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 The Penatagon Early Bird May 13, 2008 Use of these news items does not reflect official endorsement. Reproduction for private use or gain is subject to original copyright restrictions. Item numbers indicate order of appearance only. This is the single print version. Use the PRINT command in your browser to print the entire Early Bird as one document. (NOTE: This single file format is a long document and can use 50 or more pages of paper.) Please scroll down to read the Headlines; to read the Entire Headline News Article, further scroll down. URL's will not link out in the recieved format. RESCUE/RELIEF OPERATIONS
Washington Post May 13, 2008 Pg. 11 American Admiral Takes Plea To Burma Military Rulers Agree to Consider Major Relief Effort By Amy Kazmin and Colum Lynch, Washington Post Foreign Service BANGKOK, May 12 -- The head of the U.S. Pacific Command flew into Burma on Monday aboard the first U.S. military aid flight, to press for a full-scale international relief operation for victims of Cyclone Nargis. Facing mounting international pressure to open their country's borders, Burmese officials promised to consider the request. In New York, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed "immense frustration" with the pace of the relief effort, slowed by Burma's secretive military government. After trying for days to get top general Than Shwe on the telephone, Ban said, he sent a letter urging him to facilitate a massive aid operation. Adm. Timothy J. Keating flew in a U.S. Air Force C-130 from an air base in Thailand that is turning into a staging area for Burma relief. Accompanying him was Henrietta H. Fore, head of the U.S. Agency for International Development. At the airport in Rangoon, Burma's largest city, they conferred with Burma's top naval officer in the highest-level military contact between the two countries in decades. Keating and Fore did not go beyond the airport before flying back to Thailand. Fore said she believed that "our discussions were a good first step" toward broader U.S. help. The United States has offered to deploy as many as 4,000 Marines, six C-130 cargo planes and a large number of heavy-lift helicopters in what would be its largest disaster relief effort since the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004. It will also have three naval ships, with helicopters on board, positioned off Burma's southwest coast within 48 hours. "We have a broad array of personnel and equipment, and we are ready to respond as soon as the Burmese give us permission," Keating said. The cargo plane on which Keating and Fore traveled delivered bottled water, blankets and mosquito nets. U.S. and Burmese military personnel jointly unloaded the supplies, which the Burmese promised to send quickly to the disaster zone by helicopter. Burmese authorities cleared two more U.S. C-130 relief flights for Tuesday. In another sign of gradual cooperation, U.N. officials said that the Burmese had now approved visas for 34 aid workers. The U.S. government, meanwhile, moved Monday to allow individuals to send unlimited amounts of money to people in Burma. The generals who rule the country, which they officially renamed Myanmar, are highly wary of Western governments, especially the United States. President Bush has called Burma "an outpost of tyranny"; the generals accuse Washington of trying to overthrow them by supporting Burmese dissidents, both in and outside the country. Military authorities are sealing off the disaster zone to foreigners, turning them back at checkpoints on the roads. Transport remains in short supply; the Burmese military is using only seven helicopters to ferry supplies from the airport into the affected areas. In New York, Ban warned of an "outbreak of infectious diseases that could dwarf today's crisis." "Handled properly, Myanmar can recover from this calamity," he told reporters at U.N. headquarters. "Handled poorly, it will become an even deeper crisis that will set back the country's people and its government for years." U.N. relief agencies have reached fewer than a third of the people in need, he said. Rice stocks are nearly exhausted, and the U.N. World Food Program is distributing only about 10 percent of the food that is needed. The United Nations' chief relief coordinator, John Holmes, said Monday that heavy rains are forecast for Burma's delta region, which would place added strain on survivors and relief workers. Bodies have been washed out to sea, making it likely that "we may never have a very exact figure" for the dead, he said. Health workers have so far detected only isolated cases of diarrhea and malaria, Holmes said. But large numbers of survivors are beginning to concentrate in a small number of towns, which could increase the spread of disease. The government raised its officially confirmed death toll to 31,938 on Monday. But Sam Worthington, president of InterAction, a coalition of 165 U.S.-based nongovernmental organizations that work abroad, said in an interview in Washington that reports from people on the ground as well as U.N. helicopter assessments increasingly indicate that the number of dead could be as high as 200,000. He said 218 makeshift camps serving 196,000 displaced people have opened across the Irrawaddy Delta area, the focus of the storm. So far, they contain only a small percentage of the estimated 1.5 million displaced people. The camps have been set up by Burmese working for various aid organizations that were already operating in Burma, such as World Vision, Save the Children and Pact. But Worthington said the camps are woefully short of infrastructure; one camp has only five latrines for 3,500 people, he said. Lynch reported from the United Nations. Staff writer Glenn Kessler in Washington contributed to this report. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600299.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP New York Times May 13, 2008 U.N. Leader Tells Myanmar To Hurry On Aid By Warren Hoge and Seth Mydans UNITED NATIONS As the authorities in Myanmar raised the cyclone death toll to nearly 32,000 and admitted one American military aircraft, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon pressed the junta on Monday to accept international assistance. He expressed ÅÅeep concern and immense frustration with what he called ÅÕhe unacceptably slow response to this grave humanitarian crisis.Æû/P> In unusually blunt language for a United Nations leader, Mr. Ban said: ŵhis is not about politics; it is about saving peopleÃÔ lives. There is absolutely no more time to lose.Æû/P>The sharp comments from Mr. Ban came on a day when the authorities in Myanmar allowed a United States military aircraft to land with relief supplies, crossing one barrier that has hindered the delivery of large-scale aid to more than a million people affected by the May 3 cyclone. State television has put the death toll at 31,938, with 29,770 people missing. The United States landing was the most public example of what aid groups said was a slight easing of restrictions over the last day, though not nearly enough to provide for what they said was a desperate, growing need. On Monday, the United Nations estimated the dead at 62,000 to 100,000. And even with the American flight the first of three that the Myanmar government has approved President Bush said that the slow flow of aid suggested that the generals in charge were either ÅÊsolated or callous.Æû/P> ŪtÃÔ been days, and no telling how many people have lost their lives as a result of the slow response, he told CBS News in a radio interview. Å¢n American plane finally went in, but the response isnÃÕ good enough.