Report Expected To Address WMD In Iraq

[thedrifter]

Report Expected To Address WMD In Iraq
Associated Press
January 18, 2005

WASHINGTON - The final U.S. intelligence report on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq is expected to address whether the banned armaments may have been smuggled out of the country before the war started.

Top Bush administration officials have speculated publicly that chemical, biological or radiological weapons may have been smuggled out, and the question is one of the unresolved issues on WMD. The report is due next month.

Intelligence and congressional officials say they have not seen any information - never "a piece," said one - indicating that WMD or significant amounts of components and equipment were transferred from Iraq to neighboring Syria, Jordan or elsewhere.

The administration acknowledged last week that the search for banned weapons is largely over. The Iraq Survey Group's chief, Charles Duelfer, is expected to submit the final installments of his report in February. A small number of the organization's experts will remain on the job in case new intelligence on Iraqi WMD is unearthed.

But the officials familiar with the search say U.S. authorities have found no evidence that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein transferred WMD or related equipment out of Iraq.




A special adviser to the CIA director, Duelfer declined an interview request through an agency spokesman. In his last public statements, he told a Senate panel last October that it remained unclear whether banned weapons could have been moved from Iraq.

"What I can tell you is that I believe we know a lot of materials left Iraq and went to Syria. There was certainly a lot of traffic across the border points," he said. "But whether in fact in any of these trucks there was WMD-related materials, I cannot say."

Last week, a congressional official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said suggestions that weapons or components were sent from Iraq were based on speculation stemming from uncorroborated information.

President Bush and top-raking officials in his administration used the existence of WMD in Iraq as the main justification for the March 2003 invasion, and throughout much of last year the White House continued to raise the possibility the weapons were transferred to another country.

For instance:

-Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said in early October he believed Saddam had WMD before the war. "He has either hidden them so well or moved them somewhere else, or decided to destroy them ... in event of a conflict but kept the capability of developing them rapidly," Rumsfeld said in a Fox News Channel interview.

Eight months earlier, he told senators "it's possible that WMD did exist, but was transferred, in whole or in part, to one or more other countries. We see that theory put forward."

-Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed concern the WMD would be found. However, when asked in September if the WMD could have been hidden or moved to a country like Syria, he said, "I can't exclude any of those possibilities."

-And, on MSNBC's "Hardball" in June, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said: "Everyone believed that his programs were more active than they appeared to be, but recognize, he had a lot of time to move stuff, a lot of time to hide stuff."

Since the October report from Duelfer, which said Saddam intended to obtain WMD but had no banned weapons, senior administration leaders have largely stopped discussing whether the weapons were moved.

Last week, the intelligence and congressional officials said evidence indicating somewhat common equipment with dual military and civilian uses, such as fermenters, was salvaged during post-invasion looting and sold for scrap in other countries. Syria was mentioned as one location.

However, the U.S. intelligence community's 2002 estimate on Iraq indicated there were sizable weapons programs and stockpiles. The officials said weapons experts have not found a production capability in Iraq that would back up the size of the prewar estimates.

Among a series of key findings, that estimate said Iraq "has largely rebuilt missile and biological weapons facilities damaged" during a 1998 U.S.-British bombing campaign and "has expanded its chemical and biological infrastructure under the cover of civilian production."

Although the U.S. had little specific information, the estimate also said Saddam probably stockpiled at least 100 metric tons, possibly 500 metric tons, of chemical weapons agents - "much of it added in the last year."

Ellie

[thedrifter]

More Abuse Trials To Come <br />
Christian Science Monitor <br />
January 18, 2005 <br />
<br />
WASHINGTON - The speedy court martial conviction of the ringleader of the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal, Spc. Charles...

[thedrifter]

Trial Focused On Graner's Actions <br />
USA TODAY <br />
January 18, 2005 <br />
<br />
Although Army reservist Charles Graner was convicted of abusing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, his court-martial left...

[thedrifter]

3/1 Marines pay respect to those lost on 9-11, in Fallujah
Submitted by: 1st Marine Division
Story Identification #: 20051183534
Story by Cpl. Randy L. Bernard



FALLUJAH, Iraq (Jan. 17, 2005) -- Although it has been years since the twin towers in New York City fell, the Marines fighting insurgency within the city of Fallujah do so because they remember the terrible actions against their home.

These Marines got the chance to show their respect to not only those killed in New York, but also their fellow Marines who fell during the attack on terrorism in Fallujah with a flag raising ceremony Jan. 16.

“We had the privilege of bringing a group of flags, our national colors, the New York State flag, the New York Police Department flag, and a world trade center flag on tour through the city of Fallujah to our rifle companies in third battalion,” said Lt. Col. Willy A. Buhl, battalion commander for 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.

“We want to connect with the folks back home in any way that we can. These flags were sent to us in an effort to connect with the Marines and sailors forward deployed out here,” said the 42-year-old native of Los Gatos, Calif. “The flags had been flown at ground zero at the site of the attack on 9-11. The New York City chief of police actually sent them to us with the request that they be flown in the city of Fallujah for the folks back home, and for us.”

The four flags were taken into the city, where the battalion’s rifle companies have established firm bases, so that they Marines could pay tribute to the lives lost at the cost of freedom.

“I think that every Marine feels something special when they see our national colors. Many of (the Marines) are on duty because of the events on 9-11,” said Buhl. “I don’t think that there was a man today that didn’t have an emotional feeling inside, especially after all we have done here in Iraq over the last seven months, and after all of the men who have made and continue to make the ultimate sacrifice here to defend our freedoms.”

The national colors were presented to the companies like the famous image of Marines raising the flag atop Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima during World War II.

“That is maybe the most famous symbol of military excellence, and it represents all the sacrifice of all Marines since the beginning of our Corps and ensures that we enjoy the blessings of liberty in our great nation,” said Buhl. “That image is going to be famous until the end of time.”

Among the battalion’s Marines, those that were residents of New York felt a special pride in the ceremony.

“I feel proud and privileged that we had the opportunity to pay our respects to the people who suffered the most from the tragedy of 9-11,” said Staff Sgt. John P. Saul, a platoon sergeant with Company K, 3/5 and a 27-year-old native of Niagara Falls, N.Y. “And also to let the people of New York know that we are still out here continuing to fight the individuals that caused that tragedy to happen.”

Though Buhl was raised in northern California, he was born in New York, and shares a bond with his roots.

“I was honored to receive a letter from someone as senior as the chief of New York police, but on a personal level, unlike a lot of the tours and things that we do over here, this was just for the folks back home,” said Buhl. “I feel honored and privileged to support the people of New York and our great nation.”

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/20051183134/$file/Flag2low.jpg

An American flag that was once flown over ground-zero in New York City is prepared for a ceremony in the city of Fallujah to remember those who lost their lives in terrorist attacks on 9-11 and those service members who sacrificed their lives to bring justice to the people responsible. Photo by: Cpl. Randy L. Bernard

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Fighting the Insurgents, One Car at a Time

By Jason Chudy,
Stars and Stripes Mideast edition


BAGHDAD — Soldiers from the 58th Combat Engineer Company are fighting a war against insurgents one car at a time.

The Fort Irwin, Calif.-based unit’s Assault and Obstacles Platoon spent part of Saturday searching cars, buses and trucks at a traffic checkpoint in the city’s Mutanabbi neighborhood.

After the platoon set up near a gas station, soldiers began checking IDs of passing motorists and giving cars a quick once-over, looking for anything out of place.

“We’ll always do a cursory search on everything,” said company commander Maj. Chris Emond. “[Saturday] we spent a lot more time checking the bolo list.”

Bolo stands for “be on the lookout” and the list describes wanted cars or people. Sometimes the list is specific, other times it’s not.

“One time they said we’re looking for a green Opel,” said Humvee gunner Pfc. Jorel Abreu. “Within 10 minutes we saw like 30 of them. They’ll say ‘black BMW’ and we’ll see a thousand of them.”

Baghdad traffic, which is normally clogged during the day, grinds to a halt on the soldiers’ side of the street as they check cars against their list.

Out of the few hundred vehicles passing through, the soldiers thoroughly searched about two dozen of them.

Pfc. Anthony Sanchez said that during one checkpoint a few months back they searched about 650 cars in a three-hour period.

Saturday’s cars ranged from fairly new BMWs to indistinguishable models with missing parts and pieces held in place with rope or wire.

Emond said that they’ll often search cars that are “too brand new” or really old and beat up. The soldiers pay close attention to the vehicle occupants’ demeanor.

“If they’re looking forward, not looking at you, or shaking when you ask them for ID, these are the guys you worry about,” Sanchez said.

One vehicle they searched had three bloody handprints on it and the driver didn’t have an ID card. The day before two people in the nearby gas line were killed in a fight, so the soldiers worried that the driver may have been involved.

“[The driver] said it was traditional to sacrifice a chicken and put the blood on a new car to thank God for the gift,” Emond said.

He confirmed the tradition with the unit’s translator.

They continued to ask the man various questions on details of the sacrifice, whether he owned any weapons, and what happened to his ID.

