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Dec 31, 2003

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INTRUDERS BEWARE — U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jose Delgado from the 386th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron tests the tactical automated security system at a forward-deployed location in Southwest Asia. The system helps protect the base from unauthorized entry. When an intruder passes by a sensor, a silent alarm sounds alerting security forces to the location. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman James C. Dillard

1st Armored Div. Commander
Optimistic About Iraq’s Future

By Jim Garamone / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2003 — The commander of U.S. troops in Baghdad, delivered an upbeat assessment today of the future in and around Iraq's capital city.
     In a Baghdad press conference, Army Brig. Gen. Martin Dempsey, commander of the 1st Armored Division, said he is optimistic about the future of Iraq. "We have only one New Year's resolution. And that is, as the word suggests, to remain resolute in our work to establish a safe and secure environment for the Iraqi people," Dempsey said.
     The general briefed reporters on Operation Iron Grip, the ongoing division effort against cells of Saddam Hussein regime loyalists. The primary targets are the former regime cell structure. Intelligence gleaned from Saddam's capture told the division that 14 cells operate in the city, linked by a financial and planning network. More     Briefing

Small Business Loans Bring Temporary Relief to Reservists

By Staff Sgt. Michelle Thomas / Special to American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2003 — Overseas deployments are always tough on families. Naturally, the initial focus falls upon the emotional cost of separation. But, for Guardsmen and reservists who own small businesses, the cost involved in a deployment takes on a whole new meaning.
For the past two years, the U.S. Small Business Administration's Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan program has provided loans to eligible small businesses to cover operating costs that can't be met after a key employee is called to active duty in the reserves or National Guard. Often the "key employee" is the business owner, whose family left behind depends on the income generated from the company. More

Defense Officials Announce Military Commission Panel

By Jim Garamone / American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 30, 2003 — Trials of detainees accused of terrorist acts came a step closer today, following three moves announced by senior Pentagon officials. The Defense Department announced the selection of key personnel associated with military commissions and the issuance of a new instruction that creates a Military Commission Review Panel.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has designated four people to serve on the panel: Griffin B. Bell, former U.S. Attorney General; Edward G. Biester, a judge with the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pa.; William T. Coleman Jr., a former Transportation secretary; and Frank Williams, the chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court. More Briefing

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.

. Maps of Iraq

Transformation

Cebrowski: 'People Advancing New Ideas' Vital to Transformation

WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2003 - If you ask retired Navy Vice Admiral Arthur Cebrowski why service members and Defense Department civilian employees should care about efforts to transform the military, he is neither hesitant nor uncertain in his response.
"There are two ways of looking at it. First, with so much transformation going on today, and so many efforts so broadly dispersed throughout the operating forces, all of our people - soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen and civilians - have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor," Cebrowski said. "They have the opportunity to not only see change take place in front of their eyes, but to actually make it happen." More

. Stability, Reconstruction Force Studied

More Transformation News

Army Reserve Chief
Outlines Changes in Mission

BAGRAM, Afghanistan, Dec. 31, 2003 - Chief of the Army Reserve Lt. Gen. James R. Helmly spoke with soldiers at a town hall meeting here, discussing changes in the mission of the Army Reserve and Army National Guard.
During a recent visit with deployed troops, Helmly, the Army Reserve’s commander since 2002, conveyed the appreciation he and his staff have for Reserve and National Guard soldiers. More

Army's Old Guard Deploys
To Support War on Terror

CAMP LEMONIER, Djibouti, Dec. 30, 2003 (Army News Service) — Army Old Guard soldiers, from Fort Myer, Va., arrived at Camp Lemonier, Djibouti, Dec. 17, and have begun engaging in training and tactical missions.
Soldiers from B Company, 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) have been deployed in support of the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa and the Global War on Terrorism. More

Task Force 'All American'
Captures Enemy Personnel

AR RAMADI, Iraq, Dec. 31, 2003 - During the last 24 hours, the 82nd Airborne Division and its subordinate units, also known as Task Force “All American,” conducted 205 patrols, 17 of which were joint patrols with Iraqi forces, and carried out 14 offensive operations, according to U.S. Central Command officials.
One enemy was killed and 39 were captured during these operations. Entry was denied to 170 people at the border crossing at Trebil - all due to insufficient documentation. No one was turned away at Tanif, Husaybh, or Ar Ar. More

Radio

Television

U.S. Army Europe Reviews
Flag Patch Guidelines

     HEIDELBERG, Germany, Dec. 31, 2003 — In light of U.S. Army Europe's numerous expeditionary operations and in recognition of the Army's commitment to the Global War on Terror, Gen. B. B. Bell, commanding general, has deemed it appropriate and proper for all soldiers to “proudly and permanently wear the American Flag on their field/ combat uniform” whether they are in the garrison or deployed in support of an operation.
     Details of the policy on the wearing of the U.S. flag patch on the battle dress uniform and desert camouflage uniform are under review and are expected to be published soon.
     "Until such time as the instructions are published, I do not want personnel returning from a deployment to remove their U.S. flag patch from either the [Desert Camouflage Uniform] or [Battle Dress Uniform]," said Bell. More

On Patrol with the Stryker Brigade More Photo Essays

Soldiers of the Stryker Brigade Combat Team conduct combat operations contributing to the stability of Samarra, Iraq, Dec. 21, 2003. The team members are assigned to Battle Company, 5th Battalion, 20 Infantry, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division and work under the operational control of the 4th Infantry Division. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Clinton Tarzia 6 More Photos

Operation Choke Hold
Bags Bad Guys in Baghdad

By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mark Bell / 372nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

A paratrooper from the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, searches a vehicle during Operation Choke Hold on Highway 8 in southern Baghdad.

