UNITED24 - Make a charitable donation in support of Ukraine!

Military


05 November 2003 Military News

Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

  • Raids Net Iraqi Generals in Fallujah AFPS 05 Nov 2003 -- U.S. service members captured two Iraqi generals suspected of being the money behind terrorist activities in Fallujah, Combined Joint Task Force 7 officials said today.
  • PENTAGON/IRAQ TROOPS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- The U-S military is preparing to announce a call-up of replacement forces for Iraq including a return of U-S Marines and reservists. The decision comes amid increasingly sophisticated attacks on coalition forces there and no sign that other countries are ready to contribute more troops of their own.
  • U-S MILITARY/IRAQ VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- U-S military officials have been trying to reassure skeptical members of Congress about the military situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Lawmakers continue to question whether there are sufficient numbers of troops in Iraq, and what commanders are doing to develop Iraqi forces to take over some of the load now shouldered by American troops.
  • BRITAIN / IRAQ VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Britain has announced the death of another serviceman in Iraq, but Prime Minister Tony Blair says there is progress toward restoring normalcy there, despite increasing violence.

  • Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron deploy to Djibouti Marine Corps News 05 Nov 2003-- Marines from Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., recently replaced the Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461 here providing helicopter support throughout the Horn of Africa.

  • Airmen arrive for AEF Silver AFPN 05 Nov 2003-- About 20 airmen from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., arrived here on a C-130 Hercules as part of Air Expeditionary Force Silver. They are assigned to the 354th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron.
  • Security Council mission urges factional leaders to support Afghan government UN News Centre 05 Nov 2003 -- The Security Council delegation visiting Afghanistan urged factional leaders today to give their full support to reforms made by the country's central government.
  • Afghanistan: Powers Outlined In Draft Constitution Stirring Debate RFE/RL 05 Nov 2003 -- The release of Afghanistan's draft constitution is stirring debate both within and outside the country. Some of the key issues include the stronger-than-expected presidential powers enshrined in the document and the lack of specific powers for an independent commission to deal with violations of human rights.
  • EDITORIAL: AFGHANISTAN DRAFTS A CONSTITUTION VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- On November 3rd, the Afghanistan Constitutional Commission and Afghan government released a draft constitution for a new post-Taleban permanent government. This document is the product of consultation and dialogue among Afghans of many ethnic groups. It marks an important milestone in Afghanistan's political development.
  • US jets violate Pak airspace, bomb border areas, Jang IRNA 05 Nov 2003 -- US fighter planes violated Pakistan`s airspace and bombed border areas, reported a local newspaper here on Wednesday.
  • Afghanistan: UN Security Council Visits Troubled Northern City RFE/RL 05 Nov 2003 -- A UN Security Council delegation yesterday had meetings with leading political and diplomatic figures in the Afghan capital Kabul.
  • AFGHANISTAN U-N VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Two rival Afghan commanders are renewing promises to end their feuding after meeting with a delegation from the U-N Security Council.

Defense Policy / Programs

  • Washington Guard's 81st Armor Brigade alerted for mobilization Army News Service 05 Nov 2003-- The Army has mobilized a third National Guard combat brigade for duty in Iraq Oct. 30.
  • 1/25 guards train with 24/7 security Marine Corps News 05 Nov 2003-- "We sleep safely at night only because rough men stand ready to visit violence on those who would harm us." Although this is merely a quote on shirts sold by the Filipino locals, the reality of the situation described is one lived daily by those of the Marine Security Element here.
  • 'Lava Dogs' bid farewell to Oki, end overseas tour Marine Corps News 05 Nov 2003-- More than 900 Marines and Sailors from 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment will detach from their current position with 4th Marine Regiment and return to Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii as they finish up their Unit Deployment Program tour Nov. 10-17.
  • Group Marines support offload in Korea Marine Corps News 05 Nov 2003-- More than 300 Marines from Okinawa have supported an operation at Republic of Korea Naval Port Chinhae to transfer equipment from one ship to another since Oct. 27.
  • 22d MEU begins latest pre-deployment exercise Marine Corps News 05 Nov 2003-- The residents of Columbia, S.C. and surrounding communities have grown accustomed to the dark green helicopters and 'hoo-ahs' originating from the Army's nearby Fort Jackson.
  • CONGRESS / RUMSFELD VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- A prominent Democrat in the House of Representatives is calling for the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Charles Rangel, a strong supporter of the U-S military, accuses Mr. Rumsfeld of defending miscalculations in military strategy in Iraq.
  • Chu Outlines Challenges in Management of Reserve Forces AFPS 05 Nov 2003 -- Recruiting and retention has "held up nicely despite stress on the force as a whole," Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness David Chu told members of the House Armed Services Committee here today.

