Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 04 Oct 2012 [PDF]
• Six-day Combined Operation Concludes in Afghanistan AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- Dozens of Afghan soldiers and police, supported by coalition special operations forces, concluded a six-day operation against insurgent networks in Wardak province.
• Afghans Put Insurgents Under Increasing Pressure, Ops Chief Says AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- The Afghan national security forces are growing increasingly capable and the insurgency is under increasing pressure.
• Pentagon Dedicated to Bergdahl’s Return, Spokesman Says AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- The safe return of the only U.S. service member known to be in Taliban captivity remains a top Defense Department priority, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.
• Afghan President Says 2014 Election Will Be On Time RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai says his country's presidential election, set for 2014, will be held on time.
• U.S. Military Supports FBI Mission to Benghazi, Libya AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- The U.S. military provided logistics and security support to an FBI team investigating the attack in Benghazi, Libya.
• US Investigators Visit Benghazi Consulate Attack Site VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Pentagon officials say U.S. investigators have visited Benghazi in eastern Libya for the first time since an attack on the city's American consulate killed the U.S. ambassador to the country last month.
• Terrorist Designations of Ansar al-Sharia as an Alias for Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula US Dept. of State 04 Oct 2012

Defense Policy / Programs

• DOD News Briefing with George Little from the Pentagon DoD 04 Oct 2012
• DOD Releases the Western Hemisphere Defense Policy Statement DoD 04 Oct 2012
• Pentagon Says US Has Resources for Strategic Asia Shift VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter says the Pentagon has the resources to implement its strategic re-balance toward the Asia-Pacific, despite increasing budget restrictions in Washington.
• Taiwan, U.S. high-level officials enjoy mutual trust: president CNA 04 Oct 2012 -- President Ma Ying-jeou said that the close ties between Taiwan and the United States mainly stemmed from the mutual trust among the two countries' high-ranking government officials.
• Pentagon Releases Western Hemisphere Defense Policy Statement AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- Defense Department officials released a policy statement that explains how the defense strategic guidance announced in January will shape U.S. military engagement in the Western Hemisphere.
• Panetta to Visit South America, Brussels AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta will leave tomorrow on a weeklong trip to South America and Europe, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.
• Army announces force structure actions Army News 04 Oct 2012 -- The Department of the Army announced today the relocation of the 61st Chemical Company, the 62nd Chemical Company, and Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 23rd Chemical Battalion, from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., to the Republic of Korea.
• 'Train Like You Fight': Coalition Exercise Preps PJs for Real-World Emergency AFRICOM 04 Oct 2012 -- Mass Casualty Exercise 12-1, a U.S. and French crisis response exercise held Sept. 25, 2012, allowed CJTF-HOA's PJ team to work alongside the French armed forces, as well as their U.S. sister services.
• Joint Task Force - National Capital Region 2013 Presidential Inaugural Staff stands up Army News 04 Oct 2012 -- The Joint Task Force - National Capital Region 57th Presidential Inaugural Staff began preparations in support of the Presidential Inauguration.
• USS Theodore Roosevelt Completes Anchor Drop NNS 04 Oct 2012 -- Engineering and Deck departments aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) participated in the ship's second anchoring evolution Oct. 3 as part of TR's push to become operational and return to the fleet.
• Air Force launches new GPS satellite AFNS 04 Oct 2012 -- The U.S. Air Force successfully launched a United Launch Alliance Delta IV-Medium rocket carrying the third Global Positioning System IIF satellite.
• AEDC's newest national space testing asset on its way to mission readiness AFNS 04 Oct 2012 -- A project team at the Arnold Engineering Development Complex has successfully completed an initial site acceptance test campaign on Arnold Air Force Base's new, one-of-a-kind space asset testing facility.
• CID Stands Up New 'A' school NNS 04 Oct 2012 -- The Center for Information Dominance (CID) Learning Site (LS) Groton conducted its first graduation ceremony for the Navy's newest "A" school, Sept. 21 at the Naval Submarine Learning Center here.
• U.S. Should Lead Cybersecurity Efforts, NSA Director Says AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- Analyzing and solving the challenge of cybersecurity is critical to the global economy, the National Security Agency director said during the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Cybersecurity Summit.
• NAVFAC Awards $75 Million to Small Business in Beaufort NNS 04 Oct 2012 -- Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast awarded five small businesses firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award design-bid-build construction contract Sept. 27 for a combined total of $75 million.
• Goddard Power Plant Complex Set For Demolition NNS 04 Oct 2012 -- The Navy's last coal-fired power plant is set to close after Naval Facilities Engineering Command Washington awarded a $68 million contract Sept. 28 to build a more efficient facility.
• Pakistan, Russia Intensify Contacts to Improve Ties VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Pakistan and Russia have held high-level discussions focusing on how to expand their political, economic and military relationship.
• Russian FM calls for restraint after Syrian firing into Turkey's territory IRNA 04 Oct 2012 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed shock at the casualties in cross border shelling into Turkey by the Syrian forces and called for restraint.
• Russian Air Force Accepts First Yak-130 RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- Russia’s Irkut aircraft-manufacturing plant delivered the first six Yakovlev Yak-130 Mitten combat trainers to the Russian Air Force.
• Russian Defense Ministry Signs Multi-billion-dollar Plane Contract RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- Russia's Defense Ministry on Thursday signed a contract worth about 140 billion rubles ($4 billion) to buy 39 IL-476 transport planes.
• Zionist regime’s nuclear warheads biggest threat to region: Iran’s envoy IRNA 04 Oct 2012 -- Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations said the Zionist regime’s nuclear warheads which threatened regional peace and stability.
• India successfully test fires Prithvi-II missile IRNA 04 Oct 2012 -- India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable Prithvi-II ballistic missile from a test range near Balasore in Odihsa state as part of a user trial by the army.
• Taiwan AF to help probe Taiwanese pilot crash in France CNA 04 Oct 2012 -- An Air Force team was set to depart for France on Thursday night to help investigate a jet fighter crash in which a Taiwanese pilot died during training operations.
• Taiwan grounds Mirage fighters after crash in France CNA 04 Oct 2012 -- Air Force officials said that all of Taiwan's Mirage jet fighters have been grounded following a crash in France in which a Taiwanese pilot died during training operations.
• In Brief: Somalia joins the mine ban club IRIN 04 Oct 2012 -- Somalia has become the 160th state member of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention. It is the last of the sub-Saharan African countries to commit to the treaty.
• U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing, October 4, 2012 US Dept. of State 04 Oct 2012

