Soldiers from B Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, sort through weapons that were found in insurgents’ vehicles after a firefight in Rawah, Iraq, on Tuesday. (James J. Lee / Military Times staff)
Posted on 07/20/2005 4:36:19 PM PDT by Gucho
July 20. 2005 5:53PM
By ROBERT BURNS - AP Military Writer
There has been encouraging progress toward stabilizing Iraq, even while insurgents and foreign fighters "remain effective, adaptable and intent on carrying out attacks," Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Wednesday.
Rumsfeld previewed a comprehensive Iraq report to Congress that was due July 11, the first in a series of required periodic assessments. Lawmakers have been pressing the Pentagon to provide more specific data to measure progress.
Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., accused the Pentagon last week of delaying the report.
"It is unconscionable that the administration has failed to give the American people a straight answer about how many Iraqi security forces are adequately trained and equipped and able to defend Iraq's security on their own," he said.
Rumsfeld said information about the readiness and performance of U.S.-trained Iraqi security forces - one of the most telling measures of progress - would be included in a classified annex to the report but not made public.
"The information we're getting is in large measure from the Iraqi security forces," he said. "It's their information. It's not for us to tell the other side, the enemy, the terrorists, that this Iraqi unit has this capability and that Iraqi unit has this capability." He said it would be "mindless" to publish information about the combat readiness of Iraqi security forces that would reveal their strengths and weaknesses.
Speaking at the same news conference, Gen. Peter Pace, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the Pentagon's unwillingness to publicly release that information does not mean Congress is kept in the dark.
"We do tell the Congress privately, classified, exactly what these facts are. So there is a dialogue, just not one in the public," Pace said.
Rumsfeld indicated Tuesday that the report, which he said would be provided to Congress on Thursday or Friday, would not include an estimate of how many U.S. troops are likely to be required in Iraq next year. That is among the things Congress had specifically requested be included in the unclassified report.
Rumsfeld said it is not possible to know how many U.S. troops will be needed because the size of the force will be determined by conditions, including further progress in containing the insurgency and training the Iraqis.
There currently are about 138,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, down from a peak of about 160,000 during the January elections, when extra units were required to handle a surge in violent attacks by the insurgents.
In describing the main points of the report to Congress, Rumsfeld highlighted signs of progress as well as problems.
"On the political front, terrorists have failed to derail the political process," he said. "A constitutional referendum remains on schedule for October 15th. And elections for a new assembly are scheduled for December 15th of this year."
He said ordinary Iraqis are growing more confident in their future, and there is progress on the economic and security fronts.
"The report also offers a candid assessment of the challenges that remain for the Iraqi people and for the coalition," he said. "Among them, though they've suffered numerous setbacks, terrorists in Iraq remain effective, adaptable and intent on carrying out attacks against Iraqi civilians and Iraqi officials.
"Extremists continue to try to foment tension, ethnic strife and, indeed, even civil war between Sunnis and Shias, through murder and attacks on religious sites." He also said Syria and Iran "remain notably unhelpful in assisting Iraq in securing its borders from foreign invaders."
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, July 20 (UPI) -- Intelligence has been received of terror attacks being planned on U.S. citizens in Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh warned in a statement Wednesday.
Diplomats posted the warning on their Web site, saying they have "received indications of operational planning for a terrorist attack or attacks in the kingdom," CNN reported.
The warning went on to say there were no specifics on the timing, target or method, but said terrorists previously have targeted housing compounds and other places for Westerners as well as Saudi government facilities.
The statement urged U.S. citizens to keep a low profile, pay close attention to their security and be alert when visiting commercial areas where Westerners congregate.
In December, gunmen killed five people in a raid on the U.S. Consulate in Jeddah, and four of the attackers also were killed.
By VOA News
20 July 2005
The U.S. military says three al-Qaida terrorists linked to bombings in Baghdad have been arrested.