The man told them that he had to turn over the ID while the car registration paperwork was being done.

They also tested the man for explosives residue and searched his car. He hadn’t been handling explosives or fired a weapon and the search turned up nothing suspicious.

During the entire time, Emond said, the man remained patient and friendly to the soldiers. “Throughout all the questions he wasn’t especially nervous or especially cocky,” Emond said. “He did not appear to look like a bad guy.”

The man and his bloodied car were eventually allowed to pass.

People’s attitudes toward the soldiers, he said, can also draw attention to them. “A lot of them that are comfortable with us being in the area tend to welcome it if they’re innocent,” Emond said. “They’ll happily show us their car.”

“It’s 50-50 on whether the people don't like you or do,” said Abreu. “Mainly females and kids like you. Men are the stubborn ones. They’re aggressive and cause the problems.”

Saturday’s search, as with most of their searches, didn’t turn up anything exciting, other than a man with a pistol. The man turned out to be a translator for another Army unit and was allowed to pass after checks of his IDs and weapons permit.

The soldiers do come across weapons, but most of the owners are authorized to carry them.

“Occasionally there are some,” Emond said. “Most of the ones we see are individuals with the Iraqi Police or Iraqi National Guard with valid weapons permits.”

Some, however, show up with weapons but no weapons permit. If they can establish that the person is entitled to a weapon, such as from a phone call to their unit, they’re allowed to pass.

If they can’t prove it, the soldiers keep the weapon.

Finding weapons isn’t a big surprise, but when another of the company’s platoons stopped a truck a few months back it did cause a commotion.

The truck was full of ammunition; it was being used as a mobile weapons cache, said Emond.

Even though the soldiers usually don’t regularly make big hauls, or for that matter any at all, Emond believes the TCPs help.

Because the insurgents don’t know where or when the next checkpoint is going to be set up, their attack plans may be disrupted.

The soldiers don’t know how to measure the “disruption effect” of their checkpoints, Emond said. However, he added: “We’re pretty confident that … happens.”


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Wolfowitz: Sri Lanka Quickly Rebuilding
Associated Press
January 18, 2005

GALLE, Sri Lanka - U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said Monday that Sri Lanka is moving swiftly from relief to reconstruction three weeks after a devastating tsunami and help from U.S. military engineers will not be needed much longer.

In Indonesia, the United Nations banned its staff from traveling between the hard-hit provincial capital of Banda Aceh to the east Sumatran city of Medan because of reported fighting between the military and separatist rebels in the tsunami-battered area, a U.N. spokesman said.

Also Monday, the Indonesian military and the top U.N. official in Aceh province said they had no information of a specific threat to aid workers in Indonesia, despite a warning Monday from Denmark of an "imminent terror attack."

An insurgent commander told The Associated Press that rebels will not attack foreign aid workers because the groups have been helping disaster victims.

After visiting a battered area on Sri Lanka's southern coast, Wolfowitz said he was "impressed by how resilient people are" and then met the country's leaders to see what more America can do.

He said cooperation by Tamil rebels in the relief efforts was "probably a good sign," and hoped the catastrophe shared by the feuding ethnic groups would help spur peace efforts.





"When people face a disaster of this kind and see help coming from their government and help coming from outside, hopefully they realize on all sides that the stakes for which they are fighting are relatively trivial in comparison," he said.

From a helicopter, Wolfowitz surveyed rubble-lined beaches, where about 700 U.S. Marines are helping to clear debris and rebuild. So far, the U.S. government has sent $38 million to the island in emergency aid.

Wolfowitz said Sri Lanka was further along than Indonesia in starting to rebuild, and the U.S. military may soon leave.

"We don't want to stay any longer than we are really needed," Wolfowitz said. "I think the need for this kind of military support is going away quite quickly."

Earlier, U.S. Marine Lt. Gen. Robert Blackman, who is coordinating American relief efforts in South Asia, said he expected the U.S. military to wind down operations in Thailand and Sri Lanka in the next two weeks.

Relief efforts are being led by nearly 15,000 U.S. troops - most of whom are docked off the coast of western Sumatra island. Australia, Singapore, Germany and other nations also have contributed troops.

Japan was preparing its biggest-ever overseas military relief effort, a mission involving 1,000 troops expected to arrive soon in their first deployment to Indonesia since World War II.

On Sunday, Jakarta backed away from an earlier call for troops to be out of Indonesia by March 26.

One contingent of U.S. servicemen went to the eastern part of Sri Lanka near the town of Ampara, an area where control is divided between the army and Tamil Tiger guerrillas.

"We're all coming together to help all Sri Lankans, regardless of what ethnic group they're from or what area of the country they live in," U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Lunstead said.

About 65,000 people were killed in the 20-year ethnic war between the Tamil rebels and the Sinhalese-dominated government until a cease-fire in 2002.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said his country was "still living the nightmare of the aftermath of the horrific earthquake and tsunami," and aid workers in Aceh said the disaster took a heavy toll on those most needed now: health professionals.

"There has been a whole generation of nurses and doctors just killed," said Lt. Col. John Crozier, an Australian surgeon at a hospital in Banda Aceh.

U.N. security officials declared a state of "heightened awareness" for their relief workers in Indonesia pending investigation of the Danish warning, said U.N. World Food Program spokeswoman Christian Berthiaume in Geneva. Staff was instructed to "take all security precautions necessary," she said.

Joel Boutroue, head of the U.N. relief effort in Aceh, told the AP he had not received any information of a specific terrorist threat. In Jakarta, Indonesian military spokesman Col. Ahmad Yani said officials did not know what information the Danish warning was based on.

In Banda Aceh, Mans Nyberg, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said the travel ban would be effective from Monday night until Tuesday morning between the provincial capital and Medan. It takes about 12 hours to drive the 280-mile stretch of road.

"This is strictly because of the fighting going on down there," Nyberg said, citing reports of a "small battle" between the Indonesian military and rebels.

Militants with the Free Aceh Movement, commonly known by the acronym GAM, have been fighting for three decades to gain independence for Aceh - the northernmost province on Sumatra island.

Both sides have reported skirmishes since the disaster. The military has accused the rebels of trying to hijack aid, which the guerrillas deny.

Tengku Mucksalmina, an insurgent commander, said in an interview with the AP that rebels "would never ambush any convoy with aid" because they want the relief workers to stay.

"Our mothers, our wives, our children are victims from this tragedy," he said from his hideout on the edge of a jungle outside Banda Aceh.

"We ask them not to leave the Acehnese people who are suffering," he said of the aid groups.

A Danish medical team running a field hospital on the edge of Banda Aceh limited its movement in response to the warning but did not consider itself a target, group leader Morten Hansen said.

"We don't think it's dangerous," said Hansen, chief of the 24-person Danish Emergency Mobile Hospital.

The death toll from the Dec. 26 magnitude-9.0 earthquake that spawned killer waves in 11 nations stood Monday at nearly 163,000, with more than two-thirds of the deaths in Indonesia.

Sri Lanka's Public Security Ministry on Monday raised its national tally by 7,000 deaths to more than 38,000, while the country's National Disaster Management Center maintained its official figure of only 31,000 deaths. The conflicting information could not immediately be resolved.

The security ministry's toll would raise the worldwide number of deaths to about 170,000.

The World Food Program is distributing 300 tons of rice a day, with most people around Banda Aceh equipped with one-month rations of rice, noodles and protein-enriched biscuits, spokesman Gerald Bourke said.

Another 9,000 tons of food supplies were expected to arrive soon and would be anchored off the western Sumatra, he said.

In Geneva, WHO Director-General Dr. Lee Jong-wook warned that tsunami-devastated communities may suffer for years from higher incidence of disease unless careful steps are taken.

"This transition from relief to reconstruction must take place smoothly, with sustained support," Lee told a meeting of WHO's Executive Board. "Otherwise, as we have seen with other disasters, communities can languish for many years in a state of dependence, with high levels of disease and mortality."

Priorities include restoring permanent supplies of food and water, and rebuilding sanitation systems and health facilities, Lee said.

A U.N. conference in Kobe, Japan, on Tuesday will focus on creating a tsunami warning system for southern Asia.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Gunmen Kidnap Catholic Archbishop
Associated Press
January 18, 2005

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen kidnapped a Catholic archbishop and targeted security forces in a series of brazen attacks Monday that killed more than 20 people. U.S. Marines suffered undisclosed casualties in a car bombing in Ramadi, where two Shiite Muslims were beheaded and their bodies left on a sidewalk.

The top U.S. general here predicted more violence on the Jan. 30 balloting but pledged to do "everything in our power" to ensure safety. U.S. and Iraqi authorities hope for a substantial turnout, especially from the long-suppressed Shiite Muslim majority.

In Mosul, Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa, 66, of the Syrian Catholic Church, was seized while walking in front of his church, a priest said on condition of anonymity. No group claimed responsibility, but The Vatican condemned the abduction as a "terrorist act.

Christians make up just 3 percent of Iraq's 26 million people. The major Christian groups include Chaldean-Assyrians and Armenians with small numbers of Roman Catholics.

