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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 05 Dec 2005 [PDF]
• TASK FORCE BAGHDAD SOLDIER KILLED
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

• Task Force Baghdad Soldiers find two weapons caches MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Soldiers from 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division discovered two significant weapons caches Dec. 2, adding them to the growing list of terrorist stockpiles they've found in south Baghdad.
• Citizen's tip yields weapons cache, two terror suspects MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- A tip from a local citizen resulted in the capture of two terror suspects and the discovery of a large weapons cache in western Rashid Dec. 3.
• U.S. Army officials meet with local sheiks MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Task Force Baghdad officials met with local sheiks Nov. 28 to discuss developments in south Baghdad.
• 24 terror suspects taken off streets of Baghdad MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Launching operations based on tips from Iraqi citizens and intelligence developed over time, Task Force Baghdad Soldiers captured 24 terror suspects in the Al Rasheed district during a 12-hour period Dec. 3-4.
• Operation Rams kicks off in Ramadi MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Approximately 100 Iraqi Army Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Division and 400 Soldiers from the 2/28 Brigade Combat Team, launched Operation Rams (Tallie) in Ramadi Dec. 4.
• CENTAF releases airpower summary AFPN 05 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials released today's airpower summary.
• Red Horse builds it all at Q-West AFPN 05 Dec 2005 -- The sounds of hammers smashing nails and the buzzing of saws cutting wood, typically resonate through this forward Army outpost -- simply knows as Q-West.
• Roadside Bomb Kills Soldier; Ops Nab Fighters, Weapons AFPS 05 Dec 2005 -- A Task Force Baghdad soldier was killed Dec. 4 when his patrol struck an improvised explosive device in eastern Baghdad, officials reported today.
• 52 suspected terrorists snared; Kirkuk cache demolished Army News 05 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi and U.S. forces captured more than 50 suspected terrorists in operations in northern and central Iraq Dec. 1, 2.
• Weapons seized in cache discoveries MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Five weapons caches were discovered over the weekend by Iraqi and U.S. troops throughout north-central Iraq.
• IEDs discovered, five suspects detained MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Five suspected terrorists were detained Dec. 4 after Iraqi Police and U.S. troops found an IED near Bayji and a cache of IEDs near Kirkuk.
• Operation Rams continues MNF-I 05 Dec 2005 -- Approximately 100 Iraqi Army Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Division and 400 Soldiers from the 2/28 Brigade Combat Team, continued Operation Rams (Tallie) in Ramadi today.

• THREE U.S. SOLDIERS INJURED BY IED NEAR DEH CHOPAN CENTCOM 05 Dec 2005 -- Three U.S. soldiers were injured yesterday when an improvised explosive device detonated as their convoy conducted combat operations southwest of Deh Chopan.
• UPDATE: CH-47 HARD LANDINGS CENTCOM 05 Dec 2005 -- Initial indications reveal that enemy fire caused two CH-47 Chinook helicopters involved in offensive operations in southern Afghanistan to make hard landings Sunday.
• Enemy Fire Caused Hard Landings of Two U.S. Helicopters AFPS 05 Dec 2005 -- Initial reports indicate that hostile fire caused two CH-47 Chinook helicopters to make hard landings Dec. 4 in southern Afghanistan, officials reported today.
• Engineers keep Kandahar airfield in the fight AFPN 05 Dec 2005 -- Since arriving to support Operation Enduring Freedom, Air Force civil engineers here have been vital in keeping air operations on track.

