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Defense Policy / Programs
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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 17 May 2013 [PDF]
• NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen: Afghanistan: Worth the Cost NATO 17 May 2013
• Combined Force Arrests Taliban Leader in Baghlan Province AFPS 17 May 2013 -- A combined Afghan and coalition security force arrested a senior Taliban leader in the Baghlan-e Jadid district of Afghanistan’s Baghlan province.
• Russia Counting on UN for Post-ISAF Afghanistan Proposals RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- Moscow is counting on the UN to develop proposals regarding the international presence in Afghanistan after 2014.
• Royal Marines final Afghanistan homecoming UK MOD 17 May 2013 -- A heroes' welcome greeted Royal Marines of 40 Commando in Taunton yesterday as thousands turned out to welcome them home from Afghanistan.
• Dead SEALs’ families blame Washington for 2011 attack in Afghanistan PressTV 17 May 2013 -- The families of US commandos killed in a 2011 downing of a helicopter in eastern Afghanistan have blamed Washington for the attack and the ensuing cover-up.
• Twin mosque bombings in Pakistan kill 13 PressTV 17 May 2013 -- More than a dozen worshippers have been killed and many others wounded in bombings at two mosques in violence-wracked northwestern Pakistan.
• At Least 13 Dead In Pakistani Mosque Attacks RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- Bombings at two mosques in a remote valley in northwestern Pakistan have killed at least 13 people.
• In Pakistan, Two Sentenced To 1,610 Years For Terror Attacks RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- A court in northwestern Pakistan has imposed one of the longest prison sentences in the country's history to two men for their part in terrorist attacks on Shi'ite Muslim mourners.

Defense Policy / Programs

• USACE Galveston District awards $3.6 million contract to dredge Freeport Harbor channel Army News 17 May 2013 -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District, awarded a contract in the amount of $3,600,200 to Mike Hooks Inc., for maintenance dredging of the Freeport inside channel and turning basins in Brazoria County, Texas.
• Fort Bliss unveils Army's first microgrid Army News 17 May 2013 -- Fort Bliss has unveiled the Army's first microgrid that will save resources, provide energy security, and be a model for other microgrids throughout the base.
• MarForPac cuts through barriers with new recon robot USMC News 17 May 2013 -- Marines from U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific trained to operate a rapid area sensitive-site reconnaissance robot, the only robot of its kind in the Department of Defense, during an advanced technology demonstration program at the 3rd Marine Regiment headquarters here, May 8.
• Checkerboards celebrate 70 years of warfighting excellence USMC News 17 May 2013 -- Marine Corps aviation is a strategic system of fixed-wing, rotary and supporting squadrons that are commissioned, decommissioned and re-designated as necessary. Not many squadrons have a lustrous history that stems back to World War II.
• X-47B Accomplishes First Ever Carrier Touch and Go aboard CVN 77 NNS 17 May 2013 -- The Navy's X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstrator (UCAS-D) has begun touch and go landing operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) May 17.
• IKE trains British Sailors NNS 17 May 2013 -- USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) (IKE) is one of several U.S. Navy ships training British Sailors on large-deck flight operations as the United Kingdom prepares to launch the first Royal Navy aircraft carrier in more than 30 years.
• Department of Defense News Briefing with Secretary Hagel and Gen. Dempsey from the Pentagon DoD 17 May 2013 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin E. Dempsey
• Readout of Secretary Hagel's Meeting with French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian DoD 17 May 2013
• Readout of Secretary Hagel’s Meeting With Turkish Leaders DoD 17 May 2013
• Hagel, Dempsey say care of GITMO detainees an ethical responsibility AFPS 17 May 2013 -- Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin E. Dempsey said the US has an ethical responsibility to assure the health and well-being of detainees.
• US lawyer exposes abuse tactics at Gitmo as hunger strike enters 4th month PressTV 17 May 2013 -- One of the inmates’ attorneys has revealed deliberate abuse and torture tactics adopted against the detainees to discourage them from contacting their lawyers.
• Exercise Trident Fury Concludes NNS 17 May 2013 -- The USS Ford completed exercise Trident Fury, returning to her homeport of Naval Station Everett, May 14.
• Navy Divers, Local Deputies Dive Together During Ardent Sentry 2013 NNS 17 May 2013 -- Navy Divers assigned to Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2 and Beaufort County Sheriff's Department SWAT Team divers worked together during exercise Ardent Sentry 13.
• Cadets earn praise for cyclogyro project AFNS 17 May 2013 -- Aeronautical Engineering cadets have presented their award-winning design of a search and rescue and medical evacuation aircraft for the year 2045 to Academy and industry leaders at the Aero Lab.
• Unit deployment manager now special duty position AFNS 17 May 2013 -- Unit deployment manager is now a two-year-controlled special duty assignment; a change Air Force officials say will help professionalize the position and improve deployment program continuity.
• DOD Works to Fortify Cloud, Acquisition, Data Processes AFPS 17 May 2013 -- The Defense Department is taking bold steps to provide sound information and proper analysis as it fortifies its cloud computing, acquisition and data processes.
• Officials Approve Guide for Government-issued iOS 6 Devices AFPS 17 May 2013 -- The security technical implementation guide for mobile devices using Apple’s iOS6 operating system has been approved, Defense Information Systems Agency officials announced.
• Obama calls in officials over sex assaults in military PressTV 17 May 2013 -- US President Barack Obama has summoned top defense officials to the White House for a meeting on the rising number of sexual assaults in the military.
• Carter: ‘No Tolerance’ in DOD for Human Trafficking AFPS 17 May 2013 -- Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter said sexual assault and human trafficking will be met with “absolutely no tolerance” in the Defense Department.
• U.S. Soldier Gets Life In Prison Over Iraq Killings RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- An American soldier convicted of killing five of his colleagues in Iraq in May 2009 has been sentenced to life in prison.
• Army makes final delivery of IA-407s to the Iraqis Army News 17 May 2013 -- The Army completed a significant milestone in helping to maintain stability in Iraq now that the U.S. military have departed from that theater of operations.
• N.Korea May Have 200 Mobile Missile Launchers RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- North Korea may have up to 200 mobile missile launchers, or twice the number previously estimated.

