Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• New Training Site Brings Afghan Reality to Troops AFPS 14 Oct 2003 -- In the hidden back trails of Bagram Air Base stands an Afghan compound, made by hand out of mud by local citizens -- a training site used by Bagram troops to prepare for urban combat.
• NATO Peacekeepers Authorized by U.N. to Move Beyond Kabul Washington File 14 Oct 2003 -- The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously October 13 to expand the size and mandate of the international peacekeeping force in Afghanistan.
• U.N. Authorizes Expansion of Security Force Beyond Kabul Washington File 14 Oct 2003 -- The U.N. Security Council Resolution October 13 authorized the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan to expand its operations beyond Kabul
• Afghanistan: Kabul Welcomes UN Resolution On Expanded ISAF, But Many Questions Unanswered RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- The UN Security Council has unanimously approved a resolution that allows the expansion of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force beyond the Afghan province of Kabul. RFE/RL reports on the importance of the resolution in terms of disarming factional militias and paving the way for democratic elections next year.
• AFGHAN BATTLE VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Four Taleban fighters and one Afghan government soldier are dead in a major two-day battle in Afghanistan's southeast.
• NATO / AFGHANISTAN VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Officials at NATO headquarters in Brussels say the alliance will move only gradually to expand its peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan, despite receiving authorization from the U-N Security Council this week to extend its reach beyond the capital, Kabul. Europe
• AFGHANISTAN U-N TALEBAN VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- A top U-N official says Afghanistan is providing critical help in stopping the flow of funding to the al-Qaida terror network and the former Afghan Taleban regime. But those groups are still managing to find ways to finance themselves.
• Afghanistan: Officials Welcome UN Vote To Expand NATO Force RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- Afghan officials are welcoming a unanimous UN vote late yesterday that will expand the scope of a NATO-led security force beyond the capital Kabul and its surrounding province.
• Afghanistan: UN Approves Expanding Security Force Outside Kabul RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- The United Nations Security Council has voted unanimously to expand the scope of the NATO-led security force in Afghanistan.
• AFGHANISTAN: ISAF must expand to areas of insecurity, say experts IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- The decision by the United Nations Security Council to expand the International Security Force for Afghanistan (ISAF) beyond the confines of the capital, Kabul, has evoked cautious optimism among regional analysts who want to see the force address the country's most pressing security needs.
• Soldiers' Pump Project Helps Iraqi Farmers AFPS 14 Oct 2003 -- Thousands of gallons of water surged from a reservoir into an aqueduct Oct. 12 at the Al Jezeera Pump Station, the start of a long journey to serve more than 200,000 farmers throughout the arid plains of Northern Iraq.
• Back From R&R, Soldiers Ready for Another Round of OIF AFPS 14 Oct 2003 -- The first group of 265 soldiers to take advantage of the Defense Department's rest and recuperation leave program returned to the Operation Iraqi Freedom theater Oct. 13 after about 15 days of R&R leave.
• 9 U.S. Soldiers Die in 7 Separate Incidents in Iraq AFPS 14 Oct 2003 -- Nine U.S. service members have died since Oct. 9 in seven separate incidents in Iraq, U.S. Central Command officials said.
• IRAQ TODAY VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Yet another car bomb has taken lives and dampened hopes in Iraq. There are increasing attacks on U-S forces and cooperative Iraqis. Shiites, who suffered cruelly under Saddam Hussein, are growing more resentful of the U-S presence. Even so, President Bush and his supporters say progress is under way that is under-reported by the media.
• IRAQ / BLAST VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- A car bomb exploded outside the Turkish mission in Baghdad, killing he driver and injuring several people.
• Iraq: Suicide Bomber Attacks Turkish Embassy In Baghdad RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 --U.S. military officials say a suicide car bomber detonated his explosives while driving past the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad today, killing himself and injuring at least two Iraqi security guards.
• Iraq: Car Bomb Explodes At Turkish Embassy In Baghdad RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- A car bomb exploded outside the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad today, killing the suicide bomber and wounding at least two other people.
• 101st hands Syrian border control to Iraqis Army News Service 14 Oct 2003-- The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) handed control of the Syrian border to the coalition-trained Iraqi Border Guard in a ceremony Oct. 1 at one of the 22 renovated posts along the border.
• NEW POLICE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM ESTABLISHED BY V CORPS IS BAGHDAD'S 911 V Corps Release 14 Oct 2003-- With newly trained, freshly equipped Iraqi police, firefighting and ambulance services now operating here, Iraq has taken huge steps toward stability.

