Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Operations
Deployments
US Policy
United Nations
Reconstruction Issues
Foreign Reactions
News Reports

Current Operations

• SOLDIERS DISCOVER, SEIZE COPPER CACHE CENTCOM 17 Jun 2003 -- Soldiers from the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment here found approximately nine tons of copper wire June 16 during an Operation Scorpion Sting neighborhood sweep.
• US Troops Hunt Saddam Loyalists, 190 Detained VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- The U.S. military says American troops in Iraq have detained about 190 people in raids aimed at crushing resistance from die-hard supporters of the Saddam Hussein regime.
• Operation Desert Scorpion Continues Throughout Iraq AFPS 17 Jun 2003 -- Operation Desert Scorpion continues throughout Iraq, said Army 5th Corps officials.
• US Troops Hunt Saddam Loyalists, 371 Arrested VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- The U.S. military says coalition forces in Iraq have detained 371 people during the latest operation aimed at rooting out resistance from loyalists of the ousted Iraqi regime.
• SOLDIER DIES FROM GUNSHOT WOUND CENTCOM 17 Jun 2003 -- A soldier assigned to the First Armored Division died of a gunshot wound from enemy gunfire early this morning in the Northwest section of Baghdad.
• DESERT SCORPION MOVES INTO DAY THREE CENTCOM 17 Jun 2003 -- Coalition Forces continue to conduct raids and patrols in their areas of operation June 16, defeating areas of resistance and re-establishing a safe and secure environment during Operation Desert Scorpion.
• Marines patrol night, Iraqis sleep safe Marine Corps News 17 Jun 2003-- On the dimly lit streets of northern Karbala, there is little to give the people a sense of safety, except I Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, which is driving back fear by driving back crime.
• Attackers wounded by own grenades in theft attempt Marine Corps News 17 Jun 2003-- Marines responded to calls for help on June 8 after criminals trying to steal cooking gas threw concussion grenades at a city mosque.
• U.S. planes filled with Iraqi fuel AFPN 17 Jun 2003-- For the first time in history, U.S. aircraft were refueled with captured Iraqi aircraft gas here June 14.
• Marine squadron expanding its UAV coverage Marine Corps News 17 Jun 2003-- Buzzing sounds ripple through the morning silence June 13 as Marines hurry back and forth on the dirt airstrip near the Euphrates River.

Deployments

US Policy

• Bush Confident Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction Will be Found KCNA 18 Jun 2003 -- President Bush, for the second day in a row, took on those who now are questioning whether the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq had weapons of mass destruction prior to the war in Iraq.
• CONGRESS / IRAQ W-M-D VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- A congressional committee has rejected an attempt by a Democratic lawmaker to force the Bush administration to release intelligence information it used to justify military action in Iraq. The Republican-led House International Relations Committee voted unfavorably along party lines on a "Resolution of Inquiry" proposed by Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, saying other investigations made it redundant.
• Congressional Committee Rejects Bid to Force Administration to Release Iraq Weapons Intelligence VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- A congressional committee has rejected an attempt by a Democratic lawmaker to force the Bush administration to release intelligence information it used to justify military action in Iraq. The Republican-led House International Relations Committee voted unfavorably along party lines on a "Resolution of Inquiry" proposed by Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, saying other investigations made it redundant.
• Iraq/U.S.: Senator Calls On CIA To Release Data About Alleged Iraq Weapons Sites RFE/L 17 Jun 2003 -- A top U.S. senator says the CIA failed to provide a complete list of suspected Iraqi weapons sites to UN weapons inspectors, although the head of the CIA made public statements saying the agency did so.

United Nations

Reconstruction Issues

• U.S. Helping to Rebuild Iraq's Agriculture Sector KCNA 18 Jun 2003 -- Ensuring a continuous flow of food to the Iraqi people and rebuilding Iraq's agricultural sector are the main objectives of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the country, department officials say.
• US Administrator for Iraq: Security is Top Concern VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- The top American administrator for Iraq, Ambassador Paul Bremer, said security remains at the top of his agenda. At a news conference in Baghdad, he also said a team of military experts has begun to arrive in Iraq to search for weapons of mass destruction.
• Iraqi political leaders concur on need to 'Iraqi-ize' political process - UN envoy UN News Centre 17 Jun 2003 -- United Nations envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello, well into the second week of meetings with a full spectrum of Iraqi political leaders, said today he was discovering by the day a convergence of views on the need for the "Iraqi-ization" of the process of moving the country forward.
• IRAQ / BREMER VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- The top American administrator for Iraq, Ambassador Paul Bremer, says security remains at the top of his agenda. At a news conference in Baghdad, he also said a team of military experts has begun to arrive in Iraq to search for weapons of mass destruction.
• Iraq: U.S. Announces Plans For Court, Review Committee RFE/L 17 Jun 2003 -- The United States' top civil administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer (pictured), has announced plans for the establishment of an Iraqi central criminal court and a judicial review committee to evaluate the suitability of judges of prosecutors.
• EDITORIAL: BREMER ON IRAQI RECONSTRUCTION VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- The U.S.-led coalition is working with the Iraqi people to put back together a country ravaged by political tyranny and economic mismanagement. But the scars in Iraq run deep. Ambassador Paul Bremer, director of the Coalition Provisional Authority, says that "repairing the damage of the last [Saddam Hussein] regime -- material, human and psychological -- is a huge task"
• IRAQ: Basra's Christians look to the future with hope - and a little fear IRIN 17 Jun 2003 -- Over the 11 years he has served as the priest of the Basra Syrian Catholic Church, Father Sulaka Zacharia only locked the doors of his church during the worst excesses of Saddam Husayn's regime. But during the two months since the overthrow of the regime, and the subsequent outbreak of looting, those doors have rarely been opened.

Foreign Reactions

• BLAIR / IRAQ IMPACT VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair endured a lot of criticism when he led a reluctant Britain into the U.S.-led war in Iraq. Now, parliament has launched an inquiry into his handling of intelligence information that helped justify the war.
• Former British Cabinet Members Say Blair Exaggerated Iraq Threat VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- Strong criticism has been leveled at British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the start of a parliamentary inquiry into whether his government misued intelligence information to justify the war in Iraq.
• Iraq: Former British Ministers Say Intelligence Used Selectively To Justify War RFE/L 17 Jun 2003 -- A former British minister today accused the British government of selectively using intelligence information in order to justify the war in Iraq.
• BRITAIN/IRAQ VOA 17 Jun 2003 -- Strong criticism has been leveled at British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the start of a parliamentary inquiry into whether his government misued intelligence information to justify the war in Iraq.

News Reports

• IRAQ: Collapsed bridge will delay humanitarian convoys IRIN 17 Jun 2003 -- The collapse of a bridge on the main supply route between Jordan and Iraq is expected to further delay the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to Baghdad, aid officials said on Tuesday.