Æû/P>Remarkably, a government newspaper, The New Light of Myanmar, carried eight photos on Tuesday of the arrival of the American aid shipment, a rare acknowledgment of any cooperation with the United States. Long-time foreign residents of Yangon marveled that government censors would approve pictures of the C-130, clearly marked Ŷ.S. Air Force, sitting on the tarmac at the Yangon airport. The government often lumps the United States in with other ÅÇoreign saboteurs who want to invade Myanmar and establish military bases there. Mr. Ban, in clear frustration, said he had been trying without success for four days to reach the countryÃÔ senior general, Than Swe, and that he had sent a second letter to him on Monday alerting him to the United Nations efforts to help and its need for ÅÈreater access and freedom of movement. John Holmes, the under secretary general in charge of emergency, said that while there had been ÅÔlight progress in granting visas to relief workers, only 34 of more than 100 applications had been approved. United Nations officials said the distribution of most deliveries of international relief supplies to the most badly affected parts of the country was still being blocked. They said help was reaching fewer than one-third of those in need. The United Nations World Food Program said that it needed to move 375 tons of food a day to keep up with the urgent needs, but that it was shipping less than 20 percent of that and that it was close to running out of rice. At the airport in Yangon, MyanmarÃÔ main city, a group of high-level officials greeted the unarmed C-130 in an extraordinary scene of cooperation between nations whose only relations in recent years have been acrimonious. In a sign of the significance of the American aid delivery, the aircraft also carried Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of the American military in the Pacific. In a telephone interview, Admiral Keating said it had been years, if not decades, since an American military officer of his rank had visited Myanmar. He said the United States had about a dozen medium- and heavy-lift military helicopters on standby in Thailand, ready to assist. In addition, Admiral Keating said a three-ship naval task force with another dozen transport helicopters was 24 hours away and ready to help relief efforts. Ÿe told them we could come in during the day and leave at night, that they could put Burmese officials on our planes and ships, and that we would provide our own fuel, he said. Ÿe told them we wouldnÃÕ stay a day longer than they wanted.Æû/P>Reports out of the Irrawaddy Delta, the worst-hit area, continued to reflect a growing and gruesome catastrophe, according to Western diplomats in Yangon. People whose homes, farms and food stocks were destroyed have been making their way to more than half a dozen refugee camps north of the delta, although these were more like gathering places than organized camps with food, water, shelter and medical assistance. ŪtÃÔ grim, and getting grimmer, said one Western diplomat in Yangon. ŵhe vast majority of people out there havenÃÕ been reached. ItÃÔ a challenge to get stuff there anyway. Now itÃÔ a double challenge.Æû/P> At the United Nations, Mr. Ban specifically mentioned disease. Ÿe are at a critical point, he said. Ŷnless more aid gets into the country very quickly, we face an outbreak of infectious diseases that could dwarf todayÃÔ crisis.Æû/P>Another worry is the start of the rainy season, which usually begins in mid-May. Rice stocks need to dry, and new rice needs to be planted. Aid workers said there was one possible upside to more rain: People without fresh water might be able to collect rainwater for drinking. Although United Nations officials have criticized the government for blocking efforts to help its citizens, spokesmen from the various aid groups relieved to have even one toe in the door, and clearly worried that harsh words might slam it shut again have adopted a tone of cautious hope. Ÿe are optimistic that the restrictions will be relaxed, said Rigoberto Giron, a spokesman for CARE, based in Atlanta. But he said the group had not been granted visas to bring in international staff members whom it needed. Another CARE spokesman said over the weekend that the group had been waiting to ship in supplies until it could be sure that CARE would control their distribution. Doctors Without Borders, another international aid group, also said the government had allowed it to take possession of a planeload of supplies and to begin distributing them. But there are still problems, the group said. Three of its workers in the devastated city of Bogale a physician, a water and sanitation expert and an aid coordinator were refused permission to travel or even to enter hospitals to consult on problems. Ÿe are worried, said Hugues Robert, a spokesman for the group in Geneva. ŵhis has been happening for a few days.Æû/P>By their stubbornness in refusing to allow the rapid distribution of relief supplies, the generals who rule Myanmar are turning the cyclone that struck more than a week ago from a devastating natural disaster into a man-made disaster of huge proportions. As the disaster grows and pressure from the outside world intensifies, the junta faces a dilemma. If it opens its doors to large numbers of foreigners, it may never be able to seal the country again against the outside influences and interference it dreads. By keeping most foreign assistance out, though, the generals must be ready to accept the deaths of hundreds of thousands more people, according to foreign relief officials. At the moment, that is the choice it appears to be making. Even if there are divisions within the leadership over policy, most analysts say, the junta is likely to maintain its grip. Ū donÃÕ think anything is going to happen, said Terence Lee, an expert on regional militaries from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. ŵhey have too much invested in the regime to have any ideas of jumping ship.Æû/P>Warren Hoge reported from the United Nations, and Seth Mydans from Bangkok. Reporting was contributed by a correspondent for The New York Times from Yangon, Myanmar; Eric Schmitt from Washington; and Graham Bowley and Denise Grady from New York. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600395.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP AirForceTimes.com May 12, 2008 C-130, 50 Airmen First In To Myanmar By Patrick Winn, Staff writer An Air Force quick-response task force delivered its first C-130 cargo jet full of supplies Monday to cyclone-ravaged Myanmar, where up to 2 million face disease and starvation. About 50 airmen from the 36th Contingency Response Group, deployed out of GuamÃÔ Andersen Air Force Base, have set up a relief operation at an air base near Bangkok. The C-130 carried 28,000 pounds of supplies including mosquito nets, blankets and water as part of a joint-service operation dubbed Å«oint Task Force Caring Response.