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

Current Operations

• PENTAGON/IRAQ VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- U-S forces in Iraq have killed at least two insurgents suspected of involvement in attacks on coalition forces in Baghdad.
• Terrorists Strike Italian Headquarters in Iraq; More Weapons Seized AFPS 12 Nov 2003 -- At least 22 people were killed today when two vehicles crashed the gate of the Italian military headquarters in Nasiriyah, Iraq, and one exploded.
• PENTAGON/IRAQ-IZATION VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- U-S forces have been in Iraq for less than a year. But already some critics are warning the military's involvement could become another dangerous trap, like Vietnam. Such comparisons are rejected by top defense officials.
• Iraq: At Least 22 Dead In Italian Police Station Blast RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- Italy's Carabinieri (police) say at least 14 Italians and eight Iraqis died in a blast today at an Italian military police base in the southern Iraqi city of Al-Nasiriyah.
• ITALY/IRAQ/BLAST VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- At least 16 Italian soldiers and eight Iraqis are dead in a suicide truck bombing in southern Iraq. Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome the attack caused some members of Italy's parliament to question the country's role in Iraq, but senior officials say Italy will not be deterred.

• U.S. Contributes Additional Food Aid to Afghanistan Washington File 12 Nov 2003 -- Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, traveling in Afghanistan, announced plans on November 11 for a donation of $5 million dollars in agricultural commodities to that country under the Food for Progress Program.
• Afghan Peace Process Needs Continued International Help Washington File 12 Nov 2003 -- A high level Security Council mission to Afghanistan presented a mixed picture of life in that country saying that it was "greatly impressed by the eagerness of the Afghans to stand together, rebuild their country, and improve their living conditions" but found Afghans increasingly frustrated "about the lack of a peace dividend and tangible benefits" particularly in the provinces.

Deployments

US Policy

• Bremer Discusses Iraq at White House with Bush, Top U.S. Officials Washington File 12 Nov 2003 -- L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, says his two days of conferring with President Bush and top officials of his administration focused on two important problems -- defeating the terrorists in Iraq, and helping that country move toward self-government.
• Statement by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld on the Bombing in An Nasiriyah 12 Nov 2003 -- "I offer my condolences to our coalition comrades and their families, as well as to those innocent Iraqis killed in today's attack. "
• Bremer Prepares to Return to Iraq, Continues Discussions AFPS 12 Nov 2003 -- Following meetings with President Bush and his advisers, Ambassador Paul Bremer will go back to Baghdad and continue discussions with the Iraqi Governing Council.
• BUSH / IRAQ VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- President Bush has held urgent talks with his national security team about speeding up Iraq's return to self-rule and improving security for coalition troops.
• Iraq: Bremer Returns To White House For Urgent Talks RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- The top U.S. civil administrator in Iraq, L. Paul Bremer, returned at short notice to Washington yesterday for a meeting with top officials.

United Nations

Reconstruction Issues

• Iraq: Growing U.S. Unhappiness With Governing Council Suggests Changes Ahead RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- Reports are increasing that Washington is unhappy with the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council, which is having difficulties meeting a timetable for developing a constitution and paving the way to national elections. Now, as top U.S. officials meet in Washington with America's administrator for Iraq, L. Paul Bremer, major changes in the structure of the country's interim government could be imminent.
• Iraq: Pachachi Says Iraqi Provisional Government One Way To Speed Handover Of Power RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- The sudden trip yesterday of Iraq's civil administrator, L. Paul Bremer, to the United States underscores concerns in Washington that the transition of power in Iraq needs to move more rapidly. Bremer is meeting with U.S. foreign policy advisers to discuss ways to accelerate the troubled process. In Baghdad, an influential member of the Iraqi Governing Council is suggesting one way to ease the transition to Iraqi sovereignty. Adnan Pachachi, a former foreign minister and Sunni elder statesman, says an Iraqi provisional government should be established as soon as possible.
• IRAQ: IRIN interview with Oil Minister Ibrahim Bahr al-Ulum IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- With proven oil reserves of 112 billion barrels, the Iraqi oil ministry for oil is planning to increase pumping. The oil was the only way for Iraqis, under Saddam Hussein's regime, to have access to food and medical supplies, as these were not covered by the UN sanctions imposed for Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.

Foreign Reactions

• Annan expresses dismay at new killings in Iraq UN News Centre 12 Nov 2003 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today expressed dismay at the car bombing in Nasiriya, Iraq, today, which killed a number of Italians and Iraqis.
• RUSSIA - INDIA VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are calling for a rapid return of Iraq's sovereignty, as well as continued efforts in the fight against global terrorism. The statements are in a joint declaration the two leaders issued after meeting in Moscow.
• ITALY/IRAQ/BLAST VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Italy is mourning the deaths of its military personnel from a truck explosion in southern Iraq. Seventeen Italians and eight Iraqis were killed. More than 80 people were injured, including at least 20 Italians. Italian officials reacted by vowing to keep up the fight against terrorism.
• Solana condemns attack on Italian barracks in Iraq IRNA 12 Nov 20003 -- Brussels, Nov 12, IRNA -- Javier Solana, EU high representative for common foreign and security policy, condemned today the terror attack that killed and wounded several people at an Italian Carabinieri barracks in Nassiriya, Iraq, and expressed his solidarity with Italy.
• BRITAIN / IRAQ VOA 12 Nov 2003 -- Britain has expressed condolences over the deaths of 14 Italians killed in the bombing of the Italian police headquarters in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.

News Reports

• Iraq: Turkomans Say Kirkuk's Growing Kurdish Population A Threat RFE/RL 12 Nov 2003 -- Turkomans and Kurds make up the two largest ethnic communities in the oil-rich city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq. Both groups faced severe discrimination under the former regime. Now they are squaring off against each other in a battle for influence over the strategically important city.
• U.S., Europe Face Four Policy Challenges in Greater Middle East Washington File 12 Nov 2003 -- Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs William Burns says the members of the Transatlantic Community face four interconnected policy challenges in the greater Middle East -- helping Iraqis build a unified, stable, prosperous country, realizing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, struggling against terrorists and the state sponsors of terrorism, and supporting political and economic reforms in the Middle East.
• JORDAN: Iraqi refugees wait to go home IRIN 12 Nov 2003 -- Mu'ayyad Jamil, a 33-year-old Iraqi man, was once a prosperous businessman and a sweetshop owner in his the Qarn district of the southern Iraqi city of Basra. But now he is a vegetable porter for customers at the Saqf al-Sayl market in central Amman, the capital of Jordan.