Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 1 Aug 2008 [PDF]
• July 31 airpower summary: Tankers bring fuel to the fight AFPN 1 Aug 2008
• Forces Continue to Keep al-Qaida Off-Balance, Admiral Says AFPS 01 Aug 2008 -- An operation near Iraq's Diyala River Valley -- planned and led by Iraqi forces with coalition support -- is going very well, a senior coalition spokesman said yesterday.
• Coalition Troops Detain Suspects; Iraqi Police Seize Explosives AFPS 1 Aug 2008 -- Coalition forces captured 17 suspected al-Qaida terrorists during operations in Baghdad and Mosul today.
• Navy Cargo Handlers Return from Overseas Deployment Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- More than two dozen Navy cargo handlers will arrive home late July 31, after a six-month deployment to Iraq.
• Predator crashes north of Joint Base Balad AFPN 01 Aug 2008 -- An MQ-1 Predator crashed north of Joint Base Balad at approximately 10:45 a.m. local time Aug 1.
• Iraqi Soldiers Clash With Militants North of Baghdad VOA 01 Aug 2008 -- The Iraqi military says its soldiers killed at least two militants and detained six others in fighting north of Baghdad.
• US Casualties in Iraq Lowest Ever, Lower Than Afghanistan for First Time VOA 01 Aug 2008 -- In July, the U.S. combat death toll in Iraq reached its lowest point since the war started, and, for the first time, was lower than the U.S. military death toll in Afghanistan
• Afghan National Police Detain Militants in Paktika Province AFPS 01 Aug 2008 -- Afghan National Police, with support from coalition forces, detained almost a dozen insurgents yesterday in Afghanistan's Paktika province after finding evidence they were roadside-bomb facilitators, military officials reported.
• Civil Affairs Battalion Brings Development, Security to Afghan Provinces AFPS 01 Aug 2008 -- Five districts in the southern portion of Afghanistan's Konar province all differ in quality of governance and development, and they suffer from a lack of security, power and infrastructure.
• US Implicates Pakistani Agents in Kabul Bomb Attack VOA 01 Aug 2008 -- U.S. officials are accusing Pakistan's primary intelligence service of helping to carry out last month's bomb attack on India's embassy in Afghanistan
• Aid Groups Say Afghan Violence Worst Since 2001 RFE/RL 01 Aug 2008 -- An umbrella group representing some 100 aid groups and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) has said that violence is at its worst level since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001 and that it is concerned over the increasing number of civilian casualties and attacks on aid workers in recent months.
• Aid Agencies Warn Insecurity on the Rise in Afghanistan VOA 01 Aug 2008 -- International aid agencies are expressing concern about the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan, noting that problems have spread to previously stable areas and attacks on aid agencies and their staff are on the increase