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for May 17, 2013

Other Conflicts

• Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, 17 May 2013 United Nations 17 May 2013
• CIA chief John Brennan visits Israel to discuss Syria PressTV 17 May 2013 -- The director of the US spy agency CIA has visited the occupied Palestinian territories to discuss the situation in Syria with Israeli officials.
• UK PM Offers Assistance in Organizing Syria Conference RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- UK Prime Minister David Cameron pledged assistance in organizing an international conference to promote a political solution to the ongoing civil war in Syria.
• Syria conference should be held ‘as soon as possible,’ Ban says UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- Secretary-General Ban said that an international conference proposed by Russia and the United States should be held as soon as possible.
• UN Chief, Russian Officials Discuss Syria VOA 17 May 2013 -- UN Secretary-General Ban: Important not to "lose momentum" in talks on setting up a peace conference on Syria next month.
• UN Chief In Russia For Syria Talks With Lavrov, Putin RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- UN Secretary-General Ban has met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the southern Russian city of Sochi for talks centered on the crisis in Syria.
• Moscow ‘Hopeful’ on Syria Chemical Weapons Inspections RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- Russia hopes that the Syrian authorities and the UN will agree on international inspections to look into the possible use of chemical weapons in the country's civil war.
• Russian Missiles in Syria will Prolong Suffering, Dempsey Says AFPS 17 May 2013 -- Russia’s planned delivery of advanced anti-ship missiles and the S-300 air defense system to Syria “is at the very least an unfortunate decision."
• Lavrov Plays Down Reports of New Missile Deliveries to Syria RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov responded to a New York Times report that Russia has sent advanced antiship cruise missiles to war-torn Syria.
• Russia dismisses uproar over arms sale to Syria PressTV 17 May 2013 -- Russia has criticized the international media for blowing Moscow's weapons cooperation with Syria out of proportion, stressing that Russia only supplies defensive weapons to the Arab country.
• Obama Keeps Diplomatic, Military Options Open in Syria RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- US President Barack Obama said he is open to a “whole range” of options in Syria.
• Syrian envoy to UN says General Assembly resolution ‘unbalanced’ PressTV 17 May 2013 -- The Syrian ambassador to the United Nations says a recent move by the UN General Assembly to adopt a resolution against Syria was unfortunate.
• Security Council condemns abduction of UN peacekeepers in Golan PressTV 17 May 2013 -- The United Nations Security Council has strongly condemned the recent abduction of three UN peacekeepers by anti-Syria militants in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights.
• UNSC condemns temporary detention of peacekeepers, looting in Golan UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- Members of the Security Council have ‘strongly condemned’ the looting of a UN observation post in the Golan Heights.
• Number of Syrian refugees tops 1.5 million mark, says UN agency UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- The United Nations refugee agency announced that the number of Syrian civilians who have fled their country to escape conflict has passed the 1.5 million mark.
• Ten killed in fuel tanker explosion on Turkey-Syria border PressTV 17 May 2013 -- At least 10 people have been killed in an explosion that rocked a village in the Turkish province of Hatay.
• Tuareg rebels ready for peace talks with Bamako: Malian president PressTV 17 May 2013 -- Mali’s acting President Dioncounda Traore has hinted that anti-government fighters in the West African country are ready for peace talks in view of a negotiated settlement.
• UN chief appoints head of peacekeeping mission in Mali UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today appointed Albert Gerard Koenders of the Netherlands as the head of the recently approved United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali.
• State of Emergency and Fighting in Northern Nigeria US Dept. of State 17 May 2013
• Nigerian rebels could face war crimes charges for ‘population cleansing’ – UN rights office UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- Members of Boko Haram and other extremist groups in Nigeria could face war crimes charges for deliberate acts leading to ethnic and religious cleansing.
• Air Strikes Hit Nigeria's Militant Camps VOA 17 May 2013 -- Nigerian forces have launched air strikes against suspected Islamist militant camps in the country's northeast.
• Nigeria army on offensive against militants in northeast PressTV 17 May 2013 -- Nigeria’s army has launched a large-scale military campaign against militants in border areas.
• Gunmen Storm Nigeria Police Station VOA 17 May 2013 -- Gunmen stormed a police station and a bank in a town in Nigeria's northwest, beyond a region covered by a military crackdown on a Islamist insurgency.
• Briefing: Restive northern Kenya sees shifting power, risks IRIN 17 May 2013 -- The presence of foreign militias in parts of northeastern Kenya, and their collusion with security officials and business people there, may be to blame for a rise in insecurity in the region.
• Aid Group Condemns Attack on Civilians in Eastern DRC VOA 17 May 2013 -- The medical aid group Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, has condemned a brutal attack on civilians living in Mpeti village in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
• UN agency prepositions for Darfur refugees in Chad ahead of rainy season UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- The UN refugee agency said it is “in a race against time” to deliver aid before heavy rains cut off access to the group escaping violence linked to tribal conflicts.
• Taiwan takes issue with Manila's 'unintended' assertion CNA 17 May 2013 -- Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs insisted that the Philippine response to Taiwan's demands has not been "positive, sufficient and concrete" enough.
• Philippine attack 'cold-blooded murder' CNA 17 May 2013 -- President Ma said that a Philippine government vessel's use of automatic weapons to strafe an unarmed and unprovocative fishing boat was "cold-blooded murder."
• Philippines speeds up investigation of fatal shooting CNA 17 May 2013 -- The Philippines is investigating the May 9 shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by the Philippine Coast Guard.
• U.S. hopes for resolution of Taiwan-Philippines row CNA 17 May 2013 -- The United States reiterated its call for Taipei and Manila to work out a resolution to their row over the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by the Philippines on May 9.
• More ships patrol waters south of Taiwan after shooting: CGA CNA 17 May 2013 -- The Coast Guard Administration said that three additional large vessels have been dispatched to increase the protection of Taiwanese fishermen.
• Iraq: UN urges leaders to help end bloodshed UN News Centre 17 May 2013 -- The top United Nations official in Iraq urged Iraqi leaders to protect civilians.
• At least 49 people killed, many injured in Iraq bomb attacks PressTV 17 May 2013 -- At least 49 people have been killed and many others injured in three terrorist bomb attacks north and south of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
• Bombs Targeting Iraqi Sunnis Kill Scores VOA 17 May 2013 -- A series of bomb attacks has targeted Sunnis in Iraq, killing at least 70 people and increasing fears of renewed sectarian conflict.
• U.S. Lifts Sanctions On Iraqi Bank RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- The United States says it has allowed an Iraqi bank to again conduct business with the U.S. financial system “following the bank’s significant and demonstrated change in behavior."
• Notice - Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Stabilization of Iraq The White House 17 May 2013
• Message - Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Stabilization of Iraq The White House 17 May 2013
• Israeli forces clash with anti-settlement Palestinian protesters PressTV 17 May 2013 -- Israeli forces have clashed with Palestinian demonstrators protesting against Tel Aviv plans to expand an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank.
• Russian FM Lavrov Criticizes Mideast Quartet as ‘Passive’ RIA Novosti 17 May 2013 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticized the Middle East Quartet mediating the peace process in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
• Angry Egyptian Policemen Close Crossing with Gaza VOA 17 May 2013 -- Egyptian policemen blocked the crossing into the Gaza Strip on Friday to protest against the kidnapping of Egyptian security forces in the Sinai, witnesses and sources said.

