Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 04 May 2012 [PDF]
• Combined Force Captures Taliban Leader AFPS 04 May 2012 -- An Afghan-led, coalition-supported security force detained a Taliban leader and two additional insurgents during an operation in the Imam Sahib district of Afghanistan's Kunduz province today, military officials reported.
• Lejeune Marines, Afghan forces unleash Operation Reservoir Dogs USMC News 04 May 2012
• CLB-4 expands patrols to new supply route USMC News 04 May 2012 -- Marines with Company A, Combat Logistics Battalion 4, conducted a combat logistics patrol along Route Red-West for the first time recently.
• Afghan-coalition cooperation brings more electricity to Kandahar City residents Army News 04 May 2012 -- Afghanistan's power utility, Da Breshna Sherkat, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Task Force Breshna Barq teamed up again; this time to bring more electricity to the Sabiqa area of Kandahar City May 2.
• 1st ACB begins mission transition process with 12th CAB in Afghanistan Army News 04 May 2012 -- A little less than a year ago, Soldiers from the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division touched down in Afghanistan to commence what would be the brigade's first deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. As the brigade's tour is winding down and the end is now in sight, relief has arrived in the form of the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, based out of Germany.
• Pakistan offers alternatives to US drone strikes IRNA 04 May 2012 -- Pakistan has said it is willing to look at alternatives other than the US drone attacks, which are illegal and totally unacceptable.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Lawyers, Onlookers Prepare for Guantanamo Bay Arraignment AFPS 04 May 2012 -- Two planeloads of people arrived here today to participate in or watch court proceedings against five detainees who allegedly conspired in the 9/11 attacks on the United States that killed nearly 3,000 people.
• Secretary of the Navy Announces LHA 7 Will Be Named USS Tripoli DoD 04 May 2012 -- Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today the selection of USS Tripoli as the name for the Navy’s next large-deck amphibious assault ship (LHA 7).
• U.S. Army South concludes staff talks with Brazil Army News 04 May 2012 -- U.S. Army South and a delegation of senior staff officers from the Brazilian army closed out the annual army-to-army staff talks between the two countries by signing the minutes to the meeting during a closing ceremony at the Army South headquarters, May 3.
• Battaglia: U.S. troops in Korea ready and resilient Army News 04 May 2012 -- The U.S. military's top enlisted leader met with American service members here in South Korea May 1 - 5.
• Eighth Army fields new protective equipment in Korea Army News 04 May 2012 -- Post firemen, military police, American civilian employees, Korean Service Corps employees, Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army troops and U.S. Soldiers of all ranks filed through lines lined with boxes of personal protective gear designed to protect the recipients in a chemically or biologically contaminated environment.
• USNS Mercy Departs for Pacific Partnership 2012 NNS 04 May 2012 -- Military Sealift Command (MSC) hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) departed Naval Station San Diego May 3, beginning its part in Pacific Partnership 2012, a four-and-a-half month humanitarian and civic assistance mission to Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia.
• Navy Accepts Delivery of Future USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) NNS 04 May 2012 -- The Navy accepted delivery of the future USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) today from General Dynamics at their Bath Iron Works shipyard.
• JHSV 3 Keel Authenticated NNS 04 May 2012 -- Austal USA held a keel laying ceremony for Joint High Speed Vessel Fortitude (JHSV 3) at its shipyard in Mobile, Ala., May 3, symbolically recognizing the beginning of ship construction.
• DOD Details Civilian Personnel Telework Changes AFPS 04 May 2012 -- Defense officials announced decisions designed to strengthen telework and make it more attractive to supervisors and employees, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for civilian personnel policy said here yesterday.
• F-16 crashes at Utah Test and Training Range AFNS 04 May 2012 -- An Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon, assigned to the 388th Fighter Wing, crashed at the Utah Test and Training Range at approximately 8:35 a.m. May 4.
• Air Force leader talks about future of ISR AFNS 04 May 2012 -- Air Force leadership reinforced the critical nature and future of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions April 26 to a group of civic and industry leaders as well as media members attending the Air Force Association's monthly breakfast in Arlington, Va.
• Priorities Chart Way Forward for Eucom AFPS 04 May 2012 -- Using the new defense strategic guidance as its roadmap, officials at U.S. European Command say they've fixed their compasses on four basic priorities: maintaining ready forces, completing a successful transition in Afghanistan, sustaining strategic partnerships and countering transnational threats.
• Battaglia Stresses Readiness, Resilience During Korea Visit AFPS 04 May 2012 -- As he meets with U.S. service members in South Korea this week, the military's top enlisted leader is stressing the importance of their mission and the need for resilience.
• Combat Logistics Battalion 6 earns 'Million Dollar Board' spot USMC News 04 May 2012 -- Combat Logistics Battalion 6 was acknowledged recently by the Defense Logistics Agency for requisitioning $1.8 million in gear during Fiscal Year 2011.
• Philippines, US conclude Balikatan USMC News 04 May 2012 -- The Republic of the Philippines and the U.S. celebrated the successes of Exercise Balikatan 2012 during a closing ceremony here April 27.
• AFNORTH Airmen hone hurricane response skills AFNS 04 May 2012 -- Air Forces Northern Airmen are putting their hurricane preparedness skills to practice during exercise Ardent Sentry '12 May 2 through 9.
• NATO plays down Russian military threats over US missile defense IRNA 04 May 2012 -- NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen here Friday played down Russia's latest military threats against US plans to deploy a controversial missile defense system in Europe.
• U.S. Says Ready to Search for Missile Defense Compromise RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- The U.S. Department of State said it was ready to intensify its efforts to find a mutually acceptable European missile shield solution hours after Russia threatened military countermeasures.
• Russia Offers Pyramid Radar for Missile Defense RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- Russia could offer use of its massive Don-2NP radar system near Moscow as part of an agreement with NATO on a European missile defense plan to counter medium and long-range missiles, Russia's Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said on Friday.
• Russia to Set Up Military Maintenance Centers in Kazakhstan RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- Russia is planning to establish maintenance centers for Russian arms and military equipment in service with the Kazakh Armed Forces in Kazakhstan, the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation said on Friday.
• NATO Secretary General stresses importance of Chicago Summit to Alliance's future at Berlin talks NATO 04 May 2012 -- NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen stressed the importance of this month’s Chicago Summit to the future of the Alliance and its mission in Afghanistan, in talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on 4 May 2012.
• Iran, N Korea do not possess long-range missiles: Russian general IRNA 04 May 2012 -- Head of Russia's General Staff Main Intelligence Department Major General Igor Sergun said that Iran and North Korea do not possess long-range ballistic missiles.
• Iran, Pakistan, N. Korea May Pose Nuclear Threat to Russia RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- A nuclear-armed Iran, Pakistan and North Korea could potentially trigger regional chain reactions that ultimately threaten Russia's security, the former director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, Vyacheslav Trubnikov, said.
• Israel Gets Nuke-Capable Submarine RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- An official ceremony to hand over to Israel a Dolphin-class submarine, which can carry nuclear weapons, was held on Thursday in the German city of Kiel.
• U.S. Expresses Support for S. Korea Missile Program RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- The U.S. Department of State sees no threat in South Korea's ballistic missile program and is set to continue its support for Seoul's efforts to boost the country's defense capabilities.
• May 4, 2012 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 04 May 2012

