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TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq's Sunni Muslim imams have a message for U.S. troops -- don't call us Osama. As the U.S. curries support with Iraq's religious leaders, some soldiers are undermining the battle to win Muslim hearts and minds by accusing local clerics of links to al Qaeda, imams in Iraq's Sunni Muslim heartland said on Monday. "Some of the coalition forces describe us as an Osama Bin Laden group because of the beard," said Abaas Zedaan, an official at the Committee of Religious Advocation, the official body which represents the clergy in the region of Tikrit. "Osama doesn't...

Violence is down in the Tikrit region, the heartland of the insurgency. Yet further south a bomb killed 13 on Saturday. TIKRIT, IRAQ - Surveying Tikrit from their compound on a bluff high above the Tigris River, a short distance from where Saddam Hussein was captured two weeks ago, America's military commanders are convinced they've finally turned the corner against the insurgency in the former dictator's home base. Attacks on soldiers have dropped steeply in the Tikrit area over the past month. After more than six months of intensive raids, foot patrols, and intelligence gathering, commanders believe they have tapped...

TIKRIT, Iraq - U.S. forces hunting top and midlevel leaders of the Iraqi insurgency are close to unraveling a network of five powerful clans that have funneled money, weapons and instructions to street gunmen and bombmakers, according to a U.S. Army commander. A decline in attacks on U.S. forces in recent weeks has allowed troops time to track the top level of the insurgency and the former regime — an effort capped by the arrest of Saddam Hussein earlier in December. Over months of intelligence gathering that began with the arrests of an outer circle of bodyguards close to Saddam,...

TIKRIT, Iraq - U.S. forces hunting top and midlevel leaders of the Iraqi insurgency are close to unraveling a network of five powerful clans that have funneled money, weapons and instructions to street gunmen and bombmakers, according to a U.S. Army commander. A decline in attacks on U.S. forces in recent weeks has allowed troops time to track the top level of the insurgency and the former regime — an effort capped by the arrest of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) earlier in December. Over months of intelligence gathering that began with the arrests of an outer circle of...

CJTF-7 Public AffairsBAGHDAD, IraqRelease #031227g  Roll-up of task force “All-American’s” activities AR RAMADI, Iraq – During the last 24 hours, Task Force “All-American” conducted 161 patrols, three of which were joint patrols with Iraqis, cleared two caches, conducted two cordon and searches, and dropped two joint attack direct munitions (JDAM) bombs near Khalidiyah. There were two enemy contacts today – one mortar attack near Husaybah and a direct fire engagement that occurred during a cordon and search northwest of Khalidiyah. Last night in 1st Brigade’s area, members of Task Force 1-16 conducted a cordon and search to kill or capture...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894   December 25, 2003Release Number: 03-12-62 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CIVIL MILITARY OPERATIONS CONTINUE TO PRODUCE POSITIVE RESULTS IN AL ANBAR Task Force All American soldiers continue to work with Iraqis in the Al Anbar Province to improve civil military operations in the region. 82d Airborne Division Civil Affairs personnel with 3rd Brigade met with local officials in Haswah to finalize payment for renovation work to the Haswah Police Department Headquarters building. Repairs were completed on Dec. 19 and cost $10,600...

  United States Department of Defense.News TranscriptOn the web: http://www.dod.mil/transcripts/2003/tr20031224-1063.htmlMedia contact: +1 (703) 697-5131 Public contact: http://www.dod.mil/faq/comment.html or +1 (703) 428-0711 Presenter: Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, Deputy Director for Operations, Coalition Forces Wednesday, December 24, 2003 Coalition Provisional Authority Briefing (Also participating Charles Heatley of the British Foreign Office)                     MR. HEATLEY:  Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.  Ambassador Bremer, as you know, is away for a few days over the holiday period. Ambassador Greenstock is still here.  He had a very good meeting today with the Governing Council, primarily focused on the political process and the importance of implementing the...

TIKRIT, Iraq (AP) - With Saddam Hussein in captivity, some tribal elders from his old power base are showing greater willingness to work with Iraq's American occupiers, realizing they must carve out a new political role for the Sunni Muslim minority that long ruled the country. At a meeting this week between tribal leaders and U.S. commanders, a prominent elder from the village where the ousted Iraqi dictator was born made a dramatic acknowledgment that Saddam's era was over. "I told my people to tell their children that his time is gone," said Sheik Mahmoud Al Nada, leader of the...

Iraqis on a Spending Spree Appliances, satellite dishes selling fast Baghdad, Iraq - Although their electricity runs sporadically and gasoline lines stretch for miles, Iraqis are enjoying unprecedented availability of commercial goods, from cars to satellite dishes to portable exercise machines. The fall of Saddam Hussein also ended a United Nations trade embargo, import tariffs and, in the absence of a government, sales taxes, which cut prices on appliances, electronic goods and other imports to as low as half their pre-war level. At the same time, some Iraqis are making unprecedented wages as the U.S.-led coalition has dramatically increased public-sector...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 December 24, 2003Release Number: 03-12-58 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SOLDIERS AND POPULACE CONTINUE BUILDING RELATIONSHIP IN AL ANBAR AR RAMADI, Iraq – The 82nd Airborne Division maintained operations in the Al Anbar province aimed at the continued development of Iraq’s infrastructure and the country’s growth as a free, independent nation. During the last 24 hours, soldiers in Al Anbar conducted 196 patrols, including six joint patrols with the Iraqi Border Guard and Iraqi police. Last night in 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry...