The deadliest attacks occurred in the three insurgent flashpoint cities north and west of Baghdad in areas where Sunni Muslim insurgents are seeking to derail the balloting.

In Buhriz, 55 kilometers (35 miles) north of Baghdad, gunmen attacked an Iraqi National Guard checkpoint at the provincial broadcasting center, killing eight soldiers and wounding four. A suicide driver blasted a police station in Beiji, 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, killing seven policemen and wounding 25 people.




In Ramadi, 110 kilometers (70 miles) west of Baghdad, a U.S. spokesman said Marines suffered casualties in a clash which erupted after they were sent to check a report of a suspicious vehicle. When the Marines arrived, they came under small arms and rocket-propelled grenade fire and the vehicle exploded, according to Marine spokesman 1st Lt. Lyle Gilbert.

"There were U.S. casualties," he said but declined to give further details, citing security.

Also in Ramadi, officials Monday found six bodies - five civilians and one Iraqi soldier - each bearing handwritten notes declaring them collaborators, officials said. Four had been shot but two were beheaded, their blood-soaked bodies left where they died.

A note left beside the bodies said they were Shiite who confessed to spying for the Americans. They were seized after leaving an American garrison in the middle of the city, the note said.

Shiites have been targets of intimidation because they are expected to turn out in large numbers for the election, in which Iraqis will choose a 275-member National Assembly that will appoint a new government and draft a permanent constitution.

Shiites form about 60 percent of Iraq's 26 million population, and their candidates are expected to win most of the assembly seats. Many Sunni Arabs fear the loss of power they enjoyed under Saddam Hussein. Sunni clerics have called for a boycott, and U.S. officials fear a low Sunni turnout may cast doubt on the legitimacy of the new government.

On Monday, police discovered a car loaded with explosives in the Shiite holy city of Karbala. On Sunday, a total of 17 people were killed in attacks along the main highway from Baghdad to Kut, 160 kilometers (100 miles) to the southeast.

Many Shiites have been using the Kut highway for travel to the south to avoid a more direct route which passes through the "triangle of death," where Sunni extremists have been targeting Shiites, foreigners, government officials and security personnel.

In Kut, gunmen broke into an administration building at Wasit University early Monday, wounded two guards and ransacked some offices, police said. University authorities postponed exams until after the election. Kut is in a largely Shiite province which U.S. officials said was safe for elections.

In a statement Monday, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., commander of the multinational forces, said about 300,000 U.S., Iraqi and other international forces will be available to protect voters.

"Is there going to be violence on election day? There is, but it's important that we understand what's happening here," Casey said. "It's not just about violence. It's about former regime loyalists and foreign terrorists murdering innocent Iraqis and Iraqi security forces to stop them from exercising their right to vote."

Nevertheless, violence has already impacted on the exercise in democracy. Some political alliances have declined to release all the names of their candidates for fear of attack, and little public campaigning has been possible except in Kurdish areas of the north.

Shiite politician Salama Khafaji, who survived an ambush Sunday in central Baghdad by gunmen wearing police uniforms, said she canceled campaigning in the south after her staff discovered terrorist checkpoints on major routes.

"We sent people out today to check roads in the area but they have reported back that terrorists have set up some road checkpoints," she said. "Generally I cannot go out and meet people or knock on door to get out the vote like they do in the West."

Despite the security crisis at home, Iraqis living abroad began registering to vote Monday, with dozens arriving at polling stations in 14 countries from Australia to Britain to the United States. Many expressed confusion at the process.

Officials estimate 1.2 million Iraqis are eligible to vote overseas. In Britain, many of the estimated 150,000 Iraqis eligible to vote were confused about the fledgling political process and unsure who to vote for.

"We lived in a dictatorship a long time, and it's the first time in my life, in my 48 years, that I can vote in Iraq," said Saieb Jabbar, who arrived at a London registration center with his 23-year-old son, Ahmed. "I feel very happy."

Thousands of Iraqi expatriates headed to the Detroit suburb of Southgate and four other U.S. cities Monday to register. Some traveled hundreds of kilometers (miles) to participate.

Bushra Albrhi, who registered with her husband, said she appreciates the part America played in getting rid of Saddam and giving Iraqis the chance to vote.

"It's the first time for the Iraqis. We'll be very happy if we get a president from the people," she said.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Mother starts Web site for Marine parents

By: JESSICA MUSICAR - For the North County Times

Chris Tuthill said that when her 17-year-old-son told her he wanted to join the Marines in 2003, she went into immediate shock from fear of the unknown and, of course, the possibility of her boy seeing warfare.

"I was terrified that he would go to Iraq or Afghanistan," said Tuthill, a Santee resident.

Although Tuthill begged him to look into other branches of the military, Brian Tuthill made up his mind to become a Marine while completing his senior year of high school.

During that time, Chris Tuthill began to use marineparents.com, a Web site dedicated to providing information and support to the family, friends and loved ones of Marines. The site features separate message boards for the parents of recruits in boot camp, for the parents of deployed Marines, and for parents whose Marines have died.

"Every step of the way you have support no matter what part of the process you are in," Tuthill said. "I don't know what parents did before e-mail. They didn't have connection with anybody."

Brian Tuthill is in military occupational school at Fort Mead in Maryland, but if he's deployed, Tuthill said, she will be on marineparents.com every night, looking for the support, information and camaraderie she will need if he enters the front.

Founded by Marine parent Tracy Della Vecchia in January 2003, marineparents.com is a Missouri-based, nonprofit corporation run by volunteers to help parents and families get through the emotional roller coaster of having a son or daughter in the Marine Corps.

Designed to be a place where Marine parents and loved ones can connect and share, the site includes recruit and parent message boards, chat rooms, e-mail support, regional support groups, live support as well as a database of local military support groups and a unit information.

Della Vecchia said it is important for these people to have a way to connect and share their feelings so that they know that what they are going through is not unusual.

"When you are connecting with someone else who knows what it feels like, you don't feel as crazy," Della Vecchia said. "It's good not to go at it alone."

Della Vecchia said that she separated the boot camp message board from the other forums because she believes that those parents are not yet prepared to take the leap until their Marines are.

"Boot camp is one thing, but deployment is a whole new world," Della Vecchia said. "If you are a boot mom, you feel like it's the worst thing. You've got as much to learn about the Marine Corps as your son does. Little do they know that that barely scratches the surface of what their emotions will be like."

Marineparents.com is virtually packed with nearly 1,000 pages of information about the Marine Corps, deployments and Marine speak. About 9,300 members are registered on the site, Della Vecchia said.

In addition to posted information, volunteers are almost always on hand to answer a parent's questions or give them solace when they are in need. All 32 of the volunteers have family members in Iraq or boot camp, Della Vecchia said; it's a prerequisite. Volunteers work out of many different states including Idaho, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Texas, South Carolina, Massachusetts, Missouri, Illinois, California, Florida, Idaho and North Carolina.

"If you are going to support another family, you have to have been there, done that," Della Vecchia said.

San Diego-based volunteer Kathryn Ostapuk began visiting the site when her husband was deployed to Iraq. She said she has gone back every day since.

Ostapuk, who spends about 30 hours a week working on the site and communicating with parents, recently received an award for volunteer service from President Bush.

Ostapuk said she likes marineparents.com because it does not allow the discussion of politics, and provides a support system that everyone on the site needs. She added that she has developed many friendships with the Marine wives and girlfriends she has met through the site.

"No one really understands what is like to have someone you love in a combat situation," Ostapuk said. "The second you log on everyone immediately adopts you."

While volunteers and Marine families try to stay positive, there is no denying that there is an underlying sense of fear that one's son, daughter, wife or husband may be killed in combat. A special forum has been set up for family members who have lost a Marine.

Created for families of fallen heroes, the Gold Star forum is a restricted board where they can go to connect with each other, Della Vecchia said.

"No one else can know what it feels like," Della Vecchia said. "There is no deeper pain, it doesn't matter how tight you are in Marine Corps family. Nobody else can emphasize what its like to lose a son unless you've been there."

Della Vecchia said that it is painful when a parent or friend calls or writes to be added to the forum.

"It's the hardest part of this job," Della Vecchia said, her voice trembling.

While the site tries to provide as much information as possible to parents and loved ones of Marines, it is checked for operational security so that information about troop movement and other classified information cannot accidentally get in the wrong hands.

Della Vecchia, who runs a Web design business with her husband, decided to start the site when her own son was getting ready to leave for Iraq.

Looking for general information about the Marines and how to do simple things such as sending care packages or paying his bills, Della Vecchia quickly found that there was no comprehensive site to help her. Taking what information she could find, Della Vecchia began to compile it in order to help parents like herself.

In October 2003 she added the message board and then hand-picked volunteers to help with the site. Della Vecchia's son, Derrick Della Vecchia, has been deployed twice and will be returning to Iraq this month.

Della Vecchia said the site is as much for her as it is for its members. She said she can't focus on anything else while her son is deployed so she tries to help out other families as much as possible.

