Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• DoD Identifies Marine Corps Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty

• Transcript: DoD News with Brigadier General Augustus Collins 09 Dec 2005 -- Presenter: Brigadier General Augustus L. Collins, USA, Commander, 155th Brigade Combat Team
• Defense Department Report, December 9: Iraq Update Washington File 09 Dec 2005 -- A U.S. military commander whose forces operate in western Iraq says Iraqi security forces are ready for the country's third election in 2005.
• CENTAF releases its airpower summary AFPN 09 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces released today's airpower summary.
• Operations Net Suspects and Terror Tools in Iraq AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi and U.S. forces continued to make progress in the fight against terrorism in the north-central region of Iraq, detaining suspects and netting weapons and ammunition, officials in Iraq reported today.
• Coalition forces keep streets of Iraq safe Army News 09 Dec 2005 -- Soldiers from Task Force Baghdad, alongside Iraqi forces, constantly search the streets and alleyways of Baghdad and surrounding communities for weapons, insurgents and anti-coalition propaganda.
• US General: Iraqis Control Security Responsibility in Najaf, Karbala VOA 09 Dec 2005 -- The U.S. Army general responsible for security in three provinces southwest of Baghdad says that job is now being done primarily by Iraqi forces in two of the provinces.
• Busy day in north central Iraq MNF-I 09 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi security forces and U.S. troops continued to make progress in the fight against terrorism in the north central region of Iraq.
• Task Force Baghdad Soldiers catch drive-by shooter MNF-I 09 Dec 2005 -- Two Anti-Iraqi Forces terrorists attacked a patrol from 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division around 9 a.m. Dec. 6.
• Ramadi terrorist brought in MNF-I 09 Dec 2005 -- The number three terrorist on the 2nd Brigade Combat Team (28th Infantry Division) High Value Individual list was detained Dec. 9 in the provincial capital of ar Ramadi.
• Army Unit Sees Less Terror Activity in Southwestern Iraq AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- After nearly a year since their posting in southwestern Iraq, a U.S. Army commander today said he and his 4,200 soldiers have witnessed decreased terrorist activity in their area of operations.
• Task Force Baghdad Readies for Dec. 15 Iraqi Elections AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- As their second tour in Iraq begins to wind down, soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division continue to feel good about what they are doing, senior American military officials said today.

Deployments

• US Troop Numbers in Iraq May Decline After Vote VOA 09 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the Pentagon hopes to bring home some 20,000 troops from Iraq after next week's parliamentary elections there.
• Rumsfeld Expects Immediate Troop Reduction After Iraq Election AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- The United States expects to reduce its troop numbers in Iraq by more than 17,000 following the Dec. 15 national elections, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Dec. 8.

US Policy

• Bush: U.S. Will See Iraq Victory Strategy Through AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- America has a solid strategy for victory in Iraq and will see that strategy through, President Bush said today in Minneapolis.
• Rumsfeld: Terrorists Can Win Only in U.S., Media AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- Enemies of a free Iraq recognize they can't win against the United States and the coalition on the battlefield, and the only way they can hope to win is in Washington, D.C., and through American public opinion, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Dec. 8.
• Vice president welcomes troops home from Iraq Army News 09 Dec 2005 -- Vice President Richard B. Cheney welcomed New York National Guard Soldiers of the 42nd Infantry Division back from Iraq Dec. 6 and also thanked 10th Mountain Division troops at Fort Drum for their effort in the War on Terrorism.
• Congressional Report, December 9: Consultations on Iraq Washington File 09 Dec 2005 -- A congressional delegation that recently returned from Iraq met with senior U.S. military and civilian leaders December 8 in Washington to say that they think Iraq is moving in the right direction toward democracy.
• US Democrats Remain Split Over Iraq VOA 09 Dec 2005 -- President Bush will speak in Philadelphia Monday as he continues his campaign to bolster sagging domestic support for the war in Iraq

United Nations

Reconstruction Issues

• Old Iraqi Air Base Morphs Into Triple Training Facility AFPS 09 Dec 2005 -- With its 9,800-foot runway, one of Saddam Hussein's premier air bases was in Kut, Iraq, near the Tigris River midway between Baghdad and Kuwait.
• Iraq: Attorney Says Hussein Court's Legitimacy Not In Question RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- The trial of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and seven deputies on charges of crimes against humanity was adjourned on 7 December until after Iraq's 15 December legislative elections.
• Iraq: elections mark start of new phase where national dialogue vital, Annan says UN News Centre 09 Dec 2005 -- The increasingly sectarian nature of violence in Iraq, the continued lack of security, and ongoing human rights violations pose key challenges as the country prepares to go to the polls next week, underscoring the need for the communities to reach out to each other, according to a United Nations report released today.
• Iraq: Iraqi Politicians Comment On Hostility Of The Election Campaign RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- The run-up to parliamentary elections on 15 December has seen an escalation in the number of verbal attacks and allegations traded by Iraq's political blocs.

Foreign Reactions

News Reports

• Iraq: Kurdistan Islamic Union Responds To Attacks RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- Four people were killed on 6 December during an attack on the offices of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KLU). Among those killed was a senior KLU official.
• Iraqi Cleric Urges Militants Not To Kill Hostages RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- An influential Iraqi Sunni cleric today called on a group of militants not to kill their Western hostages.
• Iraq: Kurdish Culture Begins To Flourish In Kurdistan Region RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- Iraq's Kurdistan region has achieved a degree of self-rule that Kurds in neighboring states like Turkey and Iran can only dream about.
• U.S. Hostage Reportedly Killed In Iraq RFE/RL 09 Dec 2005 -- An extremist group in Iraq says it has executed a U.S. hostage.
• Iraqis Want Coalition Vocabulary Change AFPS 11 Dec 2005 -- Changing perceptions and perspectives here mean changes in vocabulary: "Sunni insurgents" is out, "Saddamists" is in.
• IRAQ: Islamic groups demand release of kidnapped aid workers in Iraq IRIN 09 Dec 2005 -- Islamic scholars and groups from the Middle East and Asia attending a conference in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, have issued a joint statement demanding the immediate release of four kidnapped aid workers in Iraq.
• RFE/RL Iraq Report, Volume 8, Number 42 09 Dec 2005 -- ELECTION CAMPAIGNING DEGENERATES INTO DOG-EAT-DOG ATMOSPHERE / HUSSEIN'S AL-DUJAYL TRIAL DESCENDS INTO CHAOS / KURDISTAN ISLAMIC UNION RESPONDS TO ATTACKS