Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 19 Nov 2007 [PDF]
• DoD Identifies Air Force Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• Transcript: DoD News Briefing with Maj. Gen. Hertling from Iraq 19 Nov 2007 -- Presenter: Commander, Multinational Division North and 1st Armored Division, Maj. Gen. Mark Hertling
• Nov. 18 airpower summary: F-15Es support operations AFPN 19 Nov 2007
• Air Force sharpshooters help commanders see the future AFPN 19 Nov 2007 -- When servicemembers go outside the wire here, they occasionally have an extra set of eyes watching over them.
• Operation Marne Courageous Targets Al Qaeda in Anbar Province AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- Coalition forces, Iraqi army soldiers and concerned local citizens near the border of Anbar province are working together to drive out al Qaeda in Iraq operatives during Operation Marne Courageous, according to Multinational Division Center public affairs officials.
• Coalition, Iraqi Troops Have ‘Momentum,’ Official Says AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- Terrorist-committed violence in Iraq has plummeted since the start of the surge of forces, a senior U.S. officer reported yesterday from Baghdad.
• Iraqi Forces, Local Citizens Help to Reduce Violence in Northern Iraq AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- A robust partnership between coalition troops and Iraqi security forces and support from the Iraqi people is showing success in bringing down violence in Iraq’s Multinational Division North sector, the troop commander there said today.
• Forces Detain 27 Suspects While Targeting al Qaeda Networks in Iraq AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- Coalition forces detained 27 suspects yesterday during operations targeting al Qaeda networks in central and northern Iraq.
• Air Force Sharpshooters Watch Over Troops in Iraq AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- When servicemembers here have to go “outside the wire,” they sometimes have an extra set of eyes watching over them.
• Air Force Special Agents Partner with Afghan National Police AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- Special agents assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations Expeditionary Detachment 2405 here regularly work together with Afghan National Police on a broad range of missions related to humanitarian assistance and security.
• UN Report Says Afghan Guards Shot Bombing Victims RFE/RL 19 Nov 2007 -- An internal UN report from Afghanistan says many people who were killed early this month when a suicide bomber attacked a group of Afghan lawmakers appear to have been shot dead by bodyguards after the blast.
• Suicide Bomber Kills Provincial Governor's Son, 6 Others in Afghanistan VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Afghan police say a suicide bomber targeting a provincial governor killed one of the official's sons and six of his bodyguards.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Department of Defense Releases Selected Acquisition Reports 19 Nov 2007 -- The Department of Defense (DoD) has released details on major defense acquisition program cost, schedule, and performance changes since the June 2007 reporting period.
• Supplemental Bill Needed to Fund Anti-IED Effort, Director Says AFPS 19 Nov 2007 -- If Congress does not come through with a supplemental bill President Bush will sign, money for defeating the largest killers of American personnel in the war on terror will run out Dec. 1, a senior official said here today.
• 8th FW commander, ROKAF fly in training mission AFPN 19 Nov 2007 -- Airmen of the 8th Fighter Wing and the Republic of Korea Air Force's 38th Fighter Group flew in a combined training mission Nov. 14.
• New 400-hour phase inspection equates to lives saved AFPN 19 Nov 2007 -- F-15E Strike Eagle maintainers here recently became the first in the Air Force to implement a new inspection process that promises greater airpower capability throughout Afghanistan.
• Army Breaks Ground for New Hospital Army News 19 Nov 2007 -- A new chapter in Army healthcare in the National Capital Region began Nov. 8 at a groundbreaking ceremony for a new hospital on Fort Belvoir.
• Coast Guard Joins APS in Training on Maritime Security Navy NewsStand 19 Nov 2007 -- Members of the U.S. Coast Guard International Training Division joined the Africa Partnership Station (APS) USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43) from Nov. 7 to Nov. 19, to train Sailors from seven African nations in an officer boarding course and maritime security awareness.
• U.S. Senate Commemorates Great White Fleet Navy NewsStand 19 Nov 2007 -- The U.S. Senate unanimously passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 55 on Nov. 16 commemorating the centennial anniversary of the sailing of the Navy's "Great White Fleet," launched by then-President Theodore Roosevelt on Dec. 16, 1907, from Hampton Roads, Va. and returning there on Feb 22, 1909.
• Ghana Welcomes Africa Partnership Station Navy NewsStand 19 Nov 2007 -- The second port visit of Africa Partnership Station’s (APS) seven-month deployment, aboard the Amphibious Dock Landing Ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43), arrived in Tema, Nov. 18.
• Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 19 Nov 2007
• Press Gaggle by Dana Perino The White House 19 Nov 2007

