IRAQ WAR TODAY
Keep Your Helmet On!




Be A Part of a Tribute to Fallen Heroes - Help Build the Fallen Soldiers' Bike
Help support the families of our deployed Heroes - Visit Soldiers' Angels' Operation Outreach
Help Our Heroes Help Others - Click Here to visit SOS: KIDS
Nominate your Hero for IWT's "Hero of the Month" - click here for details!
Search Iraq War Today only

Friday, October 07, 2005

Persian Gulf (Oct. 6, 2005) - Two S-3B Vikings, assigned to the “Scouts” of Sea Control Squadron Two Four (VS-24), prepare to launch off the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). Roosevelt and embarked Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8) are currently underway on a regularly scheduled deployment conducting maritime security operations. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Michael D. Cole

Good News - from CENTCOM

Progress Being Made...

COMPLETED: September 15-30:

Dahuk

An urban tactical training center at the Iraqi Army's Zahko Military Academy. New facilities include two concrete masonry unit structures, concrete roads, a hand grenade range, and improvements to the existing firing range. This will provide improved training for Iraq's armed forces, increasing the security of Iraq.

Six school renovation projects, including; repairing roofs, interior renovations, new bathrooms, water fountains, and playgrounds.

Ninewa

Road project near Bartellah, consisting of constructing paved roads for everyday use by the local population.

Three new police stations will provide enhanced security for area residents.

A new, 260-bed maternity hospital in Mosul that provides better health care for mothers and children. The hospital services 500 to 700 patients a day and is designed to service a population of 600,000 people. Hospital equipment totaling $876,000 includes incubators, ventilators, operating room tables, and monitoring systems.

A newly renovated railway station.

Baghdad

An Iraqi company completed the Iraqi Special Forces Barracks, including five company barracks, one senior barracks and temporary site utilities including potable water, septic tank, and electric power. Improving the quality of billets and work areas will increase the readiness of Iraqi forces, providing increased security for the Iraqi people.

The Baghdad master sewer plan is an administrative project to provide functionality and required managerial oversight of all sewerage projects in the Baghdad Governate. This project will provide for a healthier sanitation process for the city of Baghdad.

An Iraqi company completed a new police station that will provide enhanced security for the residents of the neighborhood.

A police headquarters including improved force protection and security cameras to the facility.

A school renovation project, including roof repairs, plumbing repairs, architectural refinishing, electrical work and landscaping rework. The school renovation will benefit approximate 250 children.

A school renovation project including, repairing and resealing the roofs; patching, plastering, and painting the walls and ceilings; installing new electrical systems to include updated lighting, refurbishing and building new bathrooms, installing a water tank and water fountains and building a perimeter wall around the property. The school is now postured to provide a well-rounded learning environment for the children.

An Iraqi company completed heating and air conditioning improvements for the Rasheed Hotel engineering area.

Installation of electrical distribution board, wiring system, air conditioner, and spill containment for the Al Faw Palace.

Three building renovations completed as part of Baghdad government revitalization. Contractor provided all labor, material and equipment to renovate buildings in Mansour.

A newly-renovated government building in downtown Baghdad.

Babil

An Iraqi company completed renovation of an existing police station and accompanying guard building. Project included a new parking garage, sections of the security wall, and guard towers. Facility provides enhanced security for Musayyib residents. This station will also serve as a licensing facility for North Babil.

An Iraqi company completed Phase I of the reconstruction of an Iraqi Police Station. Phase II of the project to include: the construction of a second floor, guard towers, a security wall, rolling gates, a maintenance building, and a parking garage.

Renovation of an Iraqi police station to include construction of a security wall, guard towers, rolling gates, kitchen, bathrooms, and a parking garage. This station will be occupied by 80 Iraqi police, and will provide security for the town and the surrounding rural area.

Construction of a substation including installation of a 33 kilovolt to 11 kilovolt transformer sub-station that included two transformers, renovation of the switch gear building, and new switch gear.

Renovation of a second Iraqi police station to include a new security wall, guard towers, rolling gates, kitchen, bathrooms, and parking garage.

Najaf

An Iraqi company completed three school renovation projects including a school for girls and an industrial school.

Basrah

Construction of a new border fort along the border between Iraq and Kuwait. This is a new construction project that includes a bed-down area, kitchen, armory, observation posts, perimeter security lighting, a berm, offices, and showers.

An Iraqi company completed repair of a water treatment plant for the airport.

Construction of a new ammunition supply point for the Iraqi Navy at Umm Qasr. Facility will house ammunition for a new firing range. It will also increase the effectiveness and readiness of the Iraqi Navy to protect its coastal borders.

Iraqi companies completed three new police stations providing enhanced security for the residents of the city of Basrah.

A refurbishment project of a cluster pump station at a water treatment plant increases availability of potable water for local residents.

