained Expeditionary Strike Group Deploys from San Diego Navy Newsstand 26 Aug 2003-- Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 1 set sail Aug. 22 from Naval Station San Diego for what would be the maiden voyage for the Navy's first ESG.
• Rentz, HSL-45 Thwart Drug Smuggling Outfits Navy Newsstand 26 Aug 2003-- During a 72-hour period, USS Rentz (FFG 46) and its embarked helicopter and U.S. Coast Guard Detachment thwarted two drug-smuggling outfits in the Eastern Pacific, by intercepting one logistic support vessel and two high speed vessels, also known as go-fast vessels (GFV), specifically built for transport of narcotics.
• CNO Visits USS John F. Kennedy Navy Newsstand 26 Aug 2003-- On a recent quick trip to Jacksonville, Fla., Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Vern Clark visited the Mayport, Fla.,-based aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67).
• Quick Bolt Test Firing - A Great Success NAVAIR News 26 Aug 2003-- The Quick Bolt Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD) program successfully completed the second Quick Bolt (QB) missile test firing recently from a Navy F/A-18 at the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) test ranges, China Lake, Calif.
• PMA 290 leads overhaul of P-3C Orion NAVAIR News 26 Aug 2003-- NAVAIR's Maritime Surveillance Aircraft Program (PMA 290) block modification upgrade program delivered the last of 10 specially modified P-3C aircraft on July 21. When the final aircraft rolled off the modification installation program line last month, it concluded the team's six-year effort to provide the fleet with the latest technology in maritime surveillance aircraft and completed BMUP's acquisition delivery phase.
• Cowpens wraps up Hong Kong port visit 7th Fleet News 26 Aug 2003-- USS Cowpens (CG 63) got underway Aug. 22 after a two-day port visit to Hong Kong
• Family members bid farewell as Fighting 13th begins maiden voyage Marine Corps News 26 Aug 2003-- Family members of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit flocked in numbers Aug. 22 to bid farewell to loved ones as Marines and Sailors set sail from Naval Station San Diego aboard ships of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group for real-world missions.
• Laser simulator provides weapons training AFPN 26 Aug 2003-- A high-energy laser weapon simulator is helping F-16 Fighting Falcon pilots gain valuable experience with high-energy weapons. The simulator is located at the Fighter Weapons Training Branch in Mesa, Ariz.
• Civil engineers build it ACC News 26 Aug 2003-- "If you build it, they will come" are the strange words heard by Kevin Costner's character, Ray Kinsella, in the 1989 movie "Field of Dreams," but for members of the 40th Air Expeditionary Civil Engineer Flight here, those are the words they preach.
• Nellis plays in national exercise ACC News 26 Aug 2003-- Operations, logistics and medical experts here assisted state and federal agencies in a simulated nation-wide battle against the pneumonic plague, wild fires and bad weather this week
• Northrop Grumman Agrees to Pay the U.S. Government $60 Million 26 Aug 2003 -- The Office of the Inspector General (OIG), Department of Defense (DoD), announced today that on Aug. 20, 2003, under a settlement agreement, Northrop Grumman agreed to pay the United States of America $60,000,000.
• Ambassadors Visit "Prowlers of the Deep" in Bahrain Navy Newsstand 26 Aug 2003-- "We prowl the sea in defense of human freedom," is the motto of USS Memphis (SSN 691), and it's by no coincidence they're deployed to 5th Fleet in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
• USS Safeguard Recovers Sunken AAV Off Okinawa Coast Navy Newsstand 26 Aug 2003-- The U.S. Navy's only forward deployed salvage and rescue asset, USS Safeguard (ARS 50), recovered a sunken amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) off the coast of Okinawa Aug. 16.
• SFOR Conducts Operations in the Pale Area NATO SFOR 26 Aug 2003 -- As has occurred in the past, SFOR is in the process of conducting military operations in the Pale area.
• ElBaradei accuses US of violating NPT IRNA 26 Aug 2003 -- The head of the United Nations watchdog agency accused the United States of violating the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a result of Washington`s secret efforts to develop so-called `mini-nukes` -- nuclear weapons with an explosive force of less than five kilotons of TNT.
• White House Report, August 26: India, Iraq, Middle East, North Korea Washington File 26 Aug 2003 -- Bush Offers Assistance to India in Wake of Mumbai Bombings / BUSH COMMITTED TO GETTING RESOURCES NEEDED FOR IRAQ / PALESTINIAN SECURITY FORCES SHOULD BE CONSOLIDATED UNDER ABBAS / WHITE HOUSE WELCOMES MULTI-NATIONAL TALKS WITH NORTH KOREA
• BUSH/FOREIGN POLICY VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- With next year's U-S presidential race drawing closer, President Bush's handling of foreign policy and national security -- especially his conduct of the war on terrorism -- is expected to play a large role in his re-election chances. Americans are giving him high marks for his handling of Iraq, but some analysts say setbacks in the Middle East could soon impede Mr. Bush's bid for re-election.

