Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 12 Dec 2005 [PDF]
• II MEF SOLDIER KILLED NEAR RAMADI
• TASK FORCE BAGHDAD SOLDIER KILLED
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty

• Explosion Kills Three In Baghdad RFE/RL 12 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi police say three civilians were killed today when a vehicle loaded with explosives detonated in eastern Baghdad.
• Insurgent Violence, Early Voting in Iraq VOA 12 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi police say insurgents killed at least nine people in separate attacks, while security forces and people in hospitals and detention centers cast ballots Monday, three days ahead of the main voting in parliamentary elections.
• CENTAF releases its airpower summary AFPN 12 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials released today's airpower summary.
• Three Soldiers Killed During Separate Incidents in Iraq AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- One Task Force Baghdad soldier was killed south of Baghdad today. Another died in western Baghdad on Dec. 11.
• Convoy attacked by suicide bomber MNF-I 12 Dec 2005 -- A U.S. convoy was attacked Dec. 12 by a suicide car bomber at 1:30 p.m. on a street in Fallujah.
• Iraqi security forces, Task Force Freedom continue sweep of terrorists and weapons MNF-I 12 Dec 2005 -- Iraqi security forces along with Multi-National Forces from Task Force Freedom detained 46 suspected terrorists and seized weapons caches in northern Iraq, Dec. 5 -12.
• Detainee Voter Turn Out Overwhelming MNF-I 12 Dec 2005 -- Nearly 90 percent of all eligible security detainees in Multi-National Forces-Iraq Theater Internment Facilities participated in today's democratic vote on the Iraqi National Ballot.

Deployments

US Policy

• Transcript: President Discusses War on Terror and Upcoming Iraqi Elections The White House 12 Dec 2005
• U.S. Envoy to Iraq Condemns Pre-election Violence, Fraud Washington File 12 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad condemned recent acts of violence directed at Iraqi candidates and campaign workers, calling the attacks "assaults on democracy and attempts to deny Iraqis the freedom to vote their conscience."
• Bush Compares U.S., Iraqi Roads to Democracy AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- President Bush traveled today to Philadelphia, the birthplace of U.S. democracy, to remind Americans about their own country's bumpy road to democracy and to underscore what he called "miraculous" political progress taking place in Iraq.
• Iraqi Elections Represent Milestone in Victory Strategy AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- Iraq's parliamentary elections later this week represent another major step forward that supports Iraq's long-term stability and the U.S. strategy for victory there, President Bush said today at the World Affairs Council in Philadelphia.
• Bush Speaks of a 'Remarkable Transformation' in Iraq VOA 12 Dec 2005 -- Three days before Iraqis go to the polls to elect a new government, President Bush is hailing their commitment to democracy while acknowledging the high price they have paid in human lives.
• US Congressional Democrats Criticize Bush Iraq Speech VOA 12 Dec 2005 -- Congressional Democrats are criticizing President Bush's speech on Iraq Monday, saying he failed to tell the American people how much longer U.S. troops would stay in Iraq and how much more the U.S. involvement there will cost.

• US Commander to Assess Iraq Security Needs After Election VOA 12 Dec 2005 -- The Defense Department says the coalition commander in Iraq is expected to issue an assessment of the security situation in the country soon after this week's election, and the assessment could include a recommendation on future U.S. troop levels in Iraq.
• Iraq Force Level Assessment Is Likely, Di Rita Says AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- The senior U.S. military commander in Iraq will likely conduct a force-level assessment sometime after the Dec. 15 elections, a senior defense department official said here today.

• Iraqi Economy Poised for Growth, U.S. Official Says Washington File 12 Dec 2005 -- This article by U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt originally appeared in the December 9 edition of The Wall Street Journal and is in the public domain.
• Senior U.S. Official Predicts High Voter Turnout in Iraqi Elections Washington File 12 Dec 2005 -- The State Department's coordinator for Iraq, James Jeffrey, predicts a large voter turnout in Iraq's December 15 elections for a Council of Representatives.
• U.S. Welcomes Islamic Conference's Condemnation of Terrorism Washington File 12 Dec 2005 -- The United States has welcomed the Organization of Islamic Conference's (OIC) condemnation of terrorist violence and support for the Iraqi people as expressed in the final declaration of the organization's summit meeting in Saudi Arabia.

United Nations

• UN report sees slow progress in resolving cases of Kuwaitis missing as a result of Iraq's 1990 invasion UN News Centre 12 Dec 2005 -- Progress in returning to Kuwait the remains of its nationals and others killed during Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion and subsequent occupation of the country has been slow because of the prevailing insecurity in Iraq, Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a new report to the Security Council.

Reconstruction Issues

• Voting Starts In Iraq's Hospitals, Prisons RFE/RL 12 Dec 2005 -- Hospital patients, prison detainees, and security forces in Iraq are voting today at the start of elections for a parliament set to restore full sovereignty to the country nearly three years after the U.S.-led invasion.
• Iraq: Kurds Ponder How To Strengthen Autonomy After Elections RFE/RL 12 Dec 2005 -- Iraqis go the polls on 15 December to elect the first parliament formed under the country's new constitution.
• Iraqi Voters Residing in United States To Cast Absentee Ballots Washington File 12 Dec 2005 -- Approximately 240,000 Iraqis residing in the United States will be able to cast absentee ballots in Iraq's legislative elections, according to a December 9 State Department media note.
• Reconstruction Effort Changing Face of Iraq AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- Despite attacks, security concerns and an infrastructure that was degraded beyond expectation, the Iraq reconstruction effort has made tremendous progress, officials here said.
• Iraqi Military Chief Cites Progress, Challenges AFPS 12 Dec 2005 -- The highest-ranking military officer in Iraq said over the past year his country's armed forces have accomplished "almost a miracle."
• IRAQ: New high-tech passports unpopular with locals IRIN 12 Dec 2005 -- A plan by the interior ministry to introduce a new generation of high-tech passports, ostensibly aimed at curbing the influx of insurgents into the country, has received mixed reactions amongst Iraqis.

Foreign Reactions

News Reports

• Prisoner Abuse Found at Iraq Prison Facility VOA 12 Dec 2005 -- A published report Monday says authorities in Baghdad have found more prisoners who were tortured and abused at a detention center operated by Iraq's Interior Ministry.

• Commentary: 'Can Injustice Build a Homeland?' RFE/RL 12 Dec 2005 -- This commentary, written by Jamal al-Bazzaz, was published on 5 December in the Baghdad-based daily "Al-Furat."