Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 09 Mar 2012 [PDF]
• Combined Force Captures Several Taliban Leaders AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- An Afghan and coalition security force captured several Taliban leaders during an operation in the Maidan Shahr district of Afghanistan's Wardak province today, military officials reported.
• U.S., Afghanistan Agree to Turnover of Parwan Detention Facility AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- An agreement signed here today sets in motion the transfer of the detention facility in Parwan, Afghanistan, to Afghan control.
• CLB-4 overcomes mud, flooding to deliver supplies USMC News 09 Mar 2012 -- During entry-level training, Marines are taught the five stresses encountered during combat: extreme risk or fear, the fog of war, discomfort and fatigue, becoming or dealing with casualties and boredom.
• Afghanistan, U.S. Sign Prisons Transfer Deal RFE/RL 09 Mar 2012 -- Afghan and U.S. officials have signed an agreement on the transfer of U.S.-run detention facilities in Afghanistan to Afghan authorities.
• Combat truckers roll out for last time AFNS 09 Mar 2012 -- The guideon furled silently and slid into its sleeve, signifying the mission was officially complete for the 387th Expeditionary Logistics Squadron during its inactivation ceremony March 6.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Statement by Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta on the One Year Anniversary of Great East Japan Earthquake DoD 09 Mar 2012
• Media Roundtable with the Secretary of Defense in Hawaii DoD 09 Mar 2012 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta
• Panetta Discusses U.S. Focus on Pacific, Middle East AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- The Pacific will be a growing focus for the American military in the years to come, but the Middle East also must remain a priority, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said in Hawaii yesterday.
• Department of Defense Releases Roadmap to Transform Energy Use in Military Operations DoD 09 Mar 2012 -- The Department of Defense released today the Operational Energy Strategy Implementation Plan.
• Defense Department Releases Energy Conservation Roadmap AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- The Defense Department today released an implementation plan for cutting energy consumption in military operations.
• Official: 2013 Budget Targets Space Capability Resilience AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- The $9.6 billion for space programs within President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2013 budget request will boost resilience for U.S. space capabilities but cut some modernization and other programs, Air Force Gen. William L. Shelton, commander of the Air Force Space Command, told a House panel yesterday.
• JB Andrews ranked top AF-led joint base AFNS 09 Mar 2012 -- In an annual Department of Defense evaluation of supportive joint-basing capabilities, Joint Base Andrews was ranked at No. 1 compared to every other Air Force-led joint base as of March 1.
• U.S. pilots plant SEAD with Turkish counterparts AFNS 09 Mar 2012 -- The Turkish and U.S. air forces continue to combine their air assets and share tactics in large-force employments during Exercise Anatolian Falcon 2012 here March 5-16.
• U.S. Leaders Recall Japan Disasters, Relief Efforts AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta issued statements today marking the upcoming one-year anniversary of the '3/11' earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters that devastated Japan.
• Health System Seeks Savings While Retaining Excellence AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- Iraq and Afghanistan have been dangerous places over the past decade, but deployed troops often passed a saying on to new arrivals: 'If you've got to get shot, this is the best place to do it.'
• Willard Passes Pacific Command's Reins to Locklear AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- The approximately 330,000 troops in U.S. Pacific Command have a new commander today, as their former top leader relinquished command.
• Pentagon Leaders Praise Willard, Welcome Locklear to Pacom AFPS 09 Mar 2012 -- Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, praised the outgoing chief of U.S. Pacific Command for his leadership and welcomed his successor today.
• New Marine Corps non-lethal weapon heats things up USMC News 09 Mar 2012 -- Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James F. Amos, invited senior members of the Marine Corps and members of the media to Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., for a demonstration and first-hand opportunity to feel the effects of the U.S. Department of Defense, Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate's Active Denial System March 9, 2012.
• USS Ford Conducts Operational Transit on Alternative Fuel Blend NNS 09 Mar 2012 -- USS Ford (FFG 54) successfully transited from the ship's homeport in Everett, Wash., to San Diego, March 2, using 25,000 gallons of a 50/50 algae-derived, hydro-processed algal oil and petroleum F-76 blend in the ships LM 2500 gas turbines.
• Deputy Commander, Armed Forces of Malta visits Mount Whitney NNS 09 Mar 2012 -- A senior military officer from the Maltese Armed Forces visited USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) at Palumbo Malta Shipyards in Valletta, Malta, March 7.
• Nimitz Completes Sea Trials, Arrives at New Homeport NNS 09 Mar 2012 -- The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) arrived at its new homeport of Naval Station Everett, Wash., March 9 after spending nearly a week at sea conducting sea trials.
• 'Battlekings' call for mass guns during Table XVIII Army News 09 Mar 2012 -- The 1st 'BattleKings' Battalion, 9th Field Artillery, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, Third Infantry Division, went back to the basics and focused on core competencies when they had a rare opportunity to mass all of the battalion's fire power during gunnery Table XVIII live-fire evaluation, Feb. 27 - March 2.
• Engineers prepare for Global Response Force Army News 09 Mar 2012 -- Soldiers from the 92nd Engineer Battalion have begun training in preparation to take on their role as an Infantry Unit for the nation's Global Response Force.
• Shaping the force Army News 09 Mar 2012 -- The U.S. Army Reserve Command has expanded the "Shaping the Force Initiative."
• Kiowa Warriors light up JBLM sky Army News 09 Mar 2012 -- The Kiowa pilot pointed the nose of the helicopter toward the ground and began his strafing run on the targets with a .50 caliber machine gun. Circling back on the objective the pilots let loose an onslaught of rockets, striking target vehicles in the open field.
• 12 Mechanized Brigade prepares for Afghanistan UK MOD 09 Mar 2012 -- 12 Mechanized Brigade personnel have been preparing on Salisbury Plain for their upcoming deployment to Helmand on Operation HERRICK 16.
• March 9, 2012 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 09 Mar 2012
• Press Gaggle by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest en route Richmond, VA, 3/9/12 The White House 09 Mar 2012