Defense Industry

• General Dynamics Announces Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle Sites General Dynamics 26 Aug 2003 -- General Dynamics Land Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has selected Prince William County, Virginia, to be the integration and assembly site for the U.S. Marine Corps’ Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV), formerly known as the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAAV).
• Northrop Grumman, U.S. Navy Commemorate Keel-Laying for Green Bay (LPD 20) Northrop Grumman 26 Aug 2003 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) and the U.S. Navy today commemorated the keel-laying for Green Bay (LPD 20), the fourth of 12 ships being built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems. The ceremony took place at the sector's Avondale Operations in New Orleans, La.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 26 Aug 2003
• U-N / WORKER PROTECTION VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The United Nations Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution today, Tuesday, on the protection of U-N humanitarian workers. The council approved the measure one week after at least 23 people, many of them U-N workers, were killed in a truck bomb at the U-N's Baghdad headquarters.
• Israel's ambassador defends security fence By His Excellency Daniel Ayalon The Washington Times August 26, 2003 - Constructing a security fence, thereby creating a physical barrier between Israel and the terrorists in the West Bank, is one of many defensive measures adopted by the government of Israel in order to combat the infiltration of suicide bombers into Israeli cities.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS (L-UPDATE) VOA 27 Aug 2003 -- Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has called for militant groups to reinstate the ceasefire they cancelled last week after the assassination of a Hamas leader.
• ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Israeli helicopter gunships fired missiles at Hamas activists north of Gaza City, killing at least one bystander and wounding more than 20 others.
• ISRAEL/LEBANON VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Israel says it is preparing the ground for a possible exchange of prisoners with the militant Islamic group Hezbollah in Lebanon. The plans follow the disclosure by a German mediator that at least one Israeli held captive by the State Department designated terrorist group is alive.
• ISRAEL PALESTINIANS VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Israeli soldiers have raided a hospital in the West Bank town of Nablus, seizing two wounded Palestinian militants suspected of planning attacks against Israelis.
• Bush Condemns Mumbai Bombings Washington File 26 Aug 2003 -- Following is the text of an August 25 statement by President Bush condemning the bombings in Mumbai, India and offering condolences to the Indian people
• India: Bombay Appears Cautious About Laying Blame For Bombings RFE/RL 26 Aug 2003 -- Hindus and Muslims mourned today the victims of a double car bomb attack in the Indian city of Bombay which left at least 50 people dead. Indian police say they suspect Islamic militants with links to Pakistan. But in stark contrast to events of one year ago, New Delhi has appeared cautious, so far, about accusing Islamabad of any direct role.
• INDIA BOMBINGS UPDATE VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- India's deputy prime minister says there are indications Islamic militants were involved in two car bomb attacks in Bombay on Monday, which killed at least 50 people and injured around 150. The Indian official also indirectly pointed the finger at neighboring Pakistan.
• INDIA / BOMBAY BOMBINGS VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Indian police have stepped up security in major cities as they hunt down those responsible for Monday's twin car bombs in Bombay that killed at least 46 people and injured close to 150 others. India is still reeling from the shock of the massive explosion that shook the country's commercial capital.
• Iraq: Security Council denounces ousted regime's killing of missing Kuwaitis UN News Centre 26 Aug 2003 -- Following up on a report by Secretary-General Kofi Annan that the bodies of some of the 605 Kuwaitis missing since Iraq's invasion of 1990 had been found in mass graves in Iraq, the United Nations Security Council today denounced the killings as a "grave violation of human rights" by the ousted regime of Saddam Hussein.
• U-N / Congo VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution today (Tuesday) to allow troops now in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to remain there to assist U-N peacekeepers when they arrive in early September (September 1).
• DR of Congo: Security Council authorizes multinational force to aid UN troops UN News Centre 26 Aug 2003 -- Seeking to maintain stability in war-torn Bunia, the United Nations Security Council today authorized countries participating in the French-led force currently policing the tense northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to assist UN peacekeepers during the upcoming handover of authority there.

• IVORY COAST/SOLDIERS KILLED VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Two French soldiers are reported to have been killed by former rebels in central Ivory Coast. These are the first French deaths since four-thousand troops from that nation were sent to Ivory Coast for peacekeeping duties in the wake of a rebellion in the west African country last September.
• COTE D'IVOIRE: Two French peacekeepers killed by drunken rebels IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Two French soldiers and an Ivorian rebel fighter were killed in an exchange of fire in central Cote d'Ivoire, military spokesmen said on Tuesday.
