Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• 6 Afghan Police Killed in Insider Attack VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- The latest insider attack in Afghanistan has claimed the lives of six Afghan policemen, after a cook and policemen collaborated with outside insurgent fighters.
• Six Afghan Police Killed In Insider Attack RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- An Afghan police officer and a cook attacked their colleagues at a checkpoint in an assault coordinated with insurgent fighters that left six people dead.
• A Company 2-1 and 4th Koy secure Taliban hotbed Army News 20 Oct 2012 -- Soldiers with A/2-1st Infantry, along with their Afghan National Army partners cleared an area known for its strong Taliban presence in Kandahar province.
• Afghanistan: following deadly blast, UN mission calls on Taliban to halt use of improvised explosive devices UN News Centre 20 Oct 2012 -- The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan called on the Taliban leadership to publicly reiterate a ban on landmine-like improvised explosive device (IEDs) and to stop their use.
• 401st LTF North overcomes adverse conditions to support Warfighters Army News 20 Oct 2012 -- Camp John Pratt is one of the newest 401st Army Field Support Brigade's locations, built recently to accommodate the personnel, equipment and missions previously located at Deh Dadi II.

Defense Policy / Programs

• U.S. Navy Christens Future USS America (LHA 6) NNS 20 Oct 2012 -- The newest amphibious assault ship America (LHA 6) was christened Oct. 20 at a ceremony in Pascagoula, Miss.
• Japan-U.S. military drill might be cancelled: report CNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Japan and the United States are considering cancelling a joint military drill, which was scheduled to be held in the Ryukyu Islands, because of opposition by the islands’residents.
• Rodong Sinmun on U.S. Projected Deployment of New Type Stealth Fighters in Japan KCNA 20 Oct 2012 -- The U.S. Department of Defense recently announced its plan to deploy F-35 fighters in Kadena air force base in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan.
• Military Outreach Seen as New Step in Engaging Burma VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Burma may be invited to observe the largest multilateral military exercises in the Asia-Pacific region for the first time.
• U.S Defense Chief Calls Cyberspace Battlefront Of The Future RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says cyberspace is the battlefield of the future.
• Navy Surgeon General Visits New Naval Hospital Construction Site NNS 20 Oct 2012 -- Surgeon General of the Navy and Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Medicine and Surgery Vice Adm. Matthew Nathan, toured the replacement Naval Hospital construction site aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Oct. 18.
• Russia’s Only Tracking Ship Sails After Overhaul RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- The only missile range instrumentation ship remaining in service with the Russian Navy has sailed on a tour of duty after almost a year of repairs at the port of Vladivostok.
• Russia’s Pantsir-S System Downs Cruise Missile in Test RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- Two missiles fired from a Pantsir-S short-range air defense system shot down a cruise missile during tests at a practice range in northern Russia.
• Peru Gets Upgraded Mi-25 Gunships to Boost Drug Fight RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- Four Mil Mi-25 Hind D attack helicopters, modernized in Russia, have joined the Peruvian Air Force to boost its combat capability in the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking.
• Will Hu Jintao give up job as China's supreme military commander CNA 20 Oct 2012 -- The Communist Party of China is set to hold its 18th National Congress on Nov. 8 and to name Xi Jinping as its general secretary in place of Hu Jintao.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• UN Envoy On Syria Meets With Assad RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- The international envoy on Syria Lakhdar Brahimi has been meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as his diplomatic mission continues.
• Brahimi Meets Syrian Officials To Discuss Truce Proposal RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi has met with Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem in Damascus to press for a brief ceasefire between President Bashar al-Assad's forces and rebels.
• International Peace Envoy Brahimi in Damascus VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- The Syrian government says talks on Saturday between international peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and the country's foreign minister were "serious" and "constructive."
• Syria Discloses List of Foreign Prisoners RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- Syria has handed the United Nations a list of 108 foreign citizens arrested by the Syrian authorities over their alleged involvement in terrorism.
• UN cautions effect of Syria conflict on neighbors IRNA 20 Oct 2012 -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned about the effect of the Syrian civil war on the neighboring states, including Lebanon.
• Anger Erupts As Lebanese Cabinet Holds Emergency Session After Bombing RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- Lebanon's cabinet has held an emergency session as demonstrators blocked roads with burning tyres to protest a bombing in Beirut that killed a senior intelligence official and seven others.
• Tensions High in Lebanon After Deadly Bombing VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Tensions are high in Lebanon a day after a deadly bombing that killed the country's police intelligence chief and at least seven other people.
• U.S. Slams 'Barbaric' Beirut Bombing, Syria Blamed By Some Lebanese RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- The White House has condemned "in the strongest terms" what it calls a terrorist attack in Beirut that killed a top security official and seven others.
• In wake of Beirut bombing, UN chief expresses solidarity with people of Lebanon UN News Centre 20 Oct 2012 -- In a telephone discussion with Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati, United Nations Secretary-General Ban expressed his solidarity with the country’s people.
• UN Security Council Condemns Beirut Blast, Urges Unity RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- The UN Security Council has strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Beirut that killed a top-ranking Lebanese security official and urged Lebanese people to maintain unity in the face of attempts to destabilize the country.
• Beirut Friday terrorist attack have divisive goals: Mehmanparast IRNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Beirut terrorist attack which resulted in the death of at least eight people including a senior security official have divisive goals, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said.
• Tehran condemns Friday terrorist attack in Beirut IRNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi condemned here on Friday, the terrorist attack in Beirut which resulted the death of at least eight people including a senior security official.
• 9 Killed in Clashes in Southeast Turkey VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Officials in Turkey say Turkish security forces and Kurdish rebels have clashed in the country's troubled southeast, killing nine people.
• Israel Seizes Pro-Palestinian Activist Ship off Gaza VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- There was drama on the high seas Saturday as a ship challenged Israel’s naval blockade on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
• Israel Stops Gaza-Bound Ship RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- The Israeli Navy on Saturday intercepted a ship with pro-Palestinian activists as it tried to reach Gaza in breach of the Israeli blockade.
• Suspected Militant Attacks in Nigeria Leave 23 Dead VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Nigerian hospital officials say a wave of attacks by suspected Boko Haram militants has left at 23 people dead, while authorities say they have arrested a prominent member of the Islamist sect.
• Colombian Rebels Kill 5 Soldiers 2 Days After Start of Peace Talks VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Marxist rebels have killed five Colombian soldiers just two days after the start of peace talks.
• UN envoy in Libya concerned about developments in Bani Walid UN News Centre 20 Oct 2012 -- The UN envoy for the North African nation voiced concern about unfolding military developments in the city of Bani Walid.
• There Exists Only Maritime Military Demarcation Line Set by DPRK KCNA 20 Oct 2012 -- A spokesman for the Policy Department of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK gave the following answer to the question put by KCNA.
• KCNA on Lee Myung Bak and NLL KCNA 20 Oct 2012 -- A spokesman for the Institute for Disarmament and Peace of the DPRK Foreign Ministry Saturday released the following statement.
• KCNA on Lee Myung Bak’s Visit to Yonphyong Island KCNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Lee Myung Bak on Oct. 18 appeared on Yonphyong Island and inspected the army unit there for the first time after he took office.
• Several Killed In Iraq Shootings, Bombings RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- Police and hospital officials say shootings and bomb attacks in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities have killed more than a dozen people.
• Bakassi People Bitter Over Loss Of Homeland in Nigeria VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Nigeria’s Bakassi people are mourning the loss of their homeland after the Nigerian government declined to appeal 10-year-old ruling by the International Court of Justice ceding the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon.