It says the three are believed to be associated with al-Qaida's chief bombing coordinator for the Iraqi capital. The U.S. military says the three surrendered in recent days without a fight after being surrounded by multinational forces.
Meanwhile, Iraqis observed three minutes of silence Wednesday to honor victims of two recent massive suicide bombings. But the attacks continued, with a suicide bomber killing 10 people in Baghdad.
On the political front, several Sunni members of the committee drafting Iraq's new constitution suspended work following the killing of two colleagues Tuesday. A U.S. State Department spokesman condemned the killings as the work of terrorists trying to prevent democracy from taking root in Iraq.
Some information for this report provided by AP.
Updated: Wednesday, 20 July, 2005, 15:02 GMT 16:02 UK
The UK is to set up a global database of extremists who face automatic vetting before being allowed in, Home Secretary Charles Clarke has told MPs.
He said the database would list "unacceptable behaviour" such as radical preaching, websites and writing articles intended to foment terrorism.
Individuals' presence on the list means they may face exclusion from the UK.
Hopes for an international conference on Islamic extremism were also outlined by Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Mr Clarke told MPs he wanted to apply more widely the home secretary's powers to exclude an individual from the UK if their presence is deemed "not conducive to the public interest".
'Unacceptable behaviours'
In a Commons statement he said: "In the circumstances we now face, I have decided that it is right to broaden the use of these powers to deal with those who foment terrorism or seek to provoke others to terrorist acts.
"I intend to draw up a list of unacceptable behaviours which would fall into this - for example preaching, running websites or writing articles which are intended to foment or provoke terrorism."
He said there would be consultation before the final list of "unacceptable behaviours" was decided upon.
Mr Clarke said he had asked the Home Office, Foreign Office and the intelligence agencies to "establish a full database of individuals around the world who have demonstrated relevant behaviours".
Anyone wanting to enter the UK would then be checked against this list - and if they are on it they may be refused permission to enter the country.
'Indirect incitement'
In a statement on the aftermath of the London bombings in which 56 people died, Mr Clarke also said he planned a new offence of "indirect incitement to terrorism", to add to the current offence of direct incitement.
He said it "targets those who, while not directly inciting, glorify and condone terrorist acts knowing full well that the effect on their listeners will be to encourage them to turn to terrorism".
Earlier, at prime minister's questions, Mr Blair told MPs the UK was looking at holding an international conference for countries concerned about or affected by Islamic extremism.
He said the aim was "to try and take concerted action across the world to try to root out this type of extremist teaching".
He said: "Though the terrorists will use all sorts of issues to justify what they do, the roots of it do go deep, they are often not found in this country alone therefore international action is also necessary."
Abu Qatada
Mr Clarke, during his statement, said the UK had reached an agreement with Jordan which would enable Britain to deport Jordanian nationals suspected of inciting or supporting terrorism.
Under international convention the UK government cannot send people back to a country where they might face mistreatment or the death penalty.
Abu Qatada could face deportation.
The memorandum of understanding removes this bar to deportations.
However, Amnesty International's UK Director Kate Allen said promises from countries like Jordan, known to have used torture, "are not worth the paper they are written on".
She questioned how Mr Clarke would monitor whether these promises were being kept.
Jordanian-born cleric Abu Qatada could face deportation as a result of the agreement.
Court challenges mean it is likely to be months before deportations happen.
Convicted in absence
The government is seeking similar "memorandums of understanding" with a number of North African countries.
The prime minister's official spokesman said there were a number of Jordanian nationals who may be subject to deportation proceedings after the memorandum is signed, but he refused to disclose any further details.
Abu Qatada, who fled to the UK claiming persecution and was held in Belmarsh Prison without charge as part of the government's post-11 September crackdown, is currently subject to a control order.
Police uncovered tapes of his sermons at a Hamburg flat used by some of the 11 September hijackers.
He has been convicted of terrorism in his absence in Jordan and several European countries are believed to be trying to extradite him.
