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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 29 May 2008 [PDF]
• May 28 airpower summary: C-17s deliver goods AFPN 29 May 2008
• Suicide Bombings Kill 19 in Northern Iraq VOA 29 May 2008 -- Iraqi officials say suicide bombings have killed at least 19 people in two attacks across northern Iraq.
• Coalition forces in Iraq Kill 10, Catch 11 AFPS 29 May 2008 -- Coalition and Iraqi forces killed 10 enemy fighters, captured 11 suspects, and uncovered scores of weapons in Iraq over the past three days, military officials said.
• Seabees Build Constructive Relationships Navy NewsStand 29 May 2008 -- Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 3 are building more than berthing spaces, they have developed new friendships with a group of Ugandan workers, during the construction of a berthing project at Camp Al Taqaddum, Iraq.
• Troops Kill Enemy Fighters, Disarm Bombs in Afghanistan AFPS 29 May 2008 -- Coalition and Afghan national security forces killed an unknown number of enemy fighters and neutralized homemade bombs in Afghanistan over the past two days, military officials said.
• Doubts Surround Pakistan's Peace Talks with Taliban Groups VOA 29 May 2008 -- Pakistan's attempts in 2006 to strike peace deals with pro-Taliban groups were widely viewed as failures that allowed the militants to grow stronger

Defense Policy / Programs

• US Army Suicide Rate Continues to Rise VOA 29 May 2008 -- The U.S. Army reported Thursday that the suicide rate among its soldiers continued to rise last year, and is now nearly double the rate recorded before the invasion of Iraq.
• Army Deploys Prevention Programs to Combat Soldier Suicides AFPS 29 May 2008 -- The Army is deploying a multitude of prevention programs as part of efforts to stop soldiers from taking their own lives, senior Army officials said here today.
• Aggressors give Blue Forces realistic training AFPN 29 May 2008 -- Every good novel needs an antagonist, every good movie needs a bad guy and every good air force exercise needs an aggressor, commonly known as the Red Forces.
• KC-135: 50 years of refueling the fleet AFPN 29 May 2008 -- In an effort to modernize its aging tanker fleet, the Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman a contract to build the KC-45 aerial refueling aircraft in February.
• RAF officers spin-up on 820th SFG roles, mission, training AFPN 29 May 2008 -- Two members from the Royal Air Force, Force Protection Centre at RAF Honington, United Kingdom, recently visited the 820th Security Forces Group at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., as part of an exchange program between the units.
• J-STARS total force cooperation helps save lives AFPN 29 May 2008 -- Looking deep into hostile territory, modified Boeing 707s with multi-mode radar systems provide surveillance of territory behind enemy lines.
• Staff Ramps up for JTF-East Exercise in Romania Army News 29 May 2008 -- Troops from U.S. Army Europe arrived at Mihail Koganiceanu Air Base in Romania last week to serve as the headquarters staff for Joint Task Force East.
• Carrier Strike Group 7 Hones Anti-Submarine Warfare Skills in USWEX Navy NewsStand 29 May 2008 -- The ships of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 7 commenced an undersea warfare exercise (USWEX) in the waters of the Hawaiian operating area, May 28.
• Continuing Promise Brings Medical Aid to El Salvador, Reunites Families Navy NewsStand 29 May 2008 -- Continuing Promise (CP) 2008 health care providers, embarked aboard USS Boxer (LHD 4), worked with partner-nation medical teams to provide health care to the citizens of Acajutla, May 26.
• USNS Mercy Sailors Lend Helping Hand in Agat Navy NewsStand 29 May 2008 -- Sailors assigned to the hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) visited the village of Agat to support several community relations projects, May 22.
• USS Alabama Returns from Sea Trials Navy NewsStand 29 May 2008 -- USS Alabama (SSBN 731) returned to Naval Base Kitsap, Bangor, May 14, after successfully completing their first at-sea period in two-and-a-half years, recertifying the ship during their sea trials.
• Service demographics offer snapshot of force AFPN 29 May 2008 -- The Air Force Personnel Center here recently published its demographics report offering a snapshot of the service's active-duty and civilian force. This data is current as of April 30.
• Vice chief, legendary pilot commemorate 60th anniversary of Berlin Airlift AFPN 29 May 2008 -- Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Duncan J. McNabb and legendary airlift pilot retired Col. Gail Halvorsen participated in a commemorative panel discussion of the Berlin Airlift May 27 in Berlin.
• Mullen Calls Military Neutrality 'Bedrock' of U.S. Democracy AFPS 29 May 2008 -- As the presidential race heats up in the United States, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is reminding members of the military that their neutrality is part of the fabric of democracy.
• Mullen Uses Pacific Visits to Cultivate Understanding, Cooperation AFPS 29 May 2008 -- The United States and other countries of the world have to work together to face the challenges of the future, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today on the first stop of a visit to Pacific nations intended to help foster that cooperation.
• Retiring satellite a cornerstone of space situational awareness AFPN 29 May 2008 -- People in the 1st Space Operations Squadron will say goodbye June 2 to a satellite that has been a cornerstone of Air Force space situational awareness for more than 10 years.
• Russia scraps another batch of Topol systems under START-1 treaty RIA Novosti 29 May 2008 -- Russia has dismantled another six outdated Topol mobile ballistic missile systems under a major international treaty on strategic arms reduction, the Strategic Missile Forces said in a statement on Thursday.
• Prosecutors report 341 military suicides in 2007 RIA Novosti 29 May 2008 -- A total of 341 Russian servicemen committed suicide in 2007, Russia's chief military prosecutor said on Thursday
• Press Gaggle by Dana Perino The White House 29 May 2008
• Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 29 May 2008

