Wednesday, October 04, 2006

12,000 U.S. Troops in Afghanistan to Serve Under NATO

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 - More than half of the U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan will become part of the NATO International Security Assistance Force during a transfer-of-authority ceremony tomorrow morning in the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, commander of Combined Forces Command Afghanistan, will transfer command of Regional Command East to NATO. During that transfer, about 12,000 U.S. troops currently assigned to CFCA will join 20,000 NATO troops assigned to the ISAF mission.

However, the affected troops will remain under U.S. control, Bryan Whitman, deputy assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, told Pentagon reporters today. Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force 76, will serve as the U.S. operational commander and ISAF deputy commander for security.

The other 8,000 U.S. servicemembers in Afghanistan will remain under CFCA to conduct a variety of other missions, from conducting counterterrorism efforts to training Afghan security forces to providing combat service support, Whitman explained.

The North Atlantic Council approved expansion of the NATO-led ISAF to include 14 additional provinces in eastern Afghanistan Sept. 28. NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer called that decision another example of the progress the alliance is making "to help Afghanistan build a better future."

This so-called "Stage 4" expansion -- the fourth expansion since ISAF began its security mission in Afghanistan in December 2001 -- will make NATO responsible for providing international military security support throughout Afghanistan. This "will allow for a better coordinated presence" there, Whitman said.

NATO also will take command of 10 additional provincial reconstruction teams, bringing the total number of NATO-led PRTs to 23. Whitman called these PRTs "the catalyst for improved development and reconstruction of the country."

The alliance has made significant progress in Afghanistan, "and the transition to NATO ISAF Stage 4 will build on that progress," he said.

Whitman cited continued progress in Afghanistan's security forces as one example of developments taking place. The Afghan National Army, which now numbers about 30,000, "is a well-respected force, both by the Afghan people as well as the coalition forces who have been operating with them," he said.

The United States was to have spent about $3.5 billion as of Sept. 30 to train and equip the Afghan army, but exact year-end figures are not yet available, Whitman said.

In addition, about 46,000 Afghan police have been trained and equipped, but continued reforms within the force are still needed, Whitman said.

As this progress takes place, international cooperation in Afghanistan remains strong and is critical to it's the country's long-term success, he said. "The international commitment will remain strong," he said.

Whitman reiterated the U.S. commitment to Afghanistan, as well. "The United States continues to have an enduring commitment to building the Afghan national security forces while assisting in the reconstruction of the country," he said, "and we are committed to staying as long as necessary with the forces necessary to ensure a stable and security Afghanistan."

[Web Version: http://www.defenselink.mil/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=1451]

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Navy to Christen Aircraft Carrier George H.W. Bush

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 - President George W. Bush will deliver the principal address at the christening ceremony of the Navy's newest aircraft carrier, named for his father, former President George H. W. Bush, Oct. 7 at Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipyard in Newport News, Va.

The last of the Nimitz-class carriers is named in honor of World War II naval aviator and America's 41st president, George Herbert Walker Bush. The former president was born in Milton, Mass., on June 12, 1924, and began a lifetime of service to America when he joined the Navy on his 18th birthday. He became the youngest pilot in the Navy at the time, receiving his commission and naval aviator wings before his 19th birthday.

Bush flew the Avenger torpedo bomber in combat from the carrier USS San Jacinto. During an attack on enemy installations near Chichi Jima in September 1944, his plane was hit by enemy fire while making a bombing run. Although the plane was on fire and heavily damaged, he completed a strafing run on the target before bailing out of the doomed aircraft. Bush parachuted into the sea and was later rescued by the Navy submarine USS Finback. He was later awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and three Air Medals for his Navy service in the Pacific theater during World War II.

After his Navy service ended in September 1945, Bush served America in a number of public service roles that included two-terms as a U.S. congressman from Texas, ambassador to the United Nations, chief of the U.S. Liaison Office to China, and director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He then served two terms as vice president under former President Ronald Reagan before being elected as president in 1988. As commander-in-chief, Bush led the United States and a coalition of nearly 30 other nations during Operation Desert Storm, which ended Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and liberated the people of the small Persian Gulf nation.

Doro Bush Koch, the former president's daughter, will serve as ship's sponsor. Koch breaking a bottle of American sparkling wine across the ship's bow to formally christen the ship, which is a time-honored Navy tradition, will highlight the ceremony. The former president and his wife, Barbara, are scheduled to attend the ceremony.

America's carriers serve a vital role in the defense of the American people. Deploying around the globe in support of U.S. interests and commitments, U.S. aircraft carriers are in place to immediately respond to emerging military and humanitarian crises and in various roles ranging from peacetime presence to full-scale war.

Capt. Kevin O'Flaherty, a native of Los Angeles, Calif., and a 1981 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, is the prospective commanding officer. In that capacity, he will be responsible for more than 5,000 crewmembers, to include the embarked air wing, when the ship is commissioned and fully operational.

Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, at 1,092 feet in length and 97,000 tons displacement, are the largest warships in the world. Traveling at speeds in excess of 30 knots and with flight decks encompassing 4.5 acres, they can easily support an air wing of about 75 aircraft.

(From a Defense Department news release.)

[Web Version: http://www.defenselink.mil/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=1450]

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Iraqi Peace Plan Gives Citizens Responsibility, General Says

By Sgt. Sara Wood, USA
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 - The reconciliation plan announced by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki Oct. 2 enables Iraqi citizens from all political groups to hold their security forces responsible and to take responsibility for creating peace and tolerance within their own neighborhoods, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad said today.

The plan, which calls for the creation of joint committees throughout Baghdad made up of clerics, tribal sheiks, representatives from all political blocs, and the armed forces, is aimed at ending internal battles that were preventing the unity Iraq so desperately needs, Army Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said in a news conference.

"The frank dialogue that went into the development of this plan shows a concerted effort by all sects to reduce the sectarian violence," Caldwell said. "Reconciliation among Iraqis is ultimately what will quell this needless bloodshed."

On the local and national levels, Iraqi leaders are learning what self-governance means and are improving their capabilities to serve the needs of the citizens, Caldwell said. Provincial reconstruction teams made up of coalition forces are assisting local governments and teaching them how to develop governance capacity, promote increased security and rule of law, achieve political and economic development, and meet the basic needs of their populations.

"Since the fall of Saddam (Hussein), local governance has taken on a whole new meaning here in Iraq," he said. "Iraqis are clearly focused on improving their quality of life and working towards a brighter future."

As local governance improves, the Iraqi security forces continue to improve, Caldwell said. This week, one brigade and three battalions of the Iraqi army assumed the lead in their areas of operation, bringing the total of Iraqi units in the lead to six Iraqi army division headquarters, 30 brigades, and 89 battalions, he said. Of the 110 bases that coalition forces have occupied since 2003, 52 have been turned over to Iraqi control, he added.

In September, Iraqi and coalition forces killed more than 110 terrorists and detained more than 520 suspected terrorists in 164 operations, Caldwell said. Based on information from a recently detained al Qaeda member, coalition forces on Sept. 28 detained a former driver and personal assistant of Abu Ayyoub al-Masri, the purported leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, along with 31 others during a series of raids in the Baghdad area, he said. Intelligence indicates the individual detained participated in the 2005 bombing of two hotels in Baghdad that killed a total of 16 people and injured 65 others, he said.

The Iraqi police are also continuing to improve, Caldwell said. Earlier this summer, Multinational Force Iraq began phase one of a national police assessment program termed "Quick Look," which was designed to assess each battalion's capability and readiness with regards to equipment status, personnel and weapons accountability, battalion facilities, overall unit discipline, and current combat capabilities. Phase one has ended, Caldwell said, and the coalition has initiated phase two, which focuses on leader and police transformational training.

Transformational training is a three-week training program focused on leader training, civil policing skills, and training on key collective tasks required at the small-unit level, Caldwell said. Key blocks of instructions include: rule of law, policing a democracy, police role in counterinsurgency operations, human rights, community policing, and a platoon-level police situational training exercise. By the summer of 2007, all Iraqi national police units should have completed this training, he said.

Quick Look has also brought to light some national police units that are not up to the government's standards and that need retraining, Caldwell said. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior announced late last night that the 8th Brigade, 2nd National Police, is being recalled to go through intensive training in anti-militia and anti-sectarian violence operations, he said. "This brigade's past performance has not demonstrated the level of professionalism sought by the Ministry of Interior," he said.

Caldwell stressed that while some units within the police force clearly need retraining, others have proven to be very competent and professional units.

"The transition from tyranny to democracy is definitely long and very difficult," he said. "Coalition forces continue to stand behind the government as it deals with tough decisions that lay ahead, and with the Iraqi security forces as they continue to grow in both quality and quantity."

[Web Version: http://www.defenselink.mil/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=1447]

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Iraqi Soldiers Prevent Attack, Detain 27 Suspects

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 - Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division, prevented a large-scale sectarian attack in Iraq's Obiedi region, south of Baghdad Sept. 30 after receiving reports that local residents had been driven out of their homes.

Soldiers from 2nd Brigade linked up with soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division, and conducted a cordon-and-search operation in the eastern section of the Obiedi region. Eight suspects were detained for questioning.

In a separate incident, soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, and 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained a terrorist cell leader and 18 other suspects during a combined cordon-and-search operation west of Baghdad at about 8 a.m. Oct. 2.

As of Oct. 1, Iraqi security forces and Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers had cleared about 95,000 buildings, 80 mosques and 60 neighborhoods, detained more than 125 terrorist suspects, seized more than 1,700 weapons, registered more than 750 weapons and found 35 weapons caches in support of Operation Together Forward. The combined forces have also removed more than 195,841 cubic meters of trash from the streets of Baghdad.

(From a Multinational Corps Iraq news release.)

[Web Version: http://www.defenselink.mil/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=1443]

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