Thu., July 21, 2005
By Aluf Benn
American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is due here this evening for a two-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The visit is aimed at demonstrating America's involvement on the eve of disengagement and strengthening efforts at coordination between Israel and the PA.
Rice decided on the visit in the wake of the terrorist attack in Netanya, which gave rise to fears in Washington of renewed fighting between Israel and the Palestinians and the possible collapse of the pullout process.
American officials were also concerned with the difficulties in coordinating moves between the sides a short while before the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and northern Samaria.
For the first time, Rice will visit Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at his Sycamore Ranch home tomorrow. Tonight she will confer with Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and tomorrow with Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz. On Saturday, she will travel to the PA. She is expected to urge the Palestinian leaders to make efforts to combat terror.
Rice's visit is designed to give backing to the disengagement process, which is seen in Washington as a key component of American foreign policy in the Middle East. She will also discuss the Israeli request for another $2.1 billion in aid.
Yesterday Elliot Abrams, assistant to the National Security adviser, and David Welsh of the State Department arrived in Jerusalem to prepare the visit.
Officials in Washington had raised the possibility that Rice would try to arrange a summit meeting between Sharon and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, but the idea was coolly received in Jerusalem. Sharon made it clear he would meet the Palestinian leader only after the pullout was completed, and the Americans have now dropped the subject.
JULY 21 2005
Pakistan rounds up militants
More than 200 suspected Islamic extremists have been arrested in a series of police raids across Pakistan after President Pervez Musharraf declared ‘zero tolerance’ on those who incite hatred and violence.
According to a report by the Agence France Presse news service, at least 203 people were detained in the overnight raids which targeted religious schools, or madrassas, mosques and other properties.
Police sources and officials told the AFP that 16 suspects were arrested in the capital, Islamabad, 65 in the eastern Punjab province, 52 in Sindh province, 40 in North West Frontier province and 30 in Baluchistan province.
“They have been arrested because they were spreading hatred… which was causing unrest in society. We want peace in Pakistan and we want progress,” Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Serpao said.
Authorities also moved against the publishers and sellers of items deemed extremist Islamic material, including audio tapes, newspapers and magazines which have now been banned.
Pakistan has come under increased international pressure to rein-in radical Muslims following revelations that three of four the London bombers had visited Pakistan in the months before carrying out the July 7 attacks.
At least one of the group, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, is believed to have attended a madrassa in Pakistan.
In a bid to tackle the problem of Islamic extremism in Britain and elsewhere, British Prime Minister Tony Blair has proposed an international conference.
“We all know the roots of this go very, very deep,” Mr Blair told the British House of Commons, saying that such a conference would initiate “concerted action right across the world to try to root out this type of extremist teaching.”
Within Britain’s borders, the Blair government is taking further action to stamp out radical elements with a raft of new laws proposed by Home Secretary Charles Clarke that could be rushed through parliament when it returns in October.
The new measures would make it illegal to ‘indirectly incite terrorism’, targeting extremist clerics who espouse violence among impressionable Muslim youths.
Attending militant training camps in Britain or abroad would be outlawed, and ‘acts preparatory to terrorism” would prohibit the planning of an attack.
Anyone buying chemical components for a bomb or researching bomb-making on the internet would face a criminal charge under the proposed laws.
Mr Clarke said intelligence officials have been asked to compile a database of suspected extremists to be barred from entering Britain for “unacceptable behaviour.”
Moves are also underway to allow Britain to deport Jordanian nationals deemed to be a threat.
An agreement has been reached with the Jordanian government giving Britain a commitment not to mistreat deportees.
Previously, Britain has been unable to return suspects to a country where they might face inhuman or degrading treatment, including the death penalty.
SOURCE: World News
Ping! See commnet #5
Ping! See comment #9.
Thu 21 Jul 2005
MICHAEL GEORGY IN BAGHDAD
A DISSIDENT'S baby is shoved into a sack with a vicious cat; undercover agents throw a man to his death from the roof of a building; men tied to poles are shot in the head one by one.
