Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 29 Aug 2008 [PDF]
• CF Soldier dies in non-combat related incident (Ninewa)
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• Apache Squadron Aids Iraqi Security Progress AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- The view from the sky indicates the tide in Iraq may be turning.
• Coalition Forces Detain Suspects in Iraq's Hamrin Mountains AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- Coalition forces detained eight suspected terrorists yesterday and today as they continued to run down the al-Qaida in Iraq network, especially in the Hamrin Mountains region, where they detained four wanted men, military officials reported.
• Troops in Afghanistan Kill, Detain Enemy Fighters AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- Afghan and coalition forces killed more than two dozen militants and detained two others during two operations in Afghanistan yesterday, military officials reported.
• Reagan Launches First Sorties in Support of OEF Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group assumed the duties as Commander, Task Force (CTF) 50 Aug. 28 and launched its first sorties into Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
• Afghan Insurgency Diversifies As Taliban Forges Alliances With Other Factions RFE/RL 29 Aug 2008 -- The Taliban have made no secret about their strategy this year -- declaring plans on Internet postings to carry out high-profile suicide bombings in Kabul and attack supply lines for foreign troops in a bid to isolate the Afghan capital.
• Airmen continue to bring relief supplies to Georgia AFPN 29 Aug 2008 -- Airmen from bases throughout Air Mobility Command and the Air Force have been delivering needed supplies since Aug. 13 to individuals displaced by recent fighting in the Republic of Georgia.
• National Guard Now Better Equipped for Hurricanes, General Says AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- Double the amount of available equipment compared to when Hurricane Katrina struck three years ago will strengthen the National Guard's response to hurricanes along the Gulf Coast, the National Guard Bureau's director of domestic operations said at Federal Emergency Management Agency news conference here today.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Theodore Roosevelt Strike Group to Deploy Early September Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- More than 7,300 Sailors from USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Carrier Strike Group (CSG) will deploy early September as part of the on-going rotation of forward-deployed forces to support maritime security operations and operate in international waters across the globe.
• T-2 Buckeye Sunset Ceremony Marks End of 50-Year Era Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- The historic 50-year training mission of the T-2 Buckeye came to a close with a sundown ceremony and fly-by at the Mustin Beach Officers' Club aboard Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola Aug. 22.
• CSAF defers heritage coat decision, focuses on current uniform issues AFPN 29 Aug 2008 -- Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz decided on Aug. 28 to defer a decision on the Air Force heritage coat until the summer of 2009 to address current uniform issues, according to a senior Air Force official.
• Program Ensures Reserve Component Medical Readiness AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- The Reserve Health Readiness Program ensures that reserve-component servicemembers have the ability and access to meet their deployment requirements, the program's director said yesterday.
• Welcome to the jungle: BLT 3/1 adapts to the Asia-Pacific region USMC News 29 Aug 2008 -- Amidst the hot and damp jungles of Okinawa, a platoon of Marines must decide whether to hold their position or patrol through thick vegetation and unbeaten paths to find the enemy.
• Naval Base San Diego Hosts Surface Navy Association West Coast Symposium Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- Naval Base San Diego (NBSD) hosted the Surface Navy Association's West Coast Symposium Aug. 28.
• Navy Takes Delivery of New Hampshire Eight Months Early Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- The Navy took delivery of its newest attack submarine, Pre Commissioning Unit (PCU) New Hampshire (SSN 778), from General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB) Aug. 27, eight months early to its contract delivery date.