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for May 04, 2012

Other Conflicts

• 4 May 2012 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 04 May 2012
• UN-Arab League mediation process for Syria crisis 'on track,' says official UN News Centre 04 May 2012 -- The six-point plan drawn up by the Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and the League of Arab States, Kofi Annan, to resolve the violent crisis in Syria is proceeding ahead, his spokesperson said today, adding that there are 'small signs' of compliance with the plan.
• UN Spokesman Says Syria Peace Plan On Track RFE/RL 04 May 2012 -- The spokesman for international envoy Kofi Annan says the peace plan for Syria remains "on track" - despite incomplete compliance.
• Suicide blast kills 20 in Pakistan's tribal region IRNA 04 May 2012 -- At least 20 people, including seven Levies personnel, were killed while 66 others were injured in a suicide blast in Pakistan's Bajaur tribal region on Friday, local media reported.
• TTP claims responsibility of Pakistan suicide attack IRNA 04 May 2012 -- The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Friday claimed responsibility for the suicide attack that killed 20 people in Pakistan's Bajaur tribal region, local media reported.
• NATO Secretary General statement on voting in Kosovo in Serbian elections NATO 04 May 2012
• Convening of elders important step on path to ending Somalia's transition – UN envoy UN News Centre 04 May 2012 -- The top United Nations envoy in Somalia has welcomed the inaugural convening of the body tasked with selecting members of the Constituent Assembly and new Parliament as an important step on the road to ending the country's transition.
• Tensions Boiling Along Sudan-South Sudan Border VOA 04 May 2012 -- Renewed accusations and continued distrust are threatening to sabotage a promised cease-fire involving the world's newest country.
• DRC: Congolese refugees flee fighting into Rwanda IRIN 04 May 2012 -- Renewed heavy fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) North Kivu Province has pushed some 3,000 Congolese refugees into northern Rwanda where they are in need of humanitarian assistance, says a senior UN official.
• SAHEL: Aid efforts under strain as refugees numbers mount IRIN 04 May 2012 -- Sahelian governments and local and international aid groups are struggling to cope with both the continual arrivals of people fleeing the regions of Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal in northern Mali, and the mounting number of hungry people across the region as the lean season gets underway.
• MYANMAR-THAILAND: Struggling against malaria in conflict areas IRIN 04 May 2012 -- Health workers carrying out malaria control activities - sometimes covertly - in conflict zones along the Thai-Myanmar border hope additional donor funding will help reduce infection rates that have remained almost impervious to health services.

News Reports

• Clinton Sees 'Progress' On Chen Case RFE/RL 04 May 2012 -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says "progress" has been made in resolving a diplomatic dispute between Washington and Beijing over Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese dissident who escaped house arrest and fled to the U.S. Embassy.
• China says Dissident Can Apply to Go Abroad VOA 04 May 2012 -- Chinese officials say legal activist Chen Guangcheng is free to apply to go overseas if he wants to, and U.S. officials say they expect China to process his travel paperwork quickly. The still developing case of the lawyer, who left the U.S. embassy earlier this week, has overshadowed high-level annual talks between American and Chinese officials. U.S. officials say Chen has been offered a fellowship at an American university.
• Moscow conference warns of West playing with Iran's nuclear card IRNA 04 May 2012 -- The international conference on missile shield defense in Moscow warned West of playing with a nuclear Iran card.
• Coordinated global action crucial to defeat terrorism, Ban tells Security Council UN News Centre 04 May 2012 -- Stressing the need for an integrated response to terrorism, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today he hoped Member States will decide to create the position of a UN Counter-Terrorism Coordinator to promote better coordination, collaboration and cooperation among all players.
• South Korea Starts Building Two New Reactors RIA Novosti 04 May 2012 -- South Korea started on Friday construction work on two nuclear reactors in what President Lee Myung-bak described as a 'big milestone' in the country's atomic industry, Yonhap news agency reported.
• Yemen: UN mediator facilitates transfer of military leadership UN News Centre 04 May 2012 -- A United Nations mediator facilitated the peaceful transfer of command of a key military brigade from a relative of the country's former President to an official appointed by his elected successor, Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi Mansour, as part of the country's ongoing transition process.