Hong Kong: We’re made as hell, and we’re not going to take it anymore!

Hong Kong: We’re made as hell, and we’re not going to take it anymore!

HONG KONG—Hundreds of villagers have surrounded a local government building and taken two hostages in southern China, demanding market-based payment for land they were forced to sell to developers, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.

“We are holding the wife of the former village committee secretary and the son of the head of the Shareholders’ Association,” one villager said in a telephone interview from Xichong village, near Shunde in Guangdong province. “I am here with about 1,000 other villagers. There are a lot of plainclothes [police] nearby. It’s not convenient for me to say too much.”

The same villager, who asked not to be named, told RFA’s Mandarin service a group of villagers had been summoned Nov. 29 to the local Lunjiao Land Development Co. to discuss their year-long campaign to obtain more money in exchange for just over 1,000 mu (165 acres) of farmland. How much money the villagers have already received in exchange for the land wasn’t immediately clear.

These villagers were detained shortly after arriving at the company office, the source said. “They detained 27 people. They used the meeting as a pretext. Around 11:30 this morning, village representatives were taken away by the police in the middle of the meeting.”

Sources said that among the 27 detained villagers, five were newly elected village cadres.

“More than 20 villagers were taken away by police, including the village committee chief, the village committee deputy chief, the village chief, the village deputy chief, and a village committee cadre,” another villager said. “Also taken away were a number of senior citizens in their 70s and 80s.”

By 9:00 p.m., up to 1,000 villagers had descended upon the Xichong village committee building and surrounded it.

The wife of village cadre Wu Peifa said her husband and the others “did not do anything to violate the law. They did not do anything wrong. Why were they taken away? Now villagers have descended upon the village committee. They are demanding the release of our people.”

The wife of another detained villager said her husband had come home for lunch but was taken away when he returned to the meeting. “Three elderly villagers in their 70s and 80s have been released,” the woman said. “They are ordinary villagers. Not village representatives.”

Local police and public security officials declined to comment. “I am not clear on the situation,” one official said.

Tensions have been simmering over the land sales for more than a year, and villagers suspect that former village committee shortchanged them in the sales of farmland to build factories.

On Nov. 23, hundreds of villagers surrounded a plastics factory-built on what had been farmland-and demanded to see land-sale documents. The crowd later dispersed without incident.

The villagers also demanded more money for the farmland and want factories built on former farmland to cover trash-collection fees and public utility fees for the village. Factory officials rejected their demands, they say.

In another Guangdong village, Dongzhou, police staged a pre-dawn raid Nov. 18 on a temple where angry villagers had been holding eight local officials hostage for a week over the detention of a local anti-corruption activist.

“They didn’t release Chen Qian,” one villager from Dongzhou said at the time, referring to the villager detained Nov. 9 while he hung anti-corruption posters in the village. “Instead, they detained three more.”

Dongzhou has a bloody history, and protests over land appropriated for commercial and industrial development have been escalating since the 1990s.

On Dec. 6 last year, according to China’s official Xinhua news agency, police opened fire “in alarm” on protesters who attacked them with home-made explosives, killing at least three people. But villagers said police fired first on an unarmed crowd, and that the death toll was higher than official reports admitted.

China experiences thousands of protests and confrontations every year that the Chinese government says happen despite efforts to address widespread corruption allegations and growing disparities in wealth.

According to an official report, the number of protests and riots in China fell by more than one-fifth in the first nine months of 2006, down 22.1 percent from a year earlier. Many protests are related to land seizures, pollution, and corruption.

Original reporting by Ding Xiao for RFA’s Mandarin service. Service director: Jennifer Chou. Written and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.

