News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.
In their own words:
Michael Yon: Hurricane Afghanistan - The long journey back to Afghanistan is complete. Starting in the mountains of Nepal, with several days’ walk to Pokhara, then a long drive to Kathmandu, a flight to Bangkok where I bought some combat gear (my regular gear is in Iraq and Washington), then to Dubai, and a circuitous journey from India and finally Kabul, where I landed several days ago. I hired a taxi to the British Embassy, passing horse-drawn carts, vendors selling sunglasses, and old men who looked older than time. The streets of Kabul are not war-ravaged like Baghdad, but the fact that there is a war on is unmistakable. The weather was clear, bright and cool, and Afghan and foreign troops were all about, armored convoys could be seen. After a meeting at the British Embassy, I asked for a taxi to the Serena Hotel, but one of the Afghans working the embassy gate suggested there was a kidnapping threat if I took a random taxi. (READ MORE)
Cheese's Milblog: I'm back.... - Again, sorry about the huge break in posting. It's been really busy lately...just ask my fiance the last time she's talked to me. Things are actually going reasonably well right now. Things are still up in the air as far as the reorganization, so we're all just hoping for the best. In the meantime, we've done a lot of humanitarian aid missions lately. My platoon does all of the CMA (civilian medical assessment?) missions in the area. We did the first one and apparently did a good enough job to warrant making it one of our permanent missions. A CMA is a humanitarian mission where we bring doctors and medics to a certain area and treat locals. They're a different style of mission because of all the coordination that must be done among foreign military, Afghan forces, etc. Granted, they take all day, but it's better than sitting at Bagram all day while KBR guys buy Pizza Hut and Popeye's. The other day I got a care package from my old unit in Syracuse. (READ MORE)
IraqPundit: Obama the accidental McCain endorser - Barack Obama meant to tell us he would make the better president, but he actually gave us plenty of reasons why John McCain would be better for the job. After listening to Obama's speech, one can't help but wonder how he plans to improve U.S. relations with Muslim and other countries. For example, he said, he "made clear that we must take out Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights." For one thing, Obama implies that all those Americans working day and night in counter-terrorism and other jobs have been twiddling their thumbs instead of going after al-Qaeda. Obama said, "John McCain likes to say that he'll follow bin Laden to the Gates of Hell - but he won't even go to the cave where he lives." (READ MORE)
Fearless 1st Marines’ blog: Ramadi officially welcomes Municipal Building - RAMADI, Iraq – Ramadi citizens, along with city and provincial leaders, came together Aug. 24, to take part in the grand opening of the 17th Street Municipal Building. The municipal building, also known as the “Red Building” by the locals because of its distinctive color, will serve as the local government’s city hall. The building will be occupied by the mayor, city council members, and other elected and appointed city officials. “This building will help serve the people of Ramadi,” said Latif Obaid, the mayor of Ramadi. “Now, the city’s officials have an official place to work and focus on the public.” (READ MORE)
Bill Roggio: Pakistani forces thwart triple suicide bombing attack - Pakistani paramilitary forces from the Frontier Corps repelled a deadly Taliban suicide attack on a military camp near the Kohat Tunnel. Three suicide vehicles were used in the attack, Geo TV reported. The first bomber attempted to breech the main gate of the complex but was stopped just outside the gate after troops opened fire on the truck. The casualties were sustained in the first explosion. Two civilians were killed in the blast. Thirty-two Pakistanis, including 25 paramilitary troops, were wounded. The chief of security for the tunnel was among those wounded. The second suicide bomber detonated his explosives after hitting the camp wall. The third suicide bomber left his vehicle at the main gate and ran away. (READ MORE)
