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Operations
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US Policy
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News Reports

Current Operations

• Transcript: Operation Iraqi Freedom Briefing with Lt. Gen. David D. McKiernan 23 Apr 2003 -- "This is the third in our series of briefings by the coalition component commanders of Operation Iraqi Freedom. And this is our first one from Baghdad, live from Baghdad."

• Garner Pool Day 3 -- INCLUDES FOUR PARTS: A,B,C & D CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003
• DAY 3 OF GARNER POOL -- PART E CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003

• POOL REPORT OF MR. GARNER'S TRIP TO BAGHDAD - DAY 2, PART 2 CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003
• POOL REPORT OF MR. GARNER'S TRIP TO BAGHDAD - DAY 2, PART 3 CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003

• TASK FORCE TARAWA BEGINS PATROLS NEAR IRANIAN BORDER CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003 -- Marines from the 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion attached to Task Force Tarawa (TFT) began border-screening patrols in northeastern Iraq Monday.
• THREE MORE 'IRAQI TOP 55' IN COALITION CONTROL CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003 -- Three additional members of the Iraqi Top 55 list are now in Coalition control.
• I MEF Command Element moves closer to Baghdad USMC News 23 Apr 2003 -- Eight separate convoys carrying everyone and everything the I Marine Expeditionary Force' command and control needs, battled through incoming fire and dense dust clouds on its way up Main Supply Route Tampa, April 5-6.
• PENTAGON / IRAQ VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- The top U-S ground commander in Iraq says coalition forces are rapidly focusing on restoring basic needs and humanitarian services to the Iraqi people. But Lieutenant General David McKiernan says there are still pockets of armed resistance and other potentially lethal threats to coalition soldiers as they continue to expand their control in Iraq.
• Ground Commander Lauds Land Troops' Success in Iraq AFPS 23 Apr 2003 -- Coalition forces are nearing the end of combat operations, but the campaign will continue, the chief of coalition land forces said during an interview from Baghdad.
• 'Big Red One' armored to teeth with smiles in Kirkuk Army News 23 Apr 2003 -- Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division's 3rd Brigade are conducting armored patrols through the streets of this northern Iraq city to prevent crime, ethnic harassment, and gather information on local military groups.
• SALIM SA'ID KHALAF AL-JUMAYLI IN COALITION CONTROL CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003 -- Statement by CENTCOM director of Strategic Communications Jim Wilkinson
• THREE MARINES KILLED IN ACCIDENT CENTCOM 23 Apr 2003 -- Three U.S. Marines from the First Marine Expeditionary Force were killed and seven injured when a rocket-propelled grenade launcher they were firing for familiarization malfunctioned.
• Delivery for Baghdad AFPN 23 Apr 2003 -- Well aware of the threats on the ground around Baghdad, Iraq, a crew of six from the West Virginia Air National Guard loaded up their C-130 Hercules and headed for Iraq.
• Second F-15E crewmember confirmed dead AFPN 23 Apr 2003 -- Department of Defense officials announced April 23 that Maj. William R. Watkins III, 37, of Danville, Va., was killed in action April 7 while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Watkins was assigned to the 333rd Fighter Squadron, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C.

Deployments

• Mobile aeromedical staging facility touches lives in Iraq AFPN 23 Apr 2003 -- From Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, to Tallil Air Base, Iraq, may seem a long way, but for Air Force Reservists of the 433rd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, it was the chance of a lifetime to practice skills that are literally a matter of life or death to a wounded soldier.
• Damage docs patch, repair battle aircraft AFPN 23 Apr 2003 -- With aircraft battered and torn from the fight, aircrews depend on the "damage doctors" to get them and their aircraft back into the fray.
• Submarine San Juan Returning Home From Extended Deployment Navy NewStand 23 apr 2003 -- The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS San Juan (SSN 751) will return to Naval Submarine Base New London April 23, after having its regularly-scheduled six-month deployment extended.
• Newport News Returns Home from Wartime Patrol Navy NewStand 23 apr 2003 -- The Los Angeles-class, fast-attack submarine USS Newport News (SSN 750) returned to Naval Station Norfolk April 23 from a six-month deployment, including support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).
• 24th MEU, Nassau ARG Prepare to Return Home Navy NewStand 23 apr 2003 -- The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), currently operating in Central Iraq, has received redeployment orders and will soon begin the process of repositioning itself to reboard ships of the USS Nassau (LHA 4) Amphibious Ready Group in preparation for a return to the United States.
• Mobile aeromedical staging facility staff cares for war's wounded AMCNS 23 Apr 2003 -- Providing medical care to injured soldiers and airmen is the main job for 26 active duty and Reserve airmen of the 387th Air Expeditionary Group, located at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia.

US Policy

• Powell: War Showed U.S. Using Power in Pursuit of Principle Washington File 23 Apr 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell said in a PBS television interview on April 22 that the message of the Iraq war is that "the United States has power to use to pursue a principle."
• U.S. Sees Political, Religious Freedom Growing Quickly in Iraq Washington File 23 Apr 2003 -- In the "new atmosphere of freedom" created by coalition forces, the Iraqi people are wasting no time taking advantage of their newly found political and religious rights, says Richard Boucher, the spokesman for the U.S. Department of State.
• EDITORIAL: PROGRESS IN IRAQ VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- U.S.-led coalition forces still face serious risks in Iraq. But as President George W. Bush said, the U.S. will press on until the mission is finished and victory is complete

United Nations

• Oil-for-Food Program Sending $454 Million in Supplies to Iraq Washington File 23 Apr 2003 -- The head of the Oil-for-Food program urged the U.N. Security Council April 22 to extend the special mandate of the program to early June to ensure that humanitarian supplies can be delivered to the Iraqi people.
• IRAQ: UN international humanitarian staff return to the north IRIN 23 Apr 2003 -- Six UN international humanitarian staff crossed from southeastern Turkey into Northern Iraq on Wednesday afternoon, according to UN humanitarian officials in Turkey. The group included Arnt Breivik, the emergency coordinator for the northern governorates for the World Food Programme (WFP), and Andre Laperriere, the head of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) for Northern Iraq.