• Macedonia: Ethnic Albanian Group Claims Responsibility For Attack RFE/RL 26 Aug 2003 -- A group calling itself the Albanian National Army (AKSH) said today that it was responsible for firing rocket-propelled grenades yesterday at a Macedonian guard tower on the border between Kosovo and Macedonia.
• Security Council lauds Pacific Forum's bid to restore peace in Solomon Islands UN News Centre 26 Aug 2003 -- The members of the Security Council today lauded efforts by countries of the Pacific Islands Forum, especially Australia and New Zealand, for their efforts to restore peace in the Solomon Islands, scene of recent inter-island political and ethnic fighting, and called on all parties there to renounce the use of force to settle their differences.
• Top UN refugee official ends visit to central Africa, Angola UN News Centre 26 Aug 2003 -- The head of the United Nations refugee agency has ended his mission to Africa, hailing the achievements of the Angolan repatriation programme while making a strong appeal for more reconstruction in the country's heavily-damaged interior.
• SIERRA LEONE / SANKOH CORPSE VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The body of Foday Sankoh, the once-feared Sierra Leonean rebel group leader and indicted war criminal who died last month, has disappeared.
• SOMALIA: Faction leader "disappointed" by talks IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Prominent Mogadishu-based faction leader Usman Hasan Ali Ato has expressed disappointment over the conduct of the Somali peace talks currently underway in Nairobi.
• LIBERIA: Rebel advance in north forces thousands to flee IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Rebels in northern Liberia have recently advanced against government forces on two fronts near the town of Gbarnga, sending thousands of people fleeing on foot through driving rain towards the capital Monrovia.
• NIGERIA: Fighting between rival villages claims more lives in Delta IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Several people were killed at the weekend when gunmen in speed boats raided a village in Nigeria's volatile Niger Delta oil region, burning houses and firing weapons, residents and police said.
• ANGOLA: UNITA raises security, election concerns IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Angola's former rebel group UNITA has highlighted the holding of elections and the security of its members and offices as major issues to be raised with the government.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 26 Aug 2003 -- Resumption of ESDP debate expected / U.S. to train Iraqi police volunteers in Hungary / NATO peacekeepers ring home of Karadzic's daughter / Rebels kill two French peacekeepers in Ivory Coast
• Progress on Iran-Pak-India gas pipeline, says oil minister IRNA 26 Aug 2003 -- Pakistan`s Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Ch Nouraiz Shakoor on Tuesday announced progress on Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline.
• RWANDA / ELECTION VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Official results of Monday's presidential election in Rwanda are expected within the next few hours. But the National Electoral Commission has announced that the incumbent president, Paul Kagame, has won a landslide victory.
• BRAZIL / VENEZUELA VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Brazil's president has urged respect for the rule of law during a visit to Venezuela, where opposition political parties have been pressing for a national referendum on the continued rule of President Hugo Chavez.
• SOUTHERN AFRICA / SUMMIT VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- The annual summit of the Southern Africa Development Community has concluded in the Tanzanian capital, Dar es Salaam.
• BURMA CABINET VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Burma's military government has made major cabinet changes, including naming the head of military intelligence to the post of prime minister. But the full implications of the cabinet reorganization are unclear.
• RUSSIA/GUSINSKY VOA 26 Aug 2003 -- Russian prosecutors have begun the paperwork to officially request former media mogul Vladimir Gusinsky's extradition from Greece, where he was detained last week. Mr. Gusinsky is wanted in Russia on charges of wide-scale fraud and corruption, charges Mr. Gusinsky says are politically motivated.
• ZIMBABWE: Court date sets deadline for MDC-govt talks IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- The opposition Movement for Democratic Change has warned the government that time is running out for a negotiated settlement to the country's political crisis.
• DRC: Controversy surrounds certain military appointees IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Human rights activists have criticised the recent appointment of military officials alleged to have been involved in massacres in Kisangani, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), during hostilities that erupted in May 2002.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Arrest warrant issued for Patasse IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- The state prosecutor of Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), has issued an international warrant for the arrest of former President Ange-Felix Patasse, now in exile in Togo, state-controlled Radio Centrafrique reported on Monday.
• ATK Boosts NASA Infrared Telescope Mission Launched From Boeing Delta II Heavy Vehicle ATK 26 Aug 2003 -- ATK (Alliant Techsystems) (NYSE:ATK) provided the additional liftoff thrust necessary for a Boeing Delta II Heavy (7920) core vehicle to boost NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) into an Earth-trailing, solar orbit. Nine of ATK's GEM-46 strap on boosters were attached to the Delta II rocket to help power it into space.
• SOUTHERN AFRICA: SADC rallies around Zimbabwe IRIN 26 Aug 2003 -- Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries closed their 23rd annual summit on Tuesday united in their support for Zimbabwe and clear in their call for sanctions on the country to be lifted.