Matel-in-Iraq: The Wisdom of Solomon - It always amuses me that private businesspeople come to government officials for advice about business issues. What do guys who work for the government, who never met a payroll and have retirements backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government know about the risks & rewards of business? Some authorities & businessmen in Baghdadi were at odds with a general contractor who does jobs around there and on Al Asad. They all asked us (the Marines and me) to intercede. In the interests of literally keeping the peace, we did. The big complaints involved the contractor not hiring enough local guys, not buying enough from local vendors and not paying either vendors or workers on time. It reminded of the ward/union boss problems you might face in an old industrial establishment. I could almost hear the familiar accents. (READ MORE)
Navy Gal: Soap Box - Let me preface this post by saying that I'm taking a big risk by posting this and that ignorance knows no ethnicity, education level or background. With those things being said, let me just hop right up on my soap box and tell you all about a nice little conversation I had the other night with a civilian contractor who was waiting for a flight out of the country. I'm sure most of you know that the Democratic National Convention has been going on in Denver, CO the past two days and if you don't what rock are you living under?? Anyway, I'm sitting in the terminal on my laptop listening to the convention via the tv over my shoulder when the afore-mentioned contractor starts to ask me questions, random questions that I don't even remember now. He then lands on the topic of the convention on tv. He states that he didn't like either of the candidates and was not going to vote. I stared at him in disbelief at what I was hearing. (READ MORE)
Big Tobacco: The Global War on Pubic Hair - I did not smoke while writing this. “Who are you voting for?” I pick at my mashed potatoes and look at Sergeant Speakerphone. He sits across from me, staring at me intently. “You know I can’t answer that,” I say. “Oh, come on!” He says. “Why not? I’m voting for Obama.” “It’s because I am in a leadership role and I will not subject my privates to undue influence.” “That’s fuckin’ stupid, sarn’t.” “It’s not stupid. It’s the right thing to do.” I find myself pointing a plastic fork at Sergeant Speakerphone. “But if everybody in the platoon is voting for Obama anyway, and you are voting for Obama, then how can you exert undue influence?” “I never said I was voting for Obama!” “So you are voting for McCain!” (READ MORE)
Zen Traveller: The Littlest Indicator - I was answering a question for a friend last night on identifiable progress in Iraq, and I began thinking about the definition of "progress". In graduate school thirteen years ago the political science buzzword for progress was "development", and of course that meant various things to various people depending on what their viewpoint was. Some, including myself, approached development from an economic standpoint, others looked at social or political conditions, still more were concerned with infrastructure. All of these are good indicators to consider when determining the development or progress that is taking place in Iraq. While there is not a catch-all indicator of development, there is one that is pretty close, the condition of a nation's children. My theory is that in every society it's citizens love their children, they provide for them, sacrifice for them, and therefor the kids become a great indicator of how well or not well the family is doing. (READ MORE)
Two Brothers, Two Countries, One Army: Too close for comfort.... - Well hello to all again! Like always, I want to thank everyone for your support to my brother and I and also all the other men and women fighting over here! THANK YOU! First and most important: please say a special prayer for the Soldiers and their families of those over here. I can't say why, but there are people in special need tonight. Thank you. We are about to enter a "bad" time of the year. Forgive me if I spell this wrong....but Ramidad is about to start. It's a month long religious fasting period that means a lot to them...Forgive me, I'm a Southern Baptist/Contemporary Christian so I'm not too up on that particular religion. All I know is that it raises issues with the safety of our Soldiers over here. It's pretty dangerous time of the year from what I understand. So please keep us in your prayers. (READ MORE)
