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THE US said yesterday Australia's commitment of troops to Iraq was a "major effort" that further strengthened ties between the two countries. US Defence Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Richard Myers praised Prime Minister John Howard's decision to deploy about 2500 personnel to maintain pressure on Iraq. General Myers said it was never easy for a leader to commit his people to the dangers of a potential war, and hoped Australians would support their troops. "If forces are going to go into combat, you would like to know that your country is behind it, of course, and that you...

Maria Heil, Spokesperson for SAS, will be on SPIN 1038 at 10 am Eastern, today, Thursday Jan. 23, 2003.SpinTalk

By John Kerin, Steve Lewis and Agencies (The Australian) January 23, 2003AUSTRALIAN special forces will be on the ground in the Middle East within days under a high-risk strategy that commits the country to a US-led war against Iraq in spite of growing public opposition to military conflict.Australian Prime Minister John Howard faces growing consternation, even among sections of his Liberal Party, and a series of mass peace rallies next month after confirming yesterday that Australia would send troops and equipment to the Middle East in preparation for a war with Iraq. (Australian) Labor (Party) and the minor parties...

No war without UN, say voters By Tom Allard January 18 2003 Australians overwhelmingly oppose sending troops to join an invasion of Iraq without United Nations approval, with just 6 per cent supporting involvement in a unilateral United States strike, a new Herald poll has found.Sixty-two per cent believed Australia should be involved in an attack only if it were endorsed by the UN, the Herald-ACNielsen poll reveals. Thirty per cent won't support war on Iraq under any circumstances.The findings highlight the political minefield facing the Howard Government as it confronts the possibility of backing a US strike without UN approval....

AUSTRALIA'S elite forces could be among the first to enter a nightmarish urban warfare campaign if a conflict with Iraq takes place on the streets of Baghdad. Australian Special Forces and their American counterparts have been training in specially built mock-town compounds in the Middle East in preparation for close-combat battles. The war grew closer yesterday with US President George Bush warning he was "sick and tired" of Saddam Hussein's "games and deception" and that the dictator's "time is running out". Experts believe pitched house-to-house battles in congested city areas would be the favoured tactic of Hussein's regime in a...

British special forces from the SAS have been drafted in to monitor North Korea's alarming nuclear build-up, it emerged today. The SAS soldiers have been switched from the build-up to war against Iraq to check the restarting of operations at North Korea's Yongbyong experimental nuclear complex. The movements emerged as the crisis escalated dramatically. North Korea dismissed a US call to abandon its programme as a "pipe dream" and accused Washington of "rushing headlong into an extremely dangerous confrontation". British foreign minister Bill Rammell said the build-up was "unacceptable" and " dangerous" and called on North Korea to meet its...

PERTH, Australia - Australia will recruit 300 new special forces troops to strengthen its fight against terrorism at home and abroad, the government announced Thursday. Prime Minister John Howard said he would create a new commando company and appoint a special forces commander to oversee counterterrorism operations. "The new initiative will further increase Australia's ability to use non-conventional war-fighting means to respond to the threat of terrorism," Howard said in a statement. Speaking ahead of the announcement, Howard said his government had been forced to reassess its ability to respond to terrorism after bombs that ripped through two night clubs...

SAS soldier Martin "Jock" Wallace thought he would die when he was dropped into the jaws of an enemy ambush in the dusty Shahi Kot valley in eastern Afghanistan. Now, for the first time, a member of the Special Air Service Regiment has been allowed to go public with his story about the operation that almost killed him. On March 2 this year, Wallace, an SAS comrade and 80 US Rangers fought for their lives, honouring the regimental motto: Who Dares Wins. Allied intelligence failed to predict the presence of up to 1000 heavily armed al-Qaeda fighters in the ridges...

California Assembly Nominee John Brantuk Invites You to Join Him at: "ATF Night" - a PRO-Gun Social Gathering Thursday, November 21, 2002 Culver City, CA 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM ("Cocktail" hour from 6:30 - 7:30 PM) FREE Admission This Month's Featured Speaker: Mr. Edward M. Monk Citizen, Scholar, Patriot Please NOTE: Mr. Monk is a Major in the United States Army but he speaks as a Private Citizen and is not representing the U.S. Army at this event. Are YOU concerned about the erosion of our rights? Do YOU believe public opinion is being altered by biased media? Do...

British special forces are searching for Osama bin Laden in Yemen after new intelligence has surfaced revealing that the al-Qa'eda leader fled Afghanistan last year and is being protected by tribesmen in his ancestral homeland. The Telegraph has learnt that the focus of the world's biggest manhunt has dramatically shifted over the past few weeks from Afghanistan and Pakistan's border areas to the lawless tribal region of Hadhra Maug in south-east Yemen, where bin Laden's father was born. American officials said on Friday that they had captured a high ranking al-Qa'eda official in the region whom they would not name...

British special forces are searching for Osama bin Laden in Yemen after new intelligence has surfaced revealing that the al-Qa'eda leader fled Afghanistan last year and is being protected by tribesmen in his ancestral homeland. The Telegraph has learnt that the focus of the world's biggest manhunt has dramatically shifted over the past few weeks from Afghanistan and Pakistan's border areas to the lawless tribal region of Hadhra Maug in south-east Yemen, where bin Laden's father was born. American officials said on Friday that they had captured a high ranking al-Qa'eda official in the region whom they would not name...

