DefendAmerica 12/12/2003

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Dec 12, 2003

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NIGHT FIRE — Alpha Battery "Demons" from the 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, prepare to fire artillery rounds downrange at predetermined targets, during a night exercise in Baghdad, Iraq, near the Baghdad International Airport, Dec. 11, 2003. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Vernon Freeman

RUMSFELD

Guard, Reserve Troops Doing 'Superb Job' in War on Terror

By Gerry J. Gilmore / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2003 — The Defense Department's top civilian today praised reserve and National Guard members serving in the global war on terrorism, while acknowledging some of that force is being stretched by multiple deployments.
     Members of the Guard and reserve are "doing a superb job," Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld declared to a group of state legislators gathered here at a downtown hotel.
     About 175,000 Guard and reserve members are now on active duty, Rumsfeld said, with many serving in Afghanistan and Iraq. He acknowledged to members of the National Conference of State Legislatures that some Guard and reserve units with specialties such as military police and civil affairs are being heavily employed – and deployed – overseas. More     Remarks

ABIZAID

Premature Departure from Iraq Would be 'Strategic Mistake'

U.S. State Department Washington File

     WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2003 — During an interview today with Kuwait's Al-Qabas Arabic daily newspaper, U.S. Army Gen. John Abizaid, U.S. Central Command commander, said the United States would commit a "strategic mistake" if it left Iraq prematurely.
     "What will be a strategic mistake is if we leave Iraq too soon. We must help the Iraqis become a stable and representative government to the extent that they are able to become one. When that happens, it will make a positive difference in this region. It will improve the economy in the region and it will make a huge political opportunity for people who desire to have a better life in this region," Abizaid said in the interview.
     Abizaid said most of Iraq is stable with no military threat to the success of the U.S. mission in the country. More

82nd Airborne Div. Jumpmasters Take Refresher Training Course

By Donna Miles / American Forces Press Service

U.S. Army First Sgt. Brook Reinhold, Headquarters and Headquarters' Company, 3rd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment performs a jumpmaster personnel inspection on Capt. Jason Borg, Company. B, 307th Engineer Battalion, during a jumpmaster refresher course. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jason B. Baker

     BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 12, 2003 — Paratroopers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division began Jumpmaster Refresher Courses, Jumpmaster Pretests and Air Movement Operations Courses at Camp Falcon recently.
     The classes are being conducted at the forward operating base in southern Baghdad to prepare the brigade for redeployment and assumption of their mission back at Fort Bragg, NC, early next year. The brigade is part of Task Force 1st Armored Division.
     Seven instructors from the U.S. Army Advanced Airborne School at Fort Bragg deployed to Iraq for several weeks to train more than 100 paratroopers in Air Movement Operations and to refresh about 300 jumpmasters deployed to Baghdad. More

Iraq Weekly Progress Update (Governance, Electricity, Education, Oil, Security, Economics, Health Care)

U.S. Defense Dept. slides with facts &
figures on reconstruction efforts in Iraq.

U.S. State Dept. fact sheet on the latest developments in restoring Iraq's essential services, security, economy & governance.

Defense officials provide an update on the Coalition Provisional Authority & the Iraqi Governing Council agreement that outlines the process of restoring Iraq's sovereignty and the adoption of a permanent constitution.

New Benefits Help Families
Visit Injured Sailors, Marines

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2003 (NNS) — Recent changes in Navy regulations will allow the Navy's the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery to provide financial assistance for up to two non-military family members who are traveling to be with a hospitalized sailor or Marine. The financial assistance, or per diem, covers the daily allowance for travel, lodging and meals.
“Recent additions to the joint federal travel regulation allow (the bureau) to reimburse parents or other family members traveling to a hospital to visit a sick or injured sailor or Marine," said Petty Officer 1st Class Douglas N. Elsesser, program manager for Beneficiary Counseling and Assistance Coordinator at Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. Story

No War Trophies Allowed
From Iraq, Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2003 — U.S. service members shouldn't even think about bringing back to the United States war trophies from your service in Iraq and Afghanistan.
With about 140,000 American service members due to rotate out of Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. Central Command officials are very clear that service members cannot bring home weapons, ammunition and other prohibited items. Some soldiers tried to smuggle weapons back from Baghdad, and they have gone through courts martial. Story

National Guard Family Programs Offer Tips on Deployment Issues

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 12, 2003 — Coming home can be as difficult as going away, the National Guard Bureau’s premier family advocate frequently cautions National Guard members and their families about the unexpected stresses of military deployments.
Dorothy Ogilvy-Lee, chief of Family Programs, recently told National Guard public affairs personnel that experiences during deployment may impact both deployed Guard members and the families left behind. More