  • UK breaches own guides by selling arms to Israel KCNA 05 Nov 2003 -- Large amounts of British arms and internal security equipment are continuing to be sold to Israel in breach of the UK government`s own guidelines, it was reported Wednesday.

Defense Industry

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 05 Nov 2003

  • UN: Panel To Study Improving UN Response To Global Security Threats RFE/RL 05 Nov 2003 -- UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has formed a panel of high-level officials from every continent to examine how to make the UN system more effective in countering global security threats. Annan had pledged to study collective security reforms after raising concern at the UN General Assembly in September about the use of preemptive military action by the U.S. in Iraq.

  • Minikes: U.S. Supports Completion Strategy for War Crimes Tribunal Washington File 05 Nov 2003 -- The United States strongly supports the Completion Strategy for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), under which all war crimes investigations would be completed by 2004, all first instance trials by 2008, and all work by the end of 2010, said U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE Stephan Minikes.

  • U.S. Reaffirms Strong Support for Peace Process in Sri Lanka Washington File 05 Nov 2003 -- President Bush, in a meeting with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in the Oval Office November 5, "expressed his strong support for the prime minister's leadership and his commitment to peace," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters shortly after the meeting.
  • BUSH / SRI LANKA VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Sri Lanka's prime minister is downplaying the political crisis in his country, saying the peace process with Tamil rebels will continue. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe met at the White House with President Bush where he got words of support from the United States.
  • SRI LANKA POL VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Sri Lanka's president has declared a state of emergency after effectively suspending the government, which has been pursuing peace with Tamil rebels. The president says the truce will not be affected, but the political crisis in the country is deepening.

  • ISRAEL / LEBANON PRISONERS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he'll ask for cabinet approval for a prisoner exchange between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah guerrilla group. There is no indication whether a deal has been finalized, but the announcement follows months of negotiations.
  • ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Israel has lifted military blockades against most West Bank cities in a bid to ease the humanitarian plight of Palestinians. Israeli officials said the decision is also a goodwill gesture toward Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, who is trying to form a new government.

  • UN protests DR of Congo impediments to air crash investigation UN News Centre 05 Nov 2003 -- The United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has "strongly protested" to the transitional government for allegedly blocking its efforts to check out reports that an airplane that crashed in Katanga Province had been carrying weapons, which would be in contravention of the arms embargo imposed against the African country.
  • BUSH / CONGO VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- President Bush says the United States will continue to help meet humanitarian needs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mr. Bush met with Congo's president to discuss the search for political stability after years of fighting in central Africa.
  • DRC: MONUC accuses Kinshasa of blocking plane crash inquiry IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- The UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known as MONUC, has accused the government of blocking an inquiry into the crash landing of a cargo plane believed to have been transporting illegal arms to groups in South Kivu Province in the east of the country.

  • Eritrea and Ethiopia pledge to prevent further border area shootings - UN mission UN News Centre 05 Nov 2003 -- Eritrea and Ethiopia today gave assurances to the United Nations that they would cooperate to avoid a reoccurrence of last weekend's deadly border area shooting, according to a report from the UN mission to both countries, known as UNMEE.
  • Annan tells Security Council he will extend mandate of envoy for Somalia UN News Centre 05 Nov 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has told the Security Council of his intention to extend the expiring mandate of his Representative for Somalia, Winston Tubman, until the end of next year.
  • E-U/TURKEY REACT VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Turkey's foreign minister says his country will make a strong push to end the decades-long dispute over Cyprus, before the island joins the European Union next May. But the foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, insisted that resolving the Cyprus dispute should not be a precondition for Turkey's membership in the European Union.
  • KASHMIR PEACE TALKS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Indian government plans to send a senior official to Kashmir to talk with Muslim separatists for the first time has raised hopes of progress toward peace in the disputed region.
  • BURUNDI/PEACE VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Burundi's second-largest rebel group, the National Liberation Forces, has rejected a peace agreement between the government and another rebel organization. This could lead to renewed violence in Burundi.
  • IVORY COAST / POL VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- The former ruling party in Ivory Coast is threatening to withdraw from the reconciliation government, accusing President Laurent Gbagbo of human-rights violations. The threat comes as northern-based rebels are refusing to take back their seats in the government.
  • LIBERIA: Klein urges new government to abolish army IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- Jacques Klein, the head of the United Nations mission in Liberia, urged the country's transitional government on Wednesday to abolish the national army, saying soldiers only "play cards and plot coups."
  • MALAWI-RWANDA: Kigali, Lilongwe sign repatriation agreement IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- The Rwandan and Malawian governments as well as the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) signed a tripartite agreement on Tuesday to repatriate close to 5,500 refugees who fled the central African nation at the height of the 1994 genocide.
  • SUDAN: Gov't, Darfur rebels extend ceasefire for one month IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- The government of Sudan and the rebel group operating in Darfur, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), extended a ceasefire agreement for one month on Tuesday in the Chadian town of Abeche.
  • ZAMBIA: Rains delays repatriation of refugees to Angola IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- The office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is suspending the repatriation of refugees from Zambia to Angola from next Tuesday until the rainy season ends in May, UNHCR spokesman in Zambia, Kelvin Shimo, told IRIN on Wednesday.
  • GUINEA-LIBERIA: Rights group says Guinea flouted UN arms embargo IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday accused Guinea of violating a United Nations arms embargo on Liberia by supplying weapons to Liberian rebels who launched intensive attacks on the capital, Monrovia, in July.

