Posted on 01/26/2006 5:34:37 PM PST by Gucho
By Gerry J. Gilmore - American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2006 – The al Qaeda in Iraq network has lost scores of key leaders as the result of anti-terrorist operations and now it's being attacked by Iraqi insurgents, a senior U.S. military officer told reporters at a Baghdad news conference today.
Al Qaeda in Iraq has had 111 of its leaders killed or captured in the past year, Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, a spokesman for Multinational Force Iraq, said. Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi runs al Qaeda in Iraq.
"We indeed have had significant impact on terrorists and foreign fighters, al Qaeda in Iraq, in terms of their leadership," Lynch said.
In addition, U.S., other coalition and Iraqi security forces, Lynch said, have been getting help from an unexpected quarter in the past several weeks.
"The Sunni rejectionists, if you will, are conducting planned attacks against Zarqawi and his network," Lynch said. The Sunni Iraqis were favored under now-deposed dictator Saddam Hussein. Some Sunnis are suspected of carrying out a home-grown insurgency against U.S. and other coalition troops in Iraq.
However, al Qaeda has routinely killed innocent Iraqi citizens during its attacks. That's a situation that Lynch said has galvanized most Iraqis -- including home-grown insurgents -- against the foreign terrorists.
In fact, Iraqi insurgents have killed six key al Qaeda in Iraq leaders since September 2005, Lynch said.
And "recently we've seen significant operations where the local insurgency has turned on the Zarqawi network and forced them out of Ramadi," he said. Ramadi is an Iraqi town in Anbar province.
Al Qaeda in Iraq's ability to conduct operations has become degraded, Lynch said. Iraqi insurgents' actions, he said, are now contributing to this state of affairs.
"Zaqawi's on the ropes," Lynch said, noting U.S., other coalition and Iraqi security forces will continue offensive operations against the terrorist leader and his network.
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Thursday, January 26, 2006
Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai gestures while speaking during a plenary entitled 'Muslim Societies in the Modern World' at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday Jan. 26, 2006. The second day of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting promised a blend of celebrity and brass tacks talk of the issues facing the global community, ranging from security against terror to advancing human rights and the struggle against poverty and disease. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
By Jim Garamone - American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2006 – The military is transforming to ensure the right number and balance of forces are in place to fight the battles of the 21st century, President Bush said in a White House news conference today.
He refuted charges that actions in Iraq and Afghanistan and other commitments around the globe have overstretched the military. "After five years of war, ... there is a need to make sure that our troops are balanced properly, that ... threats are met with capability," he said. "And that's why we're transforming our military."
He said he looks at troop morale, retention rates and recruiting when is judging the health of the force. "And retention is high; recruitment is meeting goals; and people ... feel strong about the mission," he said.
Transforming the military is necessary to bring military capabilities more in line with likely threats the United States faces in the 21st century, Bush said. He added that people should not ask whether the military is overextended, but whether it can win the war against terror and help keep the peace.
Using recent U.S. initiatives in South Korea to illustrate his point, the president noted the United States had maintained 38,000 servicemembers in Korea since the early 1990s, but recently cut back to about 30,000 forces. "We reduced the amount of manpower, replaced it with technology," Bush said.
"Some people at the time said, 'Well, wait a minute, they're lessening their commitment to peace and security in the Far East by moving people out,' Bush said. "I made the case that ... what we're doing is replacing manpower, we're transforming our military presence in South Korea to be able to meet the threats of the 21st century. And that's what you're seeing all throughout our military."
Also during the news conference, Bush again defended the terrorist surveillance program as another tool to protect America from attack. He said the effort grew out of the post-Sept. 11 soul searching, during which he asked if there was more the government could do to protect America from another attack.
Before the National Security Agency began the program, lawyers from the agency, the White House and the Department of Justice looked into its legality, Bush said, adding that he and other officials kept Congress fully apprised of the program. "And so, as I stand here right now, I can tell the American people the program's legal; it's designed to protect civil liberties; and it's necessary," he said.
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You're welcome Justanobody.