• Environmental Symposium Highlights Navy's Initiatives Navy NewsStand 29 Aug 2008 -- The "Sea of Change" Environmental Symposium held Aug. 26 by the City of Jacksonville Environmental Protection Board and University of North Florida provided the opportunity to showcase the U.S. Navy's environmental stewardship efforts.
• Air Force, AMC officials poised for Hurricane Gustav support AFPN 29 Aug 2008 -- In response to preliminary reports that possibly point Hurricane Gustav toward the Gulf Coast of the United States, Air Force officials are postured to support relief efforts, if needed.
• Florida Guard Prepares for Potential Hurricane Relief Mission AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- As central and northern Florida communities recover from Tropical Storm Fay's flood waters, Florida's Department of Military Affairs and the state's National Guard are refitting and shifting focus to the potential effects of other storms.
• Louisiana National Guard Gears Up for Gustav AFPS 29 Aug 2008 -- As Tropical Storm Gustav gains strength and approaches the Gulf Coast, about 3,000 Louisiana citizen-soldiers and -airmen have been activated in support of emergency operations and are prepared to support civil missions and assist with various needs and emergencies expected to arise across the state.
• Moscow still seeking dialogue with U.S. on missile defense RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia is seeking to continue dialogue with the U.S. on issues relating to a new strategic arms treaty and missile defense, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Friday.
• Russia could build naval base in Abkhazia RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia's Black Sea Fleet may eventually use the Abkhazian port of Sukhumi as a naval base, former fleet commander said on Friday.
• Ukraine denies giving military aid to Georgia RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- The Ukrainian Defense Ministry categorically denied on Friday that Ukrainian military experts are helping to rebuild Georgia's army communications network, damaged in a five-day conflict with Russia.
• Georgian conflict to lead to NATO buildup around Belarus RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- The recent Georgian-South Ossetian conflict will lead to a buildup of NATO forces near Belarusian borders, the country's president said Friday.
• Tajikistan to let Russian military use airport - Medvedev RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Tajikistan has agreed to allow the Russian military to use an airport in the western city of Gissar, Russia's president said on Friday.
• Russia 'could destroy NATO ships in Black Sea within 20 minutes' RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia's Black Sea Fleet is capable of destroying NATO's naval strike group currently deployed in the sea within 20 minutes, a former fleet commander said on Friday.
• S.Ossetia set to sign deal on Russian military base on Sep. 2 RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia and South Ossetia will on Tuesday sign an agreement on friendship and cooperation, which will stipulate the deployment of a Russian military base in the republic, a South Ossetian official said Friday.
• Defense budget for 2009 lower than this year: MND CNA 29 Aug 2008 -- A total of NT$315.2 billion (US$10.17 billion) will be allocated as the defense budget for 2009, NT$10.4 billion lower than the 2008 level, according to a national defense budget plan published Friday.
• ROC Air Force increases mission capable rate of Mirage 2000-5s CNA 29 Aug 2008 -- Taiwan's Air Force has significantly raised the combat readiness of its Mirage 2000-5 jet fighters, with the average mission capable rate rising to nearly 70 percent from last year's 54 percent, an Air Force general said Friday.
• CAMEROON: Rapid intervention military unit strays from its mission IRIN 29 Aug 2008 -- In 2001 the Cameroonian government created a special rapid intervention battalion (BIR) to quell hostage-taking and looting by criminal gangs operating on its eastern and northern borders, but this force is now straying from its original mission, causing anger among human rights groups.
• Press Briefing by Dana Perino The White House 29 Aug 2008