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for May 29, 2008
• SAIC Awarded $500 Million Contract from U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command SAIC 29 May 2008 -- Science Applications International Corporation (NYSE: SAI) today announced it has been awarded a prime contract by the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
• LOCKHEED MARTIN F-35B SUCCEEDS IN STOVL PROPULSION GROUND TEST Lockheed Martin 29 May 2008 -- The shaft-driven lift fan propulsion system that will enable the Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter to perform short takeoffs and vertical landings (STOVL) operated for the first time in the aircraft during ground testing on Sunday, May 25
• U.S. Navy Awards General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products Contract Extension for Production of F/A-18 Gun Systems General Dynamics29 May 2008 -- The U.S. Navy has awarded General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), a $7.8 million contract extension for the production of M61A2 20mm automatic Gatling gun systems for use on F/A-18 fighter jets.
• Lockheed Martin Team Demonstrates Engagement Management Algorithms For MDA's Multiple Kill Vehicle-L Lockheed Martin 29 May 2008 -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) announced today that it has achieved a key milestone for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency's Multiple Kill Vehicle-L (MKV-L) payload by successfully demonstrating engagement management algorithms in a software test bed environment in Huntsville, Ala.
• Raytheon Awarded U.S. Air Force Contract to Develop Next-Generation DCGS Integration Backbone Architecture Raytheon 29 May 2008 -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has been awarded a U.S. Air Force contract to continue evolving a system for the sharing of near real-time, actionable intelligence information among warfighters.

