ohio-veterans-and-military-families-speak-out@yahoogroups.com
From: "tom farley"
Date: Sat, 21 May 2005 09:03:52 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [OHIO-VETERANS-AND-MILITARY-FAMILIES-SPEAK-OUT] Bad week in Iraq
When will the Bush admin and the Pentagon level with the American people. All of the lies leading up to the Iraq War are now coming home to roost in spades. Our troops won't be coming home - ever, And it was
all about Oil. Tom Farley Vet 54-56.
Analysis: Bad week in Iraq
By Martin Sieff
UPI Senior News Analyst
Published May 20, 2005
WASHINGTON -- It has been a bad week for U.S. policy
in Iraq.
Top generals have admitted to the U.S. Congress the renewed seriousness of the Sunni Muslim insurgency there and the failure to adequately create Iraqi security forces so far. They have also openly
acknowledged what Pentagon planners have quietly known for at least a year: The United States will have to maintain current troop levels, or close to them, in Iraq for years to come.
Even more ominous, Iran's foreign minister was welcomed by the new Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad -- the strongest sign yet that Iraq won't stay in Washington's pocket. This also signals the danger
of a huge Iraqi Shiite reaction against U.S. forces if the United States ever clashes with Iran over its nuclear program.
Top-level U.S. generals in Washington and Baghdad Wednesday gave briefings both on the record and on background acknowledging that U.S. force levels in Iraq would at the very least have to remain at or close to their current levels of 138,000 troops for years to come.
CENTCOM commander Gen. John Abizaid, who directs all U.S. military forces in the Middle East, admitted in a Washington briefing that progress in training the new Iraqi security forces and making them an effective
element in fighting the insurgency had been "disappointing," the New York Times reported Thursday.
The paper also noted the admission of a senior U.S. officer in Baghdad that there had been almost as many car-bomb attacks in the city in the past month -- 21 -- than in the whole of 2004, when they totaled 25.
These statements certainly came as no surprise to uniformed Army planners in the Pentagon who have already drawn up detailed plans and projections factoring in this inevitability.
However, the somber public acknowledgement by senior Army officers this week is likely to come as a cold shock to the U.S. public and to hawkish media commentators who had assumed national parliamentary
elections in Iraq Jan. 30, the election of a national assembly and the eventual creation of a coalition government from the Shiite and Kurdish parties who dominate it would isolate the Sunni Muslim insurgency
in central Iraq and undermine its support.
Instead, the opposite has happened. The wave of terror bombings that have killed more than 400 people over the past month indicates the insurgents remain more formidable and implacable than ever, and there is
no significant sign of their support eroding in the Sunni community.
But there was another, from the U.S. point of view, potentially far more ominous development this week. Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazzi paid a visit to Baghdad, the first by any senior Iranian political leader since the toppling of Saddam Hussein, and held talks with the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government. Both governments then confirmed their
determination to strengthen bilateral ties.
"We have been working with Iran to open a new page in the bilateral relationship," Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar al-Zebari told a news conference in Baghdad, where he appeared with Kharazzi Tuesday.
Kharazzi also met with Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari and President Jalal Talabani. He promised to cooperate with them on security, against al-Qaida and on joint monitoring of the Iraq-Iran border.
Kharazzi's visit came only two days after U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visited Baghdad and at a time when the United States continues to take a tough line against Iran's nuclear program and when
the prospect of an eventual confrontation between the United States and Iran that could turn violent appears more, not less, likely.
Most of the U.S. media coverage of Kharazzi's visit to Baghdad restricted itself to the fact that he was there at all. But the readiness of the new Iraqi
government to welcome him by itself sent a loud message to the Bush administration that has up to now never factored into their strategic planning.
That message is that the new government is not going to remain at Washington's beck and call for much longer, let alone forever. And, far from making the new government more dependent on U.S. support, the
continuing fierce Sunni insurgency may instead be nudging it toward its fellow Shiites of neighboring Iran.
In fact, Iran's political influence and ties to Iraq's majority Shiites, who make up 60 percent of the population, have always been far wider and deeper than just supporting firebrand young cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the spiritual guide and mentor of the dominant Shiite coalition in the Iraqi parliament, has refused to personally meet with any U.S. officials in the more than two years the U.S. Army has been in Baghdad. And Sistani, strikingly, has not yet taken out an Iraqi or any other passport. He still holds the Iranian citizenship he has never revoked.
The military news from Iraq is by no means entirely bad. U.S. casualties remain far, far below most of the levels of last year. U.S. search-and-destroy missions near the Syrian border have disrupted and inflicted significant damage on insurgency supply and communications lines, and U.S. forces, especially in and around Baghdad itself, continue to rack up significant tactical successes in destroying guerrilla cells and capturing useful suspects. U.S. officers in Iraq believe tactical intelligence on the insurgents is steadily improving. Some 1,100 suspects have been held in U.S. drives against the bombing offensive.
However, growing political ties between the Shiite political leadership in Iraq and the neighboring Islamic Republic of Iran could transform what is
currently at worst a holding situation in Iraq and make it dire.