No Christmas Cards For ACLU

Crossposted from Stop The ACLU Its that time of the year again. The time when the intolerant grinches like the ACLU start trying to fill their stockings with your tax dollars in their attempts to secularize Christmas. The ACLU try their best to deny their attacks on Christmas. They call those defending Christmas the well organized extremists out to make a buck in the guise of defending Christmas. This is of course false. The Alliance Defense Fund, just like last year, are offering their services to defend Christmas completely FREE! However, the lies continue again this year as the ACLU denies their attacks on Christmas. However, their actions speak louder than their words. Already the ACLU have began their attacks. They have already been successful in bullying the Berkley City Council into moving their Christmas nativity scene off public property. This, despite the fact that the display also included other religious and secular elements including a Star of David, Christmas trees, a Santa Claus figure, a Santa’s Mailbox, and a “Seasons Greetings” sign. In their latest attempt to censor Christmas they have sued the Wilson County School System outside of Nashville, TN. because their Christmas program includes “Christian themes and songs.”

The plaintiffs and the ACLU allege that several kindergarten students role-played a nativity scene of the birth of Jesus—and had the audacity to sing “Away in the Manger” and “Joy to the World.” According to the ACLU, these songs are exclusively Christian in nature because they celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ and are, therefore, inappropriate.

The ACLJ is defending the school in this case. The ADF has a long list of attacks on Christmas from the ACLU and its allies dating back from 2002 to the present. Yes, its that time of the year again. The season that I get bombarded with emails encouraging people to waste their money on a stamp for a Christmas card wishing the ACLU a merry Christmas. Don’t get me wrong. I understand the sentitment behind the whole thing. I was all on board last year. If you really want them to have a Merry Christmas, or just feel like throwing your money away I won’t discourage it. It will be about as effective as barking at the moon. Your Christmas cheer will be tossed in the mail room shredder and never reach any those you intended to send a message to. I propose that your money could be spent in a much more efficient manner. Save the money you would throw away on the stamp for a message destined to fall on deaf ears. There are many organizations out there fighting to protect Christmas and the expression of its true meaning. Why not take the money you would be throwing away on a noble yet ineffective gesture, and put it to real use as a gift to the organization of your choice that is out there fighting the ACLU? Sign the ACLJ’s Petition here. Contribute Here. See the Alliance Defense Fund’s educational on your rights here. Contribute Here. See the Liberty Counsel’s free legal memorandum here (pdf). Contribute Here. Contribute to Thomas More Law Center here. Buy from the Bulldoze the ACLU store for great Christmas gifts.

This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 200 blogs already on-board.

Rebels shoot down Chadian military plane

Rebels shoot down Chadian military plane

By HALIME ASSADYA ALI Associated Press Writer

N’DJAMENA, Chad — A Chadian military reconnaissance plane was shot down in eastern Chad on Tuesday, a government spokesman said, and a rebel group claimed responsibility. A government spokesman blamed neighboring Sudan for backing the rebels and said it was “a state of war.”

The plane was downed in Chad’s volatile east, close to the Sudanese border, government spokesman Hourmadji Moussa Doumgor said at a news conference. He did not provide other details.

“Today we are in a state of war with forces from Sudan,” he said. “We consider ourselves under attack by Sudan.”

An opposition Web site quoted rebel spokesman Ali Izzo as saying rebels had shot down a plane and a helicopter using surface-to-air missiles. The account could not immediately be confirmed.

On Oct. 24, someone fired a surface-to-air missile at a French reconnaissance jet, part of a military mission in support of the Chadian government, but the weapon missed its target.

Doumgor told journalists that in response to Tuesday’s downing of a plane that “the state of emergency will be reinforced and the military put on the highest alert.”

He said the United Nations and African Union should do all that is possible to evacuate Sudanese refugees who are in camps near the border, which he called havens for “the forces of aggression.”

Doumgor claimed some refugees were working for the Sudanese government, trying to destabilize Chad. He also repeated allegations made a day earlier that Saudi Arabia finances and supplies the rebels in order to establish a militant form of Islam in Chad.

In the eastern town of Abeche, meanwhile, some 60 miles west of the airplane attack, Chadian troops went door-to-door Tuesday, shooting open locks and searching for looted goods.

