News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Mortar Attacks Target U.S. Diplomatic Office in Iraq
Car bomb blasts kill 8 in Baghdad shopping area
U.S. Offers $50,000 Reward in Missing Translator Search
Nat'l Guard Units May Go Back to Iraq
Al Qaeda Claims to Have 12,000 Fighters in Iraq
Blair to Give Evidence to Iraq Study Group
Pentagon reviews Iraq war strategy
3rd son from Wash. family sent to Iraq

Operation Enduring Freedom
General: GIs preserve Afghan freedom

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Al Qaeda may plan Europe transit attacks: report
Group threatens attacks on Sri Lanka civilians

Other Military News
Military service may be connected to ALS
Nearly 70,000 Vets Call Alaska Home
Marine to Receive Medal of Honor

Mid-East Ceasefire / Hamas Rising / Israel at War
Palestinians Mark Passing of Yasser Arafat
Palestinian PM May Resign to Allow Aid
Abbas hopes for Palestinian unity govt by December
Abbas urges Israel to make peace
Lebanon talks on govt change collapse

Worldwide Wackos
Iran ready to consider Russian uranium plan

Politics / Government
GOP: McCain to Launch '08 Exploratory Committee
Bush woos Democrats despite divisions on UN post
Senate race reveals regional divide in Virginia
Dems pledge to sever ties to lobbyists
Bush, Democrats pledge to work together

In the Courts
Massachusetts Judge Settles Dispute by Ruling Burrito is Not a Sandwich (Your tax dollars at work...)
Health groups file to appeal U.S. tobacco case
Google faces legal challenges over video service
Judicial independence remains under fire

NSA / CIA
Warrantless wiretaps unlikely to be OK'd

Mother Nature
Kenyan children demand action on climate change
Heavy snow blankets Iowa, Minnesota

Oddities
Dancing eunuchs taxing red-faced shopkeepers
Hundreds to compete for rock, paper, scissors title
Thai zoo to teach panda to mate with "porn" videos

Other News of Note
Wal-Mart Brings Christmas Back, Cuts More Prices
U.S. urges restraint in Bangladesh
NASA tries to regain contact with probe

Fox News
American AIDS Victims Live Longer
PlayStation 3 Opens to Large Crowds in Japan
Studies: Manatees May Not Be So Dumb After All
Woman Who Killed 2 Daughters in 2003 Released
Former NFL Coach Bill Walsh Battling Leukemia
'Sopranos' Wasn't Enough for Daniel Baldwin
Oscar-Winning Actor Jack Palance Dies at 87

Reuters: Top News
Fear grips residents in crime-hit Naples
"BlackBerry Thumb" sparks new form of hand massage
Dollar pressured by concerns about China reserves
Hormel lifts forecast; shares jump
Oil falls below $60 as inventories rise
NYSE shares at new high, exchange stocks rise
Stocks rise on oil, AIG; techs lift Nasdaq - Video
Market edgy over China's reserves plan
A time to prune
NTL set to bid mostly in cash for ITV: source
Dubai may sell part of stake in DaimlerChrysler
France's Alstom ups share of Paris region train deal
Dubai-led fund confirms initial EADS stake talks
Wal-Mart extends price cuts to small appliances
Inflation, retail top U.S. stocks' agenda

AP World News
Buckeyes score big in record-setting win
Top-Ranked Gators open with easy victory
Yankees trade Gary Sheffield to Tigers
Violations cited in W.Wa. mine deaths
Obituaries in the news
NYC plane crash survivor leaves hospital

Military.com
Sign the Veterans Bill of Rights
Blog: Deadly Suicide Attack in Pakistan
Play Military Trivia and Win an iPod
Gear in the News - MH-53E

CENTCOM: News Releases
COALITION FORCES RESCUE THREE IRAQIS IN NORTH ARABIAN GULF

CCCI CONVICTS 23 INSURGENTS: ONE SENTENCED TO DEATH, SIX SENTENCED TO 30 YEARS IMPRISONMENT

IRAQI ARMY BUSTS SUSPECTED ARMS RING

TALIBAN FIGHTERS NO MATCH FOR ANA AND ISAF

MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN 2 TERRORISTS, SEIZE MUNITIONS

SOLDIERS DETAIN THREE SUSPECTED TERRORISTS, SEIZE WEAPONS

MULTI-NATIONAL QUALITY MEDICAL AND VETERINARY CARE OFFERED TO AFGHAN CITIZENS

STRYKER SOLDIERS SEIZE LARGE MUNITIONS CACHE IN BAGHDAD

USJFCOM
USJFCOM signs cooperative research and development agreement with Raytheon - podcast
USJFCOM to join high-tech scientific research network
Planning discussions continue for next multinational experiment
More about Multinational Experiment 5
USJFCOM to participate in Orlando military conference - podcast

Department of Defense
NEWS UPDATES
Pace Thanks Vets, Talks on Way Forward in War - Story
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Coalition, Iraqi Forces Detain Suspected Terrorists - Story
Iraqi Army Busts Suspected Arms Ring - Story
Reward Offered to Find Kidnapped Soldier - Story
Marines Work to Dissolve Cultural Barriers - Story

IN IRAQ
Iraqis Interdict Insurgents on The Euphrates River
Medical Personnel Provide Care to Residents
Afghan Officer Saves Governor, Coalition Soldiers
Hawija SWAT Unit Graduates Elite Fighting Force
Iraqi Marines Learn Critical Maritime Security Skills