The Left Captain: Another Mission - My second mission this week came and went uneventfully. It was short notice and the commander specifically requested my presence on the trip—a quick visit to FOB Altimore, which is up towards Logar Province. It is a small outpost out in the desert at the bottom of Tera Pass (which we drove over). I rode in the relatively bombproof confines of an RG31 MRAP, second truck in a four vehicle convoy. It is an uncomfortable ride, even on pavement, so I can’t imagine a few hours on nasty dirt roads. That said, I will always celebrate the MRAP over the Humvee. In contrast with my ride with the engineers we were heavily armed this time. These guys roll on trips loaded for bear: every vehicle has a 50 cal or a Mark 19 grenade launcher and these are backed up by squad automatic weapons and personal weapons. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Iraqi National Police graduate Carabinieri training (Baghdad) - Baghdad – Members of the Iraqi National Police graduated from the specialized Carabinieri training, led by the Italian Police, August 28, at Camp Dublin in Baghdad. Graduates marched before a stand filled with dignitaries in the late morning heat and performed demonstrations of skills they learned in the eight-week course. More than 400 Iraqi National Police completed this session of Carabinieri training, bringing the total Iraqi National Police graduates of the course to 2,013 since last November when the courses started here. (READ MORE)
Al-Qaeda network in Hamrin Mountains decimated - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained eight suspected terrorists Thursday and Friday as they continued to run down the al-Qaeda in Iraq network, especially in the Hamrin Mountains region, where they detained four wanted men. One of the wanted men, captured Thursday near Qara Tappa with one alleged associate, is assessed to be a senior advisor for AQI operations around the Hamrin Mountains. Three other wanted men in the region were captured in a Friday operation with one additional suspect. (READ MORE)
Local resident turns in munitions, MND-B Soldiers find cache - BAGHDAD – A local resident turned in munitions and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers discovered a weapons cache in Baghdad Aug. 28. At approximately 5 p.m., a local resident brought six mortar rounds to an entry control point north of Baghdad. Soldiers serving with Company C, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, called in an explosive ordnance disposal team to assess the munitions. The EOD team identified the munitions as a 120 mm high-explosive mortar rounds. (READ MORE)
IED kills civilian in marketplace (Kirkuk) - KIRKUK, Iraq – A mortar round was remotely detonated in the Domies Market in Kirkuk city killing an Iraqi citizen, Aug. 28. Additionally, seven more Iraqis were wounded in the blast. All casualties were evacuated to the Kirkuk General Hospital. “Random acts of violence in public places are the only plan these savages have for the future of Iraq,” said Maj. Peggy Kageleiry, a spokeswoman for Coalition forces north of Baghdad. (READ MORE)
ISF seize weapons caches throughout Baghdad - BAGHDAD – Iraq Army Soldiers and Iraqi National Police seized weapons caches throughout Baghdad Aug. 28. Soldiers serving with the 54th Brigade, 6th Iraq Army Division seized numerous weapons during a search operation in the Mansour district of Baghdad at approximately 7 a.m. The munitions included 100 AK 47’s, four Seminov rifles, an SKS rifle and four pistols. (READ MORE)
Interior Ministry holds first conference on forensics - Baghdad – With growing use of forensics in Iraq, scientists in Iraq are helping police make discoveries that solve crimes. The accomplishments and plans in this area were discussed Wednesday at the First Conference on Forensic Sciences held by the Ministry of Interior. “This is a noble cause,” said Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad al-Bulani, “to make sure we have justice. We are trying to build a country built on the constitution and all of these efforts by our expert investigators will help the police to establish the truth and uphold the Rule of Law.” (READ MORE)
Al-Qaeda bombing facilitator killed (Baghdad) - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed a terrorist in Tikrit during a daytime operation Thursday targeting associates of al-Qaeda leaders in central Iraq. Coalition forces targeted a facilitator involved with providing bomb triggers for several attack cells in the Tigris River Valley bombing network. As they attempted to apprehend the wanted terrorist, the man rushed toward the security element and grabbed one soldier’s rifle. Responding to the hostile threat, Coalition forces engaged and killed the man. (READ MORE)
Salvadoran's Give Demo for Incoming Troops - FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA — Leaders from El Salvador’s Cuscatlán Battalion gathered at Bunker 7 for a quick reaction force demonstration Aug. 23. The demonstration gave the Soldiers an opportunity to show the incoming troops and Salvadoran media the high level of training they achieved in their six months here. (READ MORE)