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for November 19, 2007
• U.K. Royal Household Selects Sikorsky Aircraft As Preferred Supplier for Royal Family Helicopter Sikorsky 19 Nov 2007 -- The Royal Household of the United Kingdom has chosen Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. as the preferred supplier to provide the next helicopter for the Royal Family's transportation.
• Northrop Grumman Deploys New System to Enable Safer Aircraft Carrier Landings Northrop Grumman 19 Nov 2007 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has successfully deployed the first digitally-controlled arrestment system that dramatically upgrades the critical process of "catching" aircraft on carriers.
• Raytheon Wins $36.1 Million U.S. Air Force Paveway(TM) Contract Raytheon 19 Nov 2007 -- With the award of $36.1 million, Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has won the majority share of U.S. Air Force competitive contracts for Paveway(TM) II laser guided bomb components for fiscal year 2007.
• LOCKHEED MARTIN AWARDED $11 MILLION CONTRACT TO DEVELOP NEW EXPENDABLE MINE NEUTRALIZATION SYSTEM FOR U.S. NAVY MINE HUNTER-KILLER SHIPS Lockheed Martin 19 Nov 2007 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has been awarded a $11 million System Development and Demonstration (SD&D) contract by the U.S. Navy to develop and integrate a new Expendable Mine Neutralization System (EMNS) for the Navy’s Mine Counter Measures (MCM-1) Avenger-class ships.
• CF6 Upgrade Program Available for Northrop Grumman KC-30 GE Aviation 19 Nov 2007 -- The recently launched technology upgrade program for the CF6 engine is part of the package offered by Northrop Grumman KC-30 for the United States Air Force KC-X tanker replacement program. Northrop Grumman selected the CF6 in March 2007.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT United Nations 19 Nov 2007
• Turkish Soldiers Continue to Deploy at Iraqi Border VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Turkey is still massing tens of thousands soldiers on the Iraqi border, a response to a series of attacks by Kurdish militants that have claimed the lives of more than 50 soldiers and civilians
• Mideast peace forum may reach deadlock before it starts RIA Novosti 19 Nov 2007 -- The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) has renounced all previous agreements with Israel on drafting a joint statement to be adopted at the upcoming Annapolis peace summit, the Haaretz newspaper said.
• Palestinian Prisoner Release Given Green Light VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Israel's prime minister has received cabinet approval to release 441 Palestinian prisoners ahead of next week's Mideast peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland
• Palestinian Prisoner Release Given Green Light VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met late Monday in Jerusalem
• UN and AU envoys hold more meetings with Darfur rebels to spur peace process UN News Centre 19 Nov 2007 -- United Nations and African Union mediators involved in the Darfur peace process are holding meetings today in southern Sudan in a bid to spur some of the war-torn region’s splintering rebel movements to unify their positions ahead of direct negotiations with the Sudanese Government scheduled for next month.
• SUDAN: Darfur peace talks now extend to four locations IRIN 19 Nov 2007 -- The UN and African Union (AU) mediated Darfur peace talks have spread beyond the Libyan town of Sirte in efforts to get all key groups on board, according to a UN official.
• Former SPLM Rebels Unhappy With Sudan President Bashir’s Rhetoric VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Former rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) are reportedly upset over what they claim to be inflammatory remarks by President Omar Al Bashir over the weekend
• Concerned at conditions in Somalia, Security Council urges end to violence UN News Centre 19 Nov 2007 -- Security Council members today voiced concern about worsening conditions in Somalia, urging all concerned to work for peace while stressing the need to lay contingency plans for a possible United Nations peacekeeping presence in the country, which has lacked a functioning government since 1991.
• UN Security Council Urges Planning for Somalia Peacekeeping Force VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- The United Nations Security Council says there should be contingency planning for the possible deployment of a U.N. peacekeeping force in Somalia, despite the U.N. secretary general's warning that such a force would not be viable
• Top UN envoy to Kosovo says minority interests will be protected after polls UN News Centre 19 Nov 2007 -- Voicing regret that many Kosovo Serbs did not participate in general elections at the weekend, the top United Nations envoy to the province today called for talks to ensure that the Serbs and other minority communities are adequately represented in any public institutions.
• Kosovo: Thaci Victory Makes Independence Declaration More Likely RFE/RL 19 Nov 2007 -- The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), led by the former Kosovar Albanian guerrilla leader Hashim Thaci, has won the breakaway province's parliamentary elections, according to initial returns.
• Formation of new Burundian Government welcomed by UN mission UN News Centre 19 Nov 2007 -- The United Nations has welcomed the establishment of a new Government in Burundi and called on the country’s leadership to persevere in consolidating peace and strengthening democracy in the small Central African country.
• UGANDA: Rebels ask for forgiveness at scene of LRA massacre IRIN 19 Nov 2007 -- Representatives of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) have visited the camp where 400 people were slaughtered by members of the Ugandan rebel group during a bloody attack considered the worst in nearly a decade.

News Reports

• Aid Pours Into Storm-Battered Bangladesh; Official Death Toll Surpasses 3,000 VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Aid agencies in Bangladesh say the death toll from Cyclone Sidr is likely to rise sharply in the coming days
• U.S. Sends Ships, Supplies to Cyclone-Devastated Bangladesh Washington File 19 Nov 2007 -- The United States is sending naval ships and $2.1 million in emergency relief supplies to Bangladesh to help the victims of Cyclone Sidr, which ravaged the country's southern coast.
• Ban Ki-moon ‘cautiously optimistic’ about deadlock on Lebanese presidency UN News Centre 19 Nov 2007 -- Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who has just completed an international visit that included a stop in Lebanon, said today he was “cautiously optimistic” that the country’s political leaders could resolve their tense stand-off over the election of a new president.
• State's Negroponte Urges Lifting of Emergency Rule in Pakistan Washington File 19 Nov 2007 -- Emergency rule in Pakistan is undermining years of successful reforms, says Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, who met with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf November 16-17 to underline U.S. concerns about a key regional ally.
• US Looks at Ways to Get Help From Pakistani Tribal Leaders VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- The U.S. Defense Department says a series of ideas for a new effort to try to get Pakistani tribal leaders to cooperate in the fight against terrorists is just a staff document and is far from any senior level consideration
• US Continues Push for Immediate Lifting of Pakistan Emergency VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- The Bush administration says it is continuing to push for an immediate end to the state of emergency in Pakistan, despite President Pervez Musharraf's refusal to heed such a call Saturday from visiting Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte
• Musharraf-Appointed Court Dismisses Main Challenges to Presidential Re-Election VOA 19 Nov 2007 -- Pakistan's Supreme Court has dismissed the main legal challenges to General Pervez Musharraf's presidential re-election on October 6