For they open the possibility that if the U.S. confrontation with Iran over its nuclear program escalates into pre-emptive U.S. or U.S.-approved Israeli air strikes against Iranian nuclear installations, or if, even worse, U.S.-backed insurgents try and topple the Islamic Republic, then the mainstream Shiites in Iraq could rapidly be radicalized against U.S. forces in their country.
In that case, the security challenges facing U.S. and allied forces would vastly become exponentially worse than they are now.
And even if a U.S. clash with Iran is averted, the continuing failure of U.S. forces in Iraq to either defeat the insurgency or produce effective Iraqi
security forces could further propel the country's Shiite leaders, fearful of their vengeful Sunni minority, further into Tehran's arms.
Those developments would make even the current dilemmas facing U.S. forces in Iraq look like child's play.
Full Version: Just News - Iraq - Volume 3
Common Ground Common Sense > Issues that Affect Our Lives > Foreign Policy and National Defense > Foreign Policy & National Defense Issues Archive
News Details Updated on 22/05/2005 09:58:46
Start of the Iraq Freedom Conference Proceedings
http://www.almendhar.com/almendharen/details.aspx?nID=2055
Baghdad - Al-Shark Al-Awsat: Yesterday, in Meridian hotel in Baghdad, the Iraq freedom Conference proceedings were launched. It included various Iraqi, Iranian and Japanese identities, names, associations and entities in all fields.
A source in the conference said to Al-Shark Al-Awsat that this conference is considered a democratic public organization, which is neither religious nor national and is independent. In addition, it struggles for the sake of the establishment of a free country and relies on the direct will of the public.
The source pointed out that the conference works through the public organizations at every level and within the scope of the local branches to this organization, to the return the authority to the public. Also, it broadens the participation of individuals, organizations, political parties, workers’ syndicates, the council of the mass, societies and the enterprises that participate in conference with regard to its goals and topics.
Start of the Iraq Freedom Conference Proceedings
http://www.almendhar.com/almendharen/details.aspx?nID=2055
Baghdad - Al-Shark Al-Awsat: Yesterday, in Meridian hotel in Baghdad, the Iraq freedom Conference proceedings were launched. It included various Iraqi, Iranian and Japanese identities, names, associations and entities in all fields.
A source in the conference said to Al-Shark Al-Awsat that this conference is considered a democratic public organization, which is neither religious nor national and is independent. In addition, it struggles for the sake of the establishment of a free country and relies on the direct will of the public.
The source pointed out that the conference works through the public organizations at every level and within the scope of the local branches to this organization, to the return the authority to the public. Also, it broadens the participation of individuals, organizations, political parties, workers’ syndicates, the council of the mass, societies and the enterprises that participate in conference with regard to its goals and topics.
News Details Updated on 22/05/2005 09:58:46
Iraq Calls on Neighbors to Stop Insurgency
http://www.almendhar.com/almendharen/details.aspx?nID=3218
Iraqi Prime Minister Calls on Neighbors to Help Stop Terrorists From Crossing Border
Iraq's prime minister called on Syria on Thursday to block the infiltration of foreign fighters trying to start a civil war. More than a dozen Iraqis, including an Oil Ministry engineer, and four U.S. soldiers were reported killed in the ongoing daily bloodshed.
In the day's deadliest incident, a Sunni lawmaker said 10 of his private guards were killed during a chaotic battle with insurgents and Apache helicopter-backed U.S. forces, whom he accused of killing several of his aides. The U.S. military said it was investigating the incident, which it called a terrorist attack on Fawaz al-Jarba's home.
In a message aimed at Syria, Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said non-Iraqis in neighboring countries filtering across the border were responsible for carrying out "sabotage activities."
His government will do its best "to preserve relations between us and our neighbors, but there are red lines which are that they don't interfere in our internal affairs, or allow people to cross" into Iraq, he said after a meeting with visiting Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick.
Earlier this week, al-Jaafari pledged to use "an iron fist" to prevent an outbreak of sectarian violence which he has accused supporters of Iraq's top al-Qaida terrorist, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, of trying to foment.
Zoellick said he and al-Jaafari discussed the issue of insurgents crossing into Iraq "and he was quite strong in his statements about the need for Iraq's neighbors, and particularly Syria, you know, not to undermine stability here."
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made it "quite clear that we, and others, are watching how Syria behaves itself," Zoellick told reporters.
"Part of these attacks stem from the successes of the new government. The insurgents wanted to stop the elections and failed. The insurgents wanted to stop the formation of a new Iraqi government and they failed, so now they are trying to split the society," Zoellick said.
Another insurgent goal, he said, is to "disrupt the reconstruction so that people lose confidence in the future."
The Syrian government has not commented on allegations that foreign fighters are both slipping into Iraq across its shared border and holding clandestine planning meetings in its country. But in February, Syria captured and handed over Saddam Hussein's half brother in what Iraq called a gesture of goodwill.
A U.S. official said Wednesday that Syria was the site of a key meeting last month in which al-Zarqawi lieutenants were ordered to carry out more attacks in Iraq. More than 520 people have been killed since the country's new Shiite-dominated government was announced April 28.
On Friday al-Jaafari is slated to start a two-day visit to neighboring Turkey, his first foreign trip since becoming prime minister. The insurgency is expected to top the agenda.
