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News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 19 Aug 2014 [PDF]
• Department of Defense Press Briefing by Rear Adm. Kirby in the Pentagon Briefing Room DoD 19 Aug 2014 -- Presenter: Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Admiral John Kirby
• Kirby: Mosul Dam Operation Not 'Mission Creep' AFPS 19 Aug 2014 -- The partnership between U.S., Iraqi and Peshmerga forces was critical to the success of the operation to retake the Mosul Dam from Sunni terrorists, the Pentagon press secretary said today.
• US Air Power Aiding Iraq in Fight Against Militants VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- Backed by a series of U.S. airstrikes, Iraq's military is fighting back against Islamic militants who have seized large swathes of land across the north and west of the country into Syria declaring it a "caliphate."
• Obama Denies Plans to Put US Combat Forces on Iraqi Ground RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- US President Barack Obama in a Monday statement reaffirmed that the US military had no plans to put combat forces on the ground in Iraq, despite an increase in US airstrikes at Islamic State positions in the country’s north.
• Karzai calls for end to Afghan election impasse Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called on the country's two presidential candidates to end their dispute over the result of the June presidential runoff vote.
• 'When Are You Going Back?' Afghanistan's Sikhs, Strangers In Their Own Land RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014
• Pakistan Says Air Strikes Kill 48 Militants In Tribal Regions RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- Pakistan's military says it has killed 48 suspected militants in air strikes in two tribal regions near the border with Afghanistan.

Defense Policy / Programs

• 82 F-16Ds removed from flight status due to longeron cracks AFNS 19 Aug 2014 -- U.S. Air Force officials recently removed 82 two-seat F-16D Fighting Falcons from flight status due to the discovery of canopy sill longeron cracks found between the front and rear pilot seats.
• Media Availability Deputy Secretary Work in Guam DoD 19 Aug 2014 -- Presenter: Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work; Lieutenant Commander Courtney Hillson
• Greece, US continue to enhance NATO airpower AFNS 19 Aug 2014 -- The bilateral training between the Greek and U.S. air forces continues this week with more large-force employments, or LFE.
• Two cent difference saves AF, Travis AFB millions AFNS 19 Aug 2014 -- Travis Air Force Base has jumped on board an Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century initiative set in place in 2008 that will eventually save the Air Force and Department of Defense millions of dollars each year.
• Readout of Deputy Secretary of Defense Work's Visit to Guam DoD 19 Aug 2014
• NMCB 4 Relieves NMCB 1 in the Pacific NNS 19 Aug 2014 -- Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 4 relieved NMCB 1 during a transfer of authority ceremony on board Camp Shields, Aug. 16.
• Work: Guam is Strategic Hub to Asia-Pacific Rebalance AFPS 19 Aug 2014 -- Guam, because of its military bases, Army anti-ballistic missile system and location 3,300 miles west of Hawaii is an increasingly important strategic hub for the U.S. Asia-Pacific rebalance, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said today.
• Navy Installations in Japan, Guam and Hawaii to Participate in Citadel Pacific 2014 NNS 19 Aug 2014 -- Exercise Citadel Pacific 2014 will be conducted on Navy Installations throughout the U.S. Pacific Command area of responsibility, including Navy Region Japan, Joint Region Marianas and Navy Region Hawaii from Aug. 25-29.
• US Defenseless Against North Korean EMP Threat VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- The electric grid in the United States remains largely unprotected, according to a longtime adviser to Congress on national security issues.
• Military to minimize flight delays during drill People's Daily 19 Aug 2014 -- Chinese military will take steps to minimize delays to civilian flights as drones and fighter bombers join in an anti-terror drill, a spokesman for the China Air Force said Monday.
• Russian Navy May Make Changes, Reequip Personnel, by 2020 - Defense Minister RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- The head of the Russian Navy has suggested making changes to the country’s naval forces to reequip personnel with modern arms in regard to events over the last few months, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday.
• Russian Troops to Study Drone Use in Armenia RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- Over 100 Russian military personnel based in Armenia will receive unmanned aircraft control skills during a three-day field training exercise, Russia’s Southern Military District said in a press release.
• Russian Troops Gather in China Ahead of SCO Peace Mission 2014 Drills RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- Last echelons of Russian troops and military vehicles have arrived in China for multinational anti-terror drills under the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a Russian military spokesman told RIA Novosti early on Tuesday.
• Japan stages military exercises off disputed islands Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Japan’s military is holding military drills at the foothills of Mount Fuji to showcase its ability to defend or retake islands in and around the disputed East China Sea.
• August 19, 2014 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 19 Aug 2014