Rebel fighters stormed and briefly held Abeche Saturday, and civilians ransacked U.N. warehouses and government buildings, including the governor’s residence. The rebels withdrew Sunday, and government troops retook the city.

Provincial Gov. Mahamat Nimir Hamata said a courthouse in Abeche, an office of the national bank, a cigarette factory, the repair shop where the U.N. keeps spare parts, and the state archives were also stripped of goods and furnishings.

Under pressure from government troops, residents made piles of stolen goods in the street, including tires, tables, mattresses and satellite television dishes.

Heavily armed soldiers in pickup trucks later patrolled Abeche’s mostly deserted streets. Most shops were closed.

Most civilians were too frightened to speak to journalists, and those who did demanded anonymity for their personal safety.

The U.N. said looters plundered around $1.5 million worth of relief supplies. The U.N. and other agencies based in Abeche deliver aid to 218,000 refugees from Sudan’s Darfur, which neighbors eastern Chad, and some 90,000 internally displaced Chadians.

The U.N. refugee agency said the looting and the volatile security situation had hampered relief efforts. The agency has reduced monitoring close to the Sudanese border and some U.N. staff were leaving for safe areas, the U.N. statement said.

French troops, who have a base in the area 550 miles east of the capital, N’djamena, deployed to protect Abeche’s airport and some 150 foreigners sought refuge in an aircraft hanger there.

About 50 foreigners and a few Chadians boarded two French military planes for evacuation flights to the capital.

Both France and Britain have cautioned their citizens not to travel to Chad and France bolstered its presence in Chad with 100 additional troops, a supply plane and a reconnaissance plane, a military official said Tuesday. The reinforcement brings the total French troops there to 1,200.

President Idriss Deby, who first took power at the head of his own rebel army in 1990, is unpopular in the region.

Rebels bent on toppling Deby have clashed sporadically with the government since 2005. The competition for power has become more intense since Chad began exporting oil in 2004.

The rebels have been able to exploit volatility in neighboring Sudan, establishing rear bases in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region.

Besides the rebellion, Chad’s government has in recent weeks reported outbreaks of violence pitting ethnic Arab Chadians against ethnic African Chadians. The pattern mirrors the Arab-African clashes in Darfur, and Chad has accused Sudan of inciting ethnic unrest.

Sudan, in turn, alleges that Chad supports Sudanese rebels. http://capitalistrosie.blogspot.com/2006/11/rebels-claim-they-shot-down-chadian.html

This is a repost from Causes of Interest in case this article’s link moves and is no longer available to my readers.

Sudan rebels attack oil field

Sudan rebels attack oil field

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) — Darfur rebels have attacked an oil field in Southern Kordofan, making a rare eastward extension of their campaign toward central Sudan, the rebels and government said Monday.

The National Redemption Front said its fighters had seized the Abu Jabra oil field on the edge of South Darfur and Southern Kordofan on Sunday.

“The government garrison guarding the oil field was totally destroyed,” the NRF said in a statement. “Numerous soldiers, including high ranking officers and generals, have surrendered.”

But the Sudanese military said its forces had repelled the attack and were in full control of the field.

The army “inflicted heavy causalities on the rebels, who withdrew from the area,” said a military spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with official policy.

The NRF, a rebel alliance that opposes the May peace agreement, also claimed to have shot down a military helicopter and captured a “substantial amount of weapons, ammunitions, anti-aircraft missiles and military vehicles.”

But the government forces denied this, saying the rebels had tried to extend Darfur’s violence to other parts of Sudan but had failed.

“To put it simply, they did not achieve what they were looking for,” the military spokesman said.

The NRF stronghold has traditionally been in Northern Darfur, and its conducting a strike on the border South Darfur and Southern Kordofan shows a considerable leap in range.

A Sudanese official in the oil industry said the state-owned Abu Jabra field produces up to 10,000 barrels per day — a relatively small output.

