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Current Operations

• OIF/OEF/OND Casualty Update 16 Dec 2014 [PDF]
• Department of Defense Press Briefing by Rear Adm. Kirby in the Pentagon Briefing Room DoD 16 Dec 2014 -- Presenter: Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby
• Details Still in Works for Deploying Troops to Iraq AFPS 16 Dec 2014 -- While some 1,500 U.S. service members will advise, assist and train Iraqis in the coming months, deployment orders have not been issued yet, Pentagon spokesman Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said today.
• U.S. Stands With Pakistanis, Afghans Against Taliban AFPS 16 Dec 2014 -- The United States condemns the deadly Taliban attack on a Pakistani school and remains committed to bringing stability to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said today, emphasizing that the end of the NATO combat mission does not mean an end to U.S. involvement in the region.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Readout of Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work's meeting with Commander-in-Chief of the Indonesian Armed Forces Gen. Moeldoko DoD 16 Dec 2014
• U.S. Forces, Beninese Navy collaborate on Small Boat Maintenance USMC News 16 Dec 2014 -- Marines and Coast Guardsmen from Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa worked alongside the Beninese Navy on Nov. 17-27.
• Georgia PSC Approves Potential 30 MW Solar Project at NSB Kings Bay NNS 16 Dec 2014 -- The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) today indicated positive approval to allow the Department of the Navy (DON) and Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power to proceed with the development of a potential 30 megawatt alternating current (AC) or 40 megawatt (MW) direct current (DC) renewable energy project at Naval Submarine Base (NSB) Kings Bay, Georgia.
• Air Force Not Planning Involuntary Force Reductions in 2015 AFPS 16 Dec 2014 -- The modern Air Force is "feeling some strain" recently, due to its shrinking size and high operations tempo, but there won't be any more involuntary force-shaping in 2015, Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said today.
• U.S. Marines, Benin, Togolese Armed Forces enhance regional security USMC News 16 Dec 2014 -- Gate sentries are the first line of defense, not only for force protection but also for enforcement of base orders. A strong show of force not only deters potentially dangerous activity but it creates overall stability, safety and security for the base being protected.
• U.S. Marines, Moldovan Army partnerships strengthened through Advanced Weapons Workshop USMC News 16 Dec 2014 -- One week after the November 30th Moldovan elections, pro-European parties maintained their majority in parliament, and a military unit hosted an anti-armor workshop with U.S. Marines in Balti, Moldova.
• Air Support: U.S. Marines, JGSDF look to sky for Forest Light's culminating event USMC News 16 Dec 2014 -- U.S. Marines and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force troops simulated a movement to contact and assault on an objective Dec. 9-10 while participating in Forest Light 15-1 at the Oyanohara Training Area in Yamato, Japan.
• Marines, JGSDF rapidly respond to simulated contaminations USMC News 16 Dec 2014 -- A field and an abandoned structure sustain an unknown, potentially dangerous, contamination leak. U.S. Marines and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force service members hastily suit up in Mission Oriented Protective Posture gear in preparation for their mission. They rushed off to the contaminated zone to save lives and contain the leak, requiring both units to work together to accomplish their mission.
• Breakthrough Capability Keeps Subs, Ships on Safe Track NNS 16 Dec 2014 -- Interactive software that can dramatically cut the time it takes to plan safe submarine missions is crossing over to the surface fleet and is being installed this month on the guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), officials announced Dec. 16.
• US Military Cancels Terror Suspect Hearing Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- A pretrial hearing of the men suspected of masterminding the September 11 attacks has been cancelled by the US military in Guantanamo Bay on Monday, a week after last Tuesday's publication of the Senate Intelligence Committee report summary on CIA torture practices.
• US Planes Flying Near Russian Border Almost Every Day: Russian Air Force Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- The United States is carrying out reconnaissance flights in the Baltic region close to the Russian border almost every day, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Air Force said Tuesday.
• Russia To Have New Liquid-Fuel ICBMs By 2020 RFE/RL 16 Dec 2014 -- A senior military officer says Russia will have a new liquid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the Sarmat, in its arsenal by 2020.
• Russia Not to Deploy Units of Strategic Missile Forces in Crimea: Commander Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- Russia has no plans to deploy units of its Strategic Missile Forces on the Crimean Peninsula, Strategic Missile Forces Commander Col.Gen. Sergei Karakayev said.
• Iran unveils new defense achievements ISNA 16 Dec 2014 -- Iran unveiled two main defense achievements on Tuesday in a ceremony attended by Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehghan.
• President Xi orders PLA to clear up bad influence from Xu Caihou People's Daily 16 Dec 2014 -- President Xi Jinping has asked the armed forces to clear up the 'bad influence' left by the graft case of Xu Caihou, a former senior commander.
• Nigerian army denounces US officers over soldiers' mutiny Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- The Nigerian army says not only has the US done nothing to help, but has made matters worse with its training of the soldiers who recently committed acts of mutiny.
• December 16, 2014 Press Availability in London by John Kerry, US Secretary of State US Dept. of State 16 Dec 2014-- BUG: the source does not exist in description file
• December 16, 2014 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 16 Dec 2014
• Press Briefing by the Press Secretary Josh Earnest and Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Jason Furman, 12/16/14 The White House 16 Dec 2014