Four new substations will provide power to the electrical distribution system servicing the 1.3 million residents of Basrah.

ONGOING: (There are over 1,000 ongoing projects in Iraq)

Baghdad

The Baghdad South power plant, estimated to be completed January 2006, is receiving two new 120 megawatts power generators. The addition will add 216 megawatts to the national grid, is enough to increase the overall electrical generating capacity of the Baghdad areas by 10 percent, and serve 122,000 homes. One turbine is currently running and the second is in the testing phase due to be fully operational by late September. Over 400 Iraqi workers are employed at the site.

Doura power plant, estimated to be completed in February 2006, will add 280 megawatts to the grid, serving over 253,000 Baghdad families, equivalent to 1,500,000 million citizens.

Sadr City Water Treatment Plant, estimated to be completed in August 2006, will provide the 2.2 million residents of Sadr City with approximately 19 million gallons of clean drinking water per day.

Numerous potable water distribution mains are scheduled to be completed December 2005. These projects are providing connections of safe drinking water to approximately 240,000 citizens in the Sadr City, serving approximately 200,000 residents. The project consists of laying about 100 kilometers of pipeline to deliver water to homes and repairing leaks in the system. This project will dramatically reduce the rates of waterborne disease spread by contaminated drinking water.

Zafaraniya sewage trunk line, estimated to be completed in December 2005, will provide sewage collection and removal to the 300,000 residents of the Zafaraniya neighborhoods in Baghdad.

The Habibiya retention pond project is expected to be completed April 2006. Two new storm water detention basins at the Habibiya pump station are under construction.

Construction is at 95 percent on a $21.9 million public works and water project in Baghdad. The project required the design, construction, and management of an environmentally-friendly municipal solid waste landfill for a third of Baghdad, or about two million people.
Staff Sgt. Robert Getzey (left) and Sgt. Richard Scardina, from Company C, 365th Combat Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, place a truss for a medical warehouse project at Camp Liberty, Iraq. Photo by Spc. Derek Del Rosario.

This Day in Terrorism - the Achille Lauro

On October 7, 1985, in Egyptian waters, four heavily-armed PLF terrorists hijacked the Achille Lauro, an Italian cruise ship with mostly elderly passengers on board.

Their demands included the freeing of 50 Palestinian prisoners from Israel. In order to make their point, they shot and killed 69-year-old American tourist Leon Klinghoffer, who was wheelchair-bound. After they murdered him, they threw his body - still in the wheelchair - overboard.

After two days, the Egyptian government provided them with safe passage in exchange for freeing the passengers and ship. They were at that time unaware of Klinghoffer's murder.

Upon discovery of the fate of Mr. Klinghoffer, however, U.S. Navy F-14 fighters intercepted the Egypt Air 737 flying the hijackers to Tunisia, forcing it to set down in Sicily. The terrorists were taken into custody by Italian authorities, tried, convicted, and sentenced to prison.

Of the hijackers and their accomplices:

Bassam al-Asker was paroled in 1991.

Ahmad Marrouf al-Assadi disappeared in 1991 while on parole.

Youssef al Molqi was sentenced to 30 years, fled to Spain while on furlough, and was recaptured and returned to Italy.

Abu Abbas, the mastermind, was convicted in absentia, remaining at large for years. As of 1998, Abbas was openly residing in Arafat-controlled Palestinian territory. Asked at that time why Klinghoffer was murdered, Abbas stated that "He created troubles. He was handicapped but he was inciting and provoking the other passengers. So the decision was made to kill him."

The U.S. has a long memory when it comes to terrorists - Abu Abbas was captured by U.S. Special Forces near Baghdad, Iraq on April 15, 2003. He died while in U.S. custody.

The PLO, for its part, was sued over the hijacking, but the suit was dropped after the PLO paid an undisclosed sum to Mr. Klinghoffer's daughters. They used the funds to establish the Leon and Marilyn Klinghoffer Memorial Foundation of the Anti-Defamation League, which works to combat terrorism through legal, political and educational methods.

The Achille Lauro continued service after the hijacking - until December 2nd, 1994, when she sank off the coast of Somalia as a result of catching fire a few days earlier.
IRAQ DEPLOYMENT — U.S. Army soldiers assigned to the 4th Battalion, 14th Cavalry, 2nd Platoon, Fort Wainwright, Alaska, monitor the movement of local Iraqis while fellow soldiers and U.S. Marines look for weapons caches and insurgents near the Syrian border by the Euphrates River in Iraq, Oct. 2, 2005. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Andy Dunaway

In Today's News - Friday, October 7, 2005

Quote of the Day
"The power of an air force is terrific when there is nothing to oppose it."
-- Winston Churchill