“The capacities seem to have been significantly damaged, but it won’t affect Sudan’s production overall,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Sudanese officials say the country produces about 500,000 barrels per day and that oil revenue should be at least $4 billion this year, more than half of the government’s income.

Most of Sudan’s oil reserves are in the south of the country, which is now semi autonomous under a separate peace agreement that southern rebels signed with the government in January 2005.

Sunday’s raid on the oil field came amid heightened violence in Darfur, where pro-government janjaweed militia have been accused by the United Nations of forcing 60,000 people to flee their homes this month.

After the Abu Jabra attack, South Darfur officials accused Minni Minnawi, the one rebel chief who signed the May peace accord and subsequently took a government position, of having ceded terrain to the NRF to facilitate attacks.

But the NRF’s head of strategic planning, Abdullahi el-Tom, denied this, telling The Associated Press his group had occupied Minnawi’s territory in South Darfur by force.

In July, NRF rebels ventured east of Darfur and attacked the Northern Kordofan town of Hamarat Sheikh, killing more than a dozen people.

Re-posted from CNN.

Troops fortify positions in Chad capital

Troops fortify positions in Chad capital.

N’DJAMENA, Chad (AP) — Heavily armed Chadian soldiers began reinforcing their positions in the capital, N’djamena, Monday amid fears of a fresh rebel attack on the city.

Troops were positioned throughout the capital, cordoning off key government buildings and supported by at least a dozen tanks guarding the main entrances to the city. Schools have been closed and residents of N’djamena have been panic buying in markets and shops.

At dawn a French Mirage fighter jet conducted low-level reconnaissance flights over the capital and surrounding areas.

On Sunday government troops set up roadblocks in Lamadji, about 6 miles (10 kilometers) from the capital, and were searching cars and fighting-age men.

The Forces for Democracy and Development, known by the French acronym UFDD, is a union of several rebel groups opposed to President Idriss Deby, who first took power at the head of his own rebel army in 1990. The group has had sporadic clashes with the government since 2005 and launched a failed attack on the capital in April.

The competition for power has become more intense since Chad began exporting oil in 2004. The rebels have been able to exploit volatility in neighboring Sudan, establishing rear bases in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region, which borders eastern Chad.

Both France and Britain have issued warnings of reports of rebel forces heading toward the capital, urging against all travel to Chad. The Chadian government has denied rebels were about 250 miles (400 kilometers) from the capital and said they were no longer advancing.

On Saturday, rebels launched an attack and claimed to have seized Abeche, the largest city in the country’s east, but pulled out Sunday before government troops arrived.

Abeche, 550 miles (885 kilometers) east of the capital, is the base for dozens of aid organizations looking after 200,000 refugees from Sudan’s Darfur and 50,000 displaced Chadians. The U.N. refugee chief said the violence is threatening aid delivery.

In addition to the rebellion, Chad’s government has in recent weeks reporting violence pitting ethnic Arab Chadians against ethnic African Chadians, mirroring ethnic clashes in Darfur. Chad accused Sudan of instigating the clashes. Chad often accuses Sudan of supporting Chadian rebels and Sudan makes a similar accusation against Chad.

In Darfur, ethnic African tribes accusing the central government of neglect launched a rebellion three years ago, following years of low-level tribal clashes over land and water. The government is accused of responding by unleashing ethnic Arab tribal militias who have been linked to atrocities.

More than 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been displaced since fighting began in Darfur in early 2003.

Chad, an impoverished country in central Africa, has suffered from years of political turmoil that have hampered economic development. The country relies on livestock and a relatively new oil industry to keep the economy going.

Re-posted from CNN because they always move their links so as not for my readers to read their articles. Shame on them!

Rebels attack, residents loot in eastern Chad

Rebels attack, residents loot in eastern Chad.

