Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 08 Apr 2004 [PDF]
• COALITION UPDATE [CJTF-7 News Release] April 8, 2004
• ATTACK ON MARINES NEAR MOSQUE [CJTF-7 News Release] April 8, 2004
• C0ALITION UPDATE [CJTF-7 News Release] April 8, 2004
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

• Transcript: Coalition Provisional Authority Briefing 08 Apr 2004 -- "Coalition and Iraqi security forces are conducting deliberate, precise and robust combat operations to separate, isolate and destroy the enemy wherever we find him on the battlefield. We cannot tolerate acts of violence directed against the Iraqi people and its fundamental governing, religious and security structures. "
• IRAQ / CASUALTIES VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- The increased fighting in Iraq has led to larger numbers of casualties among U-S forces deployed there. Military personnel back home are doing what they can to ease the pain of family members whose loved ones have either been killed or wounded in combat.
• Coalition Working to Pacify Fallujah, Destroy Sadr Militia AFPS 08 Apr 2004 -- Coalition forces are working to pacify Fallujah and other parts the Sunni Triangle area, and they are destroying the militia led by Muqtada al-Sadr in the central and southern areas of Iraq, the commander of coalition forces in Iraq said today.
• IRAQ/SITREP VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- In Iraq, U-S-led coalition forces continue battles to put down a Shiite uprising that has spread to at least a half dozen cities, and a number of foreigners have been kidnapped by insurgents.
• U.S. Commander Says Shi'ite Militia Controls Two Cities RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, says a Shi'ite Muslim militia has at least partial control of two southern Iraqi cities.
• Iraq: Insurgency In South Puts Strains On U.S.-Led Coalition RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- The violence in Iraq is testing some members of the U.S.-led coalition. Several, including Ukraine and Japan -- deployed for what they thought would be light peacekeeping or humanitarian missions in southern Iraq -- now find themselves in the midst of an expanding insurgency.
• Iraq: Though Small In Number, Al-Mahdi Army Posing Challenges To Coalition Troops RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- A militia loyal to radical Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr -- believed to number several thousand -- is battling coalition forces in Baghdad and other towns in Iraq. The Al-Mahdi Army was formed last summer, when al-Sadr said it would be a nonviolent force used primarily for security. That changed last weekend, however, when al-Sadr issued a call for his followers to "terrorize" the enemy.
• Iraq: U.S. Plans Temporary Troop Increase To Cope With Insurgency RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- The United States has said it will increase troop levels in Iraq to counter the increased resistance to coalition occupation. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday at the Pentagon that the U.S. military will take advantage of troop rotations to increase manpower in Iraq, at least temporarily. As more troops enter the country, he said, the troops they were sent to relieve will be retained longer than originally planned.
• U.S. May Send More Troops To Iraq As Fighting Continues RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq continued operations against Sunni and Shi'a insurgents today as the U.S. debates its troops strength in the country.
• U.S. Says It Remains In Control Of Situation In Iraq RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has acknowledged that U.S. troops face a "serious problem" with unrest in Iraq, but he says the United States remains in control of the situation and that American-led forces are on the offensive against the insurgents.

Deployments

US Policy

• Winning the Peace in Iraq Sen. John Kerry for President Campaign 08 Apr 2004 -- Speaking at a town hall meeting in Wisconsin on April 8, John Kerry asked all Americans to remain united in support of our troops and he called on the President to show leadership in rallying international contributions to win the peace in Iraq
• POWELL / IRAQ-SENATE VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell told senators Thursday he does not think the rebellion in Iraq by militiamen of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr will lead to a broader uprising by the country's Shiite majority. In subcommittee testimony, he also rejected comparisons of the current situation in Iraq to the U-S experience in Vietnam.
• IRAQ-U-S POL VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- Democratic presidential contender John Kerry urged President Bush Thursday to ask other nations to share in the responsibility of rebuilding Iraq as one response to the upsurge in violence there.
• Bremer Urges Arbaeen Pilgrims in Iraq to Be Vigilant AFPS 08 Apr 2004 -- Security conditions in southern Iraq prompted the coalition's civilian administrator to issue a statement today promising the best possible effort to protect Arbaeen pilgrims while urging them to be vigilant and careful.