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for October 04, 2012

Other Conflicts

• Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, 04 October 2012 United Nations 04 Oct 2012
• UN Security Council Condemns Deadly Syrian Attack on Turkey VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- The U.N. Security Council has condemned a deadly Syrian artillery strike on a Turkish border town "in the strongest terms."
• Turkey Approves Possible Further Action Against Syria VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- The Turkish parliament has approved a government motion to authorize further military operations outside the country's borders.
• Turkish Military Action Heightens Regional Tensions VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- The military exchange between Turkey and forces in Syria threatens to inflame the region.
• Turkey Approves Possible Further Action Against Syria VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- The Turkish parliament has voted to authorize further military operations outside its borders after it struck Syrian targets.
• Turkish Parliament Approves Syria Military Action RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- The Turkish parliament has authorized cross-border military operations in neighboring Syria.
• Turkey Seeks Clearance for Cross-border Strikes on Syria RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- The Turkish government sought authorization from parliament to conduct, if necessary, more cross-border operations against Syria hours after Ankara fired artillery at targets inside Syria.
• Turkey Renews Syria Strikes After Deadly Cross-Border Shelling VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Turkey is continuing its response to a deadly Syrian mortar attack, launching artillery strikes into Syria for a second straight day.
• Press Secretary Calls Syria’s Actions ‘Wrong, Deplorable’ AFPS 04 Oct 2012 -- The United States stands with its NATO ally Turkey in Ankara's response to a Syrian cross-border mortar attack that killed five Turkish civilians yesterday, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.
• EU Condemns Syria Shelling in Turkey RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- The EU's chief diplomat Catherine Ashton strongly condemned on Thursday Syria’s shelling of a Turkish border village, urging both countries to show restraint.
• UN chief urges restraint amid rising tensions along Syrian-Turkish border UN News Centre 04 Oct 2012 -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced his alarm at escalating tensions along the Syrian-Turkish border, and called on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint.
• UN Chief: Syria Violence May Engulf Neighbors RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the ongoing conflict in Syria endangers the surrounding region after a Syrian attack on Turkey that killed at least five civilians and wounded a dozen more.
• Syria's Aleppo: Wracked by Suffering, Enveloped in Fear VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- VOA's Scott Bobb traveled to the war-torn northern Syrian city of Aleppo Thursday and left with vivid impressions of a complex community wracked by suffering and fear.
• ROC envoy to Japan returns to post CNA 04 Oct 2012 -- Taiwan's representative to Japan, Shen Ssu-tsun, returned to his post in Tokyo to resume his official duties, which include promoting bilateral relations.
• Somalia has made ‘quantum leap’ in its progress but security threats remain, UN envoy warns UN News Centre 04 Oct 2012 -- An “unimaginable” change has taken hold although the threats of guerrilla war and terrorism persist, the top United Nations envoy for the Horn of Africa country said.
• Deteriorating Security Situation in Darfur, Sudan US Dept. of State 04 Oct 2012
• Pakistan army chief says will back political solution in Balochistan IRNA 04 Oct 2012 -- Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, announced support to political solution to problem in the Balochistan problem.