By Sgt. Sara Wood - USA American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2006 – Through challenging the status quo and questioning old assumptions, the Defense Department is becoming a more capable force ready to face changing conflicts, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said here yesterday.
All the military services have made changes in equipment, practice, attitude and culture to make them more relevant to today's battlefield culture, Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon news briefing.
"There's a clear awareness that our military must be ready for unforeseen eventualities while incorporating lessons learned from previous and current conflicts," he said.
The Navy is a prime example of the benefits of these changes, Rumsfeld said. In 2001, three out of every four U.S. naval ships were not deployable at any given time because of long repair and maintenance cycles, he said.
Naval strategists developed systems to make the force more efficient, like swapping crews by plane, buying more spare parts to reduce maintenance time, and keeping the fleet fully manned. Because of these changes, the number of deployable days for the Navy has doubled, and the percentage of the fleet routinely at sea has increased by 50 percent, he said.
"The United States Navy is vastly more capable, more lethal and more agile today," he said.
The Army is also making changes that will increase its lethality and effectiveness, Rumsfeld said. The Army is reorganizing its decades-old structure of large divisions into many smaller brigade combat teams with their own combat-support elements, he said. These changes will give the Army more flexibility for deployments and will ensure that 75 percent of the force is ready at all times to respond to a crisis, he said.
Lessons learned in Iraq have fueled many of the changes. DoD has increased funding for intelligence, put an emphasis on training troops in foreign languages, significantly expanded the role of special operations forces, and emphasized curriculums that teach non-traditional warfare at military training schools, Rumsfeld said.
More changes are ahead, as in the coming weeks DoD submits several important documents to Congress. The Quadrennial Defense Review, the National Military Strategy Risk Assessment, and the president's 2007 budget request are all part of a larger strategy to focus on how to fight future wars and continue positive change, he said.
"The overriding goal is to keep our country safe and to support the missions of the dedicated men and women in uniform," he said.
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COMMENTARY - A Year of Opportunities
By U.S. Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr. - Multinational Force-Iraq Commanding General
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Jan. 23, 2006 — Iraq is a nation overcoming the fear of terror that gripped them for decades under Saddam's dictatorship and challenges their ability to become a free and democratic people today. Through indiscriminate acts of violence terrorists attempt to cause fear and doubt in the minds of Iraqis and the world on what otherwise is a bright future. Much has been accomplished in the past 18 months that should allow Iraqis to confront their fears-and give hope for the future: Iraq established an interim government, mobilized Iraqi Security Forces, increased the pace of economic development, created a constitution, and held truly democratic elections. True to our word of "standing down" as Iraqi Security Forces stood up, the withdrawal of coalition forces has already begun.
The environment in Iraq is slowly getting better, too. For example, while attack trends in Baghdad increased from the last week, they still remain below the November-December 2005 averages. When compared against data from two weeks prior, overall attacks still show a significant decrease. Outside of Baghdad, most provinces have more hours of electricity than they did under Saddam with more than 2,000 mega-watts added in new generation capacity. Preliminary election results are out and we support the efforts of Iraq's political leaders to form a unity government. Finally, the Iraqi Stock Exchange is open again with 87 companies listed and a market value that has more than tripled to $2 billion.
Preliminary election results are out and we support the efforts of Iraq's political leaders to form a unity government. Finally, the Iraqi Stock Exchange is open again with 87 companies listed and a market value that has more than tripled to $2 billion. Isolated attacks cannot take away the relentless progress being made all over the country. Previously contested cities are back in the hands of their people. Just last week I received a letter from the Mayor of Tall'afar, Najim Abdullah Al-Jubouri, expressing his gratitude for ridding his city of "heartless terrorists" and desires for the men and women of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment to remain in the city until it has fully recovered.
The citizens of Tall Afar, along with every Iraqi that found the courage to vote last year, know there is a better way and are no longer paralyzed by their fear, they are doing something about it. For the people of Iraq this year will be a year of challenges, of opportunities - and of overcoming fears. Through it all the Multi-National Force-Iraq will be there to assist.
CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait (Army News Service, Jan. 26, 2006) – A new training device is being developed by Coalition Forces Land Component Command in Kuwait to reduce or eliminate injury or death suffered by troops involved in Humvee rollovers in theater.
The device evolved from a comment by then-commander of U.S.
Forces Command, Gen. Larry Ellis, following the deaths of three Soldiers Dec. 8, 2003, when their Stryker overturned into a canal, said Chief Warrant Officer Rik Cox, FORSCOM safety officer.
HEAT based on `Dunker’
“The aviators train on the Dilbert Dunker, why can’t we do something like that for the ground troops?” Ellis said, according to Cox.
That comment was the impetus for the FORSCOM Safety Office to investigate expanding the helicopter egress training device into a ground-based program called the Humvee Egress Assistance Trainer or HEAT, said Cox, HEAT FORSCOM project organizer.
Cox got the go-ahead in March 2005 to develop a device based on the Dilbert Dunker, a Navy Aviator training device that teaches aircrews how to escape following a ditching at sea. He said the first Soldier was hanging upside down from his seatbelt in the first HEAT prototype built by U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers in September 2005.
AMC techs in Kuwait upgrade trainer
With a photo of the first prototype, Forward Repair Activity, Army Materiel Command technicians in Kuwait decided to take the idea and immediately design an upgraded prototype here in Kuwait.
“We were presented with an idea to save troops’ lives,” said Christopher Turner, Forward Repair Activity, Army Materiel Command.
To build the first prototype in theater, Turner and Rickey Cline, FRA, AMC, acquired the Humvee shell, gear boxes and stand from the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office and the retrograde yard and built it in one month.
The equipment wasn’t going to be used; everything was used parts, so this saved the Army a lot of time and money to put together, Kline said.
CFLCC now using prototype
CFLCC is now using the prototype as a proactive measure to prevent future rollover accidents by applying the HEAT concept to train Soldiers in Kuwait and, eventually, to troops all over the Middle East region.
The newly-built HEAT prototype is composed of a suspended Humvee cab mounted to an elevated M-1 engine maintenance stand raised on a trailer. The attached motor can turn the device 180 degrees in either direction in six seconds to simulate a humvee rolling over.
“We took something that didn’t exist in theater and made it work,” Turner said. “We are now testing it to make sure it is going to save a Soldier’s life, which is what this is all about.”
250 rollover injuries in OIF
Approximately 250 Soldiers have been severely injured in rollovers since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Another prototype is currently in production and will be tweaked pending any suggestions from trainers who have tested the initial model. In the near future, six HEAT simulators will be located at camps throughout Kuwait to train Soldiers.
Troops got the opportunity to test out the simulator Jan. 23 at Camp Arifjan in conjunction with the CFLCC commanding general’s quarterly safety conference.
“I’d make it mandatory for everybody because when you roll up north you never know what will happen,” said Sgt. Jeffery Johnson, 233rd Transportation Company truck driver.
Johnson is a master driver and will eventually train his Soldiers on the same simulator.
“The training helps you get out of the truck quickly,” Johnson said. “It helps you realize that when you lose your bearing, you have to keep calm.”
Turning expectations upside down
After Soldiers fasten their seat belts, the operator first turns the Humvee in either direction 30 degrees to simulate the point when it is expected to rollover, Cox said.
The Humvee will then complete a 180-degree turn to suspend it upside down.
“When you actually hang upside down from your seatbelt while wearing full battle rattle, the seed is planted that the seatbelt just might save your face in a real accident,” Cox said.
“It sends a blood rush to your head,” Johnson said. “When you release your seatbelt you fall on your head, you get jammed, and you have to wiggle your way out.”
Soldiers must unfasten themselves and work together to get a door open and exit to safety as quick as possible.
Training cuts response to fraction
“Repeated training will take a crew from fumbling their way out of the vehicle in 45 to 90 seconds to having all four members of the crew outside the vehicle ready to engage the enemy in six seconds,” Cox said.
Service members going through the HEAT program will also learn about rollover conditions, avoidance and preventive checks and safety measures.