Court Proceedings
Slated for Arabic Translator

      SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, ILL. — The military judge appointed to preside over the court martial case involving Senior Airman Ahmad I. Al Halabi, Travis Air Force Base, Calif., has scheduled the court martial's initial session for Dec. 15 at Travis.
       At this session, the military judge, Colonel Barbara G. Brand of the Central Circuit Judiciary, Randolph AFB, Texas, is expected to arraign Al Halabi and hear pre-trial motions.
      The panel of military members selected to hear the case will not be present at this initial session. More

Radio

Television

Reconstruction Team Opens at Kandahar, Operations Continue

By Gerry J. Gilmore / American Forces Press Service

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, Dec. 12, 2003 — Many local and Afghan dignitaries attended the Kandahar Provincial Reconstruction Team grand opening yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force-180 officials said at a news conference. Dignitaries attending included Kandahar Governor Yusuf Pashtun, U.S. Ambassador Xalmay Khalilzad and U.S. Army Lt. Gen. David Barno. This is the seventh Provincial Reconstruction Team opening; in the next several months, five more are scheduled to open at Jalalabad, Khowst, Ghazni, Asadabad, and Qalat.
In eastern, southeastern, and southern Afghanistan, Operation Avalanche continues. More

Norfolk Ships to Return
From Six-Month Deployment

NORFOLK, Dec. 11, 2003 (NNS) — More than 600 sailors aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Stout and the guided-missile frigate USS Nicholas will return to their homeport in Norfolk, Va., Dec. 16, after a six-month deployment to the Mediterranean Sea.
During the deployment, Stout participated in the Standing Naval Forces Mediterranean, a NATO Task Force made up of ships from the United Kingdom, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Nicholas conducted queries on more than 350 merchant ships, supporting the global war on terrorism. More

Army Ocularist Restores Eyes, Provides Renewed Confidence

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2003 — Officials at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., report that four to five of the wounded troops returning to the center from Iraq each month for medical care suffer from eye injuries. Among them are Sgt. Gary Boss and Spc. Eric Lanstrum; both soldiers lost an eye during attacks by insurgents. Aiding in their recovery at the medical center is Vince Przybyla, the only ocularist in the Defense Department and one of fewer than 100 in the country who can make prosthetic eyes. He's using his unique skills to restore these soldiers' appearance and confidence – and in many cases, preparing them to return to full duty.

. Prosthetic Eyes Improve Patients' Outlook

. Walter Reed Ocularist Treats Eye Injuries

Mail Call More Photo Essays

Senior Airman Terra Mason, a U.S. Air Force postal worker, opens her own package that arrived by mail at Baghdad International Airport, December 11, 2003. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Lisa M. Zunzanyika 4 More Photos

U.S. Soldiers See Iraq's Future In New Civil Defense Recruits

By U.S. Army Capt. Adam Smith / 350th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

AL QAIM, Iraq, Dec. 7, 2003 — The newest graduates of the Iraqi Civilian Defense Corps stood tall in their new brown uniforms, AK-47 rifles slung across their backs or loosely held next to them and helmets resting on their heads.
For many soldiers who entered Iraq after the end of major ground combat, this was the first time they had seen an armed and uniformed Iraqi force. American soldiers, armed and ready for combat, stood around the outside, offering words of encouragement, smiles and occasional thumbs up to cross the language barrier. More

U.S. Army Reserve Troops Help Renovate Iraqi Elementary School

By U.S. Army Maj. Bobby Hart / 143rd Transportation Command

AN NASIRIYAH, Dec. 11, 2003 — The good feeling may not last forever once school-aged children near Tallil Air Base in southern Iraq figure out what U.S. soldiers have done for them, but on Dec. 7, it was all smiles as a group of more than two dozen children joined soldiers and community leaders as they opened the renovated Zahour Elementary School.
Soldiers from the Army Reserve’s 486th Civil Affairs Battalion and 171st Area Support Group teamed up to rebuild the school that had fallen into disrepair near the city of An Nasiriyah-site of some of Operation Iraqi Freedom’s most fierce fighting and where 17 Italian peacekeepers were killed recently. More

Gamble's Deployment Journal
First Few Days at Fort Bliss

Army Staff Sgt. Zeno Gamble, a Gulf War veteran, is one of the thousands of reservists who have been called to active duty during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Gamble left his civilian job at the Pentagon Dec. 7 for Fort Bliss, Texas, for training before flying out to the Persian Gulf. During his deployment, Gamble plans to share some of journal entries with the readers of DefendAmerica.mil.