The campaign of violence has made the threat of civil war increasingly tangible.
A number of clerics, both Shiite and Sunni, have been killed, and on Thursday three of Iraq's most influential Sunni Muslim organizations called on mosques to shut for three days following Saturday's dawn prayer to protest alleged Shiite violence against them.
By BASSEM MROUE
The Associated Press
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iraq Calls on Neighbors to Stop Insurgency
http://www.almendhar.com/almendharen/details.aspx?nID=3218
Iraqi Prime Minister Calls on Neighbors to Help Stop Terrorists From Crossing Border
Iraq's prime minister called on Syria on Thursday to block the infiltration of foreign fighters trying to start a civil war. More than a dozen Iraqis, including an Oil Ministry engineer, and four U.S. soldiers were reported killed in the ongoing daily bloodshed.
In the day's deadliest incident, a Sunni lawmaker said 10 of his private guards were killed during a chaotic battle with insurgents and Apache helicopter-backed U.S. forces, whom he accused of killing several of his aides. The U.S. military said it was investigating the incident, which it called a terrorist attack on Fawaz al-Jarba's home.
In a message aimed at Syria, Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said non-Iraqis in neighboring countries filtering across the border were responsible for carrying out "sabotage activities."
His government will do its best "to preserve relations between us and our neighbors, but there are red lines which are that they don't interfere in our internal affairs, or allow people to cross" into Iraq, he said after a meeting with visiting Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick.
Earlier this week, al-Jaafari pledged to use "an iron fist" to prevent an outbreak of sectarian violence which he has accused supporters of Iraq's top al-Qaida terrorist, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, of trying to foment.
Zoellick said he and al-Jaafari discussed the issue of insurgents crossing into Iraq "and he was quite strong in his statements about the need for Iraq's neighbors, and particularly Syria, you know, not to undermine stability here."
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made it "quite clear that we, and others, are watching how Syria behaves itself," Zoellick told reporters.
"Part of these attacks stem from the successes of the new government. The insurgents wanted to stop the elections and failed. The insurgents wanted to stop the formation of a new Iraqi government and they failed, so now they are trying to split the society," Zoellick said.
Another insurgent goal, he said, is to "disrupt the reconstruction so that people lose confidence in the future."
The Syrian government has not commented on allegations that foreign fighters are both slipping into Iraq across its shared border and holding clandestine planning meetings in its country. But in February, Syria captured and handed over Saddam Hussein's half brother in what Iraq called a gesture of goodwill.
A U.S. official said Wednesday that Syria was the site of a key meeting last month in which al-Zarqawi lieutenants were ordered to carry out more attacks in Iraq. More than 520 people have been killed since the country's new Shiite-dominated government was announced April 28.
On Friday al-Jaafari is slated to start a two-day visit to neighboring Turkey, his first foreign trip since becoming prime minister. The insurgency is expected to top the agenda.
The campaign of violence has made the threat of civil war increasingly tangible.
A number of clerics, both Shiite and Sunni, have been killed, and on Thursday three of Iraq's most influential Sunni Muslim organizations called on mosques to shut for three days following Saturday's dawn prayer to protest alleged Shiite violence against them.
By BASSEM MROUE
The Associated Press
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
News Details Updated on 22/05/2005 09:58:46
Training New Iraqi Officers in the British Way
Last January, the Iraqi military institute started training young soldiers in accordance with the model of the elite British Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, which represents a return to roots after a stage of military training in the Soviet way for over 30 years.
Not everyone is allowed to join this institute, which lies in Al Roustomeya, 10 km south of Baghdad, which can accommodate about 900 cadets. It requires the young volunteers to have excellent physical characteristics and carry a college degree. It is decided, as a start, that the NATO delegation in Iraq would establish its “military academy” in the same location next fall, after the project has been delayed due to shortage in finance. 20 soldiers are called, according to the numbers on their backs, to be tested in the very hot weather, in a field covered with dust. The test includes jumping over crossbars and cement walls. Despite the fact that conduct is not established among those soldiers, their talk expresses confidence and persistence. Mohamed, 25 years, said, with his face sweating, “I came to serve my country and I would bear all difficulties”. He confirmed that he fears neither the threats of gunmen nor their attacks.
Al Zaman – Iraq – AFP
Training New Iraqi Officers in the British Way
Last January, the Iraqi military institute started training young soldiers in accordance with the model of the elite British Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, which represents a return to roots after a stage of military training in the Soviet way for over 30 years.
Not everyone is allowed to join this institute, which lies in Al Roustomeya, 10 km south of Baghdad, which can accommodate about 900 cadets. It requires the young volunteers to have excellent physical characteristics and carry a college degree. It is decided, as a start, that the NATO delegation in Iraq would establish its “military academy” in the same location next fall, after the project has been delayed due to shortage in finance. 20 soldiers are called, according to the numbers on their backs, to be tested in the very hot weather, in a field covered with dust. The test includes jumping over crossbars and cement walls. Despite the fact that conduct is not established among those soldiers, their talk expresses confidence and persistence. Mohamed, 25 years, said, with his face sweating, “I came to serve my country and I would bear all difficulties”. He confirmed that he fears neither the threats of gunmen nor their attacks.
