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

Current Operations

• Soldier Killed in Iraq; Operation Ivy Serpent Yields Results AFPS 14 Jul 2003 -- A 3rd Infantry Division soldier was killed and six others wounded in Baghdad early July 14 when their convoy was attacked with rocket-propelled grenades, U.S. Central Command officials said.
• Grenade Attack Kills 1 US Soldier in Baghdad VOA News 14 Jul 2003 -- A grenade went off near a U.S.-led coalition compound in central Baghdad Monday, destroying a car but causing no injuries. The explosion came amid heightened tensions in the Iraqi capital, and just a few hours after another U.S. soldier was killed and six were wounded in an attack in a wealthy Baghdad suburb.
• UPDATE: ONE SOLDIER KILLED, 10 WOUNDED IN RPG ATTACK CENTCOM 14 Jul 2003 -- A soldier from 3rd Infantry Division was killed and 10 others were injured at approximately 7 a.m. July 13 when the convoy they were traveling in was attacked by multiple rocket-propelled grenades.
• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- A grenade went off near a U-S-led coalition compound in central Baghdad Monday, destroying a car but causing no injuries. The explosion came amid heightened tensions in the Iraqi capital, and just a few hours after another U-S soldier was killed and six were wounded in an attack in a wealthy Baghdad suburb.
• Iraq: U.S. Soldier Killed, Four Wounded In New Attacks RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- One U.S. soldier in Iraq was killed and six were wounded today when insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades at a military convoy in Baghdad.
• IRAQ / ATTACKS VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- In Iraq, a U-S soldier has been killed and as many as six others wounded in an attack in a Baghdad suburb.
• OPERATION IVY SERPENT YIELDS RESULTS CENTCOM 14 Jul 2003 -- Operation Ivy Serpent, in its second day, resulted in the capture of 226 detainees and the confiscation of 800 82-mm mortar rounds, 50 AK-47s, 26 rocket-propelled grenades and three hand grenades. Six of the detainees are former regime loyalist leaders.
• ONE SOLDIER KILLED, SIX WOUNDED IN RPG ATTACK CENTCOM 14 Jul 2003 -- 3rd Infantry Division soldier was killed and six others were wounded here in the Al Mansor district at approximately 6 a.m. July 14 when the convoy they were traveling in was ambushed in a multiple rocket-propelled grenade attack.

Deployments

US Policy

• White House to Improve Clearance Process for Bush Speeches Washington File 14 Jul 2003 -- Improvements will be made in the process that is used to clear presidential speeches, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters July 14, when he was asked again about a statement in President Bush's January 2003 State of the Union Address to Congress.
• BUSH / IRAQ / INTELLIGENCE VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- President Bush says he is getting good information from the C-I-A and other intelligence agencies. The comments were part of a White House campaign to defuse a controversy that dates back to January and statements made by the president on Iraq.
• U.S.: Bush Defends Iraq Decision RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- U.S. President George W. Bush says he remains convinced that Saddam Hussein was trying to develop weapons of mass destruction -- a major justification by his administration to go to war against Iraq.
• U.S.: CIA Takes The Blame For Dubious Intelligence On Iraq RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- The Bush administration has launched a media blitz in a bid to douse a firestorm of negative publicity over its use of dubious intelligence reports to help justify the Iraq war. But doubts about President George W. Bush's credibility persist, threatening to erode the American public's support for the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq.
• US Intelligence on Iraq is 'Darn Good,' says Bush After CIA Admitted Error VOA News 14 Jul 2003 -- U.S. President George W. Bush says he believes the quality of the intelligence reports he receives is "darn good." Mr. Bush was addressing the question of whether Iraq sought uranium from Africa, a now-discredited claim he made in his January State of the Union address.

United Nations

• Iraqi Governing Council to Send Delegation to UN VOA News 14 Jul 2003 -- Iraq's new governing council says it will send a delegation to the United Nations to show it is the legitimate Iraqi authority during the country's transition to democracy.
• IRAQ: Interview with UN Special Representative Sergio Vieira de Mello IRIN 14 Jul 2003 -- UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced on 27 May the appointment of Sergio Vieira de Mello, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, as his Special Representative for Iraq for a period of four months. Prior to his appointment as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 2002, Vieira de Mello served as the UN Transitional Administrator in East Timor. During the weekend of 12 and 13 July, he oversaw the establishment of Iraq's first post-Saddam central authority. In an interview with IRIN he spoke of the unique situation of the UN in Iraq and outlined the many challenges ahead.
• IRAQ: First UNHCR repatriation planned IRIN 14 Jul 2003 -- The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Saturday it would carry out its first repatriation of Iraqi refugees in about a week’s time. More than 450 refugees currently living in the Rafha refugee camp in Saudi Arabia will cross the border in a convoy of buses on their way home to the southern city of Basra.