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for December 16, 2014

Other Conflicts

• 16 December 2014 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 16 Dec 2014
• 16 December 2014 - Press Conference by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at United Nations Headquarters United Nations 16 Dec 2014
• Time for re-think on humanitarian funding? IRIN 16 Dec 2014 -- The World Food Programme's (WFP) celebrity-endorsed #ADollarALifeline campaign thrust the plight of Syrian refugees back into the global spotlight and netted more than the asked-for US$64million in just a matter of days.
• Funerals Begin for 141 Slain in Taliban Attack on Pakistan School VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- The first funerals are being held for the victims of a Taliban school massacre in Pakistan on Tuesday that left at least 141 people dead, most of them young students.
• Death Toll in Pakistan School Attack Rises to at Least 141 Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- The death toll in Tuesday's attack on a northwest Pakistan school where up to 400 students and teachers had been taken hostage by militants has risen to 141 students and teachers, with 7 militants dead, the BBC reports, citing the Pakistani army.
• Taliban attack on Pakistan school an act of 'horror and rank cowardice', says UN chief UN News Centre 16 Dec 2014 -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly condemned the "blood-curdling attack" on a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, which has cost the lives of at least 130 people, the vast majority of whom were children.
• Death toll from Taliban attack on Pakistani school rises to about 130 Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- The death toll from a militant attack on an army-run school in Pakistan's northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has risen to around 130 including 126 children, officials say.
• More Than 130 Dead, Mostly Children, In Pakistan School Attack RFE/RL 16 Dec 2014 -- Islamist militants have killed more than 130 people at a military-run school in Peshawar, most of them children, in a devastating assault Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called a 'national tragedy unleashed by savages.'
• 500 Students Taken Hostage in Taliban Attack on Pakistani School Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- At least 126 people have been confirmed killed, more than 100 of them students and up to 122 have been wounded in a Taliban attack on a Pakistani school where 500 students and teachers have been taken hostage in the city of Peshawar in northwestern Pakistan, Reuters quotes one provincial official as saying.
• Taliban Attack on Pakistan School Kills at Least 130, Mostly Students VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- The siege of a school in Pakistan by Taliban militants left at least 130 people dead, most of them students.
• 5,000 Albu Nimr tribesmen besieged in western Iraq Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- The leader of the Sunni Albu Nimr tribe says the ISIL Takfiri militants have besieged around 5,000 members of his tribe in Iraq's violence-plagued western province of Anbar.
• Kurdish Troops to Fight IS in Mosul Alongside Iraqi Forces, Not Alone Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- Kurdish Peshmerga forces will not fight alone against the Islamic State (IS), but are ready to help the federal government liberate Iraq's second-largest city, Iraqi Kurdistan President Masoud Barzani said in an interview to Al Arabiya Tuesday.
• Syria: UN food agency's operations secure after funding drive; must raise more in 2015 UN News Centre 16 Dec 2014 -- Having raised $88 million in a 10-day global fundraising effort, the United Nations World Food Programme's (WFP) funding for December 2014 was secure and the agency could resume providing food assistance through electronic vouchers to 1.7 million refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey.
• Libya militants mount airstrike near oil terminals Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- Libya Dawn militant group has carried out an aerial attack on an area near key oil terminals in the eastern part of the country.
• Libya's Air Force Says it Could Bomb Misrata Airport Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- The Libyan Army could launch an airstrike at the Misrata International Airport, which also acts as an air base and training center for the Libyan Air Force, if the rebels operating in the region do not surrender, Chief of the Libyan Air Force Saqr Geroushi has told Sputnik.
• EU agrees to impose new sanctions against Crimea Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- The EU foreign policy chief says Brussels has agreed to impose new sanctions against Crimea, stressing the bloc will not recognize its reunification with the Russian Federation.
• 25 Killed in Car Bomb Attack in Yemen VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- Two car bombs exploded Tuesday south of the Yemeni capital, hitting a school bus that was traveling near a Shi'ite rebel gathering and killing 25 people, including at least 15 students.
• Yemen Houthis Laying Siege to Defense Ministry Building in Sanaa: Source Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- The Houthi Shiite rebels are besieging the building of the Yemeni Ministry of Defense in the country's capital of Sanaa, a military source told Sputnik Tuesday.
• Cooperation with Africa must occur at earliest signs of crisis, Ban tells Security Council UN News Centre 16 Dec 2014 -- Cooperation between the African Union and the United Nations on peace and security is crucial and should occur systematically at the earliest signs of crisis said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon this morning as he the Security Council to work more effectively to prevent, manage and resolve conflicts on the African continent.
• Looming DRC offensive prompts "humanitarian fallout" fears IRIN 16 Dec 2014 -- Plans by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) army and UN peacekeepers to again take on one of the oldest insurgencies in the country have sparked concern for civilian populations and raised questions about the wisdom of the operation, set to take place in early 2015.
• UN envoys welcome conviction of Congolese army officer for crimes against humanity UN News Centre 16 Dec 2014 -- United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zainab Hawa Bangura welcomed today the conviction of a senior army officer in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for crimes against humanity, saying the verdict sends a "very clear message to perpetrators of sexual violence in DRC that they cannot hide behind a badge or evade justice with a uniform."
• Nearly 1,000 Congolese Rebels Escape From Camp in Uganda VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- The Ugandan army said Tuesday that nearly 1,000 former M23 rebels had escaped from a camp just before their scheduled repatriation to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• At least 9 FARC Guerrillas Killed, 4 Captured During Army Raid in Colombia Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- Nine guerrillas from the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were killed and four captured during clashes with military forces and police in the southeastern region of the country on Monday, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said Tuesday.
• UNSC Threatens to Impose Sanctions on Conflict-Torn South Sudan Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- One year after a conflict broke out in South Sudan, members of the UN Security Council have adopted a Presidential Statement demanding a cessation of violence and threatening to impose sanctions if the crisis in the country is not resolved.
• Kerry to Meet with Palestinian Officials Amid Push for UN Vote VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets Tuesday with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat ahead of the likely introduction of a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that would set a deadline for Israel's withdrawal from Palestinian territories.