Al Zaman – Iraq – AFP
News Details Updated on 22/05/2005 09:58:46
Arresting 30 Suspects and Finding Weapons Hideouts in Kirkuk
The Iraqi police in Kirkuk said that, in cooperation with American forces, they arrested 30 suspects in raids in the cities of Kirkuk and Al Howaija.
A police source was quoted saying, (the raids were executed the day before yesterday evening and yesterday at dawn in various districts of Al Musala, Azadi, Al Nasr, Al Oruba and Al Horeya.) He pointed out that one of the detainees was disguising in police uniform. He confirmed the seizure of quantities of machine guns and explosives. He confirmed that the detainees were targeting the Iraqi police forces and the multinational force in their military operations.
Within the same context, members of the security cadres of the north oil company have found ammunitions that were not deployed, during their patrol on the 13th of this month.
Al Zaman Correspondent stated that soldiers from the multinational force have executed search operations in the area and managed to locate huge hideouts of weapons, which have all been destroyed.
On the other hand, a statement issued by the American army in Kirkuk stated, (An Iraqi plane had a forced landing in Kirkuk base during its execution of training missions and protection of the oil transportation lines).
The statement pointed out, (Members of the Iraqi army have hurried, after the plane landed in the base, to offer the necessary assistance. Technicians have fixed the disorder in fuel.) the statement did not give any details or other information of the plane or the persons who were on it.
Al Zaman – Marwan Al Ani
Arresting 30 Suspects and Finding Weapons Hideouts in Kirkuk
The Iraqi police in Kirkuk said that, in cooperation with American forces, they arrested 30 suspects in raids in the cities of Kirkuk and Al Howaija.
A police source was quoted saying, (the raids were executed the day before yesterday evening and yesterday at dawn in various districts of Al Musala, Azadi, Al Nasr, Al Oruba and Al Horeya.) He pointed out that one of the detainees was disguising in police uniform. He confirmed the seizure of quantities of machine guns and explosives. He confirmed that the detainees were targeting the Iraqi police forces and the multinational force in their military operations.
Within the same context, members of the security cadres of the north oil company have found ammunitions that were not deployed, during their patrol on the 13th of this month.
Al Zaman Correspondent stated that soldiers from the multinational force have executed search operations in the area and managed to locate huge hideouts of weapons, which have all been destroyed.
On the other hand, a statement issued by the American army in Kirkuk stated, (An Iraqi plane had a forced landing in Kirkuk base during its execution of training missions and protection of the oil transportation lines).
The statement pointed out, (Members of the Iraqi army have hurried, after the plane landed in the base, to offer the necessary assistance. Technicians have fixed the disorder in fuel.) the statement did not give any details or other information of the plane or the persons who were on it.
Al Zaman – Marwan Al Ani
News Details Updated on 22/05/2005 09:58:46
Iraqi Education : 450 schools renovated in Iraq
The Buildings & Education sub-sector of the Iraq Project and Contracting Office (PCO), in collaboration with the Iraqi school system and the Iraqi Ministry of Education (MoE), created the School Renovation Program in fall of 2003 with the initial goal of overseeing the rehabilitation and renovation of over 1,200 schools throughout Iraq.
“Iraqi children have been learning in dilapidated facilities that are inadequate for the absorption of intellectual material,” said Saji Muanza, Education Project Manager.
“By creating safe, clean schools for these children, we’re trying to provide them with an environment where they can blossom.”
The program worked with local school headmasters to conduct nationwide assessments of the level of repair work needed at school facilities.
The Iraqi Ministry of Education used these assessments to place each school into one of four repair categories:
• Level One - Excellent condition and in little need of repair
• Level Two – Good condition but in need of some repair work
• Level Three - Still functional condition, but in need of serious repair work
• Level Four - Extensively damaged and needs replacing
The Buildings & Education sub-sector worked with the MoE to determine which renovations would benefit the greatest number of Iraqi children, according to the PCO. They concluded that Level 2 and 3 schools would be the core focus of the School Renovation Program.
The PCO added that although the program’s initial target was 1,200 school renovations, that number was reduced to 800 in order to ensure that each school got the appropriate level of repair.
Originally, the planning figure was that approximately $55,000 would be spent on renovations for each school, but after engineering assessments were completed, it was clear that many schools required more funds to get even basic renovations completed.
Further discussions with local communities and governorate Director Generals (DG) led to more schools selected for replacement.
The School Renovation Program covers three geographical areas:
• The Northern region: Dahuk, Diyala, Erbil, Kirkuk, Ninewa, Salah Ad Din and Sulymaniyah
• The Central region: Anbar and Baghdad
• The Southern Region: Babylon, Babil, Basrah, Kerbala, Maysan, Muthanna, Najaf, Qadissiyia, Thi-Qar and Wassit
School renovations include improving water and sanitary conditions; structural repairs such as repair or replacement of roofs or doors; electrical repairs and/or improvements such as rewiring and new lights; and providing security measures for students and teachers.
“The scope of the renovation covers every part of the school,” said Muanza. “We re-do everything from the architecture, the structure, the plumbing and any mechanical work, i.e. fans.”
