Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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

Current Operations

• OIF/OEF Casualty Update 19 Dec 2005 [PDF]
• MARINE DIES FROM NON-HOSTILE GUNSHOT WOUND
• MARINE KILLED IN ACTION
• DoD Identifies Army Casualty

• Military Operations, Dec 19, 2005 MNF-I 19 Dec 2005 -- PRESS CONFERENCE WITH MEMBERS OF THE IRAQI DEFENSE MINISTRY TOPIC: MILITARY OPERATIONS
• Iraqi forces lead Operation Moonlight MNF-I 19 Dec 2005 -- Soldiers from 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division began Operation Alkamra Almaner (Moonlight) early this morning in western Al Anbar.
• CENTAF releases combined daily airpower summary AFPN 19 Dec 2005 -- U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials released today's combined airpower summary.
• Small-Arms Fire Claims Marine's Life; Iraqi Soldiers Disrupting Enemy AFPS 19 Dec 2005 -- A U.S. Marine was killed by small-arms fire in Ramadi, Iraq, Dec. 18, military officials announced today.
• Estonians partner with U.S. troops to patrol Iraq streets Army News 19 Dec 2005 -- A newly inducted member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is playing a lead role alongside American troops in securing the future of Iraq.
• New Counter-IED lanes train troops in Kuwait Army News 19 Dec 2005 -- New Counter-IED lanes train troops in Kuwait
• Soldiers plead guilty to charges of abuse MNF-I 19 Dec 2005 -- Five U.S. Soldiers from the 75th Ranger Regiment pleaded guilty to violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice during courts-martial completed Dec. 8th, 12th and 13th related to charges of detainee abuse.

Deployments

• Ukrainian Task Force ends service in MNDCS MNF-I 19 Dec 2005 -- Dec. 19 was the last day of the Ukrainian 81st Task Force's duty within Multinational Division Central South's structure.
• Two 1st Cavalry brigades going back to Iraq Army News 19 Dec 2005 -- The aviation and support brigades of the 1st Cavalry Division have received deployment orders to return to Iraq this summer.
• Ukrainians Head Home After Completing Iraq Mission AFPS 19 Dec 2005 -- Multinational Division Central South bid farewell to troops from Ukraine, one of the unit's mainstay nationalities, during a ceremony today at Camp Delta here.

US Policy

• Press Conference of the President The White House 19 Dec 2005
• Staying on Offense Key to Defeating Terrorism, Bush Says AFPS 19 Dec 2005 -- The Sept. 11, 2001, attacks showed that the United States could no longer ignore the threat of global terrorism and that America must go on the attack, President Bush said during a nationally televised address Dec. 18.
• Calls to Retreat From Iraq 'Wrong Strategy,' President Says AFPS 19 Dec 2005 -- President Bush respectfully disagreed with Americans who fault his rationale for maintaining U.S. military forces in Iraq, during a White House news conference today.
• Bush Urges Rapid Formation of New Iraqi Government VOA 19 Dec 2005 -- President Bush says his administration is urging Iraqi politicians to form a new, permanent government as quickly as possible after all the votes are counted from last week's elections.

• Rumsfeld Says U.S. Does Not Want to Remain in Iraq Indefinitely Washignton File 19 Dec 2005 -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said it is not a goal of the United States to remain in Iraq for the long term.
• Bush Says Iraq Pullout Would Lead To Mistrust RFE/RL 19 Dec 2005 -- President George W. Bush has again rejected calls for a quick U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, saying a pullout now would signal that the United States cannot be trusted and would hand the country over to Iraqi insurgents.
• U.S.: Bush Acknowledges Mistakes In Iraq, But Urges Americans To Stay Resolute RFE/RL 19 Dec 2005 -- U.S. President George W. Bush, in a rare formal address from the White House's Oval Office, yesterday rejected calls for a quick U.S. withdrawal from Iraq -- although he acknowledged that the fight against the insurgents is proving "more difficult" than expected.

United Nations

Reconstruction Issues

• Preliminary Results Show Iraqis Voted along Ethnic Lines VOA 19 Dec 2005 -- The Iraqi Electoral Commission on Monday released some preliminary results from the December 15 parliamentary elections.
• Shi'ite Coalition Wins In Southern Iraq, Kurdish Coalition In North RFE/RL 19 Dec 2005 -- Iraq's electoral commission says results from 11 provinces show the Shi'ite United Iraqi Alliance with more votes than any other bloc in the Iraqi capital and in six southern provinces.
• IRAQ: Voting irregularities reported in Kurdish areas IRIN 19 Dec 2005 -- A number of voters in the northern Kurdish regions were prevented from casting ballots in Iraq’s 15 December parliamentary elections due to reported omissions in the official list of voters, officials said on Sunday.

Foreign Reactions

• IRAQ: Iraqis express anger over 'covert' US press plan IRIN 19 Dec 2005 -- Iraqis reacted angrily over reports that emerged late last month that the US military was writing articles portraying it in a favourable light, translating them into Arabic and having them published in newspapers in Iraq's capital, Baghdad.

News Reports

• U.S. Military Releases Saddam Hussein Associates RFE/RL 19 Dec 2005 -- The U.S. military has released a number of high-level officials in the deposed regime of Saddam Hussein.
• US Frees Iraq's Dr. Germ, Mrs. Anthrax VOA 19 Dec 2005 -- The U.S. military has released some high-level detainees from Saddam Hussein's former regime, including two scientists known as "Dr. Germ" and "Mrs. Anthrax."