• Iwo Jima ARG Leaves Liberia, Rota Marines Stay Navy Newsstand 14 Oct 2003-- Three amphibious assault ships, USS Nashville (LPD 13), USS Carter Hall (LSD 50) and USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7), pulled into U.S. Naval Station Rota, Spain, after spending two months off the coast of Liberia, providing peacekeeping support in the Capital city of Monrovia.

Defense Policy / Programs

• PENTAGON/MUSLIMS VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- The Pentagon has stripped two Islamic groups of their previously exclusive roles as endorsers of Muslim chaplains for the U-S military.

• Navy Commissions New Guided Missile Destroyer Chafee 14 Oct 2003 -- The newest Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer, Chafee, will be commissioned Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003, during an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony in Newport, R.I.
• New seven ton bigger, better Marine Corps News 14 Oct 2003-- Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 motor transportation Marines received a new piece of gear in their inventory recently.
• NORAD Monitors U.S. Skies to Protect the Homeland AFPS 14 Oct 2003 -- On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, the staff at the North American Aerospace Defense Command was poised to identify a missile test or space launch anywhere in the world, or to tell exactly how many items of "space junk" were circling the globe.
• R&R ends for first wave of Soldiers Army News Service 14 Oct 2003-- After 15 days of home-cooked meals and visiting with family and friends, the first wave of Soldiers who participated in the "Rest and Recuperation" program have returning to Iraq.
• Soldiers prep in Kuwait for return to Iraq Army News Service 14 Oct 2003-- The first stop for Soldiers heading back to Iraq after enjoying their 15 days of R&R is Kuwait, where briefings help them deal with anxieties of returning to war and being separated from their family again.
• Kitty Hawk under way for sea trials 7th Fleet Release 14 Oct 2003-- After five months in port undergoing an intensive dry dock period, USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) Sailors prepared for their fall underway period, departing for sea trials Oct. 13, coincidentally, the Navy's 228th birthday.
• First Eagle Flag exercise begins AFPN 14 Oct 2003-- More than 150 expeditionary combat-support leaders from around the Air Force arrived here Oct. 13 for the inaugural Eagle Flag, the Air Force's newest flag-level exercise.
• 'Bird balls' preventing aircraft strikes AFPN 14 Oct 2003-- The base here is the first Air Force installation to use "bird balls" as part of a new program to prevent airfield bird strikes.

• Russia: Moscow Struggles To Clarify Stance On Preemptive Force RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov in recent days have made vague and sometimes conflicting statements on Russia's position on the use of preemptive strikes. The debate comes as the international community itself is struggling to define preemptive force.

• India, Singapore chalk roadmap in defense sector IRNA 14 Oct 2003 -- Chalking out a roadmap for greater bilateral cooperation in defense, India and Singapore on Monday initiated a comprehensive defense policy dialogue.

• Germany donates 200 million dollars to Israel to buy arms IRNA 14 Oct 2003 -- Germany has donated 200 million dollars to the criminal Israeli regime to buy sophisticated arms, while Berlin has also allowed the Jewish state to keep the German Patriot missile systems which were loaned to Tel Aviv before the Iraq war, the website Nahost Focus reported Tuesday.

• Securing Peace : NATO's Role in Crisis Management and Conflict Resolution NATO 14 Oct 2003 -- On October 16, 2003 NATO will hold a conference on Securing Peace: NATO's Role in Crisis Management and Conflict Resolution. This conference, under the patronage of Lord Robertson, the Secretary General of NATO, is organized by NATO's Public Diplomacy Division, NATO Parliamentary Assembly and the Geneva Center for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces.
• NATO SHIPS WILL VISIT CASABLANCA, MOROCCO NATO AFSOUTH 14 Oct 2003 -- NATO ships will visit Morocco from 16 to 19 October 2003 when 4 units from NATO's Standing Naval Force Mediterranean (STANAVFORMED) will be berthed in Casablanca. The visit will allow NATO to foster dialogue, co-operation and mutual understanding as part of the ongoing "Mediterranean Dialogue" Programme.

