Operations
Defense Policy
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• HELICOPTER CRASHES IN NORTHERN IRAQ CENTCOM 09 Jan 2006 -- A coalition helicopter crashed in a sparsely populated area 12 kilometers east of Tal Afar shortly before midnight killing the passengers and crew.
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Army Casualties

• Australia's Downer Rules Out Early Exit From Iraq VOA 09 Jan 2006 -- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in Washington Monday his government has no plans for an early troop withdrawal from Iraq despite mounting domestic criticism. Downer met with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who expressed U.S. gratitude for the Australian role in the Iraq coalition.
• CENTAF releases combined daily air power summary AFPN 09 Jan 2006 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials have released today's combined air power summary.
• Iraqi Police Find Explosive Device; Suspected Terrorists Detained AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- U.S. military officials in Iraq say four civilians were killed in a Jan. 7 helicopter crash along with eight U.S. military members aboard, a senior official said here today.
• Artillery Soldiers Adapt to Infantry Role in Iraq AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- Fighting the war in Iraq has transformed artillerymen into light infantrymen, a job filled with cordon-and-search operations, motorized convoys and dismounted patrols.
• Suicide Attack Foiled, Hostage Rescued, Weapons Seized AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- Iraqi police pre-empted two suicide bombers today, a French hostage was rescued over the weekend, and an Iraqi citizen led soldiers to a weapons cache yesterday, military officials in Baghdad reported.
• Iraqi and Ironhorse Soldiers rescue French hostage Army News 09 Jan 2006 -- Soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division and Task Force Ironhorse Soldiers liberated a French hostage Jan. 7 in the Abu Ghraib area of western Baghdad.
• Rakkasans take control in Tikrit Army News 09 Jan 2006 -- The 101st Airborne Division's "Rakkasan" brigade assumed control of operations in the Salah Ad Din Province in a ceremony Jan. 5 at Forwarding Operating Base Speicher as Soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division prepared to head home.
• 'Ironhorse' Division assumes responsibility for Baghdad Army News 09 Jan 2006 -- As Iraqi Army and coalition partners looked on, the 3rd Infantry Division transferred authority of Multi-National Division-Baghdad to the 4th Infantry Division in a ceremony Jan. 7.

• Afghan Soldiers Learn to Maintain Medium Tactical Vehicles AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- The Afghan National Army met another milestone recently when 19 soldiers graduated from the medium tactical vehicle familiarization course held at the German maintenance facility.
• Pakistan protests coalition forces firing that killed eight people IRNA 09 Jan 2006 -- Pakistan has lodged a strong protest with coalition forces in Afghanistan over the killing of eight people in the country's tribal North Waziristan region in firing from Afghanistan.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Lincoln Ready for Anything During Surge Sustainment Training Navy NewsStand 09 Jan 2006 -- USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) left its homeport of Everett, Wash., and began transiting south toward San Diego for a scheduled underway period Jan. 5.
• Littoral Combat Ship Mission Package Integration Contract Awarded to Northrop Grumman Navy NewsStand 09 Jan 2006 -- The Navy has awarded a 10-year, cost plus award fee/award term contract with a potential dollar figure of $159 million to Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Bethpage, N.Y. Jan. 4, for the mission package integrator (MPI) for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Mission Modules program, strengthening the production team that will deliver the first mission packages in Fiscal Year (FY) '07. The FY '06 portion of the contract award is $4,477,824.
• Thomas Betro Named Director of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service 09 Jan 2006 -- Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter today named Special Agent Thomas A. Betro as director of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) succeeding former Director David L. Brant, who retired in December.
• Air mobility operations Airmen keep cargo aircraft moving AFPN 09 Jan 2006 -- Airmen deployed to the Detachment 5, 721st Air Mobility Operations Group, traveled thousands of miles to help the Air Force enable the global aspect of "global vigilance, reach and power."
• Air Force improving production with Smart Operations 21 AFPN 09 Jan 2006 -- The Air Force used the best parts of several civilian efficiency programs to develop an Air Force-unique process-improvement program called "Smart Operations 21," Secretary of the Air Force Michael W. Wynne said.
• Leaner processes working at Kirtland AFPN 09 Jan 2006 -- The Air Force is becoming leaner without the help of fad diets or abs-crunching exercise regiments.
• Top Commanders, Pentagon Chiefs Discuss QDR, Other Issues AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- Senior U.S. military commanders from around the world are in Washington this week for meetings with Pentagon officials to discuss the upcoming Quadrennial Defense Review and other issues, a senior Defense Department spokesman said here today.
• 2006 DoD Authorization Act Promotes Recruiting, Retention AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- The 2006 National Defense Authorization Act signed into law Jan. 6 provides a variety of military pays, benefits and incentives designed to boost recruiting and retention in the military, including a new $40,000 ceiling for enlistment bonuses and a $90,000 ceiling for re-enlistment bonuses.
• 2006 Defense Budget Increases Military Pay, Benefits AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- President Bush ushered in an across-the-board 3.1 percent military pay raise, effective Jan. 1, and a variety of other new or enhanced benefits for servicemembers and their families when he signed the 2006 National Defense Authorization Bill into law Jan. 6.
• Guard, Reserve Benefit From 2006 Defense Authorization AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- The 2006 National Defense Authorization Act signed into law Jan. 6 provides new or enhanced benefits in addition to a 3.1 percent pay raise for National Guard and Reserve members, a senior defense official said.
• Military Commissions Proceedings to Resume This Week at Guantanamo Bay AFPS 09 Jan 2006 -- Military commissions proceedings resume this week as officials here hold preliminary hearings in the cases of two enemy combatants held here since 2002.
• Army to Initiate Separation Actions on IRR Soldiers Who Disobeyed Mobilization Orders Army News Release 09 Jan 2006 -- Today the Army announced that it will begin initiating separation proceedings for approximately 80 Soldiers in the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) who failed to report for duty in accordance with their mobilization orders.