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for March 09, 2012

Other Conflicts

• 9 March 2012 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 09 Mar 2012
• Press Conference by Chief of United Nations Relief Agency for Palestine Refugees United Nations 09 Mar 2012
• Ex-UN Chief to Meet With Syria's Assad VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- The former head of the United Nations will meet with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in an attempt to end the ongoing violence in the Middle Eastern country.
• Syria: UN relief chief 'horrified' by violence, urges access for aid agencies UN News Centre 09 Mar 2012 -- The United Nations relief chief today urged Syrian authorities to allow unrestricted access to humanitarian organizations to deliver aid to people affected by the ongoing violence, saying she was 'horrified' by the destruction she had seen in some of the areas she visited during her two-day visit to the country.
• UN: Syria Stalling on Humanitarian Aid VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- The United Nations says Syria is refusing 'unhindered' access for humanitarian aid.
• Bloodshed Precedes UN Envoy's Syria Visit VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- Renewed efforts to end the violence in Syria are being overshadowed by more demonstrations and deaths.
• UN maintains efforts against Lord's Resistance Army - senior officials UN News Centre 09 Mar 2012 -- The UN's peacekeeping chief today spoke out about the role of UN peacekeepers in tackling the Lord's Resistance Army's (LRA), a notorious Ugandan rebel group, operating around the border area of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
• New outbreak of violence displaces thousands more in Yemen – UN refugee agency UN News Centre 09 Mar 2012 -- The United Nations refugee agency reported today that Yemen is facing a new wave of internal displacement, with tens of thousands of civilians fleeing tribal clashes in the north and fresh fighting between Government troops and militants in the country's south.
• UN official urges emerging economies to support Palestinian refugees UN News Centre 09 Mar 2012 -- The head of the United Nations relief agency for Palestinian refugees today appealed to emerging economies to step up support for the organization, stressing the need for continued humanitarian support as parties to the Middle East conflict seek a political solution.
• Hope for Progress Dims in Sudan-South Sudan Talks VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- A senior Sudanese negotiator said he sees little hope for progress in talks with South Sudan on contentious issues left over from the two countries' separation last July. Mediators in Addis Ababa are measuring progress in millimeters.
• Thousands of refugees fleeing violence in DR Congo enter Uganda – UN UN News Centre 09 Mar 2012 -- More than 3,000 civilians fleeing violence in the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have entered Uganda since the beginning of this year, the United Nations refugee agency reported today.
• NEPAL: 'Disqualified' Maoist ex-combatants threaten to step up protests IRIN 09 Mar 2012 -- Thousands of disgruntled former Maoist combatants are blocking roads in major cities and towns along Nepal's main east-west highway, as part of an ongoing effort to highlight their plight.

News Reports

• US diplomacy failed vis-a-vis Iran: Soltanieh IRNA 09 Mar 2012 -- Islamic Republic of Iran's Ambassador to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali Asghar Soltanieh said the IAEA's board of governors meeting on Thursday witnessed the defeat of US' diplomacy vis-a-vis Iran's diplomacy.
• U.S. May Attack Iran with New 'Great Weapon' - Pentagon Official RIA Novosti 09 Mar 2012 -- The United States may use a new 13,600-kilogram bunker-buster bomb against Iran, DefenseNews.com reported on Thursday quoting U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Herbert Carlisle as saying.
• Netanyahu: No Israeli Strike on Iran in 'Days or Weeks' VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will give international sanctions against Iran a chance to work, and is not planning an attack on its nuclear facilities in the coming 'days or weeks.'
• SOMALIA: Diaspora for development IRIN 09 Mar 2012 -- Somalis living abroad send home more than US$1 billion - perhaps even as much as $2 billion - every year, and they have kept on doing so, despite bureaucratic obstacles. Now a report commissioned by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) considers how the outside world can help Somalis abroad contribute to the country's development.
• Zimbabwe's PM Warns Military Will Disregard Election Results VOA 09 Mar 2012 -- Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai says the country's military leaders have told him they will not allow anyone but President Robert Mugabe to rule the country, regardless of who wins an election.