Reconstruction Issues

• Iraqi Governing Council An Important Step Forward, Says White House Washington File 14 Jul 2003 -- Bush statement says U.S. looking forward to working with new governing body
• Many U.S. Agencies Involved in Preserving Iraqi Heritage Washington File 14 Jul 2003 -- The Department of State is coordinating a multi-program, multi-agency effort to restore and preserve Iraq's cultural heritage. Areas of focus include conservation, museum management, library science, archaeology and cultural preservation, according to a media note released by the State Department's Office of the Spokesman on July 14.
• New Governing Council a Huge Step Forward, Bremer Tells Iraqis Washington File 14 Jul 2003 -- Ambassador Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, said the formal inauguration of Iraq's Governing Council on July 13 will be a "momentous step" for the Iraqi people. Bremer discussed the council's formation and duties during his weekly television address to the Iraqi people July 12.
• Bremer Foresees "Free, Democratic, Independent" Iraq Washington File 14 Jul 2003 -- "Americans can be proud of the role their fighting men and women played in freeing Iraq of Saddam Hussein and his cronies. The people of Iraq are now on the road to political and economic independence."
• Iraqi Governing Council Holds First Meeting AFPS 14 Jul 2003 -- Iraq has taken a first step toward self-government after decades of tyrannical rule by Saddam Hussein's regime.
• Iraq: How Much Power Will The Governing Council Have? RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- Iraq's Interim Governing Council continued its work in Baghdad today, clarifying working committees and other organizational matters but postponing a decision on a leader for the body. The council marks a key step toward the eventual transfer of power to the Iraqis from the U.S.-led interim authority.
• Iraq: Governing Council Holds First Meeting In Baghdad RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- The Iraqi interim Governing Council held its first meeting in the Iraqi capital Baghdad yesterday. It marks a significant step towards the transfer of power to the Iraqis.
• IRAQ / POST-SANCTIONS ECONOMY VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- For two decades, Iraq struggled in poverty brought on by an eight-year war with neighboring Iran and 12 years of U-N sanctions. The sanctions, in particular, greatly affected the country's middle class and the poor, but did little to undermine the wealth and power of Iraq's deposed leader, Saddam Hussein. Now, with the sanctions lifted, many Iraqis have access to goods that they could not get for years.

Foreign Reactions

• German Foreign Minister Leaves for US in Effort to Mend Relations VOA News 14 Jul 2003 -- German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer has left for the United States in an effort to mend bilateral ties that were badly strained over Germany's fierce opposition to the U.S.-led war in Iraq. One of the main items on Mr. Fischer's agenda is a U.S. request for European countries to play a bigger role in stabilizing Iraq.
• U-S / INDIA / IRAQ VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- The United States Monday lamented India's refusal to send peacekeeping troops to Iraq, but stressed that the decision, announced in New Delhi Monday, would not affect the improving overall relationship between the two countries.
• Germany: Foreign Minister In Washington For Talks On Iraq RFE/L 14 Jul 2003 -- German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer is in Washington this week to urge the United States to help draw up a new United Nations resolution on Iraq which might open the way for Germany and France to help rebuild the country. Germany -- which opposed the war in Iraq -- has already said it will not become involved in Iraq without a UN resolution.
• BRITAIN/IRAQ VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- Despite a growing chorus of criticism in Britain over why Tony Blair went to war in Iraq, the prime minister on Monday said he is proud of his role in overthrowing Saddam Hussein.
• GERMANY/ U-S VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer has left for the United States in an effort to mend bilateral ties that were badly strained over Germany's fierce opposition to the U-S-led war in Iraq. One of the main items on Mr. Fischer's agenda is a U-S request for European countries to play a bigger role in stabilizing Iraq.
• IRAQ ATTACKS/ARAB MEDIA VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- The Arab media is giving extensive coverage to the ongoing attacks against U-S soldiers in Iraq. Experts are offering varying explanations for the prominent coverage.
• India: No Troops for Iraq without UN Mandate VOA News 14 Jul 2003 -- India has turned down a U.S. request to send troops to Iraq to join a stabilization force. The Indian government failed to build a domestic consensus on the issue.
• INDIA TROOPS IRAQ VOA 14 Jul 2003 -- India has turned down a U-S request to send troops to Iraq to join a stabilization force. The Indian government failed to build a domestic consensus on the issue.

News Reports

• First Independent Review of Iraq Reconstruction, Requested by the Pentagon, Urges U.S. to Bolster Security and Accelerate Iraqi Role or Risk Losing the Peace Council on Foreign Relations 14 Jul 2003 -- With Iraqi expectations and frustrations on the rise, the window for cooperation with the United States is closing rapidly. If Iraqis do not see progress on delivering security, basic services, political involvement and economic activity, the security situation will likely worsen and U.S. efforts and credibility will falter. While the United States and its allies have proven their ability to succeed in key areas, significant challenges lie ahead.