• Air Cavalry troops returning from Pakistan Army News 05 Dec 2005 -- Members of Task Force Quake from the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, return to their Fort Hood home this weekend following a six-week deployment to Pakistan providing humanitarian assistance to earthquake victims.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Rumsfeld Appoints Retired Four-Star to Lead IED Effort 05 Dec 2005 -- The Department of Defense announced today that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has asked retired U.S. Army Gen. Montgomery Meigs to spearhead an expanded DoD program to counter the threat of improvised explosive devices against U.S. and coalition forces.
• Evaluators put 'Js' put through the paces AFPN 05 Dec 2005 -- Active duty, Reserve and Guard C-130Js put the aircraft through its wartime paces here during a joint training exercise.
• Official Debunks Myths About Military Recruits AFPS 05 Dec 2005 -- Recruits entering the military are head and shoulders above their contemporaries, and myths that imply otherwise reflect the Vietnam era, not today, a top Pentagon official told the American Forces Press Service.
• Big boost to battlefield operations Army News 05 Dec 2005 -- While the booming sounds of a 120mm tank main gun firing on Cedar Creek Range were familiar, the type of tank round being fired was very unique.
• CTF 150 Welcomes Expeditionary Strike Group 8 Navy NewsStand 05 Dec 2005 -- French Vice Adm. Jacques Mazars, commander, Task Force (CTF) 150, paid a visit to the Sailors and Marines of Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 8 Nov. 29 during the strike group's transit through CTF 150's area of operations.
• Joint Expeditionary Tactical Trainer Comes Online Navy NewsStand 05 Dec 2005 -- The Joint Expeditionary Tactical Trainer (JETT), a new facility at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek which houses the Multi-Purpose Supporting Arms Trainer (MSAT), an immersive simulation system, was brought online in an opening ceremony Nov. 17.

• Russia Defends Missile Sale To Iran RFE/RL 05 Dec 2005 -- Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov today defended his country's decision to provide Iran with sophisticated missile defense systems.

• U.S. Rejects Russian Attacks On OSCE RFE/RL 05 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns rejected today Russian attacks on the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE) election observers, saying they were the "gold standard worldwide in election monitoring."

• White House Briefing, December 5 Washington File 05 Dec 2005 -- White House press secretary Scott McClellan briefed the press December 5 on Air Force One en route to Greensboro, North Carolina.
• State Department Briefing, December 5 Washington File 05 Dec 2005 -- Europe, Reports that Abu Hamza Rabia has been killed, Greece, Russia/Iran, China/Hong Kong, Israel/Palestinians, Venezuela, Taiwan, North Korea/South Korea, Asia, Africa/China, Kazakhstan, Albania

