U.S. Army soldiers from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, conduct a cordon search of a glass factory during a patrol in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Army Pfc. Antonio Espricuetavelaquez, from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, enters a room during a cordon search of a glass factory in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Army soldiers from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, conduct a cordon search of a glass factory during a patrol in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Army soldiers from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, conduct a cordon search of a glass factory during a patrol in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Army Spc. Thadeus McPheron, from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, conducts cordon search of a glass factory during a patrol in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

Local Iraqis gather in the street to collect food from a food distribution point in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Marines and Army soldiers take cover from small arms fire while investigating the cause of a suicide car bomb explosion in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. The soldiers, from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, were in Tameem to conduct a cordon and search of a glass factory. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

U.S. Army 1st Sgt. David Shaw talks with an injured Iraqi man after a car explosion at an intersection in Tameem, Ramadi, Iraq, Aug. 10, 2006. The soldiers, from the 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Armored Division, were in Tameem to conduct a cordon and search of a glass factory. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock

by Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock
August 18, 2006
Soldiers from the 1st Armored Division search for insurgents who shot at them the previous day in Tameem, Iraq.

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Iraq Snipers Kill 17, Injure Dozens at Shiite Rally
Ambushes kill 20 in Baghdad - Video
Troops long out-of-uniform sent to Iraq

Operation Enduring Freedom
71 Suspected Taliban Dead
Scores of Taliban killed in Afghan battle: police

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Sentamu urges inclusion after vigil

Troops on Trial
Military recruiters cited for misconduct
Marine Says Haditha not Unusual
AWOL Soldier Heads Back to Ft. Bragg

Mid-East Ceasefire
'Crime Against Humanity'
Annan: Israeli Raid Violated Cease-Fire - Video
Israeli PM to Appoint Investigative Panel
Video: Family of Kidnapped Journalist Release Statement
Lebanon to crush any truce breach - Video
Israeli troops kill Palestinian in West Bank: radio
After the war: scandals rock Israel
French troops reinforce Lebanon presence

Immigration / Border Control
Gov. Romney Says U.S. Needs More Skilled Immigrants
Officials Won't Nab Mother

Worldwide Wackos
Iran's Return Offer
Iran Tests Short-Range Missile
Iran says it won't halt atomic work
US-S.Korea to start military drills
Chavez seeks Chinese support, Beijing wants oil
Chavez: Venezuela holding 4 U.S. spies

Homegrown Moonbats
Sheehan, others protest at Rove event

Politics / Government
US Democrats compress presidential calendar
Bush says Iraq and Lebanon fragile democracies

Mother Nature
7.2 Quake Hits South Pole
Floods, Mud Slides Close Some Alaskan Transportation
Gov't fulfills few Katrina promises
Ecuadoreans defy warning about volcano

Oddities
The women feel bad, but the guys must feel worse
Are you SURE you want to remove that?
Pro-Polygamist Teens Rally to Defend Their Families in Utah
Police Find Up to Six Bodies Buried in Missouri Yard
Dog Mauls Woman to Death

Other News of Note
Flying Home
Karr Was Treated at Sex Change Clinic
Chance Encounter Led to Karr Arrest
Exclusive: DHS Agent Talks to Karr

Fox News
Man Arrested in 1982 Nevada Beauty Queen Murder
Woods Climbs Leaderboard- Complete PGA Coverage

Reuters: Top News
Unable to achieve peace, Sri Lanka returns to war - Video
NASA starts delicate job changing bolts on shuttle
Consumers find a personal shopper in the Web
Analysts contrast Dell with resurgent HP
When eating is sport, victory as agonizing as defeat
South Africa defends AIDS policies
Rapid tests mean more learn HIV status
"Snakes on a Plane" slithers into audience embrace
"Simpsons" beat "South Park" in early Emmy race
Iran and oil may be wild cards for stocks
Stocks end higher with Microsoft - Video
Foot Locker hires Evercore Partners as adviser
Private equity firm to buy Lone Star Steakhouse
DexCom patent case on hold, shares soar
The Reuters select wrap-up
Contrarians betting on eBay
China rate hike to hurt stocks, bonds
Show & tell your kids about debt
Ford seeks faster turnaround
Chile Escondida mine says union talks progress
The Fed has paused, but investors shouldn't
Consumers find a personal shopper in the Web
For some, public-to-private move may be permanent

AP World News
Japan ends U.S. long-grain rice imports
Busta Rhymes arrested on assault charges
U.S. rolls over Yao Ming, China 121-90
Woods, Donald at top of PGA leaderboard
HBO wins 17 Creative Arts Emmy awards
Willard, 4 others to pinch-hit for Ebert
Natural-gas prices inflate state coffers
Online music holdouts give in to iTunes
Astronomer upset at new planet proposal
Survivors recall 1st 'postal' massacre
Damon, Yankees punish Beckett in rout

Military.com
Agent Orange Coverage Expanded
Army Accepting Older Recruits
Bush Blasts Court Ruling on Surveillance