Æû/P>The 36th response group, created to speedily deploy to Pacific-region disasters such as the 2004 Southeast Asian Tsunami, has also placed other aircraft and personnel on standby: a C-130 and its crew from Yokota Air Base in Japan and a C-17 Globemaster III from Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii. The Air Force teams, if given MyanmarÃÔ permission, could set up a makeshift landing operation much closer to the hardest-hit region. Additionally, six C-130s and more than 100 airmen who happen to be in the region for Ťobra Gold an annual multi-national military exercise in Thailand could be diverted to the help relief efforts if requested. U.S. Marine spokesman Lt. Col. Douglas Powell said there are 11,000 service members and four ships in the region that could be harnessed to help the mercy mission. The initial C-130 jet flew from Utapao Air Base, a bomber base for the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. The relief flight capped prolonged negotiations to persuade MyanmarÃÔ military government to accept U.S. help. United Nations leaders have urged reclusive Myanmar formerly known as Burma to open its doors to foreign relief efforts. Several Myanmar Cabinet ministers, military officers and the top U.S. diplomat in Myanmar, Shari Villarosa, greeted the plane. Government spokesman Ye Htut said the aid, which was transferred to Myanmar army trucks, would be ferried by air force helicopters to the worst-hit Irrawaddy delta later Monday. Two more U.S. air shipments were scheduled to land Tuesday. The official death toll from Cyclone Nargis, which hit May 3, is 28,458, with another 33,416 still missing. But the U.N. Assistant Secretary-General Catherine Bragg and others have said the death toll could reach 100,000 or higher. Though international assistance has started trickling in, the authoritarian government has barred most foreigners who are experienced in managing humanitarian crises. Richard Horsey, a spokesman for U.N. humanitarian operations, in Bangkok, said clean drinking water, shelter, medical support and food were sorely lacking. ŵhe authorities of the country need to open up to an international relief effort. There arenÃÕ enough boats, trucks, helicopters in the country to run the relief effort of the scale we need, he said. ŪtÃÔ urgent that the authorities do open themselves up.Æû/P>Also on the plane was Adm. Timothy J. Keating, the commander of the U.S. military in the Pacific, who will try to personally negotiate with the junta for a larger U.S. role in providing relief. Three Navy ships in the Bay of Bengal were sailing closer to Myanmar on Monday, ready to aid cyclone victims if they are given permission, Vice Adm. Doug Crowder told reporters in Jakarta, Indonesia. In the Irrawaddy delta, people were surviving in miserable conditions hundreds cramped in monasteries with little access to food. Others camped in the open, drinking dirty water contaminated by human feces or dead bodies and animal carcasses. ŵhe lives of thousands of cyclone survivors are at extreme risk, aid group World Vision said. Å¥isplaced people are living in appalling conditions in makeshift shelters and camps where overcrowding and unsanitary conditions are prevalent.Æû/P>Children many of them orphans are suffering from fever, diarrhea and respiratory infections, it said. The Associated Press contributed to this story. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600355.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Los Angeles Times May 13, 2008 Pg. 11 Shiite Muslim Factions Sign Sadr City Deal By Alexandra Zavis, Times Staff Writer BAGHDAD -- Representatives of Iraq's main Shiite Muslim factions signed a deal Monday clearing the way for Iraqi soldiers to operate throughout Sadr City, a vast Baghdad slum that is largely under the control of militiamen loyal to firebrand cleric Muqtada Sadr. The signatures put an official seal to a truce brokered over the weekend by Sadr's political representatives and members of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki's governing alliance. Negotiators said they hoped the deal would mark the close of more than seven weeks of fighting in the district, which has claimed hundreds of lives. But it was unclear whether all the groups that have taken up arms in Sadr City would adhere to the accord. The U.S. military said its troops in the southeastern portion of the district had come under attack at least three times and had killed three gunmen since the deal began to take effect Sunday. Iraqi soldiers had also traded sporadic fire with neighborhood fighters, residents said. The district's two main hospitals had received four bodies and treated 24 wounded since late Sunday, officials said. Some militia members said they were waiting for orders from Sadr himself before setting aside their weapons. But Sadr's chief negotiator, Salah Obeidi, said Monday that the cleric had issued written instructions authorizing his representatives to sign the deal and urging his followers to uphold it. The fighting erupted in late March when Maliki's government began a crackdown in the southern oil hub of Basra aimed primarily at Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. The government said the operation was intended to restore order in the lawless city, which generates most of the country's crucial oil revenue. But Sadr's followers accused factions within Maliki's alliance, one of which also has an armed wing, of using the crackdown to weaken the cleric's movement ahead of provincial elections slated for the fall. The fighting in Basra subsided in five days, but the crackdown sparked an uprising in Sadr City and other Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad that has dragged on for weeks. The U.S. military says that more than 1,000 rockets and mortar rounds have been fired in Baghdad since late March, most of them from Sadr City. The shelling has killed at least 28 people and injured 257, according to military figures. Many more have died in the daily exchanges in Sadr City and surrounding areas, where U.S. tanks and attack helicopters trade fire with militants armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. U.S. forces last month moved into the southern third of Sadr City, from which shells were being aimed at their bases and the Green Zone, the fortified enclave across the Tigris River that houses the U.S. Embassy and many government offices. The troops are sealing off that Sadr City area with a 3-mile-long concrete barrier that is about 80% complete. But U.S. and Iraqi commanders did not want to provoke an all-out showdown with the Mahdi Army by pushing into the rest of Sadr City, a district that is home to an estimated 2.5 million people. Under the deal, all sides were to suspend military activity for four days beginning Sunday, after which Iraqi forces will have free rein to search Sadr City for weapons and fighters, provided they have a warrant. A committee supervised by Maliki will monitor operations and investigate any reported abuses. In return, the governing parties have pledged to open more roads into the district, increase humanitarian assistance, compensate residents for their losses and help the thousands of displaced to return. Khalid Attiya, parliament's deputy speaker who led negotiations for Maliki's alliance, described the deal at a joint news conference Monday as a "road map to implement stability in Sadr City and the rule of law." But both sides acknowledge the way is riddled with potential pitfalls. Maliki insists that the Mahdi Army must ultimately be disbanded, a point Sadr's followers are not prepared to discuss. Sadr's representatives have emphasized that they will not accept participation of U.S.-led forces in searches. Obeidi said the governing alliance assured his team that Iraqi forces would have no need to call for U.S. assistance, provided Sadr's followers cooperate. However, it remains unclear how much control Sadr has over the men who operate in his name. The U.S. military says most of those fighting in Sadr City are members of breakaway factions it alleges are armed, trained and directed from Iran. Tehran denies the charges. The U.S. military did not immediately comment on Monday's signing. But Navy Rear Adm. Patrick Driscoll, a military spokesman, has previously said that the U.S.-led forces support a diplomatic solution to the standoff. Special correspondents in Baghdad contributed to this report. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600302.