"I am making a difference in people's lives, and I really like that," Della Vecchia said.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Iraqi Cops Prepare for National Elections
Police Commandos and Border Patrol Enforcement Gear Up for More Active Security Role

January 16, 2005


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
by Jim Kouri, CPP

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[This article is taken from an abridged report to appear in The Chief of Police Magazine.)

The Iraqi Police Commandos stepped-up operations in the Ad Dawrah area of Baghdad in a continuing effort to identify and disrupt insurgent and criminal activity. The early morning raids yielded useful neighborhood intelligence and resulted in the detainment of several individuals. The operation's commanders claim their successes will contribute to peaceful elections set for the end of January.

Police officials are aggressively planning and expanding these strategic searches in an effort to keep AIF and other criminal elements off balance. A spokesperson for the commandos indicated that the citizens of Baghdad are growing weary of the violence in their neighborhoods and are actively assisting the police in this effort.

“The citizens we encountered in Ad Dawrah were happy to see the police commandos actively pursuing insurgents,” said U.S. Sgt. Cutroneo working in conjunction with the Iraqi Police Commandos and area security planners with the U.S. 5th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. The planning for future operations is ongoing. The Baghdad area has recently experienced an increase in insurgent attacks.

The Iraqi Department of Border Enforcement, as part of the Iraqi government’s continuing effort to provide peace and security to the citizens of Iraq, is establishing a new and comprehensive training program that will produce a fully trained, equipped, and professional force of 11,000 officers by the end of December 2004. The program, under construction with Coalition and U.S. Department of Homeland Security assistance, will call for the initial training of 600 border enforcement officers and an additional 72 Iraqi trainers capable of teaching future iterations in their respective disciplines. Classes are slated to kick off in Amman, Jordan, at the Jordan International Police Training Center.

“It is the most important problem for Iraq,” a senior Iraqi Department of Border Enforcement official said (name withheld for security reasons). “Right now our borders are open ports for enemies and weapons to come into our country. “If we are to have a safe and secure Iraq, we must stop the problems at our borders,” he said. “But right now this doesn’t exist.”

Course work will include instruction in technical and non-technical inspections, custom tariff collections, evidence processing, legal considerations, anti-smuggling techniques, ethics, and various supervisory and support staff skills for customs, border police, and immigration personnel. The training effort will eventually move to Iraq with accommodations for the Department of Border Enforcement at the Baghdad Public Service Academy and the opening of regional academies co-located with Iraqi Police Service academies in Kirkuk, Mosul, and Basra.

Iraq will eventually deploy 251 border forts equipped with state-of-the-art security equipment including night-vision capabilities, unattended ground sensors, and closed-circuit television, camera, and multiplexer equipment. “We have a long history of border security,” the official said. “But with Coalition help we can do this and the future will be fine. “This force and the training we are putting together is like a new-born baby for us,” he added. “The effect will be a safe Iraq.”

“The Iraqis have got to be able to secure the borders and stabilize the country before any progress can be made here,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Country Director for Iraq, Doug Melvin said “The concept is to not only establish a program of instruction,” he added, “but to develop lesson plans tailored to fit each region in Iraq.” The plan calls for 600 personnel to be trained every four weeks in a respective discipline within the border enforcement area of responsibility. Currently the department handles customs and immigration duties in addition to border security responsibilities. “We want to enhance the ability of the Iraqis to provide their own security,” Melvin said, “thus disengaging from the Coalition side.

Sources: Multinational Security Task Force, National Association of Chiefs of Police
Jim Kouri



Ellie

[thedrifter]

January 17, 2005

Troops work to bolster pre-election security

By Sally Buzbee
Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Insurgents stepped up their intimidation attacks across Iraq on Sunday two weeks before a crucial national election, ambushing a car carrying a prominent woman candidate, blasting polling centers and killing 17 in assaults on Iraqi police and others.
U.S. troops staged a series of raids in Mosul and other parts of northern and central Iraq, arresting dozens, in an effort to improve security before the balloting two weeks away.

But a top U.S. official conceded that American and Iraqi forces can’t stop the “extraordinary” intimidation tactics. Many of the deadly attacks Sunday occurred in areas that officials call safe for elections.

The crackle of small-arms fire reverberated through a busy neighborhood in the center of Baghdad, sending shoppers scurrying, in an afternoon attack that underscored the precarious security situation.

The woman candidate, Salama al-Khafaji, was ambushed in central Baghdad by gunmen wearing police uniforms, but escaped injury when her bodyguards returned fire, an aide said. It was the second attempt since May on the life of al-Khafaji, who is running on the slate endorsed by the country’s main Shiite cleric that is favored to win.

Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz acknowledged that the security threat to the Jan. 30 election was worse than in last October’s balloting in Afghanistan and that it was impossible to guarantee “absolute security” against the “extraordinary intimidation that the enemy is undertaking.”

“There was intimidation in Afghanistan — the Taliban threatened all kinds of violence against people who registered or people who voted,” Wolfowitz said in Jakarta, Indonesia. “But I don’t believe they ever got around to shooting election workers in the street or kidnapping the children of political candidates.”

Interim President Ghazi al-Yawer said that if the elections were postponed for six months, there was no guarantee the violence would wane. The insurgents “might lay down for two or three months, then carry out attacks again,” he said.

Most of the violence occurred around Kut, about 25 miles southeast of Baghdad, or around Mosul in the north, the country’s third-largest city.

Near Kut, three Iraqi policemen were killed in one shooting and three Iraqi National Guard officers were killed by a hand grenade in another attack. As mourners gathered for the policemen’s funeral, a suicide attacker blew himself up in the crowd, killing himself and seven others.

In Mosul, insurgents shot dead a member of a local government council and set off explosives as a U.S. convoy passed, damaging a Bradley Fighting Vehicle. It was unclear whether there were casualties.

A mortar also damaged a school in Mosul to be used as a polling place. And four other mortar rounds blasted schools in relatively quiet Basra, in the south, also slated to serve as polling centers.

Even in heavily Shiite areas of south-central Iraq, which is far more stable than Mosul or Baghdad, several election workers have been threatened and resigned in recent days, a senior U.S. Embassy official said Sunday in Hillah while outlining election preparations there.

“Most expect a high turnout if things seem quiet enough. There is some worry if you have a series of car bombs, people will think twice about coming,” the official said.

In central Baghdad, insurgents attacked an Iraqi National Guard patrol on the east side of the Tigris river and then melted into the crowd in the open market area, sending shoppers running. Sounds of heavy machine-gun and automatic-weapons fire reverberated for nearly an hour along Haifa street on the western side of the river.

Around Mosul, the Army’s Stryker Brigade Combat Team detained 11 suspected insurgents, including an alleged cell leader, and seized weapons and bomb-making material in several weekend raids — part of the military’s strategy to try to secure the city short of launching an all-out offensive.

The Mosul area has emerged as a major flashpoint between U.S. and Iraqi forces and the insurgents, raising fears the election cannot be held in much of the city.

U.S. and Iraqi officials are scrambling to recruit new police and election workers in Mosul after thousands resigned in the face of rebel intimidation.

Other election problems emerged. With hours-long waits at gas stations across the country, the Iraqi government denied what it called “rumors” that the Oil Ministry planned to keep gas supplies low around election day to deter car bombs. The government has indicated it plans to restrict much driving around the election.

But the long gas lines clearly were becoming a sore point. About 300 followers of radical Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr began a three-day sit-in in front of the Oil Ministry in Baghdad to protest the shortages.

Elsewhere, the body of a man was found in a street in the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi with a paper on his back identifying him as an Egyptian citizen. “This will be the punishment of anyone who deals with American forces,” the paper read.

Gunmen also shot dead an Iraqi who works as a translator for a Filipino company working on water projects for multinational forces near Kut, a medical official said.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

11th MEU conducts largest HAO this deployment
Submitted by: 11th MEU
Story Identification #: 200511591155
Story by Gunnery Sgt. Robert K. Blankenship



AN NAJAF, Iraq (Jan. 14, 2005) -- Marines and sailors from Marine Expeditionary Unit Service Support Group 11, 11th MEU (Special Operations Capable), conducted a humanitarian assistance operation in the village of Qadisiyah, in the An Najaf province, Iraq, Jan. 14.

The MEU processed more than 1,100 local Iraqis -- including 150 that received medical or dental treatment -- in their largest HAO this deployment.

They also handed out thousands of humanitarian items to the locals, including everything from blankets, water bottles, Meal Ready-to-Eat packages, soccer balls to other children's' toys. It was conducted at a school that also received sports equipment from the MEU.

The 11th MEU has continued to conduct security and stability operations in the An Najaf and An Qadisiyah provinces since they assumed operational control here July 31.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

7th Comm Marines work hard, indirectly save lives
Submitted by: MCB Camp Butler
Story Identification #: 2005116225456
Story by Gunnery Sgt. Lawrence Torres III



ROYAL THAI NAVAL AIR BASE, UTAPAO, Thailand (Jan. 16, 2005) -- “Here is the ball … roll it,” were the words that Sgt. Harold H. Crawley, Jr., heard on the morning of Dec. 31, after being told he would leave for Southeast Asia in a few hours.