• White House Briefing, January 9 Washington File 09 Jan 2006 -- Iraq, Vice President Cheney, Supreme Court, Congressman DeLay, Puerto Rico, Israel, North Korea
• State Department Briefing, January 9 Washington File 09 Jan 2006 -- North Korea, Israel/Palestinian Authority, Ethiopia/Eritrea, Iran, Australia, Iraq, Switzerland, Nepal, Germany

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts 09 Jan 2006
• BAE Systems receives $20 million long-lead materials delivery order for the reset of Bradley Combat System vehicles BAE Systems 09 Jan 2006 -- BAE Systems has been awarded a $20 million delivery order by the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command to purchase long-lead materials for the anticipated follow-on contract to reset Bradley Combat System vehicles.
• New Future Combat Systems Program Office Opening in El Paso, Texas Expected to Boost Jobs and Economy in Region Boeing 09 Jan 2006 -- Boeing (NYSE: BA) and partner Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), functioning as the Lead Systems Integrator (LSI) for the U.S. Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program, today announced the establishment of a new FCS regional office in El Paso, Texas. Slated to open in February 2006, the office will be an integral part of the Army's Evaluation Brigade Combat Team, which will be co-led by the Army's Training and Doctrine Command and FCS Program Management Office, and will transition to neighboring Fort Bliss, Texas, beginning in 2007.
• General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems Awarded $6.7 Million for Middleware Sensor Integration General Dynamics 09 Jan 2006 -- General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has received an initial $6.7 million award under a new indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for Middleware Sensor Integration. This contract allows orders to be placed for open architecture, commercial off-the-shelf processing, communication and networking solutions for Navy sensor, weapon and combat systems.
• General Dynamics Completes Conversion of USS Ohio, First of Four Transformational Submarines for the U.S. Navy General Dynamics 09 Jan 2006 -- General Dynamics Electric Boat has completed its conversion of USS Ohio (SSGN-726), the first of four Trident submarines to be reconfigured as multimission vessels optimized for covert tactical strike and special operations support.
• Lockheed Martin/NetFires LLC Successfully Tests Loitering Attack Missile Warhead Lockheed Martin 09 Jan 2006 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT], part of the NetFires LLC with Raytheon Company [NYSE: RTN], recently performed eight successful tests of the Non-Line-of-Sight – Launch System’s Loitering Attack Missile Multiple Explosively Formed Penetrator warhead. The tests proved the warhead’s lethality against a wide variety of targets.
• ThalesRaytheonSystems Upgrades AN/TPQ-36 and AN/TPQ-37 Firefinder Radar to Extend Service and Reduce Life Cycle Costs Raytheon 09 Jan 2006 -- ThalesRaytheonSystems (TRS) is developing advanced technology improvements to its Firefinder ground weapon locating radars that will extend system service life and significantly reduce customer life cycle costs. State-of-the-art electronics will boost the system's reliability, maintainability and performance. Reliability, measured in mean time between failure, will improve by approximately 300 percent.
• Industry Alliance Bids for U.S. Army Strategic Services Sourcing Program Raytheon 09 Jan 2006 -- Three of the largest and most capable defense companies have formed a long-term strategic alliance that positions it to bid for the U.S. Army's Strategic Services Sourcing (S3) program and similar procurements. The three, Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), IBM (NYSE: IBM) and The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA), have collaborated for nearly two years to determine the best way to deliver logistics and sustainment solutions for pursuits like S3.
• Northrop Grumman Team Receives Contract for Third Phase of Portable Biological-Warfare Detection-System Program Northrop Grumman 09 Jan 2006 -- A Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)-led team has been selected by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to continue development of the handheld isothermal silver standard sensor (HISSS), a portable system used for identifying biological-warfare agents, including bacteria, viruses and toxins.
• DISA selects Thales' Datacryptor security products for SONET encryption Thales 09 Jan 2006 -- The deployment of the Datacryptor SONET high speed Link Encryptor comes after extensive testing by DISA and the Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC). Under the deployment plan, the units will begin to secure significant numbers of unclassified circuits provisioned by the U.S. Government. This worldwide network provides a wide-range of information services to U.S. Department of Defense users, including voice telephony, data networking and video applications.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 09 Jan 2006
• PRESS CONFERENCE BY UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS ON SITUATION IN ERITREA/ETHIOPIA United Nations 09 Jan 2006
• UN Security Council carefully weighs next steps for mission in Ethiopia, Eritrea UN News Centre 09 Jan 2006 -- While concerned about border tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea as well as the latter's ban on United Nations overflights, the world body is avoiding making hasty decisions on the future of its peacekeeping operation in the Horn of Africa countries, a senior UN official said today.
• United States Sending Diplomatic Mission to Ethiopia, Eritrea Washington File 09 Jan 2006 -- The United States is sending a high-level delegation to the horn of Africa for a diplomatic initiative to defuse political tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea and get the border demarcation process back on track, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton announced January 9.