ABECHE, Chad: U.N. and government workers took stock of looted warehouses and even the governor’s residence in an eastern Chad town that was the latest victim of unrest that started in Sudan’s Darfur and has since spread across a swath of Africa.

Over the weekend, Chadian rebels who have their rear bases in Darfur briefly held Abeche, a hub for aid workers helping Darfur refugees. A French military officer posted in the town said it remained under threat. Gunfire could be heard in the distance after nightfall, and residents said it was rebels fighting government troops north of town, but there was no confirmation of that.

Earlier Monday, the U.N. said looters plundered around US$1.5 million (€1 million) worth of aid intended for refugees after the rebel attack. Governor Mahamat Nimir Hamata, whose Ouaddai province has Abeche as its capital, said a courthouse, an office of the national bank, a cigarette factory, the repair shop where the U.N. keeps spare parts and the state archives also were looted by residents.

Both Hamata’s office and his nearby official residence were struck, stripped of doors, windows and plumbing. He spoke Monday amid piles of paper strewn around his office. The night before, he had declared a dusk-to-dawn curfew and, in a radio address, pleaded with people to return stolen property.

“It’s really sad,” said Hamata, who seemed particularly troubled by the attack on the state archives. “I don’t understand the state of mind of the people. How can you destroy our archives?”

The rebels themselves were described as disciplined. It was not clear what prompted civilians to loot, targeting many government buildings, but President Idriss Deby, who first took power at the head of his own rebel army in 1990, is considered unpopular in this area.

Chadian rebels have clashed sporadically with the government since 2005 and launched a failed attack on the capital in April. The competition for power has become more intense since Chad began exporting oil in 2004. The rebels have been able to exploit volatility in neighboring Sudan, establishing rear bases in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region, which borders eastern Chad.

Rebels seized Abeche Saturday and government forces recaptured it Sunday.

French troops, who have a base in the area 885 kilometers (550 miles) east of the capital, N’djamena, deployed to protect Abeche’s airport and some 150 foreigners seeking refugee in an aircraft hanger there. “We are in a state of war,” French officer Didier Lebailly told reporters and aid workers who arrived on the first flight into Abeche since rebels briefly held the town.

He said Abeche still is under threat “from all sides.” French troops in jeeps mounted with machine guns patrolled the perimeter of the airport.

In Paris, French foreign ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei told reporters Monday: “These new rebel attacks show again the gravity of the situation and the urgency for an international presence to be deployed along the border between Chad and Darfur,” he said.

According to initial reports from staff, nearly 500 metric tons (more than 500 tons)of food worth US$500,000 (€380,000) were taken from a WFP warehouse in the center of Abeche. Also stolen was around US$1 million (€760,000) worth of blankets, tents, stoves, medical, communications and water purification supplies and other equipment.

“Stealing food from people who have lost everything is the most shameful and inhumane act that anyone can possibly commit,” WFP Executive Director James Morris said in a statement.

U.N. and other agencies based in Abeche deliver aid to 218,000 Darfur refugees and some 90,000 internally displaced Chadians.

In the capital, heavily armed Chadian soldiers reinforced their positions Monday, although the government insisted that their forces were pursuing the rebels in the east back toward the Sudanese border. Troops were positioned throughout the capital, cordoning off key government buildings and supported by at least a dozen tanks guarding the main entrances to the city. Schools have been closed and residents of N’djamena have been panic buying.

At dawn a French Mirage fighter jet conducted low-level reconnaissance flights over the capital and surrounding areas.

Both France and Britain have issued warnings of reports of rebel forces heading toward the capital, urging against all travel to Chad. The Chadian government has denied rebels were 400 kilometers (about 250 miles) from the capital and said they were no longer advancing.

Besides the rebellion, Chad’s government has in recent weeks reporting violence pitting ethnic Arab Chadians against ethnic African Chadians, mirroring ethnic clashes in Darfur. Chad accused Sudan of instigating the clashes. Chad often accuses Sudan of supporting Chadian rebels and Sudan makes a similar accusation against Chad.