The 7th Communications Battalion, III Marine Expeditionary Force Marine wire supervisor is among more than 18,000 Marines, Sailors, Airmen, Soldiers and Coast Guardsmen here with Combined Support Force 536 in support of Operation Unified Assistance, who are aiding the affected people of Thailand, Sri Lanka and Indonesia after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake Dec. 26 triggered devastating tsunamis.

“I was writing my new year’s resolutions down when I received the phone call,” said Crawley, a Las Vegas native, whose resolution list included getting married to Makiko Nomura and becoming a good husband. “I wanted to start the new year by going to the gym and getting real big, (but) this kind of ruined that.”

Twenty nine 7th Comm. Marines joined Crawley and packed their communications and support gear and were on Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, within 24 hours after receiving the call to deploy, according to Chief Warrant Officer-2 Tony D. Apperson, technical control officer with 7th Comm.

“To be out the door that fast is uncommon,” Apperson said. “Normally we plan movements and stage our gear a couple of weeks before the personnel (needing internet and phone capabilities) arrive.”

Apperson said the Marines were excited and ready to support the mission.
“We had very little sleep the first couple of days (here),” said 1st Lt. Tim J. Kuhn, the 7th Comm. systems control watch officer who arrived with the first wave of Marines. “The Marines were very motivated because they knew what was at stake.”

Crawley said the thought of the tsunami victims kept him going.

“I knew someone out there was depending on me to create (telecommunications) so calls could be made to (support elements like helicopters) to get supplies to the victims as soon as possible,” Crawley said. “I told my Marines ‘This could be you or your family, so let’s give 100 percent.’”

Crawley’s motivational talks spurred his Marines to lay more than two miles of communication cable for phone and internet usage the first night they arrived and more than 40 miles of cable since that day.

The cable was one huge aspect of the growing operation, according to Apperson. The Marines were tasked with supporting personnel from host nations, civilian aid organizations and U.S. Department of Defense, and also had to send about two detachments of 10 Marines each to Indonesia and Sri Lanka.

“(7th Comm.) is used to supporting 250 personnel (for computer internet connections) during large exercises like Cobra Gold in Thailand and (joint exercise) Ulchi Focus Lens in Korea and Okinawa,” Apperson said. “We have just over 400 (people) using the internal internet drops. That’s pretty big.

“It’s unbelievable to watch Marines who do not want (leave work) until they finish their job,” said the Albany, Ga., native. “The Marines know that they are here to assist and provide the best service (possible).”

Crawley is now packing their initial gear and preparing for their next order to move.
“We are not sure where we are going next,” said Crawley. “I am tired … we are Marines (and) we are ready to go.”

For more information about Operation Unified Assistance visit the Web site at www.marines.mil/csf536.


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Baltic Fleet marks Memory Day of Marines killed in Chechnya



16.01.2005, 14.01



KALININGRAD, January 16 (Itar-Tass) - The Baltic Fleet marks on Sunday Memory Day of Marines who heroically died a decade ago in battles against terrorists in Chechnya. A mourning rally was staged in front of the memorial to 46 Baltic marines who fell in Chechnya in January-July 1995. The memorial was built on the grounds of the 336th Guards Belostok Marine Brigade wherefrom “black berets” had gone to Chechnya to perform their service assignments.

Representatives of the Baltic Fleet command, of the administration of the Kaliningrad Region and the city of Baltiisk where the brigade is stationed, kith and kin as well as fellow servicemen laid the Garland of Glory, wreaths and flowers at the memorial.

The unveiling of the Alley of Heroes was held on Sunday on the grounds of the brigade. Busts of servicemen of the brigade who had been awarded the title of the Hero of Russia for bravery and heroism, were put up in the alley.

Servicemen of the marine brigade – the best formation of coastal units of the Russian navy and one of the most combat-ready in the Russian Armed Forces, had participated in fulfilling special tasks in Chechnya starting from January 1995. More than 800 marines were awarded state decorations, while five officers were awarded the title of the Hero of Russia.

Military hardware and weapons of marines, as well as exhibition training with field firing and a hand-to-hand fight will be shown this Sunday. Incidentally, the vocal and orchestra group of the brigade called “Black Berets” will perform the rock opera “Formidable January 1995”. It was composed by participant of those dangerous events, officer Igor Kreshenok.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Been There, Done That - Iraq's not foreign territory
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Rich Lowry
National Review Online
Jan. 18, 2005

As the drumbeat of bad news continues in Iraq and calls for a U.S. withdrawal begin to take hold, a popular cliché will get increased currency: that it is impossible to win a war against a guerrilla insurgency. This is the historical inaccuracy that Vietnam wrought. Americans assume that since they lost a war that had a guerrilla aspect in Vietnam - never mind that it was a conventional North Vietnamese army that ultimately conquered the south - everyone must always lose guerrilla wars.

Among other things, this ignores the American victory over an insurgency in the Philippines in the 1950s, the Greek triumph over a Communist insurgency after World War II, El Salvador's defeat of Communist guerrillas in the 1980s, Peru's smashing of a terrorist insurgency in the 1990s, the recent qualified victory of the British over the Irish Republican Army, and Israel's continuing upper hand over terrorists in the West Bank and Gaza. Most importantly, the insurgents-always-win school skips over the textbook example of successful counterinsurgency, the British victory in Malaysia in the 1950s over a communist guerrilla movement.

The British experience is related in John Nagl's cult-classic book Counterinsurgency Lessons From Malaya and Vietnam. It has become must reading for high-level officers in Iraq because its lessons seem so directly applicable to the situation there. Nagl himself, an Army major, has been in Iraq, where we still can duplicate the British experience in Malaysia of stumbling initially, but prevailing through innovation, stick-to-itiveness and shrewd political maneuvering.

Communist guerrillas in Malaysia took up arms in the late 1940s, murdering Europeans, sabotaging industry and using terror to try to strengthen the insurgency's base among the country's Chinese minority. Given their colonial history, the British had plenty of experience with such low-intensity conflicts, but had forgotten it after the conventional warfare in Europe of World War II. The Brits at first considered the insurgency primarily a military problem, and tried to take the guerrillas on in conventional military formations. These tactics not only failed to engage the guerrillas, who easily evaded the large jungle sweeps, but their heavy-handedness alienated the local population.

The British were losing. One observer thought the guerrillas were "probably equal to that of government in the matter of supplies and superior in the matter of intelligence." Guerrilla attacks had been fewer than 100 a month in mid-1949, but spiked to more than 400 a month by mid-1950. This is when, had the Brits operated in our media and political environment, New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd would have witheringly declared all lost, and calls from across the political spectrum would have gone up to quit.

With a patience born of fighting many "small wars" in dusty parts of the world, the British simply set about fixing what they had done wrong. Most fundamentally, they realized that counterinsurgency depends on winning a political battle for "hearts and minds" (a famous phrase that originated in the Malaysia fight). Military operations were conducted on a smaller scale. The Chinese population was secured from guerrilla influence. A Malaysian army was built, with Chinese involvement. Elections were organized and independence promised. Slowly, the air went out of the insurgency, which was officially declared over in 1960, 12 years after it began.

Iraq is not the same as Malaysia, of course, but it presents a very similar problem. The Malaysian example has been on the Pentagon's mind from the beginning, and is one reason it has placed such an emphasis on training Iraqi troops. Ultimately, just as important as establishing security in Iraq is having a political program more attractive than that of our revanchist enemies. Which is why - just as in Malaysia - holding elections and maintaining a glide path to full sovereignty are so crucial.

We should be clear-eyed about the fearsome difficulties in Iraq. But we shouldn't give in to despair, let alone an unjustified metaphysical despair about the possibility of ever defeating a stubborn insurgency. It's been done before.


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Baltic Fleet marks Memory Day of Marines killed in Chechnya



16.01.2005, 14.01



KALININGRAD, January 16 (Itar-Tass) - The Baltic Fleet marks on Sunday Memory Day of Marines who heroically died a decade ago in battles against terrorists in Chechnya. A mourning rally was staged in front of the memorial to 46 Baltic marines who fell in Chechnya in January-July 1995. The memorial was built on the grounds of the 336th Guards Belostok Marine Brigade wherefrom “black berets” had gone to Chechnya to perform their service assignments.

Representatives of the Baltic Fleet command, of the administration of the Kaliningrad Region and the city of Baltiisk where the brigade is stationed, kith and kin as well as fellow servicemen laid the Garland of Glory, wreaths and flowers at the memorial.

The unveiling of the Alley of Heroes was held on Sunday on the grounds of the brigade. Busts of servicemen of the brigade who had been awarded the title of the Hero of Russia for bravery and heroism, were put up in the alley.

Servicemen of the marine brigade – the best formation of coastal units of the Russian navy and one of the most combat-ready in the Russian Armed Forces, had participated in fulfilling special tasks in Chechnya starting from January 1995. More than 800 marines were awarded state decorations, while five officers were awarded the title of the Hero of Russia.