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP New York Times May 13, 2008 Missile Is Fired At Copter Over Baghdad, U.S. Says By Stephen Farrell and Michael R. Gordon BAGHDAD A surface-to-air missile was fired on Saturday at an American Apache helicopter flying over the Sadr City section of Baghdad, American military officials said on Monday. The attack, which had not been disclosed previously, represents the first time that a helicopter has come under missile attack in Sadr City since fighting erupted in the Shiite enclave in March. The missile missed the aircraft. But the attack was sufficiently worrisome that the American military changed the route of an aerial tour of Baghdad it had arranged for a group of reporters, television cameramen and photographers on Monday. Two helicopters were to fly over or near Sadr City, but an official said the route had been changed because of the missile threat. The United States military has made extensive use of Apache helicopters to try to stop militias from firing rockets at the Green Zone and to protect American and Iraqi troops in Sadr City from Shiite fighters armed with small arms, rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and roadside bombs. The helicopters have taken a heavy toll on the militia fighters. In an effort to blunt the American advantage in airpower, the militias have waited until dust storms have grounded the Apaches to unleash heavy rocket attacks on the Green Zone. But the attack on Saturday suggests that the militias may intend to make a more determined challenge to the American dominance in the air. Moktada al-SadrÃÔ movement and the main Shiite coalition within Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-MalikiÃÔ government formally signed an agreement on Monday to end fighting in Sadr City, saying they hoped it would end seven weeks of violence. It is unclear whether a cease-fire will take hold. Officials in Mr. SadrÃÔ movement said they would permit confiscation of heavy weapons and arrests of wanted men, but they warned against any attempt to detain all Mahdi Army fighters. According to an American military official, who declined to be identified because the military has not publicly announced the attack, the attempt to shoot down an Apache occurred about 7:20 p.m. Saturday. An American patrol had been struck by a roadside bomb in Sadr City, and two Apache helicopters flew to the scene to investigate and provide protection for the troops. The missile, described as an SA-7 shoulder-fired missile, was fired at one of the helicopters. It exploded in midair and neither aircraft was damaged. Soldiers from an American Army civil affairs unit in Sadr City saw the missile ascending and reported that it seemed to have been launched from north of Al Quds Street, where the American military is building a large concrete wall to prevent militia fighters from infiltrating south. The missile was also seen by Iraqi volunteers in the Å´ons of Iraq program who provide security in Adhamiya, a nearby neighborhood. They found the missileÃÔ body, which was turned over to American troops. Despite the agreement to end the fighting, there was no sign of a cease-fire along Al Quds Street. Militia fighters fired at Iraqi forces near the wall that the Americans are building. The Iraqi soldiers shot back, and an Apache helicopter fired a missile at a militia position. American military officials released figures on Monday showing more than 700 attacks a month in Baghdad in March and again in April, primarily at American and Iraqi troops nearly triple the level in February, before the Sadr City clashes began. There have already been more than 200 attacks in May. Col. Allen Batschelet, the chief of staff of the military division securing Baghdad, said overall attacks are still down 42 percent since a peak of 1,200 last June. Colonel Batschelet said that since American and Iraqi troops began the operation to curb the firing of rockets from Sadr City, more missiles are now being fired from areas outside that district. He also said the militias are also using more 122-millimeter weapons, whose 12-mile range is double that of 107-millimeter rockets, which account for most attacks against the Green Zone. Many of the rockets and mortar shells fired by the militias have fallen wide of their intended targets. Of the 285 people killed or wounded by mortars and rockets in Baghdad since March 23, Colonel Batschelet said, 144 were Iraqis, 89 were coalition troops, 20 were Iraqi security troops, 15 were American civilians and 17 were of other nationalities. Officials from hospitals in Sadr City said casualties declined over the weekend. At noon on Monday, however, ambulances were still delivering the wounded. In some sections of Sadr City, residents seemed relaxed, walking on the street and shopping. Lines of cars were waiting for gas. The lines vanished a couple of weeks ago, because people were afraid to remain in the street for long periods of time. Alissa J. Rubin contributed reporting. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600309.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washington Times May 13, 2008 Pg. 13 Attacks Persist Despite Cease-Fire Al-SadrÃÔ edict ignored as ShiÃÊte gunmen engage U.S., Iraqis By Richard Tomkins, The Washington Times BAGHDAD Iraq Shi'ite gunmen are continuing to attack U.S. and Iraq's security forces in Sadr City despite the announcement of a new cease-fire agreement between the government and the militia of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. U.S. authorities said troops killed three gunmen in clashes late Sunday and early yesterday. Most of the fighting was along the 3-mile barrier American soldiers are building along al-Quds Street, which separates the southern Jamilla and Tharwa neighborhoods of Sadr City from northern sectors. "It doesn't look like a cease-fire to me," said Maj. Kyle Ferger, executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment. "Just last night there were more than a dozen [incidents] along the wall." The wall, made of 12-foot-high concrete slabs, was begun in mid-April to block Shi'ite extremists from infiltrating the two neighborhoods using cross streets along al-Quds to fire rockets at the Green Zone, the seat of the Iraqi government, U.S. military and diplomatic headquarters. Citizens can still travel between the southern and northern sections of Sadr City, but would have to use three main roads where Iraqi soldiers search vehicles for weapons and munitions. Despite weeks of daily attacks by members of Mr. al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and so-called special groups rogue militia influenced by Iran the wall was 75 percent complete as of yesterday and will be finished by the end of the week, Maj. Ferger said. Sadr City, located in the northeastern part of Baghdad, is the stronghold of Mr. al-Sadr, who is a political rival of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Last year he declared a cease-fire with the government, helping to bring new security to the capital, but rescinded he it in late March when the Iraqi army took on Shi'ite gunmen, including Mr. al-Sadr's forces, in the southern port city of Basra amid spiraling lawlessness. Fighting spread to Sadr City, from where 107 mm and 120 mm rockets were launched almost daily against the International Zone. Shi'ite gunmen in mid-April also overran a number of Iraqi army posts in the southern portion of the district. Those posts were retaken with U.S. help after some Iraqi army units deserted. On Saturday afternoon, the government announced it reached an agreement with representatives of Mr. al-Sadr to end the fighting. Although some details are still being