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Six Marines Die in Iraq
Marines find insurgency's deadly tools in Haditha
US kills 29 in W. Iraq operation against Qaeda
Photos: Iraq Offensives
OPERATION RIVER GATE UPDATE
IRAQI, COALITION FORCES' SEPTEMBER WEAPONS HAUL IN BAGHDAD BIGGEST SINCE MAY
IRAQI ARMY TAKES CONTROL OF FOUR BAGHDAD DISTRICTS

Operation Enduring Freedom
Defiant Critic Among First Afghan Winners
COALITION INVESTIGATING 4 AFGHAN POLICE DEATHS, 1 WOUNDED NEAR GERESHK
Enduring Freedom: Coalition Remains Strong Special

Welcome Home!
Ohio Marine Battalion Comes Home

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Wary Commute in New York
FBI Looks at Cheney's Computers in Spy Probe
Congress Expected to Clear Private Screener Hurdle
Al Qaeda's No. 2 complains about money, Iraq tactics

Hurricane Season
Katrina Victims Still Nameless
Hurricane Stan Death Toll 236
Tammy Drenches Georgia

Supreme Court
Ex-Sen. Coats to Guide Miers

Fox News
IAEA, Director ElBaradei Win Nobel Peace Prize
Video: Miers Gaining Ground?
Hamas Members Kidnapped
Missing Student Found Dead
Gunmen Kill Eight Pakistanis
L.A. Mayor Blasts Arnold
Texas Explosion Injures Eight
Eisner Off Disney Board
Sources: Earle Angry When Jury Did Not Indict DeLay
Mystery Canada Illness Is Legionnaire's

Reuters: Top News
ElBaradei and IAEA win Nobel Prize
Aides laying groundwork for Sharon-Abbas summit
Taiwan president sees no rush for China talks
ElBaradei: Peace Prize a "shot in the arm"
Former Taiwan president to visit United States
Bomb threat disrupts Rolling Stones concert in US
Actor Blake tells LA court he loved murdered wife
Vaccine prevents onset of cervical cancer
Donated tsunami fishing boats mixed blessingReutrs Recommends
Clean coal isn't climate-friendly yet
US may face tough winter for heatoil imports

AP World News
Many Sunnis to Vote No in Iraq Referendum
Iran Denies Blair Charge of Iraq Meddling
Palestinians Arrest 30 in West Bank
Cops: Bali Bombing Mastermind Escapes Raid
8 Killed, 19 Wounded at Pakistan Mosque
Syria Growing More Isolated
Sri Lanka Presidential Candidates Declared
N. Korea Insists on Atomic Reactor
Colombia Paramilitaries Halt Peace Process
Reputed IRA Chief Target of British Raids
Immigrants Die in Clashes at Spain Border
Gunmen Kidnap Palestinian Professor
Schroeder, Merkel Negotiate Chancellery
Brazil Bishop Ends Hunger Strike

The Seattle Times
Bush calls Iraq key terror battleground
Cafes delayed adding security, Bali official says
French Guiana seeks a new image
Ho Chi Minh Trail connects past and future

Boston Globe: World
Afghanistan straddles stability and chaos
As draft compact is distributed, some Iraqis fear reprisals
Israel says no to use of civilians in raids
6 Africans killed near Spanish enclave
Global court targets Uganda cult
Norwegian asserts '80s infiltration of Mossad

Military.com
Bush: U.S. Foiled at Least 10 Terror Plots
Guard Battalion Meets With Success in Weapons Search
Response Plan may Spread Throughout Navy
Skippers of Colliding Ships to Keep Jobs
Army Reorganizes to Boost its Combat Power
Defense Travel Cuts Defeated in Senate
San Antonio Proudly Lines up Behind the Military Recruiter
Bomber Blows up Iraqi Minibus, Killing 10, Including Police Recruits

CENTCOM: News Releases
IRAQI, U.S. FORCES NAB 34 TERROR SUSPECTS
IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DEVICE EMIR CAPTURED
SOLDIERS, IRAQI FORCES CONTINUE OFFENSIVE OPERATIONS IN BAGHDAD

Department of Defense
Bush Maps Strategy for Terror War Victory — Story Remarks Video
Iraq Central Front in War on Terror, Bush Says
Bush Urges Muslims to Denounce Violent Extremism
Iraqis, Coalition Beef Up Border Interdiction — Story Transcript Video
U.S., Iraqis Committed to Secure Environment

ON THE GROUND
Joint U.S.-Afghan Patrol Combs Zormat Area — Story
Iraq's Border Academy Ready to Train Guards — Story
U.S., Iraqi Forces Deliver School Supplies — Story

IN IRAQ
Taji Depot Ramps Up Training, Supply Efforts
6th Civil Affairs Group Takes Reins in Al Anbar
Troops Work to Bring Security to Iraqi City Photos
Loyal Partners Sniff Out Trouble in Iraq