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 23 — When Maj. Gen. Graeme Lamb, a 50-year-old Briton, arrived in June to lead the mainly European force controlling southeastern Iraq, he was skeptical, he said. He felt that "this is going to be a lot more difficult than we realized." But as General Lamb prepared to hand his command to another British general, he said at a news conference here on Tuesday that Saddam Hussein's capture and other changes, including progress in restoring oil installations, power stations and running water, as well as the Iraqis' fast-rising prosperity, had fostered a new confidence that the American-led...

December 22, 2003 Baghdad's Street of Gold Is Busy Again By EDWARD WONG AGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 21 — All that glitters in this city lies along Sharia al-Nahar. On this narrow street, dozens of shop windows display everything gold: wedding bands, earrings, bracelets, miniature Korans, pendants with the name Allah inscribed on them. Shops ring with the music of hammer on anvil. Guards with AK-47's sit nearby. The district, one of the most venerable gold markets in the Middle East, is best approached by crossing the palm-lined Tigris River to its east bank, for the surrounding streets are closed to...

KABUL - As Afghanistan wrestles to adopt a new constitution, and the United Nations strengthens its call for more soldiers outside Kabul, Canadian soldiers are noticing dramatic changes in the security and economic well-being of the Afghan capital. "You can see buildings that weren't there a couple of months ago," said Lt.-Col. Don Denne, the commanding officer at Camp Julien, the largest Canadian Forces base in Afghanistan, as he toured Kabul on Saturday. "I'm beginning to see new shops everywhere. Some pretty nice houses too." Even some of Canada's hockey greats, in Kabul to boost the morale of Canadian troops,...

AR RAMADI, Iraq – Soldiers from Task Force “All American” continue missions aimed at assisting local Iraqis in developing a new era of peace and prosperity for all the country’s people. During the last 24 hours, the 82nd Airborne Division and subordinate units conducted 168 patrols, including nine joint patrols with Iraqi national elements. During the night, the 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment conducted vehicle traffic checkpoint operations, detaining four people. One vehicle approached Coalition Forces at a high rate of speed after passing clearly visible and well-lit signs designating the traffic control point (TCP). The soldiers then fired warning shots,...

'Tremendous Strides' Made in Iraq, Afghanistan By K.L. Vantran American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2003 - While the instability and conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan often dominate the news, between 80 and 90 percent of the people in these countries live "much more normal lives than the media normally presents," Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Stability Operations Joseph J. Collins said here Dec. 18. Despite opposition from the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan and remnants of the Baath Party, foreign fighters and international terrorists in Iraq, the retired Army officer said, "progress in combating these groups...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 December 16, 2003Release Number: 03-12-37 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TASK FORCE “ALL AMERICAN” STANDS FIRM AGAINST ATTACKS AR RAMADI, Iraq – The 82d Airborne Division and attached units, also known as Task Force “All American,” continued security operations within the Al Anbar Province. During the past 24 hours, the 82nd Airborne Division and subordinate units performed 154 patrols, including seven joint patrols with the Iraqi Border Guard and Iraqi police. These operations resulted in the killing of five enemy personnel, wounding...

CJTF-7 Public AffairsBAGHDAD, Iraq Military Police Train Iraqi law Officers At Weapons Range BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraqi Police Service officers had the chance to hone their skills on a live-fire weapons range for the first time with the help of soldiers of the 382nd Military Police Detachment. The Army Reserve unit from San Diego is assigned to the 18th Military Police Brigade, part of Task Force 1st Armored Division. The weapons training is part of a three-week course called the Iraqi Police Integration Program.  The program is intended to teach the existing Iraqi Police basic weapons fundamentals and tactics and...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 December 12, 2003Release Number: 03-12-31 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CIVIL AFFAIRS WORKS TOWARD A STABLE AND FREE IRAQ BAGHDAD, Iraq - The 82d Airborne Division and attached units, also known as Task Force “All American,” continued civil affairs operations to further reconstruction efforts within the Al Anbar Province. Civil Affairs (CA) personnel conducted a meeting at the Al Zedan Water Treatment Facility and initiated repairs of two water treatment plants in the area. The estimated cost of the projects is $20,000....

Soldiers from the 652nd Assault Bridge Engineer Company, an Army Reserve unit based in Ellsworth, Wis., ferry troops to a site near Tikrit, Iraq where soldiers a constructing a 340-meter bridge across the Tigris River.  U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Liana Mayo Bridge Mission Pushes on Despite Challenges By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Liana Mayo244th Combat Heavy Engineer Battalion   FORWARD OPERATING BASE IRONHORSE, Tikrit, Iraq — On a crisp November evening, as shadows stretched along the banks of the Tigris River, six soldiers from the 652nd Assault Float Bridge Engineer Company, climbed out of the multi-purpose boat...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 December 11, 2003Release Number: 03-12-27 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 101ST DONATES MORE THAN 230 COMPUTERS TO MOSUL CITY HALL MOSUL, Iraq – A 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) program to provide computers to the employees of Mosul City Hall made its final contribution Thursday, bringing the total number of computers donated to more than 230. The project has been in effect since September, and the last of the 233 computers were installed Thursday by Chief Warrant Officer Carrie McLeish and Master...