clarified by the government and representatives of Mr. al-Sadr, said to be living in Iran, the militia agreed to surrender its medium and heavy weapons and the government agreed to open all roads into Sadr City, which the United Nations said lacks adequate food and water. Iraqi troops would reportedly be allowed to enter the district to search for criminals. "It [the new cease-fire] is a lie," Iraqi army Col. Yehea Resol Abdala said yesterday in reference to militants adhering to it. "Just an hour ago they attacked my soldiers. "We know these people. We've fought them before. If they don't surrender their weapons, they must be squashed." Ironically, in the same hour in which word Saturday was first received of the cease-fire, 11 improvised explosive devices could be heard from the colonel's Jamilla neighborhood office. Col. Yehea is commander of the Iraqi army's 3rd Battalion, 42nd Brigade, 11th Division, which operates in the Jamilla area. His unit stood firm and fought off Mahdi Army and special-group gunmen when they launched concerted, coordinated attacks on government positions April 19. Col. Yehea, similar to his troops, is a Shi'ite from Sadr City, and he said government forces must be in the city and work with the people or there will be no peace. "The special groups don't take their orders from al-Sadr," he said. "They take their orders from Iran." U.S. and Iraqi authorities suspect Iran of having trained some special-group elements. Iran also is accused of providing extremists with explosively formed penetrator bombs, which pierce armored vehicles. Iraqi troops around Sadr City conduct joint operations with U.S. troops and also independently. Working with the 3rd Battalion, 42nd Brigade is a special 14-man U.S. Military Transition Team, which acts as a liaison and helps overcome the communications, planning and logistics problems the Iraqi army suffer from. Col. Yehea's battalion, for example, only has four night-vision goggles, something given to every U.S. soldier in the Sadr City area. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600310.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washington Times May 13, 2008 Pg. 14 Government Media Rejects Iraq-U.S. Pact TEHRAN Two hard-line newspapers seen as speaking for Iran's clerical establishment called yesterday for Iraqis to oppose a strategic framework deal with the United States, Tehran's first public condemnation of the arrangement. The papers accused Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of caving in to American demands over the pact. Mr. al-Maliki's government and the U.S. began negotiations in March on the deal meant to provide for long-term bilateral ties and a status of forces arrangement regulating U.S. military operations in Iraq. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600348.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP U.S. News & World Report (USNews.com) May 12, 2008 The U.S. Quietly Slashes The Reward Posted For The Leader Of Al Qaeda In Iraq In an unannounced change, the bounty for a most wanted terrorist is reduced from $5 million to $100,000 By Anna Mulrine and Kevin Whitelaw The U.S. government has quietly withdrawn a $5 million reward it was offering for the killing or capture of Abu Ayyub al-Masri, named by Pentagon officials as the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq. Al-Masri had been one of America's most wanted figures in Iraq ever since his identity was revealed in 2006. But U.S. News has learned that the bounty for him was reduced and that he was unceremoniously dropped in late February from the State Department's Rewards for Justice Program, which offers cash payments for information that leads to the capture or killing of wanted terrorists. Currently, the bounty for the Egyptian militant stands at $100,000, a more modest payout that is now covered by the separateÍÂnd decidedly lower profileÍ¥epartment of Defense Rewards Program. It is a startling development given that U.S. military officials have frequently touted al-Masri's danger ever since they revealed his identity with great fanfare at a briefing in June 2006. At the time, it was considered a propaganda coup to show that AQI was being led by an Egyptian, because the group had been claiming that an Iraqi man became its leader after the death of its founder, Abu Musab Zarqawi. Officially, defense sources say that rewards have historically been reduced for a number of reasons. "When they have reduced rewards in the past, some of the discussion has been to devalue them [the terrorists], to not hold them in such high regard," says a senior defense official. It's psychological warfare of sorts: "It may cause them to do things that say, 'Look, I'm important,'" says the officialÍÂnd in so doing, perhaps do something that makes it easier for them to be captured. The reasons in the past have also been more pedestrian, adds the official. "Sometimes the rewards are set so high that for some people maybe $100,000 is more tangible than $1 million." Others insist that the move reflects a shift in thinking about the importance of al-Masri. "The overarching reason is his blatant ineffectiveness as a leader of AQI," says a U.S. military official. Particularly striking, however, given the heavy emphasis that the U.S. government has placed on the target, is the number of senior officials who were only vaguely aware of the reduction in the bounty on al-Masri. "I had heard that they were talking about doing that," says a senior U.S. military official in Baghdad. "I would think that we have some input on that." The move also leaves questions about why Pentagon officials would want to remove al-Masri from the Rewards for Justice site, which has higher visibility on the Web than the Pentagon's program. When U.S. officials first revealed al-Masri's identity, the Pentagon offered a $250,000 reward for his capture. Later, the figure was raised to $5 million as part of the State Department's rewards program. But al-Masri's photos were removed from the Rewards for Justice website in February, although some other government websites have not been updated to reflect the change. Last week, Iraqi police reported that they had captured al-Masri, but U.S. officials denied the report and insist that he remains at large. The confusion followed apparently erroneous reports in 2006 and 2007 that al-Masri had been killed. In recent months, AQI has suffered serious operational defeats, particularly after Sunni tribesmen turned against the group in Iraq's Anbar province. But AQI remains the largest Sunni extremist organization in Iraq and retains strength in northern Iraq, near the city of Mosul. Al-Masri first rose to prominence as a senior operational commander under Zarqawi's leadership of AQI. U.S. officials believe that al-Masri was involved in the construction of car bombs used in AQI's 2003 deadly attacks on the United Nations headquarters and the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad, as well as bombings of Shiite celebrations and a U.S. checkpoint, according to the National Counterterrorism Center. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600402.