SAS soldiers who fought in Afghanistan will be awarded some of Britain’s highest military honours at a secret ceremony to be held at Buckingham Palace this week. At least six frontline SAS troops and several of their commanding officers are to receive gallantry medals in recognition of their heroism under fire against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. At least one SAS soldier narrowly missed being awarded the most distinguished military honour, the Victoria Cross. He and others will instead collect honours including Distinguished Service awards and Military Crosses. Some will collect the medals this week but others are on assignments abroad....

U.S. Supreme Court To Hear Bean Case This Wednesday U.S. Newswire 15 Oct 8:30 U.S. Supreme Court To Hear Bean Case This Wednesday: Court WillDefine Second Amendment Rights Restoration Nationwide, Says SAFTo: National Desk Contact: Dave LaCourse of the Second Amendment Foundation, 206-979-4262; Web site: http://www.saf.orgWASHINGTON, Oct. 15 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The nation's highest court will hear the Bean case on Wednesday, Oct. 16. This case will decide whether people federally disqualified from firearm possession can ever regain the right to own a firearm through federal means. The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) filed an amicus brief in the case. "This...

Australian army investigates atrocity claims against its peacekeepers in East Timor Thu Oct 3, 7:03 AM ET By PETER O'CONNOR, Associated Press Writer CANBERRA, Australia - The Australian army is investigating accusations that its peacekeepers tortured and executed pro-Indonesian militiamen in East Timor ( news - web sites) three years ago, an official said Thursday. Two bodies had been exhumed in the newly independent country and would undergo forensic tests as part of a two-year probe into "serious allegations of mistreatment of detainees" by Australian soldiers, said Col. Terry McCullagh, the army's director of personnel operations. Australian newspapers have carried...

Phoenix (CNSNews.com) - Gun rights activists say the outcome of the 2002 mid-term election will be critical in determining the fate of a handful of important gun bills pending in Congress. Issues that hang in the balance include arming airline pilots; not placing undue regulations on private or gun show sales; preempting municipal lawsuits against gun manufacturers; repealing the Clinton-era ban on certain semi-automatic guns; and preventing efforts to ban .50-caliber rifles. "We have to stay on the offense," National Rifle Association executive vice president Wayne LaPierre told several hundred gun rights activists gathered in Phoenix, Ariz., for a gun...

Scud Hunting with Delta Force and the Special Air Service (SAS)By Thomas B. Hunter During the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), Saddam Hussein launched approximately 350 ballistic missiles against Iran. These attacks included a large number of R-17 single-stage missiles from a stockpile of 650 purchased from the Soviet Union. The R-17, as originally designed, had a maximum range of 300 km and was capable of carrying either a 2,000 lb. conventional or 100 kiloton nuclear warhead. In time, however, Iraqi engineers were ordered to develop a weapon capable of striking deeper into Iranian territory. To this end, designers made use of...

Today was a beautiful day in Sacramento for the Second Amendment Sisters' Ladies' Handgun Seminar and Practice Shoot. About 40 strong women showed up for safety training and then a practice shoot. Yours truly shot a nice grouping during the revolver shoot - six shots in about four inches and I did even better during the semi-automatic shoot with a .45. The event took place at the James Mangan Range in Sacramento - a lovely spot for a bbq, seminar and shooting practice. We sent news releases but no media showed up. (Wonder why?) No matter, we had a ball!!!...

MOLON LABE (mo-lone lah-veh) In 480 BC, Xerxes (son of Darius, King of Persia) was in full preparation to invade Athens, the leader of the Greek city-states. King Leonidas of Sparta (Left), another city-state, had agreed to help stop the invading Persians, and marched with 300 hand-picked troops to Thermopylae on the north coast of Greece. Thermopylae was the best of three possible defensive areas in which Xerxes' invading army had to advance. This mountain gap along the coast was about 60 feet wide, and was the best location for a blocking action. When Leonidas was preparing to make his...

The California Chapter of Second Amendment Sisters, Inc is pleased to host a.... Ladies’ Handgun Seminar and Practice Session! When: Saturday, August 24th, 2002, 12 – 4 pm Where: James Mangan Range, Sacramento Who: Women with no firearms experience wishing to learn AND Women experienced with firearms wanting to practice Cost: $10 donation to SAS or FREE with SAS membership Reservations (strongly recommended): 1-877-724-1787 or ca_co_coord@2asisters.org Schedule: 12-1 Lunch in the park (provided by SAS) 1-2 Safety and Operation Introduction (NRA certified instructor) 2-4 Range Time Firearms and ammunition will be provided. Range Safety Officers will be on hand for...

THE commander of Australian special forces in Afghanistan has been awarded the United States Bronze Star for outstanding contribution to the war on terror. Lieutenant Colonel Rowan Tink was awarded the medal by US coalition commander Major General Frank Hagenbeck at a farewell ceremony at the main military base at Bagram, north of Kabul. The award citation recognises Colonel Tink's leadership and tactical proficiency in his command of 150 Australian Special Air Service troops during the past six months. In particular, the citation recognised his role in commanding Australian troops involved in Operation Anaconda earlier this year, Australian Defence Forces...