ADDING TO post no. 280:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5253.htm
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http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_georgia.html
Travel Warning
United States Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Washington, DC 20520
This information is current as of today, Sat Aug 09 2008 16:04:28 GMT-0700 (PDT).
GEORGIA
August 9, 2008
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http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/08/20080809-2.html
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
August 9, 2008
“President Bush Concerned by Escalation of Violence in Georgia”
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50737
“Pentagon, U.S. State Department Monitoring Georgian Situation”
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 8, 2008
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Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50751
Bush Calls for End of Hostilities in South Ossetia Conflict
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 9, 2008 – President Bush today called for an end to hostilities in South Ossetia that’s pitting Georgian forces against Russian troops and regional separatists.
In Beijing to view the start of the Summer Olympic Games hosted by China, Bush said the conflict in South Ossetia, a part of the former Soviet republic of Georgia, threatens peace across the region.
“We have urged an immediate halt to the violence,” Bush told reporters in Beijing. He also called for an end to Russian air strikes that reportedly have bombed targets in South Ossetia and Georgia.
Bush reportedly has discussed events in South Ossetia with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who was also in Beijing.
Georgia declared its independence from the then-Soviet Union in 1991. However, many South Ossetia residents continued to profess Russian allegiance.
Yesterday, Russian tanks and troops crossed the border into South Ossetia. Fighting escalated in and around Tskhinvali, South Ossetia’s capital city and reportedly has reached into parts of Georgia.
Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman told Pentagon reporters yesterday the Pentagon was closely monitoring the situation in South Ossetia. Whitman said about 130 U.S. military and civilian personnel were located near the Georgian capital of Tbilisi helping to train Georgian troops for an upcoming deployment to Iraq. All of the Americans have been accounted for, and none had been injured, he said.
The U.S. State Department is the lead U.S. agency regarding the situation in South Ossetia, Whitman said yesterday.
“The United States calls for an immediate ceasefire to the armed conflict in Georgia’s region of South Ossetia,” U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a statement released yesterday. “We call on Russia to cease attacks on Georgia by aircraft and missiles, respect Georgia’s territorial integrity, and withdraw its ground combat forces from Georgian soil.”
Rice said she and other senior U.S. officials “have spoken with the parties and continue to work with them to seek an end to hostilities.” The United States, she continued, is working with its European partners to launch international mediation to end the conflict.
“We urgently seek Russia’s support of these efforts,” Rice said in her statement.
Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department reportedly has dispatched a senior envoy, deputy assistant secretary of state Matthew Bryza, to the region to try to arrange a peace agreement.
Senior UN and NATO leaders have also called to end the fighting in South Ossetia and urged that a peaceful settlement be found.
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.mnf-iraq.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=21717&Itemid=128
Saturday, 09 August 2008
Press Release A080809b-277
August 9, 2008
Coalition supports Iraqi led Omens of Prosperity Operation by detaining suspected terrorists (Diyala Province)BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained eight suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists during a sweeping security operation that concluded Aug. 8 near the village of Qarah Tappah, about 130 kilometers northeast of Baghdad. The two-day sweep northeast of the Hamrin Mountains supports the joint Iraqi and Coalition Operation Omens of Prosperity, targeting terrorist elements in Diyala province. Intelligence reports indicate extremist groups in the Qarah Tappah area have aligned with al-Qaeda in Iraq to intimidate local residents and conduct bombing attacks, indirect fire attacks and kidnappings. During the operation, Coalition forces tracked down a man who identified himself to the force as a wanted individual. He is allegedly the leader of a sniper cell in the area. Another wanted man was identified by his associates as an AQI member wanted by Iraqi and Coalition authorities. Coalition forces detained six additional suspected terrorists and discovered a small cache of weapons and military-style equipment, which they destroyed on site. “Coalition forces are supporting the Iraqi Security Forces and the people of Iraq by ridding their communities of indiscriminate attacks from bombers, snipers and kidnappers,” said John Hall, MNF-I spokesman. “We will continue to support these Iraqi led operations to clear out the remaining elements of terrorism in Iraq.” -30-
ADDING to post no. 289:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2055031/posts?page=289#289
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2058674/posts
“First Georgian Russian War images becoming available (we must support and aid Georgia)”
VArious Russian and Georgian news outlets | 8 Augt 2008 | Jeff Head
Posted on August 8, 2008 10:43:34 AM PDT by Jeff Head
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http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/193572.php
Note: Photos included:
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080809/D92EOHQ00.html
“Georgia reports new air attack near capital”
Email this Story
Aug 9, 8:05 AM (ET)
By MISHA DZHINDZHIKHASHVILI
GORI, Georgia (AP)
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http://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&&rls=en&q=georgia+%2B+russia&btnG=Search+Images