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WASHINGTON, April 19, 2006 – Terrorists blew up a new Iraqi police station under construction south of Baghdad yesterday, military officials reported. The explosion caused half of the building to collapse. Iraqi soldiers from 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, secured the site after the blast to prevent further damage. "Terrorists are attempting to prevent the rebuilding of the essential infrastructure," said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington, a Multinational Division Baghdad spokesman. "The police station is a sign of progress for the Iraqi people." Iraqi authorities are investigating the blast. In other news, a citizen's tip led Multinational Division...

U.S. Army Capt. Kathlen Stornelli (left), physician’s assistant, Company C, 204th Support Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, wraps a bandage over the ankle of Spc. Silas Brown, a combat medic assigned to Company C, at Forward Operating Base Duke, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Edgar Reyes Company C Aid Station Soldiers On Call 24/7 Despite long workdays and details at Forward Operating Base Duke, Company C personnel stand ready to treat injured soldiers. By U.S. Army Pfc. Edgar Reyes2nd Brigade Combat Team4th Infantry Division FORWARD OPERATING BASE DUKE, Iraq, April 12, 2006 — When U.S....

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (April 7, 2006) -- For Navy corpsmen serving with Marine units, treating casualities in combat and saving lives is what their job is all about. Most of them jump at the chance to deploy with the Marines and serve their country. Petty Officer 1st Class Ronnie L. Mashburn, who recently returned from his second tour in Iraq, is one of those corpsmen. The Iron Station, N.C., native was deployed with 2nd Marine Division in Ar Ramadi, Iraq from February 2005 to February 2006. For the first part of his deployment, he was the battalion...

While Air America Radio's loss of two affiliates in Phoenix and Missoula, Montana is generating news this week, the company itself probably hasn't been able to give either city a second thought. Why? In a development sure to rip the heart right out of the liberal radio network's already ailing body, it appears extremely likely their leased New York City flagship station WLIB-AM will soon abandon Air America programming. Even worse, litigation looks probable over the station's lease. While the network's last day on WLIB isn't known for certain, an internal source providing backing documentation points to the end of...

PORT OF DORALEH, Djibouti – USS Vicksburg (CG 69) became the first U.S. Navy ship to take on fuel at the new Defense Fuel Supply Point (DFSP) at the Port of Doraleh in Djibouti , Feb. 26. Vicksburg's historic refueling evolution coincided with DFSP Djibouti's inaugural ceremony, which drew a star-studded audience that included Djibouti President Ismail Omar Guelleh; U.S. Ambassador to Djibouti Marguerita Ragsdale; and Vice Adm. Patrick Walsh, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Bahrain. The Navy has leased several fuel storage tanks from DFSP Djibouti for the exclusive use of ships operating in and around the Horn...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7, 2006 – A radio station is saying thanks to a few lucky troops by interviewing them on the air and giving them a romantic night on the town this Valentine's Day. Howard University Radio, which reaches almost a half million listeners around the nation's capital, began the program of interviews yesterday, said Renee Nash, WHUR's director of information and public affairs. "We wanted to do something a little differently this year for Valentine's Day," Nash said. "We thought, 'What greater way to let the troops know that we are thinking about them and that we love and...

Beijing announced plans last week to build a high-frequency radar on the South Pole. Analysts say the radar could be used to disrupt U.S. intelligence satellites. China's Zhongshan Station in Antarctica on Jan. 24. AP Photo /Xinhua, Zhang Zongtang The radar will be built at China’s Zhongshan Station, where Beijing has set up of a space environment lab. National security analysts say the South Pole site, because of its remoteness, could be used by China to develop anti-satellite lasers capable of blinding or disrupting U.S. reconnaissance satellites, most of which pass over the pole. The station will consist of 20...

Radio station sale forces Air America to seek new home Laura Newpoff The Business Journal From the January 20, 2006 print edition One of the first things Bob Christy did when he found out his liberal talk radio station's format was changing to religious broadcasting was to offer his worried staff an exit strategy. "I told them I'd give two-weeks pay to anyone who wanted to leave that day," Christy said. "But nobody did." Christy is general manager of KXXT 1010-AM in Phoenix, home of the Air America Radio format since September 2004. The station was acquired in October, part...

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Army News Service, Jan. 6, 2005) -- NASA and its international partners have selected U.S. Army astronaut Col. Jeffrey Williams and Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov as the next crew for the International Space Station in March. Williams, a veteran of one space flight already, will be the first Army astronaut ever aboard the International Space Station. Retired Col. William S. McArthur is currently crewing the space station, but Williams will be the first active-duty Soldier. Willams will serve as Expedition 13 flight engineer and NASA science officer. Williams flew aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis as a mission...

TAL AFAR, Iraq (Army News Service, Dec. 29, 2005) — In a ribbon cutting ceremony today, Tal Afar Police Chief Gen. Fawaz Mahmoud Issa officially opened the new Al Salam Police Station in Tal Afar. The event marked a milestone for Tal Afar’s Police Department as part of efforts to restore the city’s quality of life and security. Last year terrorists destroyed a police station in Tal Afar, but the opening of the new station represents a resurrection of the police force according to city officials. “We’re very thankful for the Coalition Forces for their support in building this police...