The training will build upon current Humvee training, enhanced and safe drivers training courses, and existing in-unit rollover drill training.
“The most important part of HEAT is to educate our Soldiers so they will avoid getting into a rollover situation,” said Col. John Gallagher, CFLCC Army Reserve Affairs chief of staff and project coordinator for the development of HEAT simulations. “Then they will have the confidence to react as they were trained and survive.”
“Cox saw a problem and did something about it,” Gallagher said. “That fact alone will save countless lives in the future.”
(Editor’s note: Information provided by the Coalition Forces Land Component Command Public Affairs.)
Sgt. Jeffery Johnson, 233rd Transportation Company truck driver, crawls out of the Humvee Egress Assistance Trainer Jan. 23 at Camp Arifjan. The HEAT simulations program teaches servicemembers about roll-over conditions, avoidance and immediate action taken after one has occurred.
The donated weapons were divided evenly between the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police.
Officials from the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police and German Armed Forces examine a donation of 9mm Walther P-1 pistols at the Afghan Security Forces Depot in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan photo by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mason T. Lowery)
By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mason T. Lowery - Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan, Jan. 26, 2006 — The capabilities of the Afghan National Security Forces were enhanced Jan. 24 by a donation of 10,000 9mm German Walther P-1 pistols from the German Armed Forces.
The weapons were divided evenly between the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police in a ceremony at the Afghan Security Forces Depot.
The donation is the result of a weapons request made by the U.S. Embassy in Berlin one year ago, according to Dr. Rainald Steck, German Ambassador to Afghanistan.
“This donation will enable (the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police) to contribute even more to Afghanistan’s security and stability,” Steck said. “A successful security sector reform cannot be achieved without enabling security forces to fulfill their mission, to establish security and stability – by force, if needed.”
Accepting the donation for the Ministry of the Interior was Chief of Logistics Maj. Gen. Mohammad H. Basir; and for the Ministry of Defense was Assistant Minister for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Maj. Gen. Baz M. Jawhary.
Basir addressed the ceremony attendees and thanked Germany and the coalition for the help they have provided to Afghanistan. “The contributions of these weapons will help the security forces of Afghanistan to be more prepared to perform their duties,” he said.
“Thank you to all the mentors of the international community for advising us in different issues,” he said.
Jawhari added, “This is not the first contribution from Germany. They are helping us in many areas to bring stability in Afghanistan.”
At the end of the ceremony, transfer documents were signed by Basir, Jawhari and Steck to formalize the donation.
A 9mm Walther P-1 pistol, holster, cleaning kit and magazine on display, donated by the German Armed Forces. (Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan photo by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mason T. Lowery)
The pistols were then examined by the ceremony attendees. “I am very happy about this weapon donation and thank Germany,” Basir said. “I hope these help secure Afghanistan.”
Since 2003, the international community has provided a steady stream of effort and resources toward the continued growth of Afghanistan’s security and stability. Equipping and manning the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police is crucial to establishing a secure Afghanistan, and many nations have presented large donations to help meet this goal.
By Spc. Jon H. Arguello, USA - Special to American Forces Press Service
QALAT, Afghanistan, Jan. 26, 2006 – Few infrastructure projects inject the Afghan people with as much hope for a stable and healthy life for their families as a new hospital. Along with many of the new roads and bridges built during reconstruction, a new hospital will now bring that hope to the people of southern Afghanistan.
Army Maj. John Drobnica, the Qalat provincial reconstruction team's doctor, inspects one of the Zabul Regional Teaching Hospital's new incubators during a tour of the Afghan facilities Jan. 12. (U.S. Army photo)
The new Zabul Regional Teaching Hospital is located between Kabul and Kandahar and will provide the middle provinces of Afghanistan with a full-service hospital with state-of-the-art equipment, Qalat's provincial reconstruction team commander said during a tour of the hospital this week with local and international officials.
"But this hospital is more than a place for Afghans throughout Zabul province to seek health care," Army Lt. Col. Thomas Goodfellow, said. "It's a milestone symbolizing the strong foundation being built, on which a future prosperous, secure and healthy nation will grow."
