Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 16 Nov 2005 [PDF]
• MARINE DIES FROM VBIED
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualties
• DoD Identifies Marine Casualty
• TASK FORCE BAGHDAD SOLDIER DIES
• FIVE II MEF MARINES KILLED IN ACTION

• US Military Defends Use of White Phosphorus in Iraq VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- The United States military has defended its use of white phosphorus against insurgents in Iraq, but denies having used it against civilians.
• U.S. Defends Use Of White-Phosphorus Weapons In Iraq RFE/RL 16 Nov 2005 -- The Pentagon today admitted to using incendiary white-phosphorus ammunition in Iraq in 2004 during an offensive in the restive Sunni city of Al- Fallujah, but said use of the weapons was legal.
• CENTAF releases airpower summary report AFPN 16 Nov 2005 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials released today's airpower summary report.
• Air Force fighters strike insurgents AFPN 16 Nov 2005 -- Air Force F-15 Eagles, F-16 Fighting Falcons and MQ-1 Predators flew air strikes against anti-Iraqi forces near the Iraq-Syria border in support of Operation Steel Curtain.
• Big bangs destroy 2,000 munitions AFPN 16 Nov 2005 -- Airmen from the 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordnance disposal flight detonated 2,000 munitions, keeping them the out of the hands of insurgents.
• Five Marines Killed in Steel Curtain Firefight AFPS 16 Nov 2005 -- Five Marines assigned to Regimental Combat Team 2, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), were killed today during a firefight while conducting Operation Steel Curtain in New Ubaydi, Iraq, military officials reported.
• Car Bomb Kills Marine; U.S., Iraqi Troops Find Weapons, Terrorists AFPS 16 Nov 2005 -- A U.S. Marine assigned to Regimental Combat Team 8, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), was killed in a suicide car-bomb attack near Karmah, Iraq, Nov. 15.
• Al Qaeda in Iraq Emir of Sadah bagged MNF-I 16 Nov 2005 -- Multi-National Forces used multiple intelligence sources and tips from concerned citizens to locate a known al Qaeda in Iraq safe house harboring terrorists and foreign fighters Nov. 7.
• Iraqi and Band of Brothers Soldiers seize weapons MNF-I 16 Nov 2005 -- Iraqi and U.S. Soldiers found and disposed of four weapons caches and an IED Nov. 14 in north central Iraq with the help of several local citizens.
• ESG-1 CONDUCTS MARITIME SECURITY OPERATIONS IN ARABIAN SEA CENTCOM 16 Nov 2005 -- Members of Expeditionary Strike Group One (ESG-1) are currently leading a group of six coalition ships conducting maritime security operations (MSO) in the North Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman.
• Operation Steel Curtain update MNF-I 16 Nov 2005 -- Iraqi Army Soldiers and Marines, Soldiers and Sailors continue Operation al Hajip Elfulathi (Steel Curtain) in the al Qaim region.

Deployments

US Policy

• Transcript: Vice President's Remarks at the Frontiers of Freedom Institute 2005 Ronald Reagan Gala The White House 16 Nov 2005 -- ". And the suggestion that's been made by some U. S. senators that the President of the United States or any member of this Administration purposely misled the American people on pre-war intelligence is one of the most dishonest and reprehensible charges ever aired in this city. Some of the most irresponsible comments have, of course, come from politicians who actually voted in favor of authorizing force against Saddam Hussein."
• US Lawmakers Headed for Difficult Negotiations on Iraq, Prisoner Issues VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- After Senate approval on Tuesday of a measure calling on President Bush to provide more specifics about his future strategy in Iraq, lawmakers in Congress are headed for difficult negotiations on language regarding the interrogation and treatment of detainees, among other issues.
• US Senate Responds to Public Concern Over Iraq VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- A Senate vote this week on Iraq is the latest indication of growing public concern over the military situation there and the issue of when U.S. troops can begin coming home in large numbers.
• Bush Welcomes Senate Action on Iraq VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- President Bush says he appreciates the U.S. Senate's rejection of a measure calling for a timetable for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq.

United Nations

• Iraq: Annan deeply concerned by reported abuse of Iraqi detainees UN News Centre 16 Nov 2005 -- In the wake of the reported abuse of a large number of detainees at an Iraqi interior ministry building, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today recalled that the United Nations has repeatedly voiced concern over ongoing human rights violations in Iraq, and specifically the lack of due process for detainees and the ill treatment they have endured.
• IRAQ: Civilians continue to suffer from violence, displacement, UN IRIN 16 Nov 2005 -- Hundreds of Iraqi civilians were killed in September and October, while large parts of Iraq continue to experience a general breakdown of law and order, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) noted in its latest report on the state of human rights in the war-ravaged nation.

Reconstruction Issues

• Iraq: Probe Under Way Into Treatment Of 170 Mostly Sunni Detainees RFE/RL 16 Nov 2005 -- Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Ja'afari has ordered an investigation into the treatment of more than 170 mostly Sunni detainees who appear to have been tortured
• Iraq Sunnis Demands Probe of Prisoner Abuse Allegations VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- Iraq's main Sunni political party on Wednesday demanded the launch of an international investigation into charges that officials inside the country's interior ministry are running secret detention centers, where Sunni Arab detainees are routinely starved, tortured, abused and sometimes killed.
• Iraq's Sunni Arabs Demand International Probe of Prisoner Abuse VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- Iraq's main Sunni Arab political party is demanding an international investigation into allegations that security forces tortured and abused prisoners held at secret detention centers in Baghdad.
• Sunni Detainees in Government Prison Tortured VOA 16 Nov 2005 -- In an incident that is likely to further aggravate sectarian tensions in Iraq, the country's Shi'ite-led government officials acknowledged Tuesday that nearly 170 mostly Sunni detainees discovered by American troops Sunday inside a Baghdad facility run by the interior ministry have been tortured and abused.

Foreign Reactions

• Iraq: EU Expresses Concern Over Reported Abuses In Iraq RFE/RL 16 Nov 2005 -- The European Commission and the EU's current British presidency said today that Iraqi authorities must investigate human rights abuses alleged to have been committed by the country's security forces
• UK follows US in admitting use of white phosphorus in Iraq IRNA 16 Nov 2005 -- British troops have also used white phosphorus in Iraq, Defence Secretary John Reid admitted Tuesday.

News Reports

• Iraq: RFE Speaks To Prime Minister About Amman Bombings RFE/RL 16 Nov 2005 -- Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Ja'fari told RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq (RFI) in an exclusive interview on 14 November that the Iraqi nationality of the Amman suicide bombers should not be a factor in people's opinions about Iraq.
• IRAQ: Displaced in the west need more IRIN 16 Nov 2005 -- The number of refugees fleeing the western Iraqi town of al-Qaim and surrounding villages in the wake of US-led military offensives launched earlier this month has reached some 100,000 persons, according to the Iraqi Red Crescent Society (IRCS).