News Reports

• White House Denies Agreement for Iran Talks VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- The White House is denying a New York Times report that the United States and Iran have agreed to one-on-one talks for the first time on Iran's nuclear program.
• Talks with Iran to be fulfilled after recognition of Tehran's nuclear rights, IAEO head IRNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Abbasi has said nuclear talks between Iran and the 5+1 member states would, definitely, be fulfilled after recognition of Tehran's nuclear rights.
• US Targets Top al-Qaida Operatives in Iran VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- The U.S. State Department's decision to offer a reward of up to $12 million for information leading to the location of the top two al-Qaida operatives in Iran is seen as a sign of how serious Washington is about curtailing the group's activities in Iran.
• Iran new charges over Arbabsiar detention IRNA 20 Oct 2012 -- Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast dismissed on Saturday US Attorney General's new charges over Mansour Arbabsiar detention.
• Tibetan Burns to Death in Protest Against China VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- A Tibetan man has burned to death after setting himself on fire to protest China's continued occupation of Tibet.
• Palestinians Hold Elections in West Bank VOA 20 Oct 2012 -- Palestinians are voting in local elections Saturday across parts of the West Bank, the first time they have gone to the polls in six years.
• On visit to Ramallah, UN envoy expresses hopes for local polls ahead of elections next year UN News Centre 20 Oct 2012 -- A top United Nations envoy expressed the hope that the local polls taking place in the city of Ramallah and elsewhere across the West Bank “will re-establish elections as a crucial component of an inclusive, democratic process and will serve as a prelude to general elections being organized next year in all of the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) in the context of reconciliation.”
• Fidel Castro’s Sister Denies Rumors of His Stroke RIA Novosti 20 Oct 2012 -- Fidel Castro’s sister has denied rumors that the former Cuban leader suffered a massive stroke and was on the brink of death.
• Supporters Rally In Moscow In Support Of Opposition Election RFE/RL 20 Oct 2012 -- Hundreds of people have gathered in Moscow in support of elections for the Opposition Coordination Council.