The Mud School Program, under the School Renovation Program, provides for the replacement of home-made schools with brand new structures. According to the PCO, the schools would often collapse during periods of heavy rain, leaving local children with no facility at all for classes. The program plans to replace approximately 50 of these schools throughout Iraq.
Currently, more than 450 schools throughout Iraq have been renovated, with 350 left to rehabilitate. These 800 schools will greatly improve the education of more than 300,000 Iraqi children, a PCO report states.
Because the Buildings & Education sub-sector only uses Iraqi laborers to conduct field inspections and reconstruction, the sector is not only looking to revitalize Iraq’s future by improving the education of its citizens, but is also ensuring the development of local skills and revenue that could improve the country’s present outlook as well, the statement added.
“Human resources are the most important resources,” said Muanza. “You can have gold, oil…but if the human resources aren’t there, you have nothing. Focusing on education is focusing on the real future of this country.”
PortalIraq
Iraqi Education : 450 schools renovated in Iraq
The Buildings & Education sub-sector of the Iraq Project and Contracting Office (PCO), in collaboration with the Iraqi school system and the Iraqi Ministry of Education (MoE), created the School Renovation Program in fall of 2003 with the initial goal of overseeing the rehabilitation and renovation of over 1,200 schools throughout Iraq.
“Iraqi children have been learning in dilapidated facilities that are inadequate for the absorption of intellectual material,” said Saji Muanza, Education Project Manager.
“By creating safe, clean schools for these children, we’re trying to provide them with an environment where they can blossom.”
The program worked with local school headmasters to conduct nationwide assessments of the level of repair work needed at school facilities.
The Iraqi Ministry of Education used these assessments to place each school into one of four repair categories:
• Level One - Excellent condition and in little need of repair
• Level Two – Good condition but in need of some repair work
• Level Three - Still functional condition, but in need of serious repair work
• Level Four - Extensively damaged and needs replacing
The Buildings & Education sub-sector worked with the MoE to determine which renovations would benefit the greatest number of Iraqi children, according to the PCO. They concluded that Level 2 and 3 schools would be the core focus of the School Renovation Program.
The PCO added that although the program’s initial target was 1,200 school renovations, that number was reduced to 800 in order to ensure that each school got the appropriate level of repair.
Originally, the planning figure was that approximately $55,000 would be spent on renovations for each school, but after engineering assessments were completed, it was clear that many schools required more funds to get even basic renovations completed.
Further discussions with local communities and governorate Director Generals (DG) led to more schools selected for replacement.
The School Renovation Program covers three geographical areas:
• The Northern region: Dahuk, Diyala, Erbil, Kirkuk, Ninewa, Salah Ad Din and Sulymaniyah
• The Central region: Anbar and Baghdad
• The Southern Region: Babylon, Babil, Basrah, Kerbala, Maysan, Muthanna, Najaf, Qadissiyia, Thi-Qar and Wassit
School renovations include improving water and sanitary conditions; structural repairs such as repair or replacement of roofs or doors; electrical repairs and/or improvements such as rewiring and new lights; and providing security measures for students and teachers.
“The scope of the renovation covers every part of the school,” said Muanza. “We re-do everything from the architecture, the structure, the plumbing and any mechanical work, i.e. fans.”
The Mud School Program, under the School Renovation Program, provides for the replacement of home-made schools with brand new structures. According to the PCO, the schools would often collapse during periods of heavy rain, leaving local children with no facility at all for classes. The program plans to replace approximately 50 of these schools throughout Iraq.
Currently, more than 450 schools throughout Iraq have been renovated, with 350 left to rehabilitate. These 800 schools will greatly improve the education of more than 300,000 Iraqi children, a PCO report states.
Because the Buildings & Education sub-sector only uses Iraqi laborers to conduct field inspections and reconstruction, the sector is not only looking to revitalize Iraq’s future by improving the education of its citizens, but is also ensuring the development of local skills and revenue that could improve the country’s present outlook as well, the statement added.
“Human resources are the most important resources,” said Muanza. “You can have gold, oil…but if the human resources aren’t there, you have nothing. Focusing on education is focusing on the real future of this country.”
PortalIraq
HEY, IT'S AS MUCH ON TOPIC AS THE PREVIOUS POST.
United States Marine Corps
Press Release
Division of Public Affairs
Headquarters, U. S. Marine Corps
Washington, D. C. 20380-1775
Telephone: 703-614-4309 DSN 224-4309 Fax 703-695-7460
Contact: Walter Sperr or Michael Menachem at 212-966-0024.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Release # 0516-05-1309
May 13, 2005
The capital's leatherneck ball to raise money for Marine Corps scholarships
WASHINGTON--At the Capital Hilton June 4, the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation will host the Leatherneck Ball to raise money in support of Washington-area children of former Marines and those on active duty.
More than $ 2 million was raised from MCSF and regional fundraising events.
Attending the ceremony will be Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Michael W. Hagee, along with other dignitaries. The event includes a performance from the Commandant's own United States Drum and Bugle Corps.
Since its inception in 1962, the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation has authorized more than $27 million in scholarships for more than 18,000 deserving youngsters. Waving all restrictions, the MCSF donates scholarship money to the children of Marines who give the last full measure of service to America during the struggle in Afghanistan and Iraq. The foundation has extended a helping hand to the many former Marines and active Marine Reservists who laid down their lives to save the innocent from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon attacks.