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for August 19, 2014

Other Conflicts

• 19 August 2014 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 19 Aug 2014
• Briefing Security Council, UN deputy chief urges protection for frontline 'humanitarian heroes' UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson had one main message – "we must protect humanitarian workers" – as he marked World Humanitarian Day with a special briefing to the Security Council, addressing a subject critical to people caught in conflict.
• Amid unprecedented destruction, Gaza needs 'new deal'-style recovery plan - UN official UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- Concerned by the many civilian casualties and the unprecedented scale of destruction in the latest military conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants, a senior United Nations official urged today the international community to "rethink the Gaza paradigm."
• Israel Launches Airstrikes After Rockets Fired From Gaza VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- Israel's military said it carried out a series of airstrikes on "terror targets" in response to rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, with both attacks putting the Egypt-mediated peace talks in jeopardy.
• Israel PM orders resumption of attacks on Gaza Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the military to resume airstrikes on the besieged Gaza Strip.
• Israel Recalls Ceasefire Negotiators from Cairo RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday instructed the Israeli delegation in Cairo to return to Israel as the negotiations with the Palestinians over the Gaza truce had collapsed, the Haaretz newspaper reported citing government officials.
• Putin, Poroshenko To Meet In Minsk; Ukraine Fighting Intense RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- As fighting continued between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk, Kyiv and Moscow announced that the presidents of Russia and Ukraine will meet in Minsk next week.
• Kyiv Says Battle Moves Into Rebel Stronghold Of Luhansk RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- A spokesman for Kyiv's military says government forces on August 19 were fighting pro-Russian separatists within Luhansk, one of two rebel-held cities in eastern Ukraine.
• Putin, Ukrainian President Poroshenko To Meet In Minsk Next Week RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- As fighting continued between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk, Kyiv and Moscow announced that the presidents of Russia and Ukraine will meeet in Minsk next week.
• Russia Did Its Part for Aid Convoy Safety, Ball Now in Kiev’s Court - Foreign Ministry RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- Russia and southeastern Ukraine independence supporters have fulfilled their objectives concerning the safety of the humanitarian convoy and Moscow hopes that Kiev is not trying to deliberately disrupt the aid mission, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.
• No Weapons Seen Crossing Russian-Ukrainian Border - OSCE RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Special Monitoring Mission working on the Russian-Ukrainian border has not seen any weapons crossing between the countries, an OSCE spokesman working on the Russian side of the border said Tuesday.
• Kiev Names Conditions for Ceasefire in Eastern Ukraine RIA Novosti 19 Aug 2014 -- Kiev thinks that a bilateral ceasefire in eastern Ukraine is possible, but only if effective border control is established, the work of the OSCE observers is ensured and progress in the hostage situation is made, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said Monday.
• Iraqi Minorities Seek UN Emergency Session VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- An international coalition of activists is calling on the U.N. Human Rights Council to convene an emergency session on the plight of minority groups in Iraq, including the Yazidis and Christians. The coalition says urgent action is needed to save the people whose lives and cultural heritage are in grave danger.
• Iraq: UN refugee agency launches major humanitarian aid push for displaced people UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- The United Nations refugee agency said today that it is launching one of its largest humanitarian aid pushes in response to the deteriorating situation in Iraq, aiming to help close to a half million people who had been forced to flee their homes.
• Iraqi forces launch offensive to retake Tikrit Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Iraqi government forces have launched a major operation to retake the troubled northern city of Tikrit from Takfiri terrorists.
• Iraqi Forces Begin Operation Against IS Militants In Tikrit RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- The Iraqi military has launched an operation to drive Islamic State (IS) militants out of Tikrit, the hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein.
• Islamic State Militants 'Kill Reporter On Video' RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- The Islamic State militant group has released a video purportedly showing the beheading of a American journalist.
• US Attempting to Verify Beheading of Journalist VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- The Obama administration says it is trying confirm the authenticity of a video that purports to show the killing of an American photojournalist by Islamic State militants.
• US Airstrikes May Push Islamic State Back into Fight Against Assad VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- Syria and the United States are both attacking Islamic State militants who have displaced thousands of civilians in Syria and northern Iraq. But, U.S. airstrikes in Iraq could push those forces back across the border and again into the fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
• ISIL, enemy number-one of Islam: Saudi Mufti Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh has strongly condemned Takfiri ISIL terrorists for their crimes in the Middle East and violation of Islamic principles and teachings.
• UN mission in South Sudan condemns 'sustained gunfire' near Bentiu base UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) today condemned the live gunfire by Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers near the UN base in Bentiu, that wounded a child.
• As South Sudan crisis grows, Ethiopia becomes Africa's largest refugee host UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- Ethiopia has surpassed Kenya in hosting the most refugees in Africa, sheltering 629,000 refugees as of the end of July, the United Nations refugee agency announced on Tuesday.
• India drops talks with Pakistan over Kashmir Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- India has called off forthcoming foreign secretary-level talks with neighboring Pakistan after Pakistani Ambassador to India Abdul Basit met Kashmiri pro-independence leaders in New Delhi.
• Nigeria’s Boko Haram Forces Victims to Fight, Kill VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- The Boko Haram insurgency continues to expand in size and tactics, kidnapping villagers and forcing them to fight.