In Darfur, ethnic African tribes accusing the central government of neglect launched a rebellion three years ago, following years of low-level tribal clashes over land and water. The government is accused of responding by unleashing ethnic Arab tribal militias who have been linked to atrocities.

More than 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been displaced since fighting began in Darfur in early 2003.

Chad, an impoverished country in central Africa, has suffered from years of political turmoil that have hampered economic development. The economy relies on livestock and a relatively new oil industry.

Re-posted from the International Herald Tribune in case this article is no longer able to be accessed by my link at Causes of Interest.

Kirkuk Hospital, Clinics Receive Medical Supplies

Medical Supplies in short supply were delivered for distribution throughout the Kirkuk area.

Nov. 21, 2006
By U.S. Army Sgt. Tony White.

TIKRIT, Iraq — Coalition Forces delivered medical supplies and equipment to the Kirkuk General Hospital Nov. 12.

The supplies will be distributed among the hospital and clinics in the Kirkuk area.

A local Iraqi unpacks medical supplies at the Kirkuk General Hospital. The medical aid, supplied by Coalition Forces, will be distributed amongst the hospital and the local clinics. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Anthony White.

Medical supplies in shortage, such as intravenous (IV) bags and burn blankets, were supplied by civil affairs soldiers from the 25th Infantry Division.

“God willing, these supplies will be helpful,” said Ahmed Karman, an Iraqi pharmacist working in the medical warehouse at the Kirkuk General Hospital . “In the past we were forced to rely on the black market for medical supplies.”

Under normal situations the hospital and the clinics receive medical supplies from the Ministry of Health and the Red Cross, the pharmacist said.

“Most of our supplies come from Baghdad or Mosul ,” he said. “But everything depends on our ability to get to and from the cities. When there are transportation problems, there are shortages.”

The soldiers brought the warehouse burn blankets, bandages, needle disposal containers, IVs and accessories.

“Previously we have worked with individual clinics,” said Maj. Paul Beekman, C Company, 402nd Civil Affairs team leader. “But this was the first time we have dropped off medical supplies to the hospital’s warehouse. We are planning another drop off, because we have more to give to them.”

After taking a look inside, Beekman said the warehouse looked relatively barren.

“I think this drop off will have a huge impact on the hospital and the clinics,” he said. “They have basic supplies like gauze and needles, but things like those are only intended to be used one time. Still (the Iraqi hospital and clinics) are very thankful for any supplies we can get them.”

Military family members reunite in Djibouti

November 15, 2006
By Army Spc. Eric P. Jungels Jr.
Central Command Public Affairs.

DOHA, Qatar – The senior enlisted leader for U.S. Central Command’s reserve forces recently returned here from Djibouti after a visit in which she assisted fellow troops, including one special service member.

Sgt. Maj. Judith M. Harford, acting command sergeant major for USCENTCOM Forward Headquarters met up with her brother, Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Samuel R. Husner, a hospital corpsman with the 5th Provisional Security Company deployed to Djibouti, Africa.

Army Sgt. Maj. Judith M. Harford, acting command sergeant major for U.S. Central Command Forward Headquarters, poses for a photo next to her brother, Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Samuel R. Husner, a hospital corpsman with the 5th Provisional Security Company, in Djibouti, Africa. The two were able to catch up while Harford was visiting troops from the 5th PSC and other reserve servicemembers in the region. USN Photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Eric A. Clement.

The two were able to catch up while Harford was visiting troops from the 5th PSC and other reserve troops serving in the Horn of Africa alongside of Command Chief Master Sgt. Curtis L. Brownhill, CENTCOM’s highest ranking enlisted leader.

“My job is to help Soldiers focus on their tasks by helping take care of other issues,” said Harford, whose goal for the trip was to get to know the reserve Soldiers and work out any administrative or personal issues they had. Seeing her brother, she said, was quite a bonus.