For more information regarding the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, please call Walter Sperr or Michael Menachem at 212-966-0024.
United States Marine Corps
Press Release
Division of Public Affairs
Headquarters, U. S. Marine Corps
Washington, D. C. 20380-1775
Telephone: 703-614-4309 DSN 224-4309 Fax 703-695-7460
Contact: Walter Sperr or Michael Menachem at 212-966-0024.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Release # 0516-05-1309
May 13, 2005
The capital's leatherneck ball to raise money for Marine Corps scholarships
WASHINGTON--At the Capital Hilton June 4, the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation will host the Leatherneck Ball to raise money in support of Washington-area children of former Marines and those on active duty.
More than $ 2 million was raised from MCSF and regional fundraising events.
Attending the ceremony will be Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Michael W. Hagee, along with other dignitaries. The event includes a performance from the Commandant's own United States Drum and Bugle Corps.
Since its inception in 1962, the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation has authorized more than $27 million in scholarships for more than 18,000 deserving youngsters. Waving all restrictions, the MCSF donates scholarship money to the children of Marines who give the last full measure of service to America during the struggle in Afghanistan and Iraq. The foundation has extended a helping hand to the many former Marines and active Marine Reservists who laid down their lives to save the innocent from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon attacks.
For more information regarding the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, please call Walter Sperr or Michael Menachem at 212-966-0024.
Does anyone find it interesting that the military blew up the bunkers found a few days ago? They found no insurgents but did find lots of weapons. I think that the bunker was built by Saddam and many of the weapons were US made. that is why we blew it up so soon. Note that the US won't let the UN back in to check on the WMD sites. The UN satellite data shows many sites had been looted while we had control of the country.
---------------------
US forces find huge rebel bunker in Iraq
Sun Jun 5, 6:57 AM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050605/ts_af...aq_050605105702
BAGHDAD (AFP) - US forces say they have discovered an "insurgent lair" in Iraq's restive Al-Anbar province, including a bunker system the size of four football pitches and dozens of weapons caches. ......
The US military announced the discovery of the bunkers dug into an abandoned quarry near Karmah, west of the capital, along with 50 weapons caches unearthed in the last 72 hours.
The whole complex was 170 metres (yards) wide and 275 metres long or bigger than four football pitches, it said, and fresh food inside showed the hideout had been recently inhabited.
Fully furnished living spaces were found in the warren, along with a kitchen, showers and an air conditioner, hi-tech combat equipment such as night vision goggles and a large haul of weapons and ammunition.
"Coalition forces and ISF (Iraqi security forces) found numerous types of machine guns, ordnance, including mortars, rockets and artillery rounds, black uniforms, ski masks, compasses, log books, night vision goggles, and fully charged cell phones," it said.
Marines were sifting through the site in search of intelligence after which the arms and ammunition were to be destroyed.......
[CNN reported today that the military blew up the bunkers]
---------------------
US forces find huge rebel bunker in Iraq
Sun Jun 5, 6:57 AM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050605/ts_af...aq_050605105702
BAGHDAD (AFP) - US forces say they have discovered an "insurgent lair" in Iraq's restive Al-Anbar province, including a bunker system the size of four football pitches and dozens of weapons caches. ......
The US military announced the discovery of the bunkers dug into an abandoned quarry near Karmah, west of the capital, along with 50 weapons caches unearthed in the last 72 hours.
The whole complex was 170 metres (yards) wide and 275 metres long or bigger than four football pitches, it said, and fresh food inside showed the hideout had been recently inhabited.
Fully furnished living spaces were found in the warren, along with a kitchen, showers and an air conditioner, hi-tech combat equipment such as night vision goggles and a large haul of weapons and ammunition.
"Coalition forces and ISF (Iraqi security forces) found numerous types of machine guns, ordnance, including mortars, rockets and artillery rounds, black uniforms, ski masks, compasses, log books, night vision goggles, and fully charged cell phones," it said.
Marines were sifting through the site in search of intelligence after which the arms and ammunition were to be destroyed.......
[CNN reported today that the military blew up the bunkers]
C-span 1 has a hearing on the new U.S ambassador to Iraq.
Sen. Boxer is up now questioning the Iraq war -- including the Downing St. memo.
The candidate is an Afghani, formerly ambassador to Afganistan.
Sen. Boxer is up now questioning the Iraq war -- including the Downing St. memo.
The candidate is an Afghani, formerly ambassador to Afganistan.
This candidate was an advisor to Rice before going to Afghanistan.
Zalmay Khalizad
Boxer questioned his statements before the war and what he thinks now.
Zalmay Khalizad
Boxer questioned his statements before the war and what he thinks now.
He just said he has not been to Iraq for 2 years and he doesn't know what is happening. He needs to make his own assessment.
'
He doesn't know anything about the Downing St. memo.
'
He doesn't know anything about the Downing St. memo.
C-span 2 is showing a House hearing on an audit of the Pentagon. The Pentagon overpayed for items and is selling "overstock" or "damaged" goods on the internet. Except the items are not damaged, but new. The items are sold for pennies on the dollar. The Pentagon bought the items for hundreds of dollars. The items are still in demand by the services.
