Soldiers ordered to take off private body armor
• Defense WatchThe soldiers were ordered to leave their privately purchased body armor at home or face the possibility of both losing their life insurance benefit and facing disciplinary action.
Contents Pages by Subject
WAR: About that War
NATO refusal in Afghanistan means US stays
• ReutersNATO can still expand operations to southern Afghanistan by the middle of the year even if the Netherlands decides not to take part. A refusal could thwart US and British plans to cut troop numbers there because other allies would be stretched to plu
Afghanistan falling apart
• The IndependentA suicide bomber killing at least 20 in the deadliest insurgent attack since the US invasion. More than 1,600 were killed in 2005, and the murder rate is rising. The rule of law has collapsed. The government is trapped in its own fortified compound i
Success in shooting down US copters apparent
• CBS News (video link)A U.S. military helicopter crashed north of the Iraqi capital Monday — the third American chopper to go down in 10 days — killing the two crew members. A resident said he saw the smoke trail of a missile before the aircraft plunged to the ground.
155 year old tradition ended: warm bodies needed in Iraq
• Daily KosI'm a sucker for my country and many of its most gaudy traditions, which brings me to today's Naval Academy-Marine story. Until this morning, I'd never heard of this tradition, but the fact that it's been around for 155 years (probabl
Look at Iran, not at our scandles
• ReutersRepublican and Democratic senators said on Sunday the United States may ultimately have to undertake a military strike to deter Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, but that should be the last resort.
Democrats now oppose the war, but continue support with your pocketbooks
• ANG Newspapers"I'm not prepared to say (to the troops) that even though you're there on a flawed premise, I will not support you," Nancy Pelosi said over the shouts of protesters. "The fact is, the money is for the troops, and I'm not go
The Redcoats of 1776; Iraqi raid detailed
• Associated PressNow, at 1:13 a.m., under a light drizzle, 25-year-old Lt. Mark Brogan and 13 men from his platoon crouch behind a wall, waiting for the signal to storm the house. The informant claims the financier and his son are inside. The two bodyguards, almost c
Murtha details his exit strategy on <i>60 Minutes</i>
• CBS News (incl. video link)“I think the vast majority [of troops] will be out by the end of the year and I’m hopeful it will be sooner than that,” Murtha tells Mike Wallace. Mounting pressure from constituents in this election year will force Congress to pass his withdrawal pl
Returning soldiers finding it hard to adjust
• New York TimesThe duffel bag landed on the floor with a thud. The Army medic, looked around. The walls of his apartment were full of holes. The bathroom did not have any toilet paper. The floors were fuzzy with dust. Just returned from a year in Iraq, but no one h
Our Saudi friends keep trying to kill us
• Los Angeles TimesUS officials confirm an aggressive role by Saudi fighters in the insurgency in Iraq, where they accounted for more than half of all Arab militants killed. Millions of dollars continue to flow from wealthy Saudis to Al Qaeda and other suspected terror
Iran under air strike consideration by several powers
• by Sanjay Suri (AntiWar.com)Western powers are already planning use of the military option in the face of Iran's insistence that it will go ahead with what it calls its nuclear research program. ''The military option is being considered already, they are just not ta
Iran 'does not need nuclear arms'
• BBC NewsIranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said that his country does not need a nuclear weapon. Mr Ahmadinejad said they were needed only by people who "want to solve everything through the use of force".
Airstrike misses Al-Qaeda chief
• Christina LambThe attack took place in the early hours of Friday, when CIA-operated Predator drones circled the village of Damadola in the Bajaur area in northwest Pakistan before launching four Hellfire missiles at a mud-walled compound. Three houses were razed t
'Vast Majority' of US Troops Forced to Leave Iraq by Year's End: Top Congressman.
• Published on Saturday, January 14, 2006 by AgenceJohn Murtha, the top Democrat of the House defense appropriations subcommittee, said late Friday that President George W. Bush would be forced to accept an Iraq pullout plan because inaction will likely result in Republicans losing control of Congres
Iraq Moves a Step Closer to Civil War; the MSM Yawn
• by Arianna HuffingtonNow it is clear that the Shiites were just saying what the Bush administration wanted to hear, never meant it, and never intended to follow through. "We will stop anyone who tries to change the Constitution," said al-Hakim yesterday.
Iraqi election results unlikely to be released next week
• ABC NewsIraq's electoral commission won't release final results from last month's election in coming days because the panel is waiting on international monitors to finish investigating fraud complaints, a senior Iraqi election official said Satur
Terrorists doomed: al-Qaeda run by bureaucrats
• New York Times[What is next? Health care package for suicide bombers?] Federal prosecutors released an application to join a training camp of Al Qaeda in Afghanistan that they say was filled out by Jose Padilla. The "Mujahideen Data Form" bears the signa
Clever soldiers continue to adapt their vehicles in Iraq
• Associated PressSoldiers exposed to Iraq's increasingly lethal roadside bombs, which can rip through armored Humvees, are drawing on wartime experience and stateside expertise to protect their vehicles with stronger armor and thermal detection cameras. The upgra
US seeks to hire Arab replacements for troops in Iraq before elections
• UPIThe US is seeking to convince Arab countries to send troops to Iraq to replace US forces. Vice President Cheney will tour Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Oman, will discuss the matter with Arab leaders.
Their Armageddonites, and Ours
• by Jon Basil UtleyIran's president and Pat Robertson more alike than you think
Making friends
• Agence France Presse"We were asleep when the first missile hit another house. We came out but my 3 children were buried under debris in a second explosion," said Mohammed Khan. His children all died. "The US cannot do this without Pakistan's support.
Spurious attempt to tie Iran, Iraq to nuclear arms plot bypassed U.S. intelligence channels
• Larisa AlexandrovnaThe story that was peddled -- which detailed how an Iranian intelligence team infiltrated Iraq prior to the start of the war in March of 2003, and stole enriched uranium to use in their own nuclear weapons program -- was part of an attempt to implica
Saddam's judge wants out!
• ReutersConfusion rippled around the court trying Saddam Hussein on Saturday after the chief judge made it clear he wanted to step down, casting an already turbulent process into further disarray.
Army Ended Abuse Probe Early
• Associated PressThe Army closed a criminal investigation of abuse allegations by an Iraqi detainee last year, finding no reason to believe his claims, even though no Americans involved in the case were questioned
New Army Documents Confirm Black Ops "Special Access Program" Unit Covered Up Detainee Abu
• ACLU (document links)The ACLU released new documents obtained from the Defense Department detailing abuse at US facilities in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo Bay. Confirming the existence of a secret “Special Access Program” involving a special ops unit, Task Force 6-26
Court Backs US Stop Loss Policy in Military
• The AustralianA US soldier who sued the military to protest against the involuntary extension of his service has lost his challenge of the "stop-loss" policy Washington has used to maintain troop levels. US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was the latest uph
"Precision" bombs kill many in Iraq with blast radius
• Asia TimesOne reason the Hopkins study did not generate sustained outrage is that the researchers did not explain how the occupation had managed to kill so many people so quickly - about 1,000 each week in the first 14 months of the war.
German spys help US kill civilians in Iraq
• ReutersGerman agents "gave us direct support. They gave us information for targeting," NDR television quoted a former U.S. military official as saying
Read article: Brit Officer finds US insensitive to Iraqis
• Military Review (a PDF article)There can be few acts more galling than a soldier from one country publicly assessing the performance of those from another. However, this is not an arrogant exercise in national comparisons: there is no other Army in the world that could even have a
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