“We haven’t seen each other a lot in the last few years,” said Harford, who has worked in an active guard reserve capacity with CENTCOM for the last three years.

Between deployments and overseas assignments, Harford said, she and her brother have been very busy, actively serving and supporting the recent Global War on Terror.

The two, who according to Husner, have not seen each other in at least two years, were able to meet up, have a couple drinks, and even see a movie.

“Seems like the only time I see her is overseas some place!” said Husner, who joined the Marines as a reservist during Operation Desert Storm.

As Harford puts it, they are two siblings from a “true joint family.” Harford and Husner’s father is a former Marine and they have a brother who also served in the Air Force.

Husner, who is a social worker when he’s not deployed, has been in Djibouti since September. The Marines he works with provide base security, conduct patrols, and work with villagers to keep the area safe and free of terrorist activity.

“I’m proud of him,” said Harford, of her brother. “He’s 52 years old—working with the Marines and going on patrols with them.”

“I got to watch him work,” said Harford. “He’s well trained in medical care and even field surgery—if I had any medical concerns, I would go to him.”

Violence in Iraq Drops in Weeks After Ramadan

Nov. 20, 2006
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service.

WASHINGTON – As expected, violence in Iraq has dropped following the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, a coalition spokesman said in Baghdad today.
Army Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said civilian and Iraqi security force casualties were at the lowest levels since the government was formed in May.

So far this month, the civilian casualty count is well below the casualty count in October and below the six-month average. The security force casualties reduced 21 percent over the past four weeks, and are at the lowest level in 25 weeks, he said.

“In Baghdad, there was a 22 percentage drop in casualties related to sectarian violence and executions,” Caldwell said during a televised news conference. “Coalition forces will continue to work closely with the Iraqi government and Iraqi security forces to control the sectarian violence and terrorist attacks.”

But attacks do continue. The more the Iraqi government led by Nouri al-Maliki asserts its authority, the greater the threat from foreign and extremist elements seeking to undermine both stability and reconciliation in Iraq, Caldwell said. “Last week we did see a spike in coalition and civilian casualties,” he said. “Murders remain the gravest threat to civilians.”

A line of Humvees parade around the unit’s motor pool during a Nov. 1 transfer of authority ceremony in Kirkush. The unit is made up of heavy and light-wheeled vehicles along with ambulances and tow trucks. 210th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.

A new wrinkle is mortar attacks on markets and mosques, and coalition and Iraqi security forces are watching the situation and taking steps to prevent those, the general said.

He said Operation Together Forward – planned to provide security for the neighborhoods in Baghdad – will continue. Patrolling continues in some neighborhoods, he said, with roughly 95,000 buildings searched, 282 persons detained and 1,900 weapons seized.

In other neighborhoods, the Iraqis have moved into a protect-and-build strategy. “Stability means more than just freedom from fear; it means being able to count on essential services,” Caldwell said. “Consequently, more than $7.5 million have been committed to these projects and essential services.”

Iraqi public servants brave attacks to continue working on power generation, water treatment, trash collection to sewage disposal. He said over the past 11 months local civic leaders and soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division, which just transferred back to Fort Hood, Texas, worked hard in Baghdad to make progress in local improvement projects. “During that time, 146 water and sewage projects came on line, (along with) 140 educational projects, 57 medical and public health projects and 37 agricultural projects,” Caldwell said.

The water and sewage projects undertaken through this partnership include the completion of 19 water treatment plants, six compact water delivery systems, 13 sewage pumping stations and the replacement of more than 25 kilometers of pipe. The 140 education projects included upgrading 111 school facilities that serve more than 310,000 elementary students. The 57 Baghdad medical projects include the renovation of 21 hospitals and clinics and building and opening six new clinics for the citizens of Baghdad.

“There is a committed effort to hire local Iraqi firms and workers,” the general said. “These projects alone have provided over 23,000 jobs at the peak employment period.”