Defense Policy / Programs

• Senate confirms General Schwartz as next chief of staff AFPN 01 Aug 2008 -- Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, a 35-year veteran in special operations, will be the 19th Air Force chief of staff, according to a Senate confirmation vote which occurred Aug. 1.
• Pentagon Pushes for 'Soft Power,' Interagency Cooperation AFPS 01 Aug 2008 -- The Pentagon's new National Defense Strategy is the latest in a series of Defense Department messages highlighting the need to develop a U.S. foreign policy with greater emphasis on so-called "soft powers" such as diplomacy and international aid.
• Bush OKs Death Sentence for Soldier Convicted of Multiple Murders AFPS 01 Aug 2008 -- President Bush this week approved the death penalty for an Army private convicted of committing multiple murders and rapes in the late 1980s on Fort Bragg, N.C.
• Army bids farewell to Vice Chief Cod Army News 01 Aug 2008 -- Gen. Richard A. Cody, the 31st vice chief of staff of the Army, was honored with a retirement ceremony Friday on the parade field at Fort Myer, Va., following a 36-year career.
• National cemetery to be built at Fort Jackson Army News 01 Aug 2008 -- A new national cemetery, which will be adjacent to Fort Jackson, is scheduled to open in the fall and will be named the "Fort Jackson National Cemetery."
• Elmendorf community mourns fallen commander AFPN 01 Aug 2008 -- Airmen and members of the local community paid tribute to the 3rd Wing commander during a memorial service July 31 at Hangar 1 here.
• AFMC receives $50 million for energy projects AFPN 01 Aug 2008 -- Air Force officials recently have awarded more than $50 million to Air Force Materiel Command officials here to fund energy projects under Air Force Smart Operations
• Computer modifications result in energy savings AFPN 01 Aug 2008 -- Carlene Conner-Kueck is an advocate for energy conservation -- and she's not alone. The Air Force Materiel Command Communications Installations and Mission Support directorate is filled with people devoted to money-saving conservation techniques.
• Naval Weapons Station Yorktown Celebrates 90 Years of Ordnance Support Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- Naval Weapons Station Yorktown celebrates 90 years of providing ordnance and technical support to the U.S. Navy Aug. 7.
• CNO Releases Podcast on Maritime BMD Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Gary Roughead recently recorded a podcast for the fleet in which he discusses the vital role and recent successes of AEGIS and maritime ballistic missile defense (BMD) throughout the fleet.
• U.S. Public Health Service Supports Pacific Partnership Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- The U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) is part of the diverse crew complement aboard USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) that helped support the people of Timor-Leste July 12-25.
• NAVSEA Salvage Engineers Help Raise Cold-War Era Sub Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- Naval Sea System Command (NAVSEA) salvage engineers developed the detailed refloating plan that enabled Navy divers to successfully bring a sunken Cold War Soviet submarine back to the surface of Portsmouth Harbor, R.I., July 25.
• Navy Installs Remote Minehunting System for Evaluation Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- The U.S. Navy completed technical evaluation and training of the remote minehunting system (RMS) aboard USS Bainbridge (DDG-96) in Panama City, Fla. July 28.
• Navy Experimental Diving Unit Changes Command Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- Navy Experimental Diving Unit (NEDU) changed hands on July 25 in a ceremony at Naval Support Activity Panama City.
• Annapolis Holds Change of Command Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- USS Annapolis (SSN 760) held a change of command ceremony at the Submarine Force Library and Museum in Groton on July 31.
• NAVFAC Southeast Changes Command Navy NewsStand 01 Aug 2008 -- Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southeast held a change of command and retirement ceremony July 25 at Naval Air Station Jacksonville.
• Russia prioritizes nuclear triad, hi-tech weaponry in future wars RIA Novosti 1 Aug 2008 -- The nuclear triad will remain the core of the Russian armed forces for the next two decades, a draft military doctrine says.
• Russia to keep conscription until 2030 - draft military doctrine RIA Novosti 1 Aug 2008 -- Russia will maintain its military draft until 2030, while gradually increasing the number of contract personnel.
• Taiwan expects progress in U.S. arms procurement in September CNA 02 Aug 2008 -- Taiwan hopes the United States will make progress in pushing through its arms procurement requests in September, following the conclusion of the Beijing Olympic Games later this month, Taiwan's Legislative Yuan speaker Wang Jin-pyng said in the United States Friday.
• Press Gaggle by Dana Perino The White House 01 Aug 2008

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for August 01, 2008
• Raytheon's Paveway(TM) IV Completes Demonstration Capability Trials Raytheon 01 Aug 2008 -- The U.K.'s Royal Air Force completed capability demonstration trials of Raytheon Company's (NYSE: RTN) Paveway IV.
• Oshkosh Defense Awarded $11.7 million Contract to Install Armor Kits on MTVR Vehicles Oshkosh 01 Aug 2008 -- Oshkosh Defense, a division of Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK), has been awarded an $11.7 million contract with the United States Marine Corps (USMC) to install reducible height armor kits on the Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacements (MVTR). Production will take place during 2009 at multiple Oshkosh service facilities located throughout the U.S.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 01 Aug 2008
• Former U.S. Bosnia Envoy Dismisses Karadzic Deal Claim RFE/RL 01 Aug 2008 -- The former U.S. peace mediator for Bosnia, Richard Holbrooke, has rejected as baseless Radovan Karadzic's claim that the United States had offered the former Bosnian Serb leader a deal that would spare him prosecution for war crimes.
• 33 killed in Swat clashes, more forces called in IRNA 1 Aug 2008 -- Thirty three people have been killed in the ongoing operation in Swat while more forces have been called in on the requisition of the provincial government.
• Hamas Arrests Top Fatah Officials in Gaza VOA 1 Aug 2008 -- Hamas security forces arrested senior leaders of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah faction in the Gaza Strip.
• UN Renews Darfur Peacekeeping Mission VOA 1 Aug 2008
• SOMALIA: IDPs out of food, more clashes in Beletweyne IRIN 1 Aug 2008 -- Clashes between insurgents and government troops in Beletweyne, have created serious food scarcities in the town.
• ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Urgent need for dialogue after departure of UNMEE, says analyst IRIN 1 Aug 2008 -- Tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea unlikely to escalate following the departure of UN peacekeepers.

News Reports

• Pakistan Denies Report Linking Spy Service to Kabul Bombing VOA 1 Aug 2008