News Reports

  • SHAPE News Morning Update SHAPE 05 Nov 2003 -- Finnish PM dampens talk of quick NATO decision / Turks indicate no troops for Iraq / Kosovo final status talks possible mid-2005 / Norway agrees to send troops to Afghanistan / Latvia turns on radar that can track planes inside Russia
  • SHAPE News Summary & Analysis SHAPE 05 Nov 2003 -- Experts warn NATO's military ambitions will be costly / Belgian daily: Washington has started reflection on troop basing in Europe / Bill Clinton: NATO should lead Iraq operation under UN mandat / Britain renews opposition to EU defense headquarters / Daily denounces drug-trafficking in Afghanistan as serious threat to transition to democracy

  • State Department Noon Briefing, November 5, 2003 Washington File 05 Nov 2003 -- North Korea, Iraq, Russia, Israel/Palestinians, Greece, Cyprus, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Spain

  • Peacekeeping Issues Among Highest U.N. Priorities, Holliday Says Washington File 05 Nov 2003 -- In the post-September 11 world, neither the United States nor the international community "can afford failed states. There is no question that the world needs effective and focused peacekeeping now more than ever," says Stuart Holliday, who has been nominated by President Bush to be Alternate Representative to the United Nations for Special Political Affairs.
  • CHIANG / MEMORIAL VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Mourners packed a New York church to pay their last respects to Taiwan's former first lady Madame Chiang Kai-shek, once one of the world's most powerful women.
  • E-U / ENLARGEMENT VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- The European Union executive body has given the green light to 10 countries that are slated to join the bloc next year, but has warned them that they must address serious shortcomings before they become members.
  • SAUDI / REFORMS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Saudi Arabia says it will continue carrying out political reforms, but will not import Western-style democracy.
  • UKRAINE / BORDER VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Ukraine and Russia are trying to settle a long-standing border dispute concerning a strategic waterway near the Crimea Peninsula in the Black Sea.
  • CAMBODIA / POL VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Cambodia's major political parties have agreed to form a coalition government, and accept the Cambodian People's Party choice as the next prime minister, ending months of discord. Party leaders expect the incumbent prime minister, Hun Sen, will remain in office.
  • GEORGIA VOTE VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- With nearly two-thirds of the votes counted, Georgia's pro-government bloc, For a New Georgia, is maintaining a slim lead in Sunday's parliamentary election. Opposition supporters are protesting the results, accusing the government of cheating.
  • PHILIPPINES IMPEACHMENT VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Philippine President Gloria Arroyo has moved to break a week-long stalemate between the Supreme Court and Congress, which has brought demonstrations to the streets of Manila and put the armed forces on alert. The deadlock has raised the specter of a political crisis six months before presidential elections.
  • KENYA / CORRUPTION VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- An anti-corruption research center in Nairobi urges the Kenyan government to publish the financial disclosure statements of all civil servants. Kenya's president has given the civil servants until mid-November to disclose their wealth.
  • MAURITANIA / ELECTIONS VOA 05 Nov 2003 -- Supporters of opposition candidates in Mauritania's presidential election have marked the end of the electoral campaign by clashing with police.The campaign was also marred by accusations of harassment of leading opposition candidate Mohamed Ould Haidallah.
  • COTE D'IVOIRE: Main opposition party threatens to withdraw from government IRIN 05 Nov 2003 -- The main opposition Democratic Party of Cote d'Ivoire (PDCI) has threatened to pull out of the government of national reconciliation established in January under the French-brokered Marcoussis peace accords.



NEWSLETTER
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list