Military hardware and weapons of marines, as well as exhibition training with field firing and a hand-to-hand fight will be shown this Sunday. Incidentally, the vocal and orchestra group of the brigade called “Black Berets” will perform the rock opera “Formidable January 1995”. It was composed by participant of those dangerous events, officer Igor Kreshenok.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

January 18, 2005

Iraq to seal borders before election

By Bassem Mroue
Associated Press


BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq will seal its borders, extend a curfew and restrict movement to protect voters during the Jan. 30 election, officials announced Tuesday after the latest major insurgent attack — a suicide bombing that killed three people outside the offices of a leading Shiite political party.
Amid the insurgent campaign to ruin Iraq’s election, a Catholic archbishop kidnapped by gunmen in the northern city of Mosul was released Tuesday, a day after his abduction. The Vatican had called his abduction a “terrorist act.”

A video surfaced Tuesday showing eight Chinese construction workers held hostage by gunmen claiming the men are employed by a company working with U.S. troops, in the latest abduction of foreigners in Iraq. China’s official Xinhua News Agency said diplomats were “making all efforts to rescue” the hostages.

The men from China’s southern Fujian province went missing last week while traveling to Jordan, Xinhua said.

Tuesday’s suicide car bombing in Baghdad gouged a crater in the pavement, left several vehicles in flames and spread shredded debris on the street outside the offices of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a main contender in the election. The Shiite party, known as SCIRI, has close ties to Iran and is strongly opposed by Sunni Muslim militants.

The assailant told guards at a checkpoint leading to the party’s office that he was part of SCIRI’s security staff, and he detonated his bomb-laden car at the guard post when he was not allowed to enter.

The U.S. military reported four dead, including the bomber, and four injured.

“SCIRI will not be frightened by such an act,” party spokesman Ridha Jawad said. “SCIRI will continue the march toward building Iraq, establishing justice and holding the elections.”

Sunni Muslim militants, who make up the bulk of Iraq’s insurgency, are increasingly honing in on Shiites in their effort to ruin the election that is widely expected to propel their religious rivals to a position of dominance. Many Sunnis argue that security is precarious and the election should not take place under foreign occupation.

In another attack apparently designed to scare Shiites away from the polls, masked gunmen killed a Shiite Muslim candidate in Baghdad.

The Independent Electoral Commission announced that the country’s international borders would be closed from Jan. 29 until Jan. 31, except for Muslim pilgrims returning from the hajj in Saudi Arabia.

Iraqis also will be barred from traveling between provinces and a nighttime curfew will be imposed during the same period, according to a statement from the commission’s Farid Ayar.

Such measures had been expected because of the grave security threat. U.S. and Iraqi authorities are hoping to encourage a substantial turnout but fear that if most Sunnis stay away from the polls, the legitimacy of the new government will be in doubt.

The interior minister warned that if the country’s Sunni Arab minority bows to rebel threats and stays away from the polls, the nation could descend into civil war.

Falah Hassan al-Naqib, a Sunni, told reporters he expects Sunni insurgents to escalate attacks before the election, especially in the Baghdad area. Voters are to choose a new 275-member National Assembly.

“If any group does not participate in the elections, it will constitute treason,” al-Naqib said, adding that “boycotting the elections will not produce a National Assembly that represents the Iraqi people” but will cause “a civil war that will divide the country.”

Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi said he will boost the country’s armed forces with 70,000 more troops in an effort to take over more security tasks from U.S.-led forces. He said the forces would be “equipped with the most advanced weapons.”

A video delivered to several news organizations showed eight Chinese captives in front of a small, mud brick building. The men displayed their passports for the camera and were flanked by two gunmen with headscarves wrapped around their faces.

In a handwritten note delivered with the tape, an insurgent group calling itself the al-Numan Brigades said it abducted the men as they were leaving the country.

“After interrogation, we found that they are working for a Chinese construction company that is working inside American sites in Iraq,” the note said.

The note indicated the group might release the hostages because China did not participate in the war.

In Mosul, Syrian Catholic Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa was freed a day after he was seized near his church, according to local officials and the Vatican.

“I’m happy to have returned to the bishop’s office,” Casmoussa told Vatican Radio. “I can say that I wasn’t mistreated.”

He did not identify his captors but said he did not believe his kidnapping was meant as an attack on the church. Earlier, the Catholic news agency MISNA reported that the 66-year-old archbishop’s captors demanded a $200,000 ransom.

Christians make up just 3 percent of Iraq’s 26 million people. The major Christian groups include Chaldean-Assyrians and Armenians with small numbers of Catholics. Several churches have been bombed in recent months, presumably by Islamic extremists.

Elsewhere, a third American died in fighting in Iraq’s troubled Anbar province, west of Baghdad, the military said Tuesday. Two others assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force also were killed in action there Monday.

The military gave no other details and it was unclear whether the three troops were killed in a suicide car bombing in the western city of Ramadi that U.S. officials said resulted in American casualties.

In Baghdad, bursts of heavy machine-gun fire were heard for about 30 minutes Tuesday afternoon coming from a southern neighborhood, and witnesses said Iraqi National Guard units were battling insurgents there.

Two Army Apache attack helicopters hovered over the area near the bend in the Tigris River that flows through the center of the capital.

In Baghdad, masked gunmen Monday shot and killed Shaker Jabbar Sahl, 48, a Shiite who was running on the ticket of the Constitutional Monarchy Movement, headed by Sharif Ali bin Hussein, a cousin of Iraq’s last king.

In Youssifiyah south of Baghdad, Iraqi troops distributed leaflets Tuesday informing residents that they will have to vote in Baghdad because they cannot secure the area.


Associated Press reporter Sinan Salaheddin contributed to this report.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

January 24, 2005

Storms slam Corps bases in California

By Gidget Fuentes
Times staff writer


OCEANSIDE, Calif. — The torrential rains that hammered Southern California curtailed some Marine Corps training and interrupted the daily routine at bases from Camp Pendleton to Twentynine Palms for about a week.
Work crews were scraping up the mud and debris under cloudy but dry skies Jan. 13 at Camp Pendleton, where heavy rains and swollen creeks Jan. 10 wreaked havoc for drivers and sent mud and debris running down hillsides, forcing the closure of several main roads and backing up traffic at the main gate.

Base officials halted all training that day at the 198-square-mile amphibious training base and ordered that only essential personnel report for duty, including staff at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton and branch medical clinics. The medical facilities remained open for emergencies and medical appointments for the three days.

By Jan. 13, most training areas had reopened and only a few small portions of Vandegrift Boulevard, Camp Pendleton’s main artery, remained closed, said Capt. Juliet Chelkowski, a base spokeswoman. “Everything seems pretty clear.”

Problems continued in the base’s northern area near San Clemente, where roads leading to Camp Talega remained blocked because of flooding, Chelkowski said.

Vandegrift Boulevard parallels the Santa Margarita River, where rising waters threatened a large levee near Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton. The rising river, which flows westward toward the Pacific Ocean, had forced the shift of dozens of helicopters to higher ground on Jan. 10. Crews flew the aircraft to several sites around the base, although some aircraft awaiting repairs remained at the air station, said Sgt. Mark P. Ledesma, a base spokesman.

Mudslides had forced a temporary closure of Rattlesnake Canyon Road, an area near the base’s headquarters where trees and brush were lost to wildfires last fall.

The winter storms didn’t deter training at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, although fog covered parts of the desert base at times. During the week of Jan. 3, however, a colder storm forced an artillery battery to cancel live-fire training because icing conditions prevented the arrival of a medical evacuation helicopter from Camp Pendleton, according to Sgt. Jennie Haskamp, a base spokeswoman. The helicopter was intended to perform a required pre-training aerial sweep of the training area, Haskamp said.

At Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, heavy rains forced a Jan. 7 boot camp graduation ceremony off the parade deck. “We had graduation indoors for the first time in a couple of years,” said Maj. Joe Kloppel, a depot spokesman.

Mother Nature’s wrath wasn’t bad for everyone, though. It’s just a matter of perspective.

For leathernecks at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center near Bridgeport, the falling snow meant just another day at the office. The center is in the eastern Sierra Mountains, where the Levitt Lake training area, at an elevation of 11,000 feet, already boasted about 169 inches — that’s more than 14 feet — of snow on the ground. “We’re a full-up round,” said Capt. Joshua N. Massey, a training center spokesman.

Gidget Fuentes is the San Diego bureau chief for Marine Corps Times. She can be reached at (760) 677-6145 or gfuentes@marinecorpstimes.com.


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Two Marines die in action in Anbar region

By The Associated Press


BAGHDAD, Iraq — Two U.S. Marines were killed in action yesterday in Anbar Province, the military announced.

Earlier yesterday, the military had said Marines had suffered an undisclosed number of casualties in a suicide car bombing in Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad.

Marines sent to check a suspicious vehicle came under small-arms and rocket-propelled-grenade fire and the vehicle exploded, a spokesman said.

Ramadi is in Anbar Province, but the spokesman — consistent with Marine policy — would not say whether the deaths occurred in the car bombing.