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 30, 2003 — Just days after the capture of Saddam Hussein by coalition forces, 1st Armored Division soldiers continued driving forward to help liberate the Iraqi people from terrorist activity in their own backyard.
More than 500 paratroopers from the 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, which is attached to the Germany-based U.S. 1st Armored Division, halted traffic on Highway 8 and cordoned off all escapes avenues during Operation Choke Hold in the Al Rashid District of southern Baghdad recently, in hopes of discovering illegal activities on one of Baghdad's busiest highways. More

Florida Guard Resources Provide
Deployment Tips to Troops, Families

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — When Matt Leve’s daughter was born nearly three months premature, the Florida Army National Guard sergeant was worried.
Lauren Alexis Leve is 19 months old now and her health is still a great concern for the Tampa couple. But what is making the situation even more emotional for the family is that Sgt. Leve could be spending up to a year - maybe more - away from his fragile daughter, as his unit prepares for a possible mobilization to active duty. Leve and his wife recently joined nearly 30 other families and soldiers in an informational family readiness briefing at the unit in early December. Story

Gamble's Deployment Journal

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. Gamble plans to share some of his deployment journal entries with DefendAmerica.mil.

Dec. 22, 2003 - I made a mistake. I missed the warning on the package that said "take medication with food." That is why at noon on Wednesday, I pulled over at a weigh station on I-95 to get rid of the malaria pill in a very painful fashion. It took a few hours for the pain to subside, and I wanted to double-check with the medics.
I stopped to see Larry Skummer at the Flight Medicine Clinic at the Pentagon for my third anthrax shot. He chuckled at me when I told him about the malaria pill. He told me I should not take it on an empty stomach. That, however, was not my only medical worry. More

Global War on Terrorism

. Heightened Security Not Tied to Saddam Hussein's Capture

. Bush, Blair Welcome Libya's Pledge to Dismantle Weapons

. 'Tremendous Strides' Made in Iraq, Afghanistan, Collins Says

On Iraq

. Coalition Battles Oil Industry Sabotage, Gasoline Smugglers

. 5 U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq; Operation Nets 66 Prisoners

. Samarra Blast, Urbil Suicide Attack Kill U.S. Troops, Iraqis

. Rewards Announced for Capture Of Former Regime Members

Military News

. Transformation in Action: Ops. Enduring & Iraqi Freedom

. Rumsfeld, Myers Laud Troops, Caution Terror Threat Remains

. Military Blood Program Seeks Holiday Donors

. National Guard, Reserve Update

Defense Officials
Identify Army Casualty

WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2003 — Defense Department officials announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Staff Sgt. Michael J. Sutter, 28, of Tinley Park, Ill., was killed Dec. 26 in Baqubah, Iraq. Sutter was attempting to render safe an improved explosive device when it detonated. Sutter was assigned to the 745th Ordnance Company, 79th Ordnance Battalion, Army National Guard, based in Grayling, Mich. This incident is under investigation.

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NASCAR Celebrities, Civic
Leaders Visit Deployed Troops

WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2003 — A group of NASCAR celebrities, team owners, track owners and civilian employers of Guard and Reserve members left Dec. 29 for a five-day trip to Southwest Asia to visit deployed service members and highlight the importance of support for the Guard and Reserve. More

Profile

U.S. Army
Capt. Caroline Pogge

Capt. Caroline Pogge, a civil affairs officer with the 411th Civil Affairs Battalion, an Army Reserve Unit from Danbury, Conn., checks students' work at a workshop for Iraqi doctors and health care professionals at the Iraqi Forum in Baghdad. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ryan Smith

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Army News Service), Dec. 29, 2003 — A U.S. soldier shared her knowledge about health-care management with Iraqi doctors and other health-care professionals during an Iraqi Forum in Baghdad earlier this month.
Capt. Caroline Pogge, a civil affairs officer with the 411th Civil Affairs Battalion, an Army Reserve unit from Danbury, Conn., led the workshop. Attendees included doctors, pharmacists and representatives from the Iraqi Ministry of Health. More

More Profiles

	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

President George W. Bush

“These brave Americans are fighting terrorists in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere so that we do not meet these killers on our own streets...We are grateful for the courage and commitment of our troops, and we are safer because of their skill and sacrifice.”

Remarks during weekly radio address,
Dec. 27, 2003

. Maps of Afghanistan

In Djibouti

Chief of Navy Chaplains
Visits Task Force

The chief of Navy Chaplains, Rear Admiral Louis V. Iasiello (center), and the Bishop of Djibouti, Monsignor Giorgio Bertin (left), chat with a Marine after prayer services at the chapel here Dec. 21. Iasiello’s visit to Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa is the first of many stops during his current tour of the region. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Melinda D. Munoz

CAMP LEMONIER, Djibouti — The Chief of Navy Chaplains visited service members supporting Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa here recently.
“There’s so many people to visit and things to see because of the many great things being done here,” said Navy Rear Admiral Louis V. Iasiello. More

'On The Ground' Archive