CENTCOM: News Releases
U.S. MILITARY TASK FORCE TO SUPPORT FLOOD VICTIMS IN ETHIOPIA

MOST SUCCESSFUL IRAQI POLICE RECRUTING DRIVE

IRAQI FORCES CAPTURE TERRORIST FACILITATOR IN ASH SHARQAT

LOCAL LEADERS MEET WITH ISF, MND-B SOLDIERS DURING OPERATION TOGETHER FORWARD, DISCUSS PROGRESS, STABILITY

MND-B SOLDIERS SEIZE WEAPONS, MUNITIONS

IRAQI FORCE CAPTURE INSURGENT WEAPONS DEALER

COALITION SOLDIER KILLED NEAR ASADABAD

ISF, MND-B SOLDIERS CONDUCT CORDON, SEARCH OF AN OFFICE OF THE MARTYR SADR

ISF, MND-B SOLDIERS BRINGS POSITIVE CHANGE TO BAGHDAD BY WAY OF OPERATION TOGETHER FORWARD

USJFCOM
Initial trial of Urban Resolve 2015 wraps up - podcast
Web-based system helping the joint warfighter with intelligence situational awareness

Department of Defense
NEWS UPDATES
Coalition Defends Attack in Paktika - Story
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Iraqi Farmers Union Holds First Election - Story
Iraqi, Coalition Squelch Violence in Ameriya - Story
A-10 Thunderbolts Surge for Afghan Offensive - Story

IN IRAQ
Iraqi Brigade Takes Lead in Mahmudiyah
Winning Hearts, Minds With a Medical Project
More Police in Iraqi Town Increases Security
Securing Baghdad No Short-term Operation

IN AFGHANISTAN
Chief Master Sgt. Praises Afghan Progress
Security Forces ‘Fly Away’ to Support Mission

DefendAmerica Week in Review
Sunday - Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday - Saturday

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

CASUALTIES
Officials Identify Casualties - Story

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

Today in History
1781 - George Washington begins moving his troops south to meet Cornwallis.
1794 - General Mad Anthony Wayne routs the Indians at Fallen Timbers, OH.
1852 - The steamer "Atlantic" collides with a fishing boat and sinks with 250 aboard.
1865 - President Johnson proclaims an end to the "insurrection" in TX.
1866 - President Andrew Johnson formally declares the Civil War over.
1896 - The dial telephone is patented.
1908 - The Congo Free State becomes the Belgian Congo.
1912 - The Plant Quarantine Act goes into effect
1913 - Adolphe Pegoud of France becomes the first pilot to parachute from an aircraft.
1914 - German forces occupy Brussels, Belgium.
1918 - Britain opens a Western front offensive.
1922 - The first commercial radio station, WJR-AM (Detroit, MI) begins radio transmissions.
1940 - Leon Trotsky is assassinated in Mexico City by Stalin's agents.
1942 - In San Francisco, dim-out regulations are implemented.
1947 - Turner Caldwell sets an aircraft speed record in the D-558-I (1131 kph).
1948 - The U.S. expels Soviet Consul General Jacob Lomakin.
1953 - Russia publicly acknowledges its hydrogen bomb test detonation.
1955 - For the first time, an airplane exceeds 1800 mph / 2897 kph (H.A. Hanes, Palmdale CA); hundreds are killed in anti-French rioting in Morocco and Algeria.
1957 - A USAF ballon breaks an altitude record at 102,000' (310,896 m).
1960 - Senegal breaks from the Mali federation, declaring its independence; the U.S.S.R. recovers the first living organisms to return from space (2 dogs).
1964 - President Johnson signs the Economic Opportunity Act (nearly $1 billion).
1968 - 650,000 Warsaw Pact troops invade Czechoslovakia.
1971 - The FBI begins covert investigation of journalist Daniel Schorr.
1975 - An Ilyushin-62 jetliner crashes south of Damascus, Syria, killing 126; Viking-1 is launched toward a soft landing on Mars.
1977 - NASA launches Voyager-2 towards Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
1978 - In London, gunmen open fire on an Israeli El Al Airline bus in London.
1980 - The U.N. Security Council condemns Israel's declaration that all of Jersualem is its capital (the vote is 14-0, with the U.S. abstaining).
1985 - On behalf of the U.S., Israel ships 96 TOW missiles to Iran.
1990 - Iraq moves Western hostages to military installations, using them as human shields.

Birthdays
1785 - Oliver Hazard Perry, U.S. Naval hero ("We have met the enemy and they are ours. ")
1833 - Benjamin Harrison, 23rd U.S. President (1889-1893)
1860 - Raymond Poincar‚ PM (1912) / president of France
1890 - H.P. Lovecraft, Gothic novelist (At the Mountains of Madness)
1931 - Don King boxing promoter
1933 - George Mitchell (Sen-ME, Senate Whip 1989-1995)
1938 - Jean-Loup Chrétien, first French space traveller (Soyuz T-6)
1941 - William H. Gray III (Rep-PA, 1978-1991 )
1944 - Rajiv Gandhi PM of India (1984-1989)
1946 - Connie Chung, TV newscaster (NBC, CBS)

Passings
1804 - Charles Floyd, only fatality of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
1940 - Leon Trotsky icepicked by Frank Jackson

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Milikin, Richard M., III, USAF (FL); RF4C shot down

1968
Lindbloom, Charles David, USN (GA); KIA, body not recovered

Risner, Richard F., USMC; escaped August, 1968 - retired as a Colonel - alive as of 1999

1972
Mossman, Harry S., USN (NY); A6A shot down