News Reports

• Iran’s missile program, red line: Official Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Iran’s ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the country’s missile program is among its red lines, saying Tehran will not negotiate over its missile capability.
• European Leaders to Discuss Energy Security, Ukraine Conflict VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- The leaders of the European Union, Ukraine and Russia will meet in Minsk, Belarus, on August 26 to discuss energy security and the conflict in east Ukraine, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko said on Tuesday.
• Russia weighs new bids in retaliation for bans: Official Iran Press TV 19 Aug 2014 -- Russia is working on further retaliatory measures in case the West imposes new sanctions against Moscow over the crisis in Ukraine, a Russian official says.
• Pakistan Army Urges Political Dialogue as Protesters Reach Parliament RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- Pakistan's army is urging the government and opposition leaders to resolve a brewing political crisis through dialogue, as thousands of antigovernment protesters reached the parliament in Islamabad..
• Pakistan Arrests 150 Ahead Of 'Red Zone' Protest RFE/RL 19 Aug 2014 -- Police in Pakistan say they have arrested about 150 opposition activists as mass demonstrations in Islamabad against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif entered a fifth day.
• Ebola: UN health agency reports encouraging signs in Nigeria, Guinea UN News Centre 19 Aug 2014 -- While the trends of the outbreak of Ebola in Nigeria and Guinea, where the virus made its first appearance in West Africa last December, have shown encouraging signs, the United Nations health agency today expressed concern about the situation in the Liberian capital of Monrovia.
• Ebola Kills Another 84 in West Africa over 3-day period VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- The World Health Organization said another 84 people have died in West Africa as a result of the Ebola virus, bringing the death toll from the epidemic to 1,229.
• China Targets Corrupt Officials With Overseas Assets VOA 19 Aug 2014 -- As China presses ahead with its anti-graft effort, authorities are zeroing in on so-called “naked officials.”