As of yesterday, at least 1,366 members of the U.S. military have died since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. At least 1,073 died as a result of hostile action.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

January 18, 2005 <br />
<br />
Supreme Court refuses to hear Gitmo case <br />
<br />
By Gina Holland <br />
Associated Press <br />
<br />
<br />
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dodged a dispute over the government’s plans to conduct military...

[thedrifter]

Remarks by President Bush @ 'Saluting Those Who Serve' Event
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday January 18, 5:24 pm ET

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is a transcript of remarks by President Bush at the "Saluting Those Who Serve" event:

MCI Center
Washington, D.C.
4:18 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: At ease. Thanks for the warm welcome. It is such a pleasure to be with the courageous men and women of the United States Armed Forces. As we prepare to celebrate our nation's 55th presidential inauguration, I can think of no better way to begin than by giving thanks for our freedom and those who make it possible. (Applause.)

Please be seated. It may be a long speech. (Laughter.)

Whether you serve in the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard, each of you has stepped forward to serve. You have risked your lives in faraway mountains and arid deserts, in perilous skies and on the high seas, to defend liberty and to free those trapped by tyranny. As I prepare to take the oath of office, I want you to know how grateful I am for your service and sacrifice, and how proud I am to be your Commander-in-Chief. (Applause.)

And I am really proud of our First Lady, my wife. (Applause.) I love her dearly. I appreciate so very much the service and advice and friendship of our Vice President, Dick Cheney. (Applause.) Like me, he married well. (Laughter.) It's good to see my mother and father. (Applause.) Secretary Rumsfeld, thank you for your great service to our nation. (Applause.) And it's good to see Joyce.

I appreciate the military commanders who are here. I want to thank the members of my administration who've joined us; members of Congress; members of the active military; wounded troops; congressional Medal of Honor recipients - - (applause.) Family members of our fallen soldiers, thank you so much for being here today. (Applause.)

Our troops watching from Baghdad, Iraq, and Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan, God bless you all. (Applause.)

I thank Kelsey Grammer -- what a fine man. I appreciate his patriotism and being the emcee of this fantastic event. I want to thank all the other entertainers who have taken of their time to entertain our troops, and really to say -- what they're doing here is to say thank goodness for your service.

The inauguration of a President is a great moment in the life of our country. With an election behind us, the American people come together in unity to celebrate our freedom. A presidential inauguration is a testament to the power of democracy, a symbol of our confidence in the popular will, and a sign of hope for freedom-loving people everywhere.

We are blessed to live in hopeful times, when the promise of liberty is spreading across the world. In the last four years, more than 50 million people have joined the ranks of the free. (Applause.) The people of Afghanistan have thrown off an outlaw regime, and chosen a President in the first free elections in that nation's 5,000-year history. (Applause.) And in coming days, the Iraqi people will have their chance to go to the polls, to begin the process of creating a democratic government that will answer to the people, instead of to a thug and a tyrant. (Applause.)

These are landmark events in the history of liberty. And none of it would have been possible without the courage and the determination of the United States Armed Forces. (Applause.)

Through your service and sacrifice in the war on terror, you are making America safer. You're making America safer for not only those of us who live today, but for future generations of Americans. Your sacrifice has made it possible for our children and grandchildren to grow up in a safer world.

Many here today have endured long separations from your families. We understand that and we thank you for that. Some are preparing to do so. Others have suffered terrible injuries, wounds you will carry with you for the rest of your lives. Still others have lost loved ones in this struggle, heroes who gave their lives so that we might live in freedom. We hold them in our hearts; we lift them up in our prayers.

We're grateful to you, and we are grateful to your families who love and support you. Your families miss you and they worry about you and they pray for you, always wondering where you are and if you're safe. By their sacrifice, they also serve. Our nation is grateful to our military families. (Applause.)

You, those who wear our uniform, have given much, and much more will be asked of you in the months and years ahead. In Afghanistan and Iraq, the liberty that has been won at great cost now must be secured. We still face terrorist enemies who wish to harm our people, and are seeking weapons that would allow them to kill on an unprecedented scale. These enemies must be stopped, and you are the ones who will stop them. (Applause.)

The road ahead will be difficult and dangerous, but we can proceed with courage and with confidence. History moves toward freedom because the desire for freedom is written in every human heart. And the cause of freedom is in the best of hands -- the hands of the United States Armed Forces. (Applause.)

And so, thank you for your service. Thank you for your sacrifice. May God bless you, and may God bless your families, and may God continue to bless the United States of America. (Applause.)

END 4:27 P.M. EST

Source: White House Press Office

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Lejeune Marines urged to not waste money on gear
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Submitted by: 2nd Marine Division
Story by Cpl. Adam C. Schnell

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 18, 2005) -- When Marines hear they will be deploying to Iraq, some begin preparing for their upcoming deployment, months in advance, by purchasing what they view as gear needed to effectively complete the mission.

Marines can spend hundreds of dollars buying equipment such as 3-point rifle slings, and ballistic goggles because it has not been issued to them yet.

Little do they know the money they spend on this gear is wasted.

"We just need to get the word out to the Marines to not go out and waste their money," said Capt. Chris Rabassi, the supply officer for Headquarters Battalion, 2d Marine Division.

According to supply officials, all II Marine Expeditionary Force Marines deploying to Iraq in 2005 will receive from supply, the gear needed to accomplish the mission while supporting the Global War on Terrorism. This gear includes body armor with Small Arms Protection Inserts (SAPI) plates and a new individual first aid kit.

In addition to the this equipment, each Marine will receive two sets of desert-digital camouflage utilities, a "Boonie" cover and a set of boots from the Contingency Training Equipment Pool. This pool, known as CTEP, supplies gear issued to deploying Marines. The Marines must turn the gear in when they return.

"All units pretty much get the same stuff from CTEP," said Gunnery Sgt. Donald Allegretto, the staff noncommissioned officer for CTEP. "It is just a units preference if they need different things like gloves or balaclavas."

With so many units and so many different jobs within II MEF, some units will get more issue gear and others will get less. It is up to the command to decide what their Marines need to accomplish the mission.

This is not the first time Marines from II MEF have been equipped for combat. According to Rabassi, they supplied Marines previously deploying to Operation Iraqi Freedom and will be continuing their efforts for the upcoming deployments.

For Marines within the division, they will be receiving 3-point rifle slings (for M16s and M4s), ballistic goggles, ballistic sunglasses, rifle butt-stock magazine holders, Under Armour T-Shirts and Boxers, and elbow and kneepads.

On the other hand because of their mission while in Iraq, Marines with 2d Force Service Support Group will be receiving a Camel-Bak water hydration systems, names tapes for the CTEP utilities and ballistic goggles.

"The Marines just need to have faith in the system," Rabassi said. "We're working everyday to get them exactly what they need for mission accomplishment."

Information about the specific equipment required and dates for gear issue will be passed to deploying Marines through their chain of command.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Army's Troop Sources Depleted
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
January 16, 2005

The Army may not be scraping the bottom of the manpower barrel yet, but critics say the service is coming dangerously close.

Defense analysts and veterans advocates say the Army's renewed efforts to encourage retired soldiers to return to active duty is an indication it is being stretched thin and worn out.

"The Army basically has run out of options," said Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute, a Washington think tank.

Steve Robinson, executive director of the National Gulf War Resource Center, a veterans advocacy group in Washington, said the Army is now dipping into its last pool of resources.

"The only thing they have left is the draft," said Robinson, a former Army Ranger.

But Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, a Pentagon spokesman, said the recruitment of retirees "is a prudent use of America's resources."

Since Sept. 11, 2001, more than 12,000 retired soldiers have volunteered to return to active duty, he said.

"But we have to match their desires, skills, experience, physical condition and time out of service with our requirements, so currently only about 300 are on active duty," Hilferty said.





This is the latest of three efforts by the Army to keep its ranks filled as commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan have kept many soldiers running from deployment to deployment.

The initial plan to stop the manpower drain was the stop-loss policy, whereby the Army can keep soldiers in uniform beyond the expiration of their active-duty contract.

As of Jan. 1, more than 12,000 soldiers were under stop-loss orders, including 6,657 on active duty, Hilferty said.

Last year the Pentagon began recalling Individual Ready Reserve soldiers. They are soldiers who have fulfilled their active-duty contract but remain eligible for recall for up to eight years after enlistment. Just under 4,000 Ready Reserves received mobilization orders.

The Army is also offering large bonuses to soldiers who re-enlist overseas, tripling bonuses for new enlistees and keeping troops in Iraq 15 months instead of the usual 12.

But the war effort in Iraq is slowly wearing down the Army, Thompson said.

"Most of the indicators point to the conclusion that the Army can't sustain its current level of activity in Iraq," he said.

Thompson said he believed the Jan. 30 elections in Iraq would play a critical role in how the Army approaches its manpower shortage in the short term.

If the elections are reasonably successful, he believes the administration will likely redouble its commitment to making the strategy in Iraq work. That could mean an increase in active-duty troop strength from just under 500,000 now to over 600,000.