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP NPR May 12, 2008 Delicate Cease-Fire Holding In Sadr City Morning Edition (NPR), 7:10 AM RENEE MONTAGNE: A day-old truce appears to be holding in BaghdadÃÔ Sadr City neighborhood. ItÃÔ a fragile peace because the underlying issue that sparked weeks of violence has not been settled, a Shiite power struggle between Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. WeÃÍl hear more about that power struggle in a moment. First, NPRÃÔ Tom Bowman reports from the Iraqi capital on Sadr City. TOM BOWMAN: Staff Sergeant Ahmad of the Iraqi army mans a checkpoint on a bridge leading into Sadr City. He watches a steady flow of residents cross the bridge and disappear into the haze, young and old, theyÃÓe not in a hurry; itÃÔ almost a leisurely Sunday stroll. Trucks full of food and produce lumber alongside this human stream. It appears that Sadr City is finally shaking its six-week-old battle. Sergeant Ahmad says donÃÕ be too sure. SERGEANT AHMAD [Iraqi Army] (Translated.): If you listen, you can hear the firefights. BOWMAN: He gestures off to his left, toward a cluster of worn buildings in the distance. Explosions are soon heard. Thick, black smoke curls into the sky. AHMAD (Translated.): Many firefights. A few minutes ago, we had a company where one of the soldiers got shot by a sniper and now in that direction, thereÃÔ a firefight. BOWMAN: Mehdi Army sources tell NPR that Sadr fighters are being told to maintain their positions, wait for orders, donÃÕ fight yet. American tanks rattle past and a truck carrying a long, thick concrete section for a security wall. Then out of nowhere, a hand cart pushed by a half-dozen men gesturing wild-eyed. Inside, are two young boys crying and bewildered. Eighteen-year-old Mohammed Abbas is among those pushing the cart. MOHAMMED ABBAS [Baghdad Resident] (Translated.): These children are in terrible condition. They should be in an American vehicle, not a handcart. BOWMAN: The two boys are carried to a taxi. Two adults hop in. An hour later, theyÃÓe back at the bridge. One boy pulls up his shirt to display a bandage. The handcart heads back inside Sadr City, as another Iraqi army soldier, Sergeant Mohammed, says the boys were hit by a mortar. SERGEANT MOHAMMED [Iraqi Army] (Translated.): We donÃÕ know where that mortar came from, maybe itÃÔ American, maybe not. BOWMAN: The Iraqi army doesnÃÕ have mortars he says with a shrug. We have rocket-propelled grenades. And he adds that the cease-fire may take hold, no matter he says. The area will be safer with all these new concrete walls. Tom Bowman, NPR News, Baghdad. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600352.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washington Post May 13, 2008 Pg. 11 Afghan Generals Suspended Several senior Afghan generals, including Kabul's police chief, have been suspended and are being questioned over last month's assassination attempt against President Hamid Karzai, an official in the attorney general's office said Monday. The attack killed three people, including a legislator. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600374.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Seattle Times May 13, 2008 World Digest More than 200 Taliban suspects ended a weeklong hunger strike Monday at a prison in Kandahar after lawmakers promised their cases would be reviewed. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600279.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP FNC May 12, 2008 Fighting In Afghanistan Special Report With Brit Hume (FNC), 6:00 PM BRIT HUME: U.S.-led forces killed a number of militants along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border over the weekend. And on an Islamic website today, al Qaeda said that one of its prominent leaders died in that fighting. The increase in violence is a reminder of the challenges faced by U.S. forces in Afghanistan, especially in one region where activity continues to foment just beyond the border. Correspondent Dana Lewis has that story. DANA LEWIS: The 101st Airborne Division is spinning up in eastern Afghanistan. On the grounds here for only a month, head of operations Brigadier Gen. Mark Milley takes us on an airborne tour of his forward operating bases. They dot the valleys and mountaintops, approaching the Pakistan border. Eighty percent of the violence here occurs in 10 percent of the 14 provinces under his control. Milley describes the enemy his soldiers encounter a dozen or more times a day as, quote, ÅÕhe most brutal, vicious, unremorseful enemy that any country has faced in recent memory.Æû/P>BRIG. GEN. MARK MILLEY [101st Airborne Division]: Willingness to murder innocent men, women and children that actually have nothing to do with the conflict, that are just there. LEWIS: Soldiers on the ground here automatically receive combat patches because Afghanistan is without any question a combat zone. In top secret briefings, U.S. ground troops tell their boss how the Afghan army is getting stronger. They report reconstruction is on track. More and more each passing month, the Afghan government is making its presence felt in remote areas all cornerstones of counterinsurgency operations. MILLEY: The government clearly has a set of programs out there that in my opinion offer hope to the people of Afghanistan, and the enemy doesnÃÕ offer anything except destruction and death and violence. LEWIS: Step by step progress in eastern Afghanistan, but American commanders say they are under no illusion about whatÃÔ going on the other side of these mountains, on the other side of the Pakistan border. It is still being used as a launch pad, a training area for the insurgency. Some people call it ŵalibanistan or ÅÂl Qaedastan.Æû/P> A half dozen different groups, including the Taliban and al Qaeda, have what some American intelligence sources describe as virtual free reign in PakistanÃÔ tribal areas. New talk of a government agreement with tribal groups interpreted by U.S. commanders will mean that Pakistan army will give insurgents even more freedom to hit Afghanistan. Division commander Lt. Gen. (sic) Jeff Schlosser Êû/P>MAJ. GEN. JEFF SCHLOSSER [101st Airborne Division]: Historically, they have not proven to reduce the level of violence on the border. LEWIS: On the contrary? SCHLOSSER: On the contrary. Policy issue and the political issue itÃÔ beyond me, but it is a source of frustration. LEWIS: For the first time, our camera is allowed into the JOC, or Joint Operation Center, at Bagram Air Base. Here, the entire eastern part of Afghanistan is commanded using intelligence, communications with soldiers in the field, and feeds of unmanned drones which give real-time, high-tech windows to the mountains and the enemy along the border. Daily violent incidents add up. SCHLOSSER: Right now, we have about 17 to 20 on a daily basis, okay? And I think that will easily double. LEWIS: Both generals predict an upswing in violence this year in eastern Afghanistan. Those Screaming Eagles combat patches will be hard earned, they say. In Gardez, Afghanistan, Dana Lewis, Fox News. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600362.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP New York Times May 13, 2008 Charge Dropped In Terror Case By Associated Press The Pentagon has dropped charges against a Saudi held at GuáÏtanamo Bay, Cuba, whom prosecutors called the 0th hijacker in the Sept. 11 attacks, his military defense lawyer said. The defendant, Mohamed al-Kahtani was charged in February with murder and war crimes in the 2001 attacks. The authorities said Kahtani missed taking part in the attacks because he had been denied entry to the United States. In reviewing the case, the convening authority for military commissions, Susan Crawford, decided to dismiss the charges against Kahtani and proceed with the arraignment for the other five, said Lt. Col. Bryan Broyles of the Army, the SaudiÃÔ military lawyer. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600350.