Al-Iraqiya state television is reviving images of life under Saddam Hussein as a court prepares to announce the date for the start of his trial for crimes against humanity.
"I wish they were here to see the day when Saddam is finished," a tearful woman who lost her relatives under the dictator told the station, which broadcast footage of abuses filmed by the same former security forces who committed them.
Grainy footage of senior officials, including Ali Hassan al-Majid - nicknamed Chemical Ali because his men allegedly gassed 5,000 Kurds in 1988 - shows them questioning Shi'ites after a failed rebellion in 1991.
In one chilling scene, Saddam's men pump bullets into the heads of men tied to poles. "That one is still breathing," says an officer in the footage. Another bullet is fired.
July 20, 2005
CAMP TIGERLAND, Iraq - Iraqi Army Soldiers and Task Force Baghdad Soldiers distributed frozen chickens to locals in the community July 12.
Participating U.S. units were: 2nd and 3rd Battalions, 156th Infantry Regiment; 1st Battalion, 156th Armor Regiment; 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment; 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment; and 2nd Battalion, 130th Infantry Regiment, all of the 256th Brigade Combat Team.
The 1-11th ACR and Iraqi Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 3rd Iraqi Army Brigade delivered 1,200 chickens to about 600 families in Abu Mannaser in western Abu Ghraib.
"The people of this area were very appreciative of the humanitarian assistance provided today," said 1st Lt. Minh Nguyen, a 1-11th ACR platoon leader from Victorville, Calif.
"The Iraqi Army continues to become well-rehearsed in both tactical and humanitarian missions," said Lt. Col. Jim Blackburn, from Washington, Pa., 1-11th ACR Commander. "This humanitarian assistance operation will continue to build the relationship between the people and the Iraqi Army. It also discredits terrorists who are operating in that area and denying the people basic services."
By 256th Brigade Combat Team PAO
An Iraqi family anxiously reaches for frozen chickens distributed by Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 156th Infantry Regiment, 256th Brigade Combat Team on July 12. Elements of the 256th BCT and Iraqi Army Brigades gave out the poultry as part of Operation Copelands. (U.S. Army photo contributed by 2nd Battalion, 156th Infantry Regiment, 256th Brigade Combat Team)
Wednesday, July 20, 2005 7:05 PM PDT
By BASSEM MROUE
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Framers of Iraq's new constitution said Wednesday they will meet an August deadline despite a move by Sunni Arabs to suspend work after the killings of two colleagues. Some Shiites are pushing a proposal that could erode women's rights.
Vast gulfs remain among the positions of Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni members on key issues, including Iraq's identity as an Arab nation, the role of Islam and federalism, some committee members said privately.
Shiites want a greater role for Islam in civil law _ a proposal that could erode women's rights in such matters as marriage, divorce and inheritance.
Under Islamic law, a woman inherits half of what a man would. Men also have the power when it comes to initiating divorces. Iraq has been operating under a secular 1959 civil status law that treated every person according to his sect.
"We reject the changes ... because some Islamic parties want to kidnap the rights of women in Iraq," said Yanar Mohammed, head of Women's Freedom in Iraq Movement. "We reject such attempts because women should be full citizens with full rights, not semi-human beings."
However, Mariam al-Rayyes, a Shiite member, said Islam will be the state religion and a "main source" for legislation in the constitution.
"It gives women all rights and freedoms as long as they don't contradict with our values," she said. "Concerning marriage, inheritance and divorce, this is civil status laws. That should not contradict with religious values."
Also Wednesday, Iraqis observed a government-sponsored moment of silence to honor victims of suicide attacks last week, the nation's first such memorial. Less than three hours before the noon ceremony, a suicide bomber blew himself outside an army recruiting center in central Baghdad, killing at least 10 people, police said. The center has been targeted multiple times, with a July 10 attack killing 25 and wounding 47.
The chairman of the committee drafting the new constitution told reporters that subcommittees dealing with specific articles would finish their work within the next two days and submit their reports for review.