If the elections go badly, the administration will have to make a fundamental reassessment of what is achievable in Iraq, he said.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

January 18, 2005

Tsunami relief effort nears rebel area

Associated Press


KOGGALA, Sri Lanka — The amphibious assault ship Duluth was bound for eastern Sri Lankan shores Thursday to carry out relief work that will bring it close to areas controlled by Tamil Tiger rebels.
The ship with 400 Marines and 400 Navy personnel set sail two days after it anchored off this southern town. It will drop relief supplies in Ampara, one of the worst hit by the disaster.

In eastern Sri Lanka, Tamils and Muslims are the major communities and the Tamil Tiger rebels have considerable influence. The area was the scene of a major clash between the mainstream rebel group and a breakaway faction in March and April last year. The breakaway faction was defeated.

The Tigers have made no comment on either the landing of U.S. troops or their movement to the east. But a rebel-backed Tamil politician has said that the troops engaged in relief efforts might use the operation as a cover to spy on the rebels and give intelligence to the government.

“They may try to collect details to help the government crush the Tamil national struggle in a future conflict,” Tamil Rebel political leader Nallathamby Srikantha told Voice of Tigers radio.

The rebels have their bases in the north and the east, which is home to most of the country’s 3.2 million Tamil minority. The rebels have fought a two-decade civil war, demanding a separate state for Tamils. About 65,000 people were killed in the conflict until a Norway-brokered cease-fire in 2002.

The Tigers are on a U.S. list of terrorist organizations.


Ellie

[thedrifter]

America Supports You: Ball Benefits Wounded Servicemembers
By John Valceanu
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18, 2005 -- A host of celebrities is slated to turn out Jan. 20 to honor America's wounded servicemembers during the Red, White & Blue
Inaugural Ball, a benefit event to be held at the Mellon Auditorium here.

Wounded servicemembers receiving treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in here and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., along with their family members, will be honored during the event.

"We're thrilled about the fact that we are able to invite these wounded servicemembers who need our support and deserve our appreciation," said Pam Garfield, a director of Citizens Helping Heroes, a nonprofit organization that helped to organize the event. "For some of these servicemembers, the ball will be the first time they've been able to leave the hospital. Being able to honor them with a special night is a real joy for us."

Citizens Helping Heroes, which is dedicated to supporting America's military families, organized the ball with Veterans Foundation Inc., another nonprofit organization that raises awareness and support for those who serve and those who have served in the military.

The cost for the wounded servicemembers and their family members is absorbed by the sale of VIP tickets. All additional proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the United Service Organizations of Metropolitan Washington, the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, and the Fisher House. In addition, well-known American artist Peter Max has donated his famous "Flag with a Heart" painting, which will be auctioned to benefit the three organizations.

Television personality Geraldo Rivera will host the benefit event. Celebrity guests include musicians Nile Rodgers and CHIC, Michael Bolton, and the team of Kimaya and Monty Seward.

"The sacrifice made by our servicemembers and their families is one we can never repay," said renowned musician Nile Rodgers, who will be a featured entertainer during the event. "They are forever in our hearts, and that is why we are coming together for this very special evening."

Retired Marine Gunnery Sgt. R. Lee Ermey, the actor famous for playing the drill instructor in "Full Metal Jacket," will add to the entertainment, as will presidential impersonator Steve Bridges as "Mr. President." In addition, a number of sports stars will attend the event to show their support for the troops.

Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz and other government officials are scheduled to attend.

TriWest Healthcare Alliance, a military healthcare provider, is the primary corporate sponsor of the event. Union Pacific and Military.com also are sponsoring the event.

Additional sponsors include Union Pacific, Cox Communications and Oshkosh.

A limited number of tickets for the event are still available. Servicemembers may purchase tickets at a discounted price of $175. Regular tickets cost $350 and VIP tickets cost $1,000.

VIP ticket holders are entitled to a special reception and photo opportunities with celebrities and special guests.

People interested in purchasing tickets may call (202) 244-2121 or email balltickets@citizenshelpingheroes.org.


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Freed bishop silent on kidnappers
MOSUL: The Iraqi Catholic archbishop of Mosul, who was released yesterday after his abduction at gunpoint, kept silent about his kidnappers and said his ordeal was a mistake.

"Thank God for everything. The whole operation was unintentional because I was released in less than 24 hours. The kidnappers knew that I wasn't the one they wanted," said Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa.

But his driver, who was with Casmoussa when armed men blocked the road and abducted him, told a different story.

"We were going to a funeral. Two cars blocked the road. Two men carrying pistols asked the bishop to step out," said Akram Daoud.

"I told them he was a clergyman and they said, 'We know'. They did not hit me or the bishop. They took the bishop and my keys and left. They drove a few metres and then threw the keys out of the window and drove away."

The Vatican, which condemned the abduction as an "act of terrorism", welcomed his release and said Pope John Paul "thanked God for the happy ending".

Misna, a Rome-based Catholic missionary news agency with extensive contacts in the developing world, earlier reported the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of $200,000 (BD75,600).

Casmoussa said no ransom had been paid and added he did not notice any signs of mediation while in captivity.

Casmoussa was believed to be the most prominent Christian figure swept up in the chaotic violence gripping Iraq. Although his abduction was relatively short compared to many others, it is likely to sound new alarms in Iraq's tiny Christian community.

Casmoussa would not say where he was taken after his kidnapping in Mosul.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Father's love more powerful than fear

BY SCOTT BEVERIDGE, Staff writer

sbeveridge@observer-reporter.com


Desperate to save his dying daughter's life, the Iraqi father turned to American military physicians as his last hope for her cure.

U.S. Marines promised to whisk the baby to the United States after she was seen by American physicians amid escalating violence in Fallujah.

Physicians met the father and child at a safe zone en route to their makeshift military hospital at Abu Ghraib prison. The father hailed cabs to sneak back home to prevent them from being killed by insurgents for associating with U.S. troops.

"Of course, all of my trips to the prison were dangerous," said the father, whose identity is being withheld for his protection when he returns home in three months.

"I would be perceived as a traitor ... a collaborator with Americans," said the man, a Sunni Muslim, the ethnic group perceived as the U.S. enemy in Iraq.

"My daughter's health was the most important goal to achieve," he said at the South Strabane Township home of Dr. Charles and Rita Tripoli, where the girl known as Baby Tabby is recuperating from surgery. "I'm willing to endanger myself for my daughter's health."

The 13-month old child was born with multiple hemangioma, the most common type of birthmark in children. But for reasons unknown, the non-cancerous tumors on her face and neck were growing at an alarming rate. They surely would have suffocated her without immediate surgery that was unavailable in war-torn Iraq.

The father had frantically approached many humanitarian health organizations in Iraq, but weeks turned into months without news of surgery.

Members of town council in Fallujah last fall had suggested a meeting with U.S. Marine Capt. Alex Echevverria, who arranged for a medical exam for Tabby with "good doctors," the father said.

Eventually the father was introduced to the Tripolis' son, Louis, a physician and Navy commander stationed at the prison hospital.

The father's story "hit close to home," said Louis Tripoli's wife, Michelle, of St. Louis.

Their daughter, Marissa, was 12 years old in 2003 when they found a large tumor on her leg, a growth that would kill her in six months if it was cancerous, a diagnosis that was expected, Michelle Tripoli said. The girl, however, is doing well after being treated for a rare non-cancerous tumor that will develop again.

"We knew the helplessness," she said. "We had the medical knowledge, every opportunity available on the planet."

Louis Tripoli, 46, set into motion a massive attempt to quickly bring Tabby and her father to the University of South Carolina Medical Center at Charleston for surgery. Humanitarian organizations became involved, and U.S. lawmakers and Elizabeth Dole made telephone calls to hasten approval of visas for Tabby and her father to fly from Jordan to America. Charles and Rita Tripoli traveled to Amman, Jordan, in October to ensure a qualified physician was at the girl's side on the medical mission.

Charles and Rita Tripoli attempt to translate English to Arabic as they struggle to converse with their house guest.

"I'm like a deaf person invited to a party," the father said through a translator, Dr. Aref M. Al-Khattar, a Jordanian immigrant and professor at California University of Pennsylvania. "I don't understand what is going on around me. I'm submitting to God."

The father has a wife and two other children now living in Baghdad, having been among 200,000 people who fled Fallujah due to the war. Their home there was leveled in the fighting.

The husband and wife talk each day on the telephone. The father steps into the Tripolis' basement to compose himself after the calls are completed.

The father does not want to see American troops leave his homeland. Life there would be much less secure without them, he said.

Louis and Michelle Tripoli, meanwhile, have immigration attorneys working to find cause to relocate the family to the United States. The family may have to move to Canada, however, because immigration to the United States is currently closed to Iraqis, Michelle Tripoli said.

The father said there are many closed-minded people in Iraq who would call him a liar if he told them Americans helped his family.

"I wish I can go public on television and tell the Iraqis how I was treated in the U.S., (but) I would not live one day more," the father said.

"I am speechless when it comes to this family. I don't know how to reward them."


Ellie