FACE OF DEFENSE
Purple Heart Recipient Recalls Attack — Story

AMERICA SUPPORTS YOU
'Stars for Stripes' Boosts Morale — Story
Crop Circle Maze Honors Troops
Auctions Support Memorial Fund

TOP NEWS
SPECIAL REPORTS
Hurricane Coverage
Iraq Transition of Power

IRAQ
Troop Killed; River Gate Continues
Photos: Operation River Gate
Weapons Finds Largest Since May
Bush Pleased With Progress
Petraeus Details Military Progress
Operation River Gate Begins
Bomber Stopped Short of Target
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps
Iraq Daily Update
Multinational Force Iraq
Eye on Iraq Update (pdf)
Iraq Progress Fact Sheet (pdf)

AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Daily Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Cheney Topic: War on Terrorism
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

MILITARY NEWS
Troops To Be Reimbursed for Gear
Cheney Visits Marines Photos
National Guard, Reserve Update

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
1571 - The Spanish and Italians defeat the Turkish fleet in the Battle of Lepanto.
1737 - 40 foot waves sink 20,000 small craft and kill 300,000 in Bengal, India.
1765 - The Stamp Act Congress convenes in NY.
1777 - Americans beat the British the Second Battle of Saratoga and the Battle of Bemis Heights.
1780 - American militia defeat the British near Kings Mountain, SC.
1826 - The Granite Railway (first chartered railway in the U.S.) begins operations.
1868 - Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) opens.
1871 - A 16-hour fire injures 30 of Chicago's 185 firefighters.
1886 - Spain abolishes slavery in Cuba.
1908 - Crete revolts against Turkey, aligning with Greece.
1919 - The first London-to-Amsterdam airline service begins (British Aerial Transport).
1924 - Marble Bar, Australia, sees the first of 160 consecutive days of 100-degree heat.
1931 - Rochester, NY, is the site of the first infra-red photograph.
1938 - Germany demands that all Jewish passports be stamped with the letter J.
1949 - The German Democratic Republic forms from the Russian occupation zone.
1950 - U.S. forces invade Korea, crossing the 38th parallel.
1957 - "American Bandstand" premieres on TV.
1958 - Potter Stewart is appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court; the U.S. manned space-flight project is renamed Project Mercury.
1963 - Bobby Baker resigns as Senate Democratic secretary; Hurricane Flora hits Haiti and the Dominican Republic, killing 7,190.
1965 - A 50-mph wind gust carries Robert Mitera's tee shot 447 yards to score the world's longest straight hole-in-one - at the 10th hole in Miracle Hills, Omaha, NE.
1968 - The Motion Picture Association of America adopts the film rating system.
1985 - The 21st Space Shuttle Mission (51-J; Atlantis-1) lands at Edwards AFB; PLO terrorists seize the Italian cruise liner Achille Lauro.
1988 - The Latvian flag is raised in Riga for the first time since annexation by the U.S.S.R.
1990 - Israel begins handing out gas masks to its citizens.

Birthdays
1728
- Caesar Rodney, patriot, signer of the Declaration of Independence
1885 - Niels Bohr, physicist, expanded quantum physics / Nobel Prize Winner (1922)
1888 - Henry A. Wallace, 33rd U.S. Vice President / Progressive presidential candidate
1906 - James E. Webb, head of NASA (1961-68)
1931 - Desmond Tutu, Anglican Archbishop of South Africa / Nobel Prize winner (1982)
1943 - Oliver North, Col., USMC / author / inventor / radio show host, (figure in Iran-Contra hearings
1951 - John Cougar Mellencamp, rocker (Jack & Diane)
1955 - Yo-Yo Ma, world famous Chinese cellist
1958 - Kim Morris, Playboy playmate (Mar, 1986)

Passings
1849 - Edgar Allen Poe, poet / author
1959 - Mario Lanza, singer

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Gilchrist, Robert M., USAF (CO); RF4C shot down (pilot)

Knight, Larry Dale, USAF (OR); RF4C crashed offshore (pilot)

Pabst, Eugene M., USAF (NY); RF4C shot down (backseater to Gilchrist)

Treece, James A., USAF (TN); RF4C shot down (pilot); status later changed to "Died while missing"

1967
Appleby, Ivan D., USAF (CA); F4D shot down (pilot, w/Austin), remains returned January, 1995 - ID'd October, 1995

Austin, William R. II, USAF (SC); F4D shot down (backseater, w/Appleby), released by DRV March, 1973 - alive and well as of 1998

Fullam, Wane E., USAF (TN); F105D shot down (pilot), remains returned September, 1987

Hodges, David L., USN (MD); A4E shot down (pilot), KIA, remains ID'd April, 1999

nocashfortrash.org