News Reports

• Turkey's Authoritarianism Dismays Western Allies VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- The Turkish government has been defiant in the face of criticism at home and abroad for its raids targeting opposition media. The European Union on Monday expressed dismay after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at Brussels for criticizing his government's action. Turkey's bid to be considered for EU membership has been on hold while critics accuse the NATO ally of increasingly authoritarian rule.
• Biden: US will pay Ukraine $10 billion Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- The United States will grant as much as $10 billion as financial support to Ukraine, Vice President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
• U.S. Says Russia Sanctions Vindicated As Ruble Tumbles RFE/RL 16 Dec 2014 -- As Russia's currency plunges, the Obama administration is delivering a message about the impact of Western sanctions: We told you so.
• Obama To Sign New Russian Sanctions Bill By End Of Week RFE/RL 16 Dec 2014 -- The White House says U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to sign legislation implementing new sanctions on Russia over its activities in Ukraine by the end of the week.
• Lavrov: Moscow Supports Ukraine's Integrity, E Ukraine Not 'Another Crimea' Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- Russia fully supports the territorial integrity of Ukraine and has never viewed the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk as 'another Crimea,' Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.
• Explainer: Russia Defends Ruble But Currency Still Falling RFE/RL 16 Dec 2014 -- By raising its benchmark interest rate to 17 percent overnight on December 15, Russia hopes to put an end to the dramatic collapse of its ruble, which has depreciated more than 50 percent against the dollar since the start of the year.
• Iranian negotiator calls talks with US satisfactory ISNA 16 Dec 2014 -- A top Iranian nuclear negotiator expressed satisfaction with the general atmosphere of the ongoing negotiations between representatives of the Islamic Republic and the United States over Iran's nuclear program.
• Iran-US talks satisfactory: Iranian negotiator Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- A top Iranian nuclear negotiator has expressed satisfaction with the general atmosphere of the ongoing negotiations between representatives of the Islamic Republic and the United States over Iran's nuclear program.
• North Korea Calls on UN to Focus on US Rights Abuses VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- North Korea has requested the U.N. Security Council not probe alleged human rights violations by Pyongyang, but instead investigate what it called 'brutal' and 'medieval' abuses by the U.S.
• Japan slaughters 4,000 chickens to restrain bird flu Iran Press TV 16 Dec 2014 -- Some 4,000 chickens have been slaughtered at a farm in southwestern Japan following the detection of the bird flu virus in the country's top poultry producing region, local media reported.
• Ebola: UN says health workers in Sierra Leone to receive hazard pay using mobile money UN News Centre 16 Dec 2014 -- Response workers battling the Ebola outbreak in West Africa will receive "hazard pay" for the first time in Sierra Leone using mobile money because "unless there is a certain element of incentives, or danger pay, it's very difficult to attract and retain people," the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced today.
• Indonesia Reports Increase in Citizens Joining Islamic State VOA 16 Dec 2014 -- Indonesia says it estimates that more than 350 of its citizens are now in Syria or Iraq to fight with the Islamic State, an increase of 50 since last month.
• Burning issues facing Sri Lanka ahead of January polls IRIN 16 Dec 2014 -- As Sri Lanka gears up for a presidential election five years after the end a long separatist rebellion, the country, especially the war-scarred North, faces a raft of unresolved chronic problems. Analysts regard many of them as long-term drivers of conflict.
• Russia, US to Cooperate on Orion Spacecraft Modernization Sputnik 16 Dec 2014 -- Russian Rocket and Space Corporation 'Energia' (Russian for Energy) and the US corporations Lockheed Martin and Boeing will jointly work on modernizing the US Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Orion so that it can dock with Russian spacecraft, Russian Izvestia newspaper reports on Tuesday.