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for August 29, 2008
• Boeing Begins Final Assembly of 2nd P-8A Poseidon Boeing 29 Aug 2008 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] began final assembly of the second P-8A Poseidon for the U.S. Navy on July 24 in Renton, Wash.
• Sikorsky’s UH-60M Upgrade BLACK HAWK Helicopter Achieves First Flight Sikorsky 29 Aug 2008 -- Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. today successfully completed the first flight of its UH-60M Upgrade BLACK HAWK helicopter
• Wedgetail simulator receives top-level accreditation Thales 29 Aug 2008 -- Zero flight time (Level 5) status is the highest level of accreditation under Australian standards. It allows experienced pilots to undertake training using a high-quality flight simulator instead of an actual aircraft.

Other Conflicts

• DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL United Nations 29 Aug 2008
• Over 2,000 displaced from Georgia buffer zone register with UN agency UN News Centre 29 Aug 2008 -- The United Nations refugee agency says that some 2,300 people from villages in the buffer zone between the Georgian town of Gori and the breakaway region of South Ossetia have registered in Gori as internally displaced people.
• Georgia Announces Break in Diplomatic Ties With Russia VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Georgia has announced it is breaking diplomatic relations with Russia after Moscow recognized the independence of two Georgian breakaway regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
• Russia-West Dispute Over Georgia Roils UN RFE/RL 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia and Western powers have traded bitter accusations over the recent conflict in Georgia in a showdown at the UN Security Council that comes amid mounting acrimony over Moscow's actions in that neighboring state.
• Central Asian Leaders Balk At Opening Pandora's Box Of Separatism RFE/RL 29 Aug 2008 -- The results of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, held in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, this week, were very different from what Russian President Dmitry Medvedev confidently predicted beforehand.
• Does Russia Care What The West Thinks? RFE/RL 29 Aug 2008 -- U.S. President George W. Bush slammed it as an "irresponsible decision."
• Russia denies violating French-brokered peace deal with Georgia RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia's Foreign Ministry rejected on Friday accusations from the other G8 members that Moscow has violated a peace deal brokered by France to end the recent conflict with Georgia.
• Russia accuses UN of double standards over Georgian regions RIA Novosti 29 Aug 2008 -- Russia has accused the UN Security Council of having double standards over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and of lacking understanding of the conflicts in the separatist Georgian regions.
• Russian Officials Sharply Criticize Western Institutions over Georgia Crisis VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Russian officials have sharply criticized NATO and other Western institutions for their positions on the Georgian crisis.
• SOMALIA: IRIN interview with Mark Bowden, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator IRIN 29 Aug 2008 -- After almost two decades of civil war and anarchy, Somalia is now suffering one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with 3.2 million people, almost half the population, in need of assistance.
• Top UN official in DR Congo deplores recent fighting in North Kivu UN News Centre 29 Aug 2008 -- The top United Nations official in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has strongly condemned the recent fighting between the Congolese army and rebels in the country's east, stressing that it goes against the ceasefire signed earlier this year.
• Top UN envoy welcomes move by Somali leaders towards reconciliation UN News Centre 29 Aug 2008 -- Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the United Nations Special Representative for Somalia, has welcomed an agreement signed by the Horn of Africa nation's leaders to promote reconciliation, the rule of law and good governance.
• Eastern DR Congo Quiet After Burst of Violence VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's restive North Kivu province is said to be quiet Friday after the worst outbreak of violence there in months
• Liberia Truth Commission Hearings Spark More Controversy VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Two former warlords have testified before the so-called Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Liberia, as the hearings recently gained new intensity
• Radovan Karadzic Refuses to Answer to War Crimes Charges VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has appeared before the Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal for the second time, and once again refused to plead to the charges against him
• Hague Tribunal Enters Not Guilty Plea for Karadzic VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has appeared before the United Nations war crimes tribunal and again refused to enter a plea to charges of genocide and war crimes.
• SUDAN: South Kordofan the next flashpoint? IRIN 29 Aug 2008 -- Long overshadowed by conflict in Darfur and a recent outbreak of fighting in oil-rich Abyei, Southern Kordofan is likely to be the next flashpoint in Sudan, said a new report by a Geneva-based independent research project.
• NIGER: Army seizes outlawed anti-personnel mines IRIN 29 Aug 2008 -- The Niger army says it has seized a stockpile of more than 1,000 anti-personnel landmines it found abandoned on the Niger-Chad border.

News Reports

• World Watches as Obama Makes History VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- The world has watched with growing interest these last few days as the U.S. Democratic Party chose Barack Obama as its presidential candidate, the first African-American to be a major party nominee.
• Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Talks Reportedly Resume VOA 29 Aug 2008 -- Officials in South Africa say the stalled talks between Zimbabwe's ruling party and the opposition have resumed Friday
• ZIMBABWE: Ban on NGOs lifted IRIN 29 Aug 2008 -- Zimbabwe has lifted the ban on some non-governmental organisations (NGOs), but aid agencies have been cautious in their response.