Gregory Kutz is from the Government Accountability Office. It took over a year to investigate.
Chris Shays (R-CT) is the chair.
Gregory Kutz is from the Government Accountability Office. It took over a year to investigate.
Chris Shays (R-CT) is the chair.
The GAO was able to buy military badges and sensitive technology and equipment. The seller asked no security questions.
They also bought uniforms.
Someone could pretend to be a US soldier and kill real ones.
Someone could pretend to be a US soldier and kill real ones.
$400 million of this unused Pentagon stock was sold, given away or "destroyed"
Critical shortage items for the Seawolf nuclear submarine were purchased by the GAO. It is an NSA controlled item. It is supposed to go back to NSA if not used.
Several republicans are outraged at these findings.
Thank goodness they are waking up and paying attention to the waste in the Pentagon. This a subcommitte, though, so lets see what the newspapers do with the story.
Six Bio Level 3 safety cabinets were available as excess while one government lab needed 3 of these. GAO got these to the lab for free plus other new lab equipment.
The Pentagon panel will be up next.
Thank goodness they are waking up and paying attention to the waste in the Pentagon. This a subcommitte, though, so lets see what the newspapers do with the story.
Six Bio Level 3 safety cabinets were available as excess while one government lab needed 3 of these. GAO got these to the lab for free plus other new lab equipment.
The Pentagon panel will be up next.
Current testimony and reports:
http://www.gao.gov/docsearch/repandtest.html
DOD Excess Property: Management Control Breakdowns Result in Substantial Waste and Inefficiency GAO-05-729T, June 7, 2005
Abstract Highlights-PDF PDF
DOD Excess Property: Management Control Breakdowns Result in Substantial Waste and Inefficiency GAO-05-277, May 13, 2005
Abstract Highlights-PDF PDF
Previous reports:
Pentagon Waste in Iraq May Total Billions, Investigators Say
June 16, 2004
By: Christian Miller
Los Angeles Times
http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?f...nder%20Reported
GAO Report Points to Pentagon Waste
Defense Department Home to 8 of 25 Federal Programs Labeled 'High-Risk'
By Christopher Lee
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 26, 2005; Page A19
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Look - this has been going on since at least 1999!!! Defazio is at this hearing also.
Government Watchdog Highlights Pentagon Waste
Report Faults Poor Inventory Management
October 26, 1999
http://www.house.gov/defazio/102699DERelease.shtml
$1 Trillion Missing: Military waste under fire
author: Tom Abate / San Francisco Chronicle, May 18, 2005
Jun 03, 2005 20:11
The Department of Defense, already infamous for spending $640 for a toilet seat, once again finds itself under intense scrutiny, only this time because it couldn't account for more than a trillion dollars in financial transactions, not to mention dozens of tanks, missiles and planes.
$1 Trillion Missing: Military waste under fire
Tom Abate
San Francisco Chronicle, May 18, 2005
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8888.htm
http://seattle.indymedia.org/en/2005/06/246417.shtml
-------------------------------------------
May 12, 2005
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site...WJcP7H&b=684469
ADMINISTRATION NOT SERIOUS ABOUT PENTAGON WASTE: In 2001, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld declared "war" on the Pentagon bureaucracy, promising to "slash duplication," reduce fraud and increase accountability to American taxpayers. Yet a GAO report released earlier this year found that the Pentagon is the U.S. department most prone to fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement, "raising concerns about the effectiveness of many of its programs." This isn't just fiscally irresponsible. It's a danger to our national security. So where to start cutting the fat? We can start with much of our bloated nuclear arsenal, our flawed missile defense system (that fails nearly every test), and weapons systems that are Cold War relics. On Monday, American Progress will feature "The Big Picture: A Unified National Defense Budget," an event co-hosted with members of the Center for Defense Information and the Foreign Policy in Focus project.
http://www.gao.gov/docsearch/repandtest.html
DOD Excess Property: Management Control Breakdowns Result in Substantial Waste and Inefficiency GAO-05-729T, June 7, 2005
Abstract Highlights-PDF PDF
DOD Excess Property: Management Control Breakdowns Result in Substantial Waste and Inefficiency GAO-05-277, May 13, 2005
Abstract Highlights-PDF PDF
Previous reports:
Pentagon Waste in Iraq May Total Billions, Investigators Say
June 16, 2004
By: Christian Miller
Los Angeles Times
http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?f...nder%20Reported
GAO Report Points to Pentagon Waste
Defense Department Home to 8 of 25 Federal Programs Labeled 'High-Risk'
By Christopher Lee
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 26, 2005; Page A19
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Look - this has been going on since at least 1999!!! Defazio is at this hearing also.
Government Watchdog Highlights Pentagon Waste
Report Faults Poor Inventory Management
October 26, 1999
http://www.house.gov/defazio/102699DERelease.shtml
$1 Trillion Missing: Military waste under fire
author: Tom Abate / San Francisco Chronicle, May 18, 2005
Jun 03, 2005 20:11
The Department of Defense, already infamous for spending $640 for a toilet seat, once again finds itself under intense scrutiny, only this time because it couldn't account for more than a trillion dollars in financial transactions, not to mention dozens of tanks, missiles and planes.