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washington Post May 13, 2008 Pg. 2 Military Met Goals For April Recruiting The Marine Corps far surpassed its recruiting goal in April, a month in which each military service achieved its target. The Pentagon said yesterday that the Marine Corps signed up 142 percent of the number it was looking for -- 2,233 recruits, against a goal of 1,577. The Army signed 101 percent of its goal, recruiting 5,681 against a goal of 5,650. The Navy and Air Force met their goals -- 2,905 sailors and 2,435 airmen. Recruiting is easier in a slow economy, which limits other job possibilities. Officials also noted that the Army and Marines have added recruiters and are offering bonuses and other special benefits to attract more recruits in the midst of the unpopular war in Iraq. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600295.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washingtonpost.com May 12, 2008 AP Interview: US Military Eyes More Northern Border Patrols By Lolita C. Baldor, Associated Press WASHINGTON -- As the Arctic ice cap shrinks, the Pentagon is eyeing the expanding navigable waters as possible entry points for security threats that must be monitored more closely, the chief of the U.S. Northern Command told The Associated Press. Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart also said in an interview that defense officials are working with the Federal Aviation Administration and Canadian authorities to determine how unmanned aircraft can be used to monitor the northern border without interfering with busy commercial air traffic routes. For much of the last 18 months, the military has been more visibly focused on the country's southern border _ dispatching National Guard troops to help patrol there while additional border guards were trained. But Renuart said there will be increased military activity along the expansive northern boundary and beyond, including efforts to use more high-tech sensors and cameras like those developed for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. "The Arctic is a new area that is important to us because of the changes in ice flows," said Renuart. The shift, he said, means that Northern Command will beef up its maritime surveillance. Renuart's comments came as Defense Secretary Robert Gates was traveling Monday to Colorado Springs, Colo., for the 50th anniversary of NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command. Scientists have said the ice in the north shrank to a record low last summer, a change many attribute to global warming. And as the ice opened up, traffic in the Arctic region grew, particularly along the northwest passage. "Last year, during the summer months, where the ice had retreated we began to see some tourist ships, cruises, in the region," Renuart said during the interview on Friday. For ships headed from the Pacific to Europe, traveling through the northwest passage saves time and valuable energy costs. That traffic increase has coincided with greater international interest in potential energy resources in the Arctic, prompting more exploration. "All of this has implications that there could be security concerns," Renuart said. The U.S. and Canada have already said there are plans to use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) along the more than 5,000-mile long northern border. The military has chosen a base in Grand Forks to base the Predator drones for that mission, largely due to its central location. Renuart said the effort has been slowed a bit as officials try to resolve air traffic congestion issues, and train UAV operators on how to fly the drones in the north's more heavily wooded terrain. "There's some extensive work that has to be done with the Federal Aviation Administration and Transport Canada," said Renuart, "to ensure that we also use these systems in a way that doesn't provide a challenge for our general aviation friends." He said officials are planning UAV exercises, and hope to have UAVs in service along the border later this year. NORAD is the Bi-national Canadian and American command responsible for the air defense of North America. Northern Command was set up in 2002, in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, to oversee homeland defense. Both are located in Colorado Springs. In other comments, Renuart downplayed the recent increase in flyovers of Russian bombers, largely in the Pacific. He said Russia has been very forthcoming about the flights, although the timing and flight path details may not always be provided. The increased activity, he said, is largely due to the fact that Russia can afford the extra military investment and training. But while the flights have not been threatening, Renuart said the key concern is airspace safety when the flyovers occur with little notice. In February, Russian bombers flew over a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Pacific, prompting the U.S. to scramble fighters to escort the Russian aircraft. The Russians have said the flights do not violate any rules of engagement. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600396.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP ArmyTimes.com May 12, 2008 NORAD Marks 50th Anniversary By Michael Hoffman, Staff writer The thought that Russian TU-95 Bear bombers could fly over the Arctic Circle loaded down with nukes was a pretty scary idea in 1958. So scary, in fact, that American and Canadian politicians came together to set up whatÃÔ now known as the North American Aerospace Defense Command. NORAD turned 50 on Monday, marking its anniversary with a Golden Jubilee Ball at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo. The celebration also includes the opening of the new NORAD-U.S. Northern Command Command Center at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., on Tuesday. Defense Secretary Robert Gates will join CanadaÃÔ defense minister, Peter Gordon MacKay, and NORAD Commander Gen. Victor Renaurt for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the command center, which is part of a plan to create more remote sites outside of NORADÃÔ operations center, which is dug into Cheyenne Mountain, NORAD spokesman Maj. Brian Martin said. Fifty years since an era when schoolchildren ducked under desks during nuclear drills, NORAD has changed to meet the current threat. Pointedly criticized for its inability to respond faster to al-QaidaÃÔ Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, NORAD now tracks all air traffic, not just military traffic, and continues to adapt to the post-9/11 mission. Once the Russian military collapsed in the early 0s, NORAD also adapted to help protect U.S. and Canadian borders from drug smugglers. NORAD also changed its name to include ÅÂerospace instead of ÅÂir after intercontinental ballistic missiles became a threat in the 1960s; NORAD set up space-based radars to detect ICBM launches across the globe. The command stood up on Sept. 12, 1957, but the official agreement between the two countries wasnÃÕ signed until May 12, 1958. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600332.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Washington Post May 13, 2008 Pg. B2 Army To Fund Student Work At Biodefense Lab The Army and Johns Hopkins University announced a deal yesterday enabling biotechnology graduate students to work with scientists at the military's premier biological weapons defense laboratory, at Fort Detrick in Frederick, at the Army's expense. The students will be employed under the Army's Student Career Experience Program and will be eligible for Army reimbursement of their tuition at Johns Hopkins, school officials said. The reimbursement agreement is a first for the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, which has had graduate students, including some from Hopkins, working in its labs for years, institute spokeswoman Caree Vander Linden said. At least two fellowships will be offered yearly, starting in the fall, to students with a biodefense concentration within the biotechnology master's degree program. Scientists at the institute study some of the world's most dangerous pathogens, including anthrax, the Ebola virus and botulinum neurotoxin. -- Associated Press http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600373.