United Nations

• UN panel grants $186 million in damages arising from Iraqi invasion of Kuwait UN News Centre 08 Apr 2004 -- The Geneva-based United Nations Compensation Commission today made available today payments of over $185.8 million in damage awards arising from Iraq's 1990 invasion and subsequent occupation of Kuwait.
• Concerned at Iraq violence, Annan urges protection of civilians UN News Centre 08 Apr 2004 -- Voicing grave concern at the recent bloodshed and deteriorating security situation in Iraq, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today urged stepped-up efforts to protect civilians and end the violence.
• Iraq: U.S. Diplomat Says Russia, France, China Resisted Reforming Oil Program RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- A top U.S. diplomat said yesterday that Russia, France, and China delayed efforts by the UN Security Council to end abuses that helped former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein benefit from the oil-for-food program.

Reconstruction Issues

• Iraqi Interior Minister Resigns As Fighting Rages RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- Iraqi Interior Minister Nouri al-Badran today announced his resignation, saying he had heard the U.S.-led administration was unhappy with his performance and wants a different religious mix in the cabinet.
• IRAQ: Returns from Iran temporarily suspended IRIN 08 Apr 2004 -- Returns of Iraqi refugees from Iran facilitated by the office of the UN High Commisioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have been temporarily suspended due to security concerns.
• IRAQ: Focus on maternal and infant healthcare in Baghdad IRIN 08 Apr 2004 -- As paediatrician Tala al-Awqati stands in the middle of a hospital room of incubators filled with premature and low birth-weight babies, it’s obvious that she is passionate about her work.

Foreign Reactions

• CONGRESS - IRAQ VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- Iraq's Ambassador-designate to the United States is playing down the violence by Sunni and Shiite rebels against the U-S-led coalition in the country. During a visit to Capitol Hill Thursday, Ambassador-designate Rend al-Rahim said the majority of Iraqis want democracy.
• Iraq: What Will Be Iran's Role In The Future? RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- Since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, Iran has frequently stressed its desire for good ties with Iraq. Iran was one of the first countries in the region last year to recognize the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council. But not everyone fully believes Tehran's public pronouncements. The United States, for one, has accused Iran of meddling in Iraq's internal affairs. What are Iran's intentions in Iraq and what role will the country play in Iraq's future?
• Japan Will Not Withdraw Troops From Iraq RFE/RL 08 Apr 2004 -- The Japanese government has said it will not withdraw troops from Iraq following the kidnapping of three Japanese civilians.
• ASIA / IRAQ HOSTAGES / REACTION VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- Iraqi insurgents have kidnapped three Japanese civilians and are threatening to kill them unless Japan withdraws its troops from Iraq. apan says there is no reason to pull its forces out of Iraq.
• Daily says Bremer should be sent packing IRNA 08 Apr 2004 -- There is only one cause for the recent unrest in Iraq that left up to 250 people dead or injured :the incompetence of U.S administrator Paul Bremer in managing the country`s affairs, Tehran Times daily wrote in its editorial on Wednesday.
• BRITAIN / IRAQ VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- Iraq's leading Shi'ite Muslim group is calling for negotiations to defuse an anti-coalition rebellion by followers of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

News Reports

• U-S OPINION ROUNDUP: IRAQI VIOLENCE SURGES VOA 08 Apr 2004 -- As coalition forces in Iraq engage growing numbers of Sunni and Shiite militias and the casualties mount, the press debate over U-S policy intensifies.
• RFE/RL Iraq Report, Volume 7, Number 13 08 Apr 2004 -- SUNNI INSURGENTS BATTLE U.S. TROOPS IN IRAQ / IRAQI CLERIC RALLIES SHI'A SUPPORTERS, CHALLENGES COALITION / AL-SADR A LONGSTANDING THREAT TO COALITION, IRAQI STABILITY / SHI'ITE LEADERS DIVIDED OVER RECENT VIOLENCE / TERRORIST LINKED TO AL-QAEDA PURPORTEDLY THREATENS COALITION FORCES / CPA HEAD NAMES DEFENSE MINISTER, INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR / IRAQIS CONTINUE PREPARATIONS FOR WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL / DIRECTOR OF DE-BA'ATHIFICATION COMMISSION DISCUSSES ITS WORK / JORDANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER WARNS IRAQ COULD ERUPT INTO CIVIL WAR / TEHRAN DISCOURAGES TRAVEL TO IRAQ / PURPORTED FORMER IRANIAN INTELLIGENCE AGENT SAYS IRAN ENTRENCHED IN IRAQ / UN ADVISER ARRIVES IN IRAQ / SPAIN THREATENED BY AL-QAEDA / COALITION REMAINS WILLING -- FOR THE TIME BEING