Defense Industry

• BAE SYSTEMS Creates Trans-Atlantic Inertial Products Unit To Serve Growing Military, Commercial Markets BAE Systems 14 Oct 2003 -- BAE Systems Platform Solutions today announced the creation of an Inertial Products business that combines formerly separate parts of the company that are engaged in the design and manufacture of gyroscopes and inertial measurement systems.
• CACI Awarded $128 Million in Previously Unannounced Contracts With National Security Clients in the Federal Government CACI 14 Oct 2003 -- CACI International Inc (NYSE:CAI) announced today that it has won approximately $128 million in new contracts with national security clients in the federal government. The awards call for CACI to provide managed network services, information assurance, systems engineering, and financial management support, among other solutions. All the contracts were awarded in CACI's first fiscal quarter, ending September 30, 2003.
• Northrop Grumman Completes New Facility for Advanced EHF Payload Integration and Test Northrop Grumman 14 Oct 2003 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) Space Technology sector has completed a Department of Defense-certified facility and begun integration and test of an engineering model payload for the department's next-generation Advanced Extremely High Frequency (EHF) communications satellite system.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT United Nations 14 Oct 2003
• Security Council debates Israeli barrier separating it from West Bank UN News Centre 14 Oct 2003 -- While acknowledging Israel's enduring suicide attacks, Security Council speakers today treated the building of a barrier between itself and the West Bank with some scepticism, saying the wall sometimes went over the 1949 armistice line into Israeli-occupied Palestinian land.
• U.S. Says Syria's Proposed Resolution on Mideast Will Not Promote Peace Washington File 14 Oct 2003 -- Rejecting a Syrian proposed Security Council resolution on the Israeli security fence in the occupied territories, U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte said October 14 that such a resolution does not further the goals of peace and security in the region.
• UN/Israel-Syria Resolution VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- The U-N Security Council is set to vote on a draft resolution condemning Israel's construction of a security barrier that runs through the West Bank. The United States is threatening to veto the measure.

• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Israeli troops and tanks have re-entered a refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip to shut down what Israeli authorities describe as tunnels used by Palestinian militants to smuggle in weapons from neighboring Egypt. Witnesses say at least six Palestinians have been injured during the operation.

• Kosovo: Talks Between Belgrade, Pristina Come Together At Last Moment In Vienna RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- Serbian and Kosovar Albanian leaders are meeting today in Vienna for the first time since the 1999 Kosovo war. The United Nations administration in Kosovo called for the meeting as a largely symbolic first step toward eventual reconciliation.
• UN/KOSOVO VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Serbian and ethnic-Albanian leaders met to discuss Kosovo for the first time since the 1999 war that led to N-A-T-O intervention ending Belgrade's repression in the province.

• 'This is your country and yours to rebuild,' Annan tells inauguration in Liberia UN News Centre 14 Oct 2003 -- The inauguration of the new National Transitional Government of Liberia marked a "turning point" for that country, but it also presented challenges, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today in a message to the handover ceremony in the capital Monrovia.
• LIBERIA - POL VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Liberia has installed a new transitional government designed to end nearly 15 years of continuous civil war.
• LIBERIA/POL VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- A transitional government is set to take power in Liberia (eds: appx 12 UTC) to prepare for elections in 2005.

• UN troops fan out in northeastern DR of Congo, deploy to site of massacre UN News Centre 14 Oct 2003 -- United Nations troops have begun to fan out from their base of Bunia in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) towards, among other objectives, the site of a recent massacre, a UN spokesman said today.
• UGANDA: Commonwealth boss says no intervention in war in north IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- Commonwealth Secretary General Don McKinnon has said it is not the organisation's place to intervene in Uganda’s civil war in the north unless requested to do so by the country itself or the UN.
• SOMALIA: Talks in Kenya "on course", says official IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- Organisers say the Somali peace talks underway in Kenya are on course, and contrary to reports, have not stalled.
• CONGO: ICRC launches relief efforts in Pool IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- Following three weeks of evaluation and preparation, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) began on Thursday a major relief effort in the Pool region of southeastern Republic of Congo, which was largely devastated by a year-long civil war.
• CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Bozize apologises to nation over war IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- Central African Republic leader Francois Bozize apologised to the nation on Tuesday for damages and suffering caused during the war he waged against President Ange-Felix Patasse between October 2002 and March 2003.