$1 Trillion Missing: Military waste under fire
Tom Abate
San Francisco Chronicle, May 18, 2005
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8888.htm
http://seattle.indymedia.org/en/2005/06/246417.shtml
-------------------------------------------
May 12, 2005
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site...WJcP7H&b=684469
ADMINISTRATION NOT SERIOUS ABOUT PENTAGON WASTE: In 2001, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld declared "war" on the Pentagon bureaucracy, promising to "slash duplication," reduce fraud and increase accountability to American taxpayers. Yet a GAO report released earlier this year found that the Pentagon is the U.S. department most prone to fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement, "raising concerns about the effectiveness of many of its programs." This isn't just fiscally irresponsible. It's a danger to our national security. So where to start cutting the fat? We can start with much of our bloated nuclear arsenal, our flawed missile defense system (that fails nearly every test), and weapons systems that are Cold War relics. On Monday, American Progress will feature "The Big Picture: A Unified National Defense Budget," an event co-hosted with members of the Center for Defense Information and the Foreign Policy in Focus project.
Remember when you were a kid and your parents would yell at you to come in the house cause it's getting dark?
It's time to go home!
http://www.compfused.com/directlink/647/
It's time to go home!
http://www.compfused.com/directlink/647/
Iraq: Insurgents Seeking Political Role
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Some insurgent groups have agreed on the need to join Iraq's political process, a government spokesman said Sunday, calling on them to lay down their guns.
Laith Kuba, a spokesman for Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, said some insurgent groups felt they no longer needed to carry out their "resistance" after the Jan. 30 national elections and the transfer a year ago of sovereignty from U.S.-led coalition authorities to an Iraqi government.
"Of course before the elections there were certain groups that used to say that Iraq is under occupation and they have a right to resist," Kuba said at a news conference.
"But now I believe this situation no longer exists, and many groups are agreeing on the concept to take part in the political process," he added. "So, now is the right time for any group to lay down their weapons and take part in the process."
Kuba was referring to Iraqi groups opposed to the continued presence of U.S.-led forces in the country, but not foreign extremists like Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, head of the feared al-Qaida in Iraq group, and his Iraqi allies. The words "resistance" and "national resistance" are often applied to groups that only carry out attacks against U.S. forces.
"Groups who have carried out random killings and explosions will never enter into negotiations with the Iraqi government," Kuba said. "These are criminals and murderers who can't stop. They only want to kill."
Kuba's comments came days after the disclosure that U.S. officials are negotiating with Sunni Arab leaders to pull insurgents into Iraq's political process and recent announcements by influential Sunni and Shiite Muslim leaders that they have held similar discussions with insurgent groups.
More than 12,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed during the past 18 months, according to Interior Ministry figures. More than 930 people, including U.S. military personnel, have died since the April 28 announcement of the Shiite-led government.
The bulk of Iraq's insurgents are believed to be homegrown fighters, predominantly loyalists of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein or soldiers from Iraq's disbanded Saddam-era army. Foreign Sunni Arab extremists like al-Zarqawi are believed responsible for the bulk of the country's suicide bombings and are opposed to the presence of U.S. forces in the region and the assumption of power by a Shiite-dominated government.
AP
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Some insurgent groups have agreed on the need to join Iraq's political process, a government spokesman said Sunday, calling on them to lay down their guns.
Laith Kuba, a spokesman for Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, said some insurgent groups felt they no longer needed to carry out their "resistance" after the Jan. 30 national elections and the transfer a year ago of sovereignty from U.S.-led coalition authorities to an Iraqi government.
"Of course before the elections there were certain groups that used to say that Iraq is under occupation and they have a right to resist," Kuba said at a news conference.
"But now I believe this situation no longer exists, and many groups are agreeing on the concept to take part in the political process," he added. "So, now is the right time for any group to lay down their weapons and take part in the process."
Kuba was referring to Iraqi groups opposed to the continued presence of U.S.-led forces in the country, but not foreign extremists like Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, head of the feared al-Qaida in Iraq group, and his Iraqi allies. The words "resistance" and "national resistance" are often applied to groups that only carry out attacks against U.S. forces.
"Groups who have carried out random killings and explosions will never enter into negotiations with the Iraqi government," Kuba said. "These are criminals and murderers who can't stop. They only want to kill."
Kuba's comments came days after the disclosure that U.S. officials are negotiating with Sunni Arab leaders to pull insurgents into Iraq's political process and recent announcements by influential Sunni and Shiite Muslim leaders that they have held similar discussions with insurgent groups.
More than 12,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed during the past 18 months, according to Interior Ministry figures. More than 930 people, including U.S. military personnel, have died since the April 28 announcement of the Shiite-led government.
The bulk of Iraq's insurgents are believed to be homegrown fighters, predominantly loyalists of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein or soldiers from Iraq's disbanded Saddam-era army. Foreign Sunni Arab extremists like al-Zarqawi are believed responsible for the bulk of the country's suicide bombings and are opposed to the presence of U.S. forces in the region and the assumption of power by a Shiite-dominated government.
AP
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