Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 14 Dec 2004 [PDF]
• TWO MARINES KILLED IN AL ANBAR PROVINCE
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

• Transcript: Department of Defense Briefing 14 Dec 2004 -- Lawrence Di Rita, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. Also Participating; Brigadier General David Rodriguez, Deputy Director for Regional Operations, Joint Staff Operations Directorate
• 2/24 Engineers clear area of weapons caches USMC News 14 Dec 2004 -- Getting up well before sunrise and working until well after sunset constitutes a typical day for the combat engineers attached to 2nd Battalion, 24th Marines, in northern Babil province.
• MSSG-31 Marines supply battalions USMC News 14 Dec 2004 -- Marines assigned to the training and operations section of Marine Expeditionary Unit Service Support Group - 31 processed 480 rapid request forms and coordinated re-supply for forward units in Fallujah throughout the month of November.
• Pockets of Resistance Remain in Fallujah, Myers Says AFPS 14 Dec 2004 -- Pockets of resistance remain in Fallujah, but the vast majority of insurgents have been cleared out, said the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during a visit here today.
• Aviation Continues to Aid Fallujah Mission AFPS 14 Dec 2004 -- Aviation is continuing to play a part in mopping up insurgents in Fallujah, the commander of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing said here today.
• 'Thinking Enemy' Challenges Force-Protection Measures AFPS 14 Dec 2004 -- Adaptive tactics used by a "thinking enemy" have posed a continuing challenge to protecting American forces in Iraq, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here Dec. 13.

Deployments

• 82nd Airborne back in Iraq Army News 14 Dec 2004 -- More than 1,500 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division are back in Iraq to help provide security for the country's upcoming elections.
• DoD Announces OEF/OIF Rotational Units 14 Dec 2004 -- The Department of Defense announced today several large units scheduled for deployment to Afghanistan and Iraq in support of the Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom rotations scheduled to begin in mid-2005.

US Policy

• President Presents Medal of Freedom The White House 14 Dec 2004 -- "The Presidential Medal of Freedom is our nation's highest civil award given to men and women of exceptional merit, integrity and achievement. Today this honor goes to three men who have played pivotal roles in great events, and whose efforts have made our country more secure and advanced the cause of human liberty."
• President Honors Three With Nation's Highest Civilian Award AFPS 14 Dec 2004 -- President Bush today bestowed the nation's highest civilian honor on three men who he said "have played pivotal roles in great events and whose efforts have made our country more secure and advanced the cause of human liberty."
• Bremer, Franks and Tenet Honored by President Bush Washington File 14 Dec 2004 -- President Bush honored three former U.S. officials with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award, for their contributions to the U.S. military and diplomatic objectives in Afghanistan and Iraq.

• Rumsfeld Presents Two Distinguished Public Service Awards 14 Dec 2004 -- Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld presented Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service awards today to two individuals for their accomplishments in the Global War on Terrorism.
• Analysis: U.S. Eyes Suspected Insurgents In Syria RFE/RL 14 Dec 2004 -- U.S. officials said last week that they are considering increasing pressure on Syria to crack down on former Iraqi Ba'athists who they believe are orchestrating and funding the insurgency from inside Syrian territory. The pressure is part of an overall effort to put an end to the insurgency in Iraq.

United Nations

• Conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan present new challenges in protecting civilians, Security Council told UN News Centre 14 Dec 2004 -- The armed conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have presented new, more difficult challenges to the task of protecting civilians and the United Nations has had to call on religious and cultural leaders to plead the cause of independent humanitarian activities, the world body's top relief official said today.
• UN Urged To Increase Iraq Presence RFE/RL 14 Dec 2004 -- The interim Iraqi government and the United States have urged the United Nations to quickly increase its presence in Iraq to help the country prepare for the 30 January elections.

Reconstruction Issues

• IRAQ / WRAP VOA 14 Dec 2004 -- Iraq's interim government says war crime trials of members of the former regime of Saddan Hussein could begin as early as next week. In the meantime, at least two people were killed and as many as 13 wounded early Tuesday when, for the second time in as many days, a suicide car bomber attacked a security checkpoint in Baghdad. And, a group of celebrities, accompanied by the head of the Pentagon, arrived in Baghdad to help boost morale among U.S. troops in Iraq.

Foreign Reactions

News Reports

• Iraqi Media Monitoring UNAMI 14 Dec 2004
• Hussein's Aides To Go On Trial Next Week RFE/RL 14 Dec 2004 -- Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said today that some aides of former President Saddam Hussein will go on trial as early as next week.