News Reports

• Ahmadinejad: No one can decide on behalf of Syrian nation IRNA 04 Oct 2012 -- President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said ending Syrian crisis basically is possible thru national understanding.
• Tehran Jamming Foreign Broadcasts RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- U.S. international broadcasting into Iran is being jammed again.
• Sixteen Arrested for Role in Iran's Currency Crisis VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- On Thursday, Tehran’s attorney general said 16 people had been arrested for their alleged “disruption of the currency market."
• Shops Remain Closed After Iran Currency Clashes VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Shops in the Iranian capital's main bazaar have mostly remained shut Thursday, a day after riot police clashed with protesters upset by the plunge in the nation's currency, the rial.
• Muslim Brotherhood Plans March in Amman Friday VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- The capital of Jordan is bracing for what the Muslim Brotherhood says will be a massive demonstration Friday demanding far-reaching government reforms from King Abdullah II.
• Pakistan's Imran Khan to Go Ahead With 'Peace March' VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Pakistani cricketeer turned opposition politician Imran Khan is dismissing government warnings about marching into South Waziristan to protest U.S. drone strikes.
• Pakistani Bounties Aimed At Winning Taliban Support RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- Bounty setters are trying to cash in on anti-Western populism in the wake of the objectionable film "Innocence of Muslims."
• From Georgian Dream To Georgian Reality RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- The confetti has been swept up following Georgia's surprising October 1 legislative election. And now comes the hard part.
• Ivanishvili Urges Georgian Supporters to Stop Protests VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Georgia's Bidzina Ivanishvili is urging supporters of his coalition to stop street protests against the country's outgoing government.
• Ivanishvili Welcomes Russian Investors in Georgia RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- Georgian billionaire tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili, the leader of the Georgian Dream coalition that won the October 1 parliamentary elections, says he will welcome Russian investors in Georgia.
• Was Kyrgyz Protest Really About Gold Mine, Or Face Time? RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- From the moment protesters began climbing the gates outside the Kyrgyz parliament building on October 3, doubts began to surface about what they were really there for.
• Protesters Demand Release Of Kyrgyz Opposition Leaders RFE/RL 04 Oct 2012 -- Hundreds of protesters have gathered in Kyrgyzstan's southern city of Jalal-Abad to demand the immediate release of three opposition members of parliament.
• Kyrgyz Oppositionist Arrested in Wake of Protests RIA Novosti 04 Oct 2012 -- Kamchibek Tashiyev, a leader of a Kyrgyz oppositionist party, was detained on charges to overthrow the government in the wake of a protest rally in Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, his lawyer said.
• KCNA Issues Detailed Report on 5th Anniversary of October 4 Declaration KCNA 04 Oct 2012 -- The Korean Central News Agency issued a detailed report "The 5-year-long history of the bedeviled north-south relations says", the 5th anniversary of the historic October 4 declaration.
• DPRK, China Ink MOU on Cooperation in Agriculture KCNA 04 Oct 2012 -- A MOU on cooperation in agriculture was signed between the Ministries of Agriculture of the DPRK and China in Pyongyang.
• Tibetan Blogger Self-Immolates, Leaves Posts Behind VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Sources tell VOA's Tibetan Service a 43-year-old poet and blogger named Gudrup engulfed himself in flames in Dreru, Tibet.
• MYANMAR: Displaced Rohingya living “worse than animals” IRIN 04 Oct 2012 -- Nearly 75,000 people living in temporary camps and shelters following inter-communal conflict in Myanmar’s Rakhine State in June face deteriorating living conditions, say local aid workers and residents.
• Ex-Philippine President Arrested for Plunder VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Philippine police have descended on a Manila hospital, and placed former president Gloria Arroyo under arrest for plunder.
• Taiwanese Pro-Independence Politician Visits China VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Frank Hsieh, the former chairman of Taiwan's pro-independence party, is touring China for a visit that he says is aimed at building mutual trust.
• EU Nuclear Plants Fail to Meet International Safety Standards VOA 04 Oct 2012 -- Europe is in need of at least $13 billion worth of improvements to its nuclear power plants, according to a series of reviews carried out across the European Union.
• Secretary-General Ban congratulates Mozambique on anniversary of peace accords UN News Centre 04 Oct 2012 -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon “warmly congratulates” the Government and people of Mozambique as they mark 20 years of peace.