Iraqis Put Proud Face on Budding Businesses at Joint Base Balad - JOINT BASE BALAD — In a region where many men are often judged on their ability to thwart progress, he is counted among a growing number that can make things happen. And he has been making good things happen for his fellow countrymen since long before coalition forces arrived six years ago. His name is Hashim Abd Al-Amir Mahdi and he is an Iraqi business leader who has been able to sustain long-term contracts with Coalition forces and provide valuable jobs for local nationals. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Prince Harry wants to return to the Afghanistan frontline - London, Aug.29 : Britain's Prince Harry, who did a tour of military duty in Afghanistan last year, wants to silence his critics by taking another shot at the Taliban. His last mission was a success, despite being cruelly cut short. Harry feels his rightful place is on the front line with his men, reports The Sun. (READ MORE)
Three Afghan civilians die in shooting at German Kunduz checkpoint - Berlin - Three Afghan civilians have been killed and a number of others injured in a shooting incident at a checkpoint manned by German troops and Afghan security forces near the northern city of Kunduz, the German Defence Ministry said in Berlin Friday. The incident, which occurred to the south-east of the city in a region where German troops lead the operations of the international Security Assistance Force... (READ MORE)
US: More than 24 militants killed in Afghanistan - AMKABUL, Afghanistan -- More than 24 militants were killed in two separate battles with U.S.-led coalition troops in Afghanistan, the coalition said Friday. More than a dozen militants were killed after they attacked a coalition base in Shaheed Hasas district of the southern Uruzgan province on Thursday, the coalition said. Two Afghan guards also died during the attack. (READ MORE)
Afghan Commander calls for help to protect key districts - KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — The top Canadian soldier in Afghanistan conceded Wednesday that two-thirds of the Zhari and Panjwai districts just outside Kandahar city are under the control of the Taliban and said more ground forces are needed to bring security to the province. (READ MORE)
Coalition forces eliminate nearly a dozen militants in E Afghanistan - The U.S.-led Coalition forces in an operation eliminated almost a dozen militants and arrested two others in an operation to disrupt militant activities in eastern Afghan province of Paktika province, said a Coalition statement released here on Friday. (READ MORE)
Afghan president fast losing his popularity - Afghan President Hamid Karzai is fast losing popularity in the streets of his capital, as he is being blamed for the absence of peace in the country, where the Taliban insurgency is gaining momentum despite the presence of over 8,000 soldiers of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). 'Since his appointment as president he has never thought about the people of Afghanistan. (READ MORE)
Taliban claim capture of former Afghan minister - PESHAWAR: Afghan Taliban are claiming abduction of former minister Amanullah Zadran in Logar province, who is also an adviser to President Hamid Karzai. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid while speaking from an undisclosed location said Zadran and one of his cousins were seized on Wednesday in Logar while coming from Pule Alam. (READ MORE)
100 rebels killed in Afghanistan - KABUL: A four-day battle that began with an ambush on a joint U.S-Afghan patrol in southern Afghanistan has killed more than 100 Taleban soldiers, the coalition said yesterday. Taleban soldiers wielding rocket-propelled grenades, guns and mortars attacked the joint patrol in the southern province of Helmand multiple times starting on Monday, the coalition said. The combined force called in fighter aircraft for support (READ MORE)
Diggers build bridges in Afghanistan - The Australian Defence Force (ADF) says Australian troops have played a major role in reopening a main Afghan supply route which was sabotaged by Taliban fighters. Soldiers from the Reconstruction Task Force rebuilt two bridges along the highway linking Kabul and Kandahar. (READ MORE)
Militants detained, killed in Paktika province - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 28, 2008) – Two militants were detained and one was killed during a Coalition forces’ operation to disrupt militant activities in Paktika province, Wednesday. Coalition forces searched compounds in Gayan District targeting an individual affiliated with anti-coalition militant leaders facilitating the movement of foreign fighters from Pakistan into Afghanistan. (READ MORE)
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