News Reports

• Iranian Candidate Appears To Offer Contrasting Accounts RFE/RL 17 May 2013 -- Is Iran’s presidential hopeful Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf a hard-liner or a moderate?
• President Zardari will not resign, says spokesperson IRNA 17 May 2013 -- Presidential spokesperson Senator Farhatullah Babar has said that President Asif Ali Zardari will not be resigning.
• Zimbabwe's Tsvangirai says Mugabe's Party is Dead VOA 17 May 2013 -- Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai declared President Robert Mugabe’s party “dead.”
• Chad Arrests Accused Ex-President's Police Chief VOA 17 May 2013 -- Chadian justice officials are questioning and arresting associates of ex-Chadian president Hissene Habre who are accused of torturing and killing political opponents during Habre's eight years in power.
• US 'Concerned' at Conviction of Vietnamese Activists VOA 17 May 2013 -- The United States says it is concerned at the prison sentences given to two young activists in Vietnam who were convicted this week on subversion charges.
• China Increases Investment in Himalayan Neighbor Nepal VOA 17 May 2013 -- In recent years, Nepal has deepened its already strong ties with China - some say to counter its reliance on India for aid and investment.
• Former Argentine Dictator Videla Dies in Prison VOA 17 May 2013 -- Jorge Rafael Videla, an austere former army commander who led Argentina during the bloodiest period of a "dirty war" dictatorship, died on Friday at age 87.