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 29 May 2008
• Cluster Bomb Resolution Approved in Dublin VOA 29 May 2008 -- Representatives of more than 100 countries have approved a draft treaty to ban the global use of cluster bombs
• LAOS: Deadly cost of unexploded cluster munitions IRIN 29 May 2008
• PRESS CONFERENCE ON SIXTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF UNITED NATIONS PEACEKEEPING United Nations 29 May 2008
• UN Marks 60 Years of International Peacekeeping Operations VOA 29 May 2008 -- A wreath was layed at U.N. headquarters Thursday to mark the 60th anniversary of its peacekeeping operations
• UN officials pay tribute to brave work of peacekeepers on anniversary UN News Centre 29 May 2008 -- United Nations officials today marked the International Day of UN Peacekeepers by voicing gratitude for the work that blue helmets do every day in dangerous missions worldwide and mourning those who have fallen in service during the past six decades.
• PRESS CONFERENCE ON DOWNING OF AIR SURVEILLANCE VEHICLE OVER ABKHAZIA, GEORGIA United Nations 29 May 2008
• UN Security Council to Hold Closed Meeting on Georgian Plane Shoot Down VOA 29 May 2008 -- The U.N. Security Council is to hold a closed-door meeting on Friday to discuss the shooting down of a Georgian unmanned reconnaissance aircraft over the breakaway republic of Abkhazia.
• Somali Opposition Splits Amid Conflict VOA 29 May 2008 -- Divisions within Somalia's Eritrea-based opposition group have turned into an open conflict amid reports the faction headed by hard-line Islamist leader Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys is seeking to remove moderate Islamist Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed as chairman
• Violence in India's Bengal Claims Lives, Forces Hundreds to Flee VOA 29 May 2008 -- India's rapid economic development is taking a toll on some segments of the population, and a recent village council election in a district of west Bengal, where the ruling party was ousted after 30 years rule, has highlighted the clash between rural farmers and proponents of industrialization
• Sri Lanka: UN humanitarian chief condemns attacks on civilians UN News Centre 29 May 2008 -- The United Nations' top humanitarian official today condemned the continuing targeting of civilians during fighting in Sri Lanka, saying that more than 200 civilian lives have been lost in the country since the beginning of the year.
• UN tribunal denies request to refer former militia leader's case to Rwanda UN News Centre 29 May 2008 -- The United Nations war crimes tribunal set up to deal with the 1994 Rwandan genocide has announced that it has turned down an application to refer the case of a former militia leader to the legal system of the small African nation.
• Sierra Leone: UN-backed court increases sentences for two former militia leaders UN News Centre 29 May 2008 -- The United Nations-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) today increased the sentences of two former leaders of a pro-Government militia who were convicted last year of war crimes committed during the country's prolonged civil war in the 1990s.
• Darfur: UN mission condemns first murder of peacekeeper UN News Centre 29 May 2008 -- The joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) confirmed today that a Ugandan civilian police inspector serving with the operation has been "brutally and shamelessly murdered" in the north of the strife-torn region of Sudan.
• BURKINA FASO-MALI: Hundreds of Touareg refugees flee escalating violence IRIN 29 May 2008 -- Several hundred Malians fleeing fighting between the army and Touareg rebels in northern Mali have crossed the border into Burkina Faso since April, according to the Burkina Faso national commission for refugees (CONAREF).
• Pakistan to contribute to UN Darfur peacekeeping, says army IRNA 29 May 2008 -- Pakistan will contribute troops in the United Nations Darfur peacekeepers, the army said Thursday.
• Kosovo: The New 'Frozen Conflict' RFE/RL 29 May 2008 -- When the European Union announced this week that it would be delaying the planned deployment of its police mission to Kosovo, it was more than your run-of-the-mill bureaucratic snafu.
• Prosecutors Win Appeal of Sierra Leone Militia Leaders' Short Sentences VOA 29 May 2008 -- An appeals panel of the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone has overturned some convictions against two pro-government Civil Defense Forces (CDF) leaders, but more than doubled their sentences and added new convictions against them

News Reports

• Former White House Press Secretary Defends Tell-All Book VOA 29 May 2008 -- Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan is defending his controversial new book that accuses the Bush administration of deceiving the American people in the lead up to the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq
• Hezbollah: Most Powerful Political Movement in Lebanon cfr.org 29 May 2008
• France's Sarkozy Resumes Contact With Syria VOA 29 May 2008 -- France says President Nicolas Sarkozy telephoned his Syrian counterpart Thursday to discuss recent political developments in Lebanon and peace negotiations with Israel.
• Russia: Putin Heads To Paris For First Major Trip As Prime Minister RFE/RL 29 May 2008 -- Vladimir Putin is traveling to France on his first major foreign visit as Russian prime minister.
• MYANMAR: Access to cyclone-hit delta eases IRIN 29 May 2008 -- Almost a month after cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar, a small but increasing number of international aid workers is now gaining access to the worst-affected Ayeyarwady Delta, aid agencies report.
• Burma Grants Visas to Relief Workers, But Little Access to Delta VOA 29 May 2008 -- International relief agencies say Burma's military government has been granting visas to a larger number of foreign relief workers this week
• Musharraf makes mind to quit: report IRNA 29 May 2008 -- President Pervez Musharraf has made mind to quit as he has no other option left with him, local media reported Thursday.
• ZIMBABWE: Mounting violence does not speed up deployment of election monitors IRIN 29 May 2008 -- No independent African electoral observers have been invited to monitor Zimbabwe's presidential run-off election on 27 June, and the bodies approved by President Robert Mugabe's government are not yet at full strength, Dieudonne Tshiyoyo, a programme officer at the South Africa-based Electoral Institute of Southern Africa (EISA), told IRIN.
• Georgia Faces Internal and External Crises After Parilamentary Election Results VOA 29 May 2008 -- Georgia is simultaneously facing internal and external pressures
• Central Asia: Ambition Often The Downfall Of Powerful Presidential Relatives RFE/RL 29 May 2008