Caldwell said there will be more transfers of authority to the Iraqis as the security forces become more capable. He used an operation in Diyala province as an example of the progress the Iraqi army is making. On Nov. 13, the Iraqis launched a joint operation to seize five major weapons caches. The Iraqi forces faced improvised explosive devices and numerous small-arms exchanges with enemy forces. The soldiers killed somewhere between 25 and 40 enemy fighters and detained another 23.

The raid resulted in taking hundreds of explosive rounds capable of being used in car and roadside bombs, and 300,000 rounds of small-arms ammunition. “This is potentially hundreds of car bombs that will never be built or detonated in Iraqi markets,” Caldwell said. “This is 12,000 sniper rounds that will not be aimed at security forces.”

Caldwell said it is impossible to estimate the number of attacks these raids prevented, “but it was significant.”

“Iraq must have a security force that is competent, but also enjoys the confidence of its people,” he said. The forces will continue to enforce the rule of law and free the country from the threat of militias. He said Iraqi confidence in the police is slowly rising, but will require continued reform.

The forces continue to combat sectarian violence, most of which, occurs within a 30-mile radius around Baghdad. Forces launched 58 missions against death squads that netted 184 cell members and eight cell leaders.

The coalition and Iraqis continue to attack al Qaeda in Iraq. The forces launched 92 focused operations that killed 48 terrorists and detained 286, Caldwell said.

The general also told reporters that U.S. forces remain committed to finding Army Spc. Ahmed Kusay Altaie, a soldier kidnapped Oct. 23. More than 3,000 coalition and Iraqi security forces are looking for him. “We will never stop looking for our servicemembers,” Caldwell said. “Everyone must know that we will continue our intensive efforts to locate Specialist Altaie.”

Caldwell said that all people want to see a unified, secure and prosperous Iraq, “but it will take time.”

“The people in Iraq are showing tremendous perseverance in fighting these foreign influences that seek to destroy their goal of a unified Iraq,” he said.

Afghan Def. Min. Thanks US, Praises Troops, Rumsfeld

Nov. 21, 2006
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service.

WASHINGTON – Afghanistan’s defense minister thanked the United States today for its steadfast support for his country, specifically recognizing the U.S. troops who have served and sacrificed there and outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Gen. Abdul Rahim Wardak told Pentagon reporters Afghanistan is indebted to the United States for the progress it’s made during the past five years. “These achievements would not have been possible without the advice, guidance and generous support we have received from the United States,” he said.

Wardak gave special thanks to Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, commander of Combined Forces Command Afghanistan, who joined him at the podium, as well as Rumsfeld, whom he met with before today’s news conference.

“Secretary Rumsfeld has been a great support of the Afghan cause as a whole,” he said. “He played a fundamental role in delivering Afghanistan from years of destruction, occupation and civil war.”

Afghanistan as a nation “has all the love, respect and admiration for him,” Wardak said of Rumsfeld. “He founded a security relationship that will endure, and we have every intention to build on those relations.”

Wardak expressed “the profound and everlasting gratitude of the Afghan government and people for everything the United States government and people are doing to help deliver Afghanistan from years of terror and destruction.”

The Afghan defense minister also recognized the U.S. forces who have served in Afghanistan, noting the commitment they have shown and the sacrifices they have made.

“They are representing your great nation proudly and demonstrating the high standards of service and professionalism,” he said. “I pray that their sacrifices will one day no longer be necessary, and that my own nation will be able to repay its debt through our enduring partnership with the United States.”

Wardak and Eikenberry are visiting Washington for consultations with U.S. government and military leaders, Eikensberry told reporters.

The two paid an earlier visit to Fort Bragg, N.C., to observe United Endeavor, a week-long exercise that’s preparing 82nd Airborne Division leaders and their Afghan, International Security Assistance Force, interagency and non-governmental organization partners for their upcoming deployment to Afghanistan.

The mission rehearsal exercise brought together about 1,300 servicemembers who will deploy in January as