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Seattle Times May 13, 2008 Corps Uncertain Of Levees' Condition Across America, earthen flood levees protect big cities and small towns, wealthy suburbs and rich farmland. But the Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency that oversees levees, lacks an inventory of thousands of them and has no idea of their condition, the corps' chief levee expert said. The uncertainty, amid an unusually wet spring that has already caused significant flooding across many states, is creating worry even within the corps. "We have to get our arms around this issue and understand how many levees there are in the country, who's watching over them, what populations and properties are behind them," said Eric Halpin, the corps' special assistant for dam and levee safety. Robert Bea, a University of California, Berkeley, levee expert, said many levees are old, with rusting infrastructure and built to protect against relatively common floods not the big ones like the Great Flood of 1993, when 1,100 levees were broken or had water spill over their tops. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600365.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP Philadelphia Inquirer May 13, 2008 Senate Is Told Iraq Corruption Ignored By Anne Flaherty, Associated Press WASHINGTON - The Bush administration repeatedly ignored corruption at the highest levels within the Iraqi government and kept secret potentially embarrassing information so as not to undermine its relationship with Baghdad, according to two former State Department employees. Arthur Brennan, who briefly served in Baghdad as head of the department's Office of Accountability and Transparency last year, and James Mattil, who worked as the chief of staff, told Senate Democrats yesterday that their office was understaffed and its warnings and recommendations ignored. Brennan also alleges the State Department prevented a congressional staffer visiting Baghdad from talking with staffers by insisting they were too busy. In reality, Brennan said, the staffers were watching movies at the embassy. The staffers' workload had been cut dramatically because of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's "evisceration" of Iraq's top anticorruption office, he said. The State Department's policies "not only contradicted the anticorruption mission but indirectly contributed to and has allowed corruption to fester at the highest levels of the Iraqi government," Brennan told the Senate Democratic Policy Committee. The U.S. Embassy effort against corruption, "including its new centerpiece, the now-defunct Office of Accountability and Transparency, was little more than window dressing," he added. Deputy State Department spokesman Tom Casey said the administration took the issue of corruption seriously, noting the appointment of Lawrence Benedict as coordinator for anticorruption initiatives at the U.S. Embassy. The Office of Accountability and Transparency was intended to provide assistance and training to Iraq's anticorruption agencies. It was dismantled in December, after it alleged in a draft report that Maliki's office had derailed or prevented investigations into Shiite-controlled agencies. Brennan said the State Department did not respond to his team's report, which was retroactively classified because agency officials said it could hurt bilateral relations with Iraq. Other recommendations by the group also were kept secret, Brennan said. Mattil, who worked with Brennan, said the United States "remained silent in the face of an unrelenting campaign" by senior Iraqi officials to subvert Baghdad's Commission on Public Integrity. Sen. Byron L. Dorgan (D., N.D.) said the testimony was critical in light of legislation that would appropriate more than $170 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Senate Appropriations Committee, of which Dorgan is a member, is expected to approve the legislation Thursday. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600378.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP">RETURN TO TOP San Diego Union-Tribune May 13, 2008 Democrats Seeking To Expand Vets' Aid, Grow Political Capital Some Republicans are balking at cost By Associated Press WASHINGTON Congressional Democrats are pushing what could become the most dramatic expansion of college aid for military veterans since World War II, with a bill they hope will buoy them this election season and become an albatross for Republicans. Pitched by the Democrats is a plan that would essentially guarantee a full-ride scholarship to any in-state public university, along with a monthly housing stipend, for individuals who serve in the military for at least three years. The proposal would give veterans 15 years to use the benefit, instead of the current 10-year limit, and would set up a new government program that matches financial aid by more expensive private institutions. For a pricey public school such as Miami University in Oxford, Ohio that benefit might be worth as much as $31,000 per school year, compared with the $9,900 average benefit that veterans are given now. Å®eeting the needs of our veterans is a cost of war, said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, who described the bill as a ÅÕhank you to the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. While Democratic leaders say they see a yes-vote on their proposal as a no-brainer for any lawmaker facing voters this fall, the new GI benefits plan has Republicans and even some members of the more fiscally conservative Democratic rank-and-file balking at the cost. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the proposal would cost $51.8 billion in the next 10 years. The Pentagon has said that it's open to increasing college aid, even substantially, for veterans but wants the commitment extended to at least six years, instead of three, before the full benefit kicks in. ŵhe last thing we want to do is create a situation in which we are losing our men and women who we have worked so hard to train, said Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell. Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Richard Burr of North Carolina have proposed an alternative that would boost the maximum monthly stipend for GIs from $1,100 a month to $1,500 a month. Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia counters that his legislation would be more effective in attracting recruits and would offset any drop in the military's ranks. Ū can't think of a better way to broaden (the) propensity to serve than to offer a truly meaningful educational benefit, rather than simply taking that smaller demographic of those already enlisted ÅÂnd pound on it with repeated combat tours, he said. Democrats are pushing Webb's bill and other domestic add-ons, including a major expansion of state unemployment benefits, as part of a $195 billion package that would pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through early next year. A House vote is planned this week. http://ebird.afis.mil/ebfiles/e20080513600289.html <A href="http://68.142.200.12/us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ya/securedownload?clean=0&fid=Inbox&mid=1_1243351_AEr PjkQAAMlrSCncUQw5u0KEYWI&pid=2&tnef=&prefFilename= e20080513aaindex_concat.html&cred=Nl2IR8_kuEvyLvbb znUgdhPokAWh88PjxjICB3oqgjk4r3p0UYAvxsijtaVM0HWX#T OP"> |