• SUDAN: AU condemns killing of peacekeeper in West Darfur IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- An African Union (AU) peacekeeper in Sudan's troubled Darfur region has been killed, and ten others injured, the chairman of the 53-nation AU block said on Saturday.
• Top UN envoy for Sudan urges speedier progress in Darfur peace talks UN News Centre 09 Jan 2006 -- The top United Nations envoy to Sudan is on his way to New York after attending the peace talks on the country's troubled Darfur region in Abuja, Nigeria, where he urged the Khartoum Government and rebel groups to speed up the pace of negotiations, a UN spokesman said today.

• NIGERIA: Worsening security, lack of progress bog down Darfur talks IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- Talks to end the bloody conflict in Darfur have been suspended for a week to respect a Muslim holiday, mediators said on Monday, but there is little sign of progress as the security situation in the western Sudan region worsens and the two sides fail to agree on key aspects of sharing power.
• NEPAL: Year in Review 2005 - Conflict grinds on IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- The year in Nepal was marked by continued conflict and political deadlock with significant human costs.
• UN Sierra Leone peacekeepers protecting Special Court replaced by UN Liberia forces UN News Centre 09 Jan 2006 -- With the recent departure of United Nations forces serving in Sierra Leone, a contingent of Mongolian troops based in Liberia has been assigned to protect the Special Court in Freetown set up to try those guilty of war crimes in the country over the past decade.
• Security situation in Central African Republic still 'precarious,' Annan says UN News Centre 09 Jan 2006 -- The security situation in the Central African Republic, which is rebuilding after a civil war, remains "precarious" and international support for the country is crucial to consolidating stability, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a report to the Security Council released today.

News Reports

• WEST AFRICA: Year in Review 2005 - Stability see-saws in the world's poorest region IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- West Africa, the world's poorest region, chalked up successes in 2005, with war-battered Liberia and Sierra Leone edging closer to lasting peace.
• KYRGYZSTAN: Year in Review 2005 -Test for democracy in the region IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- Politics dominated 2005 in Kyrgyzstan with parliamentary polls held in the spring and a presidential election in the autumn.
• JORDAN: Amid protests, parliament exempts US nationals from International Criminal Court IRIN 09 Jan 2006 -- Jordan's parliament ratified a controversial accord with the United States on Sunday that prevents Amman from handing over Americans accused of violating international criminal law to the International Criminal Court (ICC).