Defense Industry

• Tiger HAD contract for France and Spain signed in Bonn EADS 05 Dec 2005 -- A formal contract concerning an HAD version of world-leading helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter’s TIGER was signed on November 30th in Bonn between Eurocopter TIGER and OCCAR (Organisation Conjointe de Coopération en Matière d'Armement), a European organization for armament cooperation.
• General Dynamics-Lockheed Martin Team Demonstrates Army’s WIN-T Tactical Warfighter Network General Dynamics 05 Dec 2005 -- The Army recently concluded initial Development and Operational Tests (DT/OT) of the broadband, on-the-move enterprise network system called the Warfighter Information Network-Tactical (WIN-T), developed by General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT). Completion of DT/OT, using real (not simulated) hardware and software at Ft. Huachuca, Ariz., marks a major milestone in the WIN-T program.
• General Dynamics Awarded $6 Million to Design Remotely Operated Variant of XM307 Advanced Crew Served Weapon General Dynamics 05 Dec 2005 -- General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has received a $6 million contract modification from the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (Picatinny Arsenal, N.J.) for the design and development of a remotely operated variant of the XM307 Advanced Crew-Served Weapon (ACSW) system. This award funds work through June 2006, and brings the total cumulative value of the ACSW System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract to $108 million.
• LOCKHEED MARTIN TO PROVIDE COMBAT SYSTEM DESIGN AND INTEGRATION FOR EGYPTIAN FAST MISSILE PATROL CRAFT Lockheed Martin 05 Dec 2005 -- VT Halter Marine has awarded Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) a $14.3 million contract for the initial phase of the command, control, communication, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) combat system design and integration for three Egyptian Navy Fast Missile Patrol Craft (FMC) vessels.
• Pratt & Whitney Completes First Flight Test F135 Engine For Joint Strike Fighter Pratt & Whitney 05 Dec 2005 -- Pratt & Whitney's F135 team has completed the engine that will power the first flight of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The milestone, marked with the turning of a ceremonial last bolt today, was celebrated at Pratt & Whitney's Engine Center in Middletown, Conn.
• Raytheon's APG-79 AESA Radar for the F/A-18 Super Hornet Sets a New Standard as it Delivers Multiple JDAMs Simultaneously on Target Raytheon 05 Dec 2005 -- The revolutionary APG-79 AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar developed by Raytheon Company's Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) has scored another first. The system successfully delivered multiple JDAMs (Joint Direct Attack Munition) using real-time targeting coordinates derived from a high resolution SAR (synthetic aperture radar) image during recent testing at the U.S. Navy's China Lake facility.
• Raytheon Awarded Two Contracts Valued at $15.7 Million to Support AEGIS Equipment Raytheon 05 Dec 2005 -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has been awarded two sole source contracts by the U.S. Navy totaling $15.7 million for AEGIS equipment support.
• Second Boeing X-50A Dragonfly Canard Rotor/Wing Prototype Completes Hover Flight Boeing 05 Dec 2005 -- The Boeing Company's [NYSE: BA] second canard rotor/wing (CRW) technology demonstrator - the X-50A Dragonfly unmanned air vehicle - has successfully completed a four-minute hover flight at the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Ground in southwest Arizona. The aircraft reached an altitude of about 20 feet above ground.
• Eurocopter succeeds with EC 225 in open Japanese competition EADS 05 Dec 2005 -- Eurocopter, leading the world market for helicopters, won an open competition in Japan, to equip the Japanese coast guard with two EC 225 helicopters. Being a well-proven, powerful system in the 11 metric ton class with a renowned price/performance ratio, Eurocopter’s EC 225, the latest member of the Super Puma family, proved to be best suited for the mission requirements of Japanese authorities.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT United Nations 05 Dec 2005
• Annan welcomes appointment of new prime minister of Côte d'Ivoire UN News Centre 05 Dec 2005 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today hailed the appointment of Charles Konan Banny as the new Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire, a key step in the political transition aimed at ending years of unrest in the divided country.
• COTE D IVOIRE: Fresh peace hopes as top banker designated interim prime minister IRIN 05 Dec 2005 -- The designation by African mediators of Charles Konan Banny, governor of West Africa's central bank, as interim prime minister of war-divided Cote d'Ivoire won strong endorsement from parties to the conflict on Monday, raising a new glimmer of hope for peace.
• International Working Group Seeks Key Role in Ivory Coast VOA 05 Dec 2005 -- While naming a transitional prime minister for divided Ivory Coast, late Sunday, African mediators also stressed the importance of the international working group that will assist him in making sure disarmament and elections take place within the next 11 months.

• NIGERIA: Slowdown as Biafra separatists call strike IRIN 05 Dec 2005 -- Shops, schools and banks were shut in many parts of southeast Nigeria on Monday, the first day of a two-day strike called by a separatist group refusing to abandon its long fight for an independent state.
• Suicide Bombing in Israel Kills 5 VOA 05 Dec 2005 -- Israel has approved a series of military actions against Palestinian extremists linked to Monday's suicide bombing at an Israeli shopping mall that killed five people.
• Rising Violence in Sri Lanka Worries Cease-fire Monitors VOA 05 Dec 2005 -- In Sri Lanka, Norwegian peace process monitors have expressed concern that rising violence in the northeast of the country could irreparably damage a 2002 cease-fire.

News Reports

• UN Questions Syrian Officials in Hariri Case VOA 05 Dec 2005 -- United Nations investigators have begun questioning top Syrian officials about the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

• Georgian Man Accused Of Attack On Bush Refuses To Testify RFE/RL 05 Dec 2005 -- A man accused of throwing a hand grenade at the presidents of the United States and Georgia in May 2005 today appeared before a Georgian court.

• Alcatel Alenia Space wins new satellite contract Chinasat 6B from ChinaSatcom Thales 05 Dec 2005 -- Alcatel Alenia Space announced today that it has signed a contract with ChinaSatcom (China Satellite Communication Corporation) to design and manufacture the new-generation Chinasat 6B communication and broadcast satellite. Dedicated to television broadcasting, this satellite will enable ChinaSatcom to expand its services in China. After Chinasat 9 in 2004, this is the second contract signed with ChinaSatcom and the fourth satellite contract signed with a Chinese operator, making Alcatel Alenia Space a leading supplier of satellites to China.