The hospital was built with funds provided by the United Arab Emirates. Local contractors built the facility and installed the $4 million worth of equipment, which Qalat PRT soldiers and United Arab Emirates forces escorted from Kandahar Airfield.
"The complete project was a classic example of interagency cooperation," Goodfellow said. "The Qalat PRT, Afghan Ministry of Health, U.A.E embassy staff and U.A.E. forces, technicians from India, and Charlie Company medical staff from the 173rd Support Battalion on (Kandahar Air Field) played important roles in the successful project."
The new facility can hold up to 130 patients and includes a Level 1 trauma center, the highest possible classification of care. It also has major and minor surgery facilities and care perform pediatric and neo-natal care, and full-service dental care. The hospital is truly a sign of progress for the Afghan people, the colonel said.
"The people of Afghanistan will be forever grateful to all involved in building this hospital," Zabul's provincial governor, Arman, said. "The facility is very impressive, and it's beautiful to see where the country is going."
Goodfellow agreed with the governor's assessment. "The local populace sees the provincial government moving the region in a positive direction. That's invaluable here, whether it's with a hospital or bridge or school," he said.
"There's more to a hospital than health care," Goodfellow noted. "A hospital brings people hope, and hope can turn into vision. If we can get all Afghans to share a common vision, there's no end to what Afghanistan can do for itself."
Army Lt. Col. Thomas Goodfellow, commander of the Qalat provincial reconstruction team, and Gulab Shaw, chief of staff to the local provincial governor, inspect the new dental equipment at Zabul Regional Teaching Hospital during a tour of the facilities in Qalat, Afghanistan. (Photo by Spc. Jon H. Arguello, USA)
(Army Spc. Jon H. Arguello is assigned to Task Force Bayonet.)
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A U.S. Navy sailor, assigned duties as a landing signalman enlisted, signals to the pilots of an SH-60F Seahawk helicopter assigned to the "Tridents" of Helicopter Squadron 3 on the flight deck aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, Jan. 15, 2005. The Roosevelt is currently under way in the Persian Gulf on a regularly scheduled deployment supporting maritime security operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Snyder)
January 26, 2006
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. -- Airmen from the 18th Air Refueling Squadron here took part in the first operational aerial refueling mission for the F-22A Raptor Jan. 21 in support of Operation Noble Eagle.
The F-22A Raptor was declared operational by the Air Force Dec. 15. It is the newest fighter aircraft for the Air Force, combining stealth, supercruise, maneuverability and integrated avionics.
During the eight-hour mission, the KC-135 Stratotanker transferred 18,200 pounds of fuel into two Raptors from Langley Air Force Base, Va.
The boom operator on the mission, from Wichita, Kan., was Air Force Reserve Tech. Sgt. Chris Norris.
"It’s the first time we’ve ever refueled an F-22 in operational usage; that’s what makes this kind of a big deal," Sergeant Norris said. "The testing phase is done, and we’re finally taking it out. We’re making it official. It’s a whole new way to look at military fighters."
Lt. Col. John Stanfield was the pilot on the KC-135 that carried the fuel for the Raptor. He said he understood the significance of the mission but described it as "just another day at the office."
"Most of the time, we don’t even see the fighters," Colonel Stanfield said. "The only way I have of knowing how far away he is and where he is, is from the boom operator."
Members from the squadron have refueled the F-22A during training missions at Edwards AFB, Calif., so they were also involved in the testing phase of the new weapons system.
The unit normally refuels F-15 Eagles and F-16 Fighting Falcons, but now it is taking on the additional new aircraft in an operational role, said Lt. Col. Jon Woods, chief of current operations for the squadron.
Minutes after the refueling mission, the 916th Air Refueling Wing became the second unit to refuel the operational Raptor.
By Tech. Sgt. Genevieve S. Morris - 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
IRAQ: Iraqis protest against alleged al-Qaida violence in Samara ~ More than 1,000 protesters....
And they are doing much more than just protesting....
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