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION NEW RIVER, N.C. (Dec. 6, 2005) -- Approximately 115 athletes and nearly 120 Marine and civilian volunteers participated in the annual Special Olympics of Onslow County Fall Basketball Games in the New River Fitness Center gym Dec. 2. The Special Olympics offers year-round sports training and competition for more than one million children and adults with intellectual disabilities. According to Laura Quinn, SOOC public relations director, the athletes for the Fall Basketball Games were students from 11 area schools, including Brewster Middle School aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, and Carobell, Inc., which provides 24-hour care...

GENEVA, NY—A group of anti-war protesters who threw blood on a soldier, a recruiting station and the U.S. flag will deliver a lecture at Hobart and William Smith campuses today.According to a campus press release, the four Ithaca residents-- Daniel Burns, Peter DeMott, Clare Grady and Teresa Grady--are expected to address students on “the use of unconventional politics as a means for political organizing and resistance in a time of war and in a time of the Patriot Act.”In addition, the group’s sponsor, Professor Craig Rimmerman of the HWS political science department, hopes to ask the group "what they were...

The police chief welcomes visitors to Suq Ash Skuk Police Station. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo by Suzanne Fournier Station Renovations Support Iraqi Police, Residents Currently, 19 of the 31 (or 61 percent) of the police facility projects planned for the Thi Qar governorate are complete. By Suzanne M. Fournier Gulf Region South U.S. Army Corps of Engineers BASE CAMP ADDER (ALI BASE), Iraq, Nov. 2, 2005 — Completed reconstruction of a police station project in Suq Ash Skukh, Iraq, will serve to support and provide increased protection for both the police assigned to it and the town's...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 21, 2005 – Coalition forces detained five terrorists and seized a large weapons cache today when they raided a suspected al Qaeda safe house northwest of Qaim, Iraq, military officials reported. The cache consisted of weapons, ammunition, mortars and bomb-making materials, officials said. Intelligence sources and tips from local citizens led coalition forces to the location. Coalition aircraft, using precision guided munitions, destroyed the safe house and weapons cache after coalition forces left the scene. Elsewhere in Iraq, Iraqi police and coalition forces stopped short a coordinated attack on the Khalis Iraqi police station Oct. 20, in Diyala....

WASHINGTON, Oct. 14, 2005 – A Task Force Baghdad unit patrolling in southern Baghdad immediately responded to a terrorist mortar attack on a polling site Oct. 13 by returning fire to drive the terrorists away, military officials reported today. The soldiers from 1st Battalion, 108th Armor Regiment, also provided medical care to two Iraqi civilians, including one child, who suffered minor injuries when the terrorist rounds detonated, officials said. "I am not surprised that the terrorists would target the innocent people of Iraq," said Maj. Liston Edge, an operations officer for the 48th Brigade Combat Team. "I am just proud...

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION NEW RIVER, N.C. (Sept. 21, 2005) -- The thunder rolled as Marines and Sailors here waved the North Carolina Rolling Thunder through the Station gates Sept. 10, and even though the personnel may not have seen the group, they did hear them. All five chapters of the North Carolina Rolling Thunder, a motorcycle group dedicated to remembering servicemembers who are prisoners of war or missing in action, hosted their yearly picnic at the Station Marina. Personally welcoming the group, Station Commanding Officer Col. Stephen L. Forand spoke to the group during the table ceremony. Forand welcomed...

BINGHAMTON, NY—A U.S. soldier has testified in federal court Tuesday (September 20) that he was splashed with human blood by anti-war protesters during a 2003 protest.The soldier, Staff Sgt. Rachon Montgomery, was working as an army recruiter on March 17, 2003, the day that four protesters threw their own blood around a recruiting center in Lansing, NY, a suburb of Ithaca. As a result of the incident, press reports indicate, Montgomery was tested for blood-borne illnesses such as HIV and hepatitis.In addition to Montgomery, the protesters also poured blood on the American flag, a military banner and the walls and...

PASCAGOULA, Miss. (NNS) -- Seabees from Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (CBMU) 202 based in Little Creek, Va., are clearing debris and performing repairs in local areas here affected by Hurricane Katrina. Water moccasins, metal rods, giant wood beams and mounds of debris were some of the challenges faced by CBMU 202 when they arrived on board Naval Station (NS) Pascagoula to help clear and repair damage caused by the hurricane. The Seabees involved in the Pascagoula operation include members of CBMU-202 from Little Creek, Va. and members of the CBMU-202 Detachment from Kings Bay, Ga. One of the priority projects...

NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va., Aug. 29, 2005 – USS Saipan, USS Nashville and USS Nicholas returned to Naval Station Norfolk Aug. 25 from a three-month “surge” deployment. The ships surged May 25 under the Navy’s Fleet Response Plan. The Navy developed FRP to find new ways of operating, training, manning and maintaining the fleet so as to improve combat power and readiness, particularly in the ongoing battle against terrorism. Unlike most ships, these three deployed with less than two months to prepare, but the sailors on board understood why, said Vice Adm. Mark Fitzgerald, Commander U.S. 2nd Fleet, at the...

Radio station to pay $240K over slapping contest The Business Review (Albany) - 4:57 PM EDT Monday A radio station has settled with state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer for $240,000 for the "Smackfest" slapping contests the station held with female contestants in 2004 and 2005. Contestants could win up to $5,000 during the contests on WQHT Hot 97's in New York City, Spitzer said. The attorney general said the promotions cross the line of entertainment and became abusive. The settlement was the same size as the fine the station would have faced had it faced punishment from the state. Emmis,...