Reconstruction Issues

• American Empire VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- After the collapse of the Soviet Union the United States became the world's most powerful nation. But its growing military and economic strength has provoked as much resentment as respect from other nations. In recent years, the term "empire" has been used frequently to convey the global scope of American influence. Some historians say the term can be applied to the United States, while others are doubtful.

• Questions Arise On Quality Of U.S. Intelligence On Iraqi Arms RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- Both U.S. President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell have cited American intelligence in accusing Iraq of possessing weapons of mass destruction. But so far, no significant number of these arms have turned up

• Coalition Ground Forces Working to Get Iraqi Utilities to Function Washington File 23 Apr 2003 -- Despite continuing combat operations in Iraq, U.S. and coalition forces are moving rapidly to focus on civil-military affairs and to restore basic services such as water and electricity to the Iraqi people, according to the U.S.land component commander.
• I-R-C - IRAQ VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- As international leaders are trying to work out the most effective ways of healing the war-torn Iraq, the head of one of the world's most prominent humanitarian organizations says Iraq has all of the resources necessary to make a quick recovery.
• OPEC/PREVIEW VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- : The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is holding a special meeting intended to prevent a surprise crash in global oil prices. Also being discussed is who, if anyone, will represent Iraq at the session.
• U.S. Starts Reconstruction Effort Amid Tough Political Challenges RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- Retired U.S. General Jay Garner kicked off his administration of Iraq this week by making tours of damaged sites in Baghdad and visiting the Kurdish-controlled north of the country. RFE/RL correspondent Charles Recknagel looks at what the general is telling Iraqis and at some of the challenges he faces.
• Frozen funds ignite Umm Qasr economy USMC News 23 Apr 2003 -- In a landmark day for the Iraqi people, citizens in Umm Qasr, Iraq, received their first "paycheck" from the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assitrance, Southern Region, April 23.

Foreign Reactions

• France Signals Compromise On UN Sanctions But Divisions Remain Over Inspections RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- France has proposed an immediate suspension of economic sanctions on Iraq and a modification of weapons inspections. The proposal signals a move toward compromise among members of the UN Security Council, which had been sharply divided over the war in Iraq. But the United States is stressing that its personnel -- not UN experts -- will be responsible for seeking out weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, a view most council members oppose.
• POWELL / FRANCE / IRAQ VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell and French Foreign Minister Dominque de Villepin spoke by telephone Wednesday, hours after Mr. Powell told a television interviewer France will face consequences for opposing the United States over Iraq. Mr. de Villepin, who initiated the call while on a visit to Jordan, is defending France's actions in the crisis.
• April 19 declaration issued in S. Korea KCNA 23 Apr 2003 -- The group of chairmen of General Student Councils of 64 Universities of South Korea including Korea University, Kyunghee University, Duksung Women's University and Sogang University held a press conference at Dongguk University on April 19 and issued an "April 19 Declaration" demanding an immediate stop to the U.S. Iraqi war and the withdrawal of the decision on troop dispatch to it, Yonhap News from Seoul said.

News Reports

• Shi'ites Converge On Karbala; Garner Visits Kurds In North RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- Some one million Iraqi Shi'ites are in the holy city of Karbala today for the culmination of a pilgrimage that had been banned by Saddam Hussein's regime. The event commemorates the death of the 7th-century Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad.
• IRAQ WRAP VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- The pilgrimage by hundreds of thousands of Shiites to Iraq's holy city of Karbala is drawing to a close. But the outpouring of Shiite unity, some of it tinged with anti-American sentiments is raising concern within the Bush administration that neighboring Iran may be trying to influence events in a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq -- just as the Iraqi people begin the task of deciding their future.
• IRAQ / US POL VOA 23 Apr 2003 -- The success of Operation Iraqi Freedom has boosted President Bush's prospects for re-election next year. But the nine Democrats vying to challenge the president in 2004 see the victory in Iraq as an opportunity to refocus the national debate on domestic issues.
• Shi'ites Gathering In Karbala For Pilgrimage Climax RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- Iraq's long-oppressed religious majority gathered in the holy city of Karbala today for the climax of a pilgrimage that had been banned by Saddam Hussein.
• Shi'ite Pilgrims Gather In Karbala RFE/L 23 Apr 2003 -- Some 1 million Iraqi Shi'ites are in the holy city of Karbala today for the culmination of a pilgrimage that had been banned by Saddam Hussein.
• IRAQ: Basra University trashed by looters IRIN 23 Apr 2003 -- Haytham Zuhayr had a dream of working overseas, maybe at a university, maybe as a translator, maybe writing. But the dreams of this second-year English language student at Basra University now litter the floors of the lecture rooms he used to sit in.
• JORDAN: Amman allows 200 people to enter from no-man's-land IRIN 23 Apr 2003 -- The Jordanian government on Monday and Tuesday allowed almost 200 people to enter its territory from the no-man's-land which separates its border from that of Iraq. The new arrivals, who had been camping at the Al-Karamah border crossing for three weeks, were transferred to a camp in Ruwayshid, about 60 km away.