Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 26 Apr 2004 [PDF]
• TWO CREWMEMBERS KILLED, FOUR WOUNDED IN ARABIAN GULF OIL TERMINAL ATTACKS
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• Department of Defense Identifies Navy, Coast Guard Casualties
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Army Casualties

• Transcript: Coalition Provisional Authority Briefing 26 Apr 2004 -- Daniel Senor, Coalition Senior Adviser; and Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, Deputy Director of Operations
• IRAQ SITREP UPDATE VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- At least three more American soldiers have died in a day of violence across Iraq (Monday). After weeks of battles with Iraqi insurgents, U-S military commanders are strongly suggesting that Sunni and Shiite rebels in two towns may soon face a full assault by coalition forces.
• Coalition Chronicles Recent Operations AFPS 26 Apr 2004 -- A series of Combined Joint Task Force 7 news releases provided details of various recent operations in Iraq.
• Coalition, Iraqi Forces To Conduct Joint Patrols in Fallujah AFPS 26 Apr 2004 -- Coalition and Iraqi forces soon will conduct joint security patrols in the troubled town of Fallujah, senior officials said today in Baghdad.
• Mosque At Center Of Al-Fallujah Fighting RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- Intense fighting erupted in Iraq today at a mosque in Al-Fallujah, resulting in the death of one U.S. soldier and eight insurgents.
• Coalition Provisional Authority Report, April 26: Iraq Update Washington File 26 Apr 2004 -- The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) spokesman told reporters in Baghdad April 26 that mosques in Najaf should not be used for weapons storage and they should be restored as holy places of worship.
• IRAQ SITREP VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- Though a cease-fire is supposed to be in effect in the Iraqi town of Fallujah, intense fighting has broken out there between American Marines and Sunni rebels. Officials of the U-S led coalition are also warning about a potentially explosive situation in the Shiite city of Najaf.
• Fighting Breaks Out In Al-Fallujah RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- The U.S. military in Iraq today said eight insurgents were killed and four U.S. troops were wounded during fighting today in Al-Fallujah.
• MARINES TAKE STEPS TO RETURN FALLUJAH TO IRAQI POLICE CONTROL CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- In the coming days, Marines in Fallujah will team up with the Iraqi Police Service and Iraqi Civil Defense Corps to conduct joint patrols through the city in a deliberate step toward returning the streets of Fallujah back to Iraqi authority.
• $300K TARGETED FOR EAST BAGHDAD NEIGHBORHOODS CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- More than $300,000 will be pumped into eastern Baghdad neighborhoods, as a variety of coalition civil affairs projects get under way.
• TF OLYMPIA SOLDIERS DETAIN 14, DESTROY IED, CONFISCATE WEAPONS CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- Task Force Olympia Soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division (Stryker Brigade Combat Team) detained 14 people wanted for anti-Coalition activities, destroyed an improvised explosive device and collected a variety of weapons and munitions in Northern Iraq April 23.
• TF DANGER SOLDIERS CAPTURE ANTI-COALITION SUSPECTS, WEAPONS CACHES CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- Task Force Danger Soldiers detained 19 anti-Coalition suspects and captured three weapons caches in north central Iraq April 24.
• ANTI-COALITION FORCES ATTACK IRAQI CIVILIANS CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- Anti-Coalition forces conducted a series of attacks in Mosul against civilian targets killing and injuring Iraqi civilians and Iraqi Police April 25.
• TIPS LEAD TO CAPTURE OF HIGH-VALUE TARGET, MUNITIONS AND IED COMPONENTS CENTCOM Release 26 Apr 2004-- After getting a tip from a local Iraqi near Karmah early Friday morning, Marines captured an individual who has orchestrated attacks against Coalition forces.
• U.S. To Delay Al-Fallujah Offensive RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- U.S. military commanders are reported to have postponed plans to launch an attack against insurgents in the Iraqi town of Al-Fallujah.
• Polish-Controlled Sector In Iraq To Be Reduced RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- Poland says the United States will be taking over two out of five provinces currently being administered by Poland in Iraq after the departure of Spanish forces.

Deployments

US Policy

• Senator Lieberman Urges Greater Bipartisan Cooperation on Iraq Washington File 26 Apr 2004 -- Joseph Lieberman, Democratic senator from Connecticut and his party's candidate for vice president in 2000, has called for a bipartisan "truce" in the debate over Iraq and has urged the formation of a special bipartisan advisory commission to provide President Bush with congressional input on developments in that country.
• U-S / CONGRESS / IRAQ VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- A prominent member of the U-S Senate is warning that the sometimes bitter debate within the United States over the war in Iraq and the continuing violence there is hurting efforts to turn the country into a stable democracy. Senator Joseph Lieberman's remarks came during a speech in Washington
• U.S. Calls For New UN Resolution On Iraq RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- The United States has called on the United Nations Security Council to adopt a new resolution aimed at enlisting additional foreign troops for Iraq.
• Treasury Secretary Snow Welcomes Iraqi Economic Reforms Washington File 26 Apr 2004 -- Treasury Secretary John Snow praised the economic reforms being taken by Iraq's Finance Minister Kamel al-Kaylani, and Central Bank Governor Sinan Al-Shabibi, saying the country has been making excellent economic progress.

United Nations

• U-N-IRAQ FUTURE VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- The U-S-pledged deadline for handing over limited sovereignty in Iraq is only a little more than two months away. Yet details on that handover are still not clear. The United Nations Special Envoy to Iraq has laid out some proposals that envision a greater U-N role in the country. The U-N envoy appears to be drawing inspiration from a similar earlier assignment.

Reconstruction Issues

• Fallujah Reconstruction Funds Await Restored Security AFPS 26 Apr 2004 -- Millions of dollars in reconstruction projects are available for Fallujah once security is re-established in the troubled Iraqi city, a Combined Joint Task Force 7 news release reported today.
• Iraq: Experts Say Don't Look To Interim Constitution To Solve Problems RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- With the planned handover of Iraqi sovereignty a little more than two months away, many questions remain unanswered. What Iraqi body will assume power, and what will sovereignty mean in practice if the United States retains significant functions, including when and where to apply military force? The Iraqi interim constitution was expected to provide some of the answers, but experts caution that the document has some gaps, just where the country appears to need guidance most.

Foreign Reactions

• NATO Attaches Strings To Iraq Role RFE/RL 26 Apr 2004 -- NATO has said it will consider a greater role in Iraq only if a string of conditions are met.
• THAILAND IRAQ VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- Thailand's government is coming under mounting pressure to withdraw its troops from Iraq as public fears increase about their safety. As Ron Corben reports from Bangkok, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra says the troops will be brought home if they are attacked.

News Reports

• IRAQ/JOURNALISTS VOA 26 Apr 2004 -- More fighting is being reported in the Sunni Muslim stronghold of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, an explosion damaged a building and several military vehicles in Baghdad, and in southern Iraq, oil is flowing again following a series of suicide attacks. Amid the continuing violence, there is increasing fear among news correspondents in Baghdad to go out and cover the story.
• IRAQ: Focus on families fleeing Fallujah IRIN 26 Apr 2004 -- When he saw the fighting move into his street on the outskirts of the Iraqi city of Fallujah a week ago, Hamadi Jassem, a carpenter, knew it was time to get his family out of town.