     Dec. 11, 2003 — Part three of the Code of Conduct states: "I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy."
      I find special meaning in this part of the code. I have never been in a position to be captured nor held hostage. I certainly do not know what it is like to be held against my will, and I doubt that I ever will. However, I do know that I feel an obligation to my countrymen never to betray them. To accept any sort of bribe from a captor while your fellow men suffer is not an honorable thing. There are bonds formed between soldiers that should never be broken.
      Here in the open bay barracks at Fort Bliss, I frequently see the soldiers trying to pass the time together. Army Spec. John Perez is a signal soldier from Ft. Bragg, N.C., and Army Staff Sgt. Kevin Crupper is an information systems guy from Ft. Monmouth, N.J. I often see these two “dominologists” practicing their craft near my bunk. That is what *they* call it. More

Global War on Terrorism

. Myers: Transformation Vital to Fighting Global War On Terror

On Iraq

. Defense Auditors Investigate Potential KBR Overcharges

. Defense Dept., Coalition Look Into Iraqi Army Resignations

. Iraqis Stage Widespread Rallies To Show Support for Coalition

. Black Market, Hoarders & Strike Cause Gas Shortage in Iraq

. Insurgent Success Rate Down, 4th Infantry Gen. Tells Sec Def

On Afghanistan

. Rumsfeld Meets with Karzai, Notes Progress in Afghanistan

Military News

. Ballistic Missile Defense Test Successful

. No War Trophies Allowed From Iraq, Afghanistan

. Defense Logistics Agency Improves Automation, Service, Savings

. U.S. Transportation Command Addresses Supply Chain Problems

. National Guard, Reserve Update

	U.S. Views — Quotes by President Bush & other U.S. leaders
	Defense Views — Quotes by U.S. defense leaders
	Maps of Iraq — Maps of the nation of Iraq and the region

Defense Secretary
Donald H. Rumsfeld

“To defend our cities and our people and our way of life, some suggest that we should just hunker down and try to defend against a terrorist. The problem is, a terrorist can attack at any time, any place, using any technique, and it is physically not possible to defend at every place, at every moment of the day or night, against every conceivable type of technique. Therefore, the only choice we have...is to take the global war on terror to the terrorists...”

Remarks to the National Conference of
State Legislatures, Dec. 12, 2003

Defense Officials
Identify Army Casualties

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2003 — Defense Department officials announced today the deaths of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Officials also announced a soldier supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom has been listed as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown. More

Incirlik Clothing Donations Support
Wounded Troops During Recovery

INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey, Dec. 12, 2003 — Volunteers from the 39th Operations Squadron recently mailed approximately 3,200 pounds of clothing donated by base personnel to support wounded combat troops at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany. Troops will use the clothes during their recovery. More

U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Tristan Nillo, a sailor aboard USS Enterprise in the Arabian Gulf, sends holiday greetings to his loved ones at home. U.S. Navy Photo by Seaman Justin N. McGarry

Send your 'Best Wishes' to the men and women in uniform supporting the global war on terror
Send your message
Read other messages

'Treasures' Program Offers
Chance to Support Troops

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2003 — The public's response to the American Red Cross "Treasures for Troops" program has been overwhelming, Gwynn Schneider, associate with Armed Forces Emergency Services, Headquarters ARC, said here Dec. 10.
More

Sign an On-line Thank You Note

. Maps of Iraq

. Maps of Afghanistan

Profile

U.S. Army
Brig. Gen. Ennis C. Whitehead III

Brig. Gen. Ennis C. Whitehead is promoted during a ceremony at Arifjan, Kuwait

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait — It can be pretty tough to get much respect in the Whitehead family.
Although Ennis C. (Jim) Whitehead III recently was promoted to brigadier general, he would still be the junior officer in his family, as both his grandfather and father outrank him. More

More Profiles

Tenth-Grade Winners
Offer Their Insights

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2003 — “Freedom means being able to enjoy all the liberties and responsibilities entrusted to me and my fellow Americans by our founding fathers,” wrote Katie Graham from Grand Blanc, Mich., in her submission to the Weekly Reader’s Operation Tribute to Freedom essay contest. More

More essays

In Afghanistan

Marine Battalion
Joins Bagram Team

BAGRAM, Afghanistan, Dec. 12, 2003 — As the pursuit of al Queda and Taliban forces continues in Afghanistan, the number of the coalition force troops have increased as the 2nd Battalion, 8th Regiment of the 2nd Marine Division, recently arrived here to support the efforts of Combined Joint Task Force-180. More

. Paving the Way To Bagram's Stability

'On The Ground' Archive