News Reports

• SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 14 Oct 2003 -- Security Council gives green light for NATO to expand Afghan peacekeeping mission outside Kabul / NATO chief: alliance unlikely to play role in Iraq / Divided EU agrees modest donation to Iraq / U.S. calls for vote this week on revised resolution setting Dec. 15 deadline for Iraqi Governing Council to come up with timetable Governing Council member says Iraq will stand with Syria if it is attacked / Iran said to hide nuclear site as UN deadline nears
• SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 14 Oct 2003 -- Daily: "NATO could change process for deploying troops" / Kabul welcomes UN approval of expansion of ISAF's mandate / NATO turns to PFP partners for help in stopping Afghan drug smuggling / Serbs, Kosovo Albanians sit down for first talks since war / Poland, other NATO states preparing to join U.S. missile defense plan / U.S. agrees to limit peacetime use of sonar to detect submarines

• PRESS BRIEFING BY SPECIAL ADVISER ON AFRICA United Nations 14 Oct 2003
• PRESS BRIEFING BY CHAIRMAN OF SECOND COMMITTEE United Nations 14 Oct 2003
• Rice Says U.S. Welcomes Others' Input on Iraq Resolution Washington File 14 Oct 2003 -- White House Report, October 14: Iraq resolution, Turkish troops, NSC role, Cuba, China policy, nominations
• U-S-Bolivia Unrest VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- The United States is urging Bolivians to support constitutional order and reject confrontation that could lead to more political violence in that country. The appeal followed violent protests against the government of President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada Monday that killed at least 14 people.
• AZERBAIJAN ELECTION VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Campaigning has come to a close in Azerbaijan, where eight candidates are vying to succeed ailing president Heydar Aliyev, in elections set for Wednesday. Analysts say there is little doubt that his son will win. Their big question is whether the voting will be free and fair.
• CZECH / COMMUNISTS VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- A former top Communist official is behind bars to begin serving a six-year jail term for his role in the 1968 Soviet-bloc invasion of what was then Czechoslovakia. Karel Hoffmann is the first former Communist leader to go to jail for actions connected to the invasion.
• IRAN/EBADI VOA 14 Oct 2003 -- Iran's president has warned Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi to consider Iranian interests as she attracts increased international attention. Ms. Ebadi's is returning to Iran for the first time since the prize was announced last week.
• MAURITANIA: Five cleared to challenge Ould Taya for the presidency IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- The Constitutional Court of Mauritania has given the green light for five opposition candidates to challenge President Maaouiya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya in elections due on 7 November. They include former military head of state Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla, who was overthrown by Ould Taya in a coup 19 years ago.
• MOZAMBIQUE: Election process is being questioned IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- The run-up to Mozambique's municipal elections, scheduled for 19 November, has been plagued by problems relating to the registration of candidates and the establishment of a statutory body to supervise the conduct of the polls.
• ZIMBABWE: Commonwealth united in concern - McKinnon IRIN 14 Oct 2003 -- The secretary-general of the Commonwealth, Don McKinnon, has denied that there is a rift within the 54-country body over how to deal with the Zimbabwe crisis.
• Lockheed Martin's Orbital Space Plane Team Now Includes Orbital Sciences Corporation Lockheed Martin 14 Oct 2003 -- Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) announced today that Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) will join the Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman team that is competing for full-scale development of NASA's Orbital Space Plane (OSP). Lockheed Martin will lead the team as the system prime contractor. Northrop Grumman's role will be as principal teammate while Orbital Sciences Corporation will serve as teammate and subcontractor. NASA is expected to choose a prime contractor team by August 2004 for full-scale development of an OSP.
• LOCKHEED MARTIN'S ORBITAL SPACE PLANE TEAM NOW INCLUDES ORBITAL SCIENCES CORPORATION Orbital Sciences Corp. 14 Oct 2003 -- Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) announced today that Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) will join the Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman team that is competing for full-scale development of NASA's Orbital Space Plane (OSP). Lockheed Martin will lead the team as the system prime contractor. Northrop Grumman's role will be as principal teammate while Orbital Sciences Corporation will serve as teammate and subcontractor.