Humam Hammoudi, a Shiite cleric, said he was confident the committee would finish the final draft by the end of the month so that parliament could meet an Aug. 15 deadline for approving it. The document then goes to a referendum by mid-October.
His optimism came despite a move by 12 Sunni Arab members to suspend participation in the committee to protest poor security after the assassination of two fellow Sunnis helping draft the constitution.
Committee member Mijbil Issa and committee adviser Dhamin Hussein al-Obeidi were gunned down Tuesday as they left a restaurant in Baghdad's Karradah district. A bodyguard also was killed.
Issa was among 15 Sunni Arabs appointed to the committee last month; Sunnis form the core of Iraq's insurgency, and giving them a greater voice in preparing the constitution was seen as key to wooing them away from violence.
But two Sunnis quit the committee due to insurgent threats. Kamal Hamdoun, a Sunni member, said the 12 remaining members would meet Thursday with Sunni leaders to decide what to do. "Our membership has been suspended temporarily until tomorrow when we meet the committee that chose us," he said. "We don't have security."
At a funeral service for Issa on Wednesday, a hard-line Sunni cleric said the Sunnis agreed to participate in drafting the charter "under pressure from others," presumably including the United States.
"A constitution cannot be written under (U.S.) occupation," Harith al-Dhari said. "This is what Sunnis got from joining the constitution committee. Their members are being killed."
State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said concerns about the security of the Sunnis were understandable but that "we all look forward to the work of the committee continuing."
The three minutes of silence Wednesday honored the nearly 100 victims of a massive suicide bombing in Musayyib last Saturday and nearly 30 others, including 18 children and teens, who died July 13 in a suicide attack in Baghdad.
Observance was sporadic. State-run Iraqiya Television showed traffic at a standstill in parts of central Baghdad and along a main street in southern Basra. But officials in Mosul, Iraq's third-largest city, said they were never notified of the commemoration.
In Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, more than half of the 41-member provincial council suspended participation in meetings Wednesday to protest the deteriorating security situation and poor public services.
Elsewhere, explosions were reported at two oil pipelines in central Iraq, police said. A blast early Wednesday hit a pipeline nine miles south of Samarra, linking the Beiji and Dora refineries; an explosion also occurred Tuesday at a crude oil storage depot 25 miles south of Baghdad, police said. Such attacks often mean more electricity shortages for Baghdad's 6.5 million people.
A service of the Associated Press(AP)
By Leo Shane III - Stars and Stripes European edition
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
WASHINGTON — The Senate has confirmed Gen. Peter Pace as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the first Marine to hold that position.
Pace, 59, will assume the role in September, when current chairman Gen. Richard Myers is scheduled to step down. Myers has served in the post since September 2001.
Pace currently serves as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs and previously served as commander in chief of U.S. Southern Command. He was also a rifle platoon leader and an assistant operations officer during the Vietnam War.
He has served with the Marines for 37 years.
During his confirmation hearing last month, Pace said his priorities will be winning the war on terrorism and continuing the military’s transformation into a quicker, more efficient force.
“The foundation of our success in the armed forces is our people — and our focus will remain on recruiting, training and developing our best and brightest to continue to deliver to the American people the finest fighting force in the world,” he told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“We must ensure we take care of these incredible soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and their families by ensuring we have effective programs to support their professional, physical and financial well-being.”
The nomination announcement came last week as lawmakers also approved Adm. Edmund P. Giambastiani Jr. to be vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Giambastiani, 57, is currently commander of the U.S. Joint Forces Command.
Both men are natives of New York state. Pace was born in Brooklyn, while Giambastiani grew up in Canastota.
By Ben Murray - Stars and Stripes European edition
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Spurred by American military doctors’ success with an experimental artificial lung on soldiers wounded in Iraq, officials at the top levels of the Army’s medical command are now investigating U.S. use of the new device, Army officials said this week.