IN AFGHANISTAN
Coalition Sponsors Chamkani Sports Tournament
Afghan Reconstruction Projects Continue
Turkey to Open Provincial Reconstruction Team

BACKGROUND
IRAQ
Renewal In Iraq
Iraq: Security, Stability
Fact Sheet: Progress and Work Ahead
Report: Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Iraq Daily Update
This Week in Iraq
Multinational Force Iraq
State Dept. Weekly Iraq Report (PDF)
'Boots on the Ground' Audio Archive
Weekly Reconstruction Report (PDF)
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps

AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Fact Sheet: Budget Request
Fact Sheet: War on Terror
Fact Sheet: Terror Plots Disrupted
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

Weather
Iraq
Al Azamiyah Al Basrah Al Hillah Al Karkh Al Kazimiyah Al Kut
An Nasiriyah Baghdad Baqubah Mosul Najaf Nineveh Tall Kayf

Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar

Gitmo

National Hurricane Center

Today in History
1620 - Pilgrims land in MA, signing the Mayflower Compact (just and equal laws).
1647 - Massachusetts passes the first U.S. compulsory school attendance law.
1648 - The Dutch and French agree to divide St. Maarten and the Leeward Islands.
1778 - Iroquois in NY kill 40 in the Cherry Valley Massacre.
1811 - Cartagena, Colombia declares independence from Spain.
1864 - Union General Sherman's troops destroy Rome, GA.
1865 - Mary Edward Walker, the first U.S. Army female surgeon, is awarded the Medal of Honor.
1889 - Washington is admitted as the 42nd U.S. state.
1918 - Armistice Day-WW I ends at 11 AM on the Western Front.
1921 - President Harding dedicates the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
1922 - The largest U.S. flag is displayed (150' X 90'); it is expanded in 1939 (270' X 90').
1924 - In San Francisco, the Palace of the Legion of Honor is dedicated.
1925 - Robert Millikan announces the discovery of cosmic rays.
1931 - Cornerstones laid for the Opera House & Veterans Building.
1933 - The "Great Black Blizzard" - the first great dust storm in the Great Plains.
1935 - The Explorer-2 balloon sets an altitude record of 72,000 feet over SD.
1939 - Kate Smith first sings Irving Berlin's "God Bless America."
1940 - A blizzard strikes the midwestern U.S., killing over 100.
1942 - Germany completes their occupation of France.
1959 - The first episode of "Rocky and His Friends" airs.
1965 - Rhodesia is proclaimed independent of Britain.
1966 - Gemini-12 is launched on a 4-day flight.
1968 - The Maldives (in the Indian Ocean) become a republic.
1972 - The U.S. Army turns over Long Bihn base to the South Vietnamese army.
1975 - Angola gains independence from Portugal; the Australian PM is removed by the crown (first elected PM removed in 200 years).
1982 - The 5th space shuttle mission-Columbia 5-is launched (the first commercial flight); Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa is let out of jail.
1983 - President Reagan becomes the first U.S. President to address Japan's legislature.
1985 - Yonkers is found guilty of segregating schools and housing.
1987 - Judge Anthony M. Kennedy is nominated to the Supreme Court.

Birthdays
1050 - Henry IV, Holy Roman emperor (1036-1106)
1744 - Abigail Smith Adams, second First Lady
1748 - King Charles IV of Spain (1788-1808)
1771 - Ephraim McDowell, surgeon (pioneered abdominal surgery)
1821 - Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky, Russian novelist (Crime & Punishment)
1864 - Alfred Hermann Fried, German pacifist (Nobel 1911)
1869 - King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (1900-46)/Ethiopia
1885 - George S. Patton, U.S. General "Old Blood & Guts"
1900 - Hugh Scott (Sen-PA)
1901 - Sam Spiegel, producer (On the Waterfront, Bridge over River Kwai)
1904 - Alger Hiss, State Department official and spy
1911 - King Hussein of Jordan.
1915 - William Proxmire (Sen-WI) (Golden Fleece Awards)
1945 - Daniel Ortega Saavedra, President of Nicaragua (1984-1990)

Passings
1831 - Nat Turner, former slave who led a violent insurrection, hanged in VA
1962 - Rene Coty, President of France
1984 - Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr.
1987 - L.T. Coggeshall, medical scientist (Secretary of HEW 1956-58)

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Biss, Robert Irvin, USAF (PA); F4C shot down (pilot, w/Monlux), released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a Lt. Colonel - alive and well as of 1998

Butt, Richard L., USAF (VA); F4C shot down (weapons/systems operator, w/Ringsdorf) - remains returned April, 1986

Mearns, Arthur, USAF (NY); F105D shot down - remains returned September, 1977

Monlux, Harold D., USAF (IA); F4C shot down (w/Biss), released by DRV March, 1973 - alive as of 1998

Ringsdorf, Herbert B., USAF (AL); F4C shot down (pilot, w/Butt), released February, 1973 - deceased as of February, 1998

Swindle, Orson G. III, USMC (GA); F8E shot down, released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a Lt. Colonel - alive and well as of this year, served as a Federal Trade Commissioner 1997-2005

1967
Martinez-Mercado, Edwin J., US Army (NY); KIA, body not recovered

Shaw, Gary F., US Army (OH); KIA, body not recovered

Staton, Robert M., Jr., US Army (NC); KIA, body not recovered

Stuckey, John S., Jr., US Army (IN); KIA, body not recovered