Three American troops have survived severe lung trauma caused by bomb blasts with the help of the machine — called an interventional lung assist, or ILA — said Marie Shaw, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center spokeswoman.
Following those reports, Army administrators as high as the branch’s surgeon general’s office have turned their attention to the device, said Cynthia Vaughn, a spokeswoman for the Army Medical Department, or AMEDD.
Manufactured by the German company Novalung, the device is a gas exchange mechanism so new that it hasn’t been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a stipulation that prompted AMEDD’s inquiry — though the Army won’t say exactly what it’s looking for.
“The Army Medical Department is currently investigating the issue of use of the Nova Lung [sic],” Vaughn wrote in a recent e-mail to Stars and Stripes.
But AMEDD declines to clarify exactly what it is investigating. Vaughn’s office would not comment on whether it is specifically investigating American doctors for using the unauthorized device.
“As the investigation is ongoing, it is inappropriate to comment further,” Vaughn wrote July 12 and repeated in a phone conversation Monday.
Regardless of the purpose of the investigation, sources both inside and outside the military say the Army has been collecting information on the Novalung ILA in recent weeks, possibly for an expedited process to approve it for military use.
Regensburg, Germany-based Dr. Thomas Bein, a co-inventor of the ILA, said Tuesday that Army officials contacted him within the last two weeks for a copy of his recent research on the ILA, a study chronicling its use on 90 patients from 1996 to 2004.
A spokesman for the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, or USAMRMC — a subordinate organization of AMEDD responsible for researching and acquiring medical technology for the Army — also said his agency is coordinating discussions with Novalung.
“The Army was in discussions with the FDA and the manufacturer of Novalung to provide information to the FDA,” said Chuck Dasey, a USAMRMC public affairs officer.
For its part, the FDA cannot comment on specific companies or devices, only that it can work with the Department of Defense to “respond to special situations” to get a medical resource approved, agency spokeswoman Julie Zawisza said.
“We have procedures that would allow for the expedited review and approval of a product to meet a pressing public health need or emergency, including a state of war,” Zawisza wrote in an e-mail to Stars and Stripes.
The rules against comment also bar the agency from confirming whether it has granted conditional permission for use of the Novalung in emergency circumstances, Zawisza said.
Commercially, a proposal for FDA approval is being drafted, said a spokesman for Novalung’s administrative offices in the United States.
Approval of the Novalung is something both Bein and the parents of one soldier kept alive by the Novalung ILA have said they would welcome.
Roughly the size and shape of several CD cases stacked together, the device keeps people alive by performing the work of the lungs when they are too damaged to function properly.
Compact and transportable, the ILA is used by inserting a pair of heavy-gauge needles into the major blood vessels in a patient’s legs, allowing his heartbeat to push blood through a complicated membrane that filters carbon dioxide out of the blood and infuses cells with oxygen. The blood is then circulated back into the body through the other leg.
For patients like 22-year-old Sgt. Chang Wong, wounded in a bombing in Iraq this May and now recovering at a medical facility in the States, the Novalung ILA was a “miracle,” his father said last month.
Wed Jul 20, 2005
RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi security forces have uncovered a militant hideout filled with bomb-making materials south of the capital Riyadh, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
It said the cache included two tonnes of fertilizer, ammonium nitrate, aluminum powder, potassium nitrate and other chemicals used by suspected al Qaeda militants to make bombs in their two-year wave of attacks against Saudi Arabia.
Security forces who searched the hideout on Tuesday in Kharj, 60 km (40 miles) southeast of Riyadh, also found pipe bombs, acid and electrical equipment, the ministry said in a statement.
The statement came hours after the U.S. embassy in Riyadh warned its citizens in Saudi Arabia that militants were planning fresh strikes in the world's biggest oil exporter.
Saudi Arabia has been battling a wave of violence by supporters of Saudi-born Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.
The attacks included four bombings of Western residential compounds in 2003, as well as bomb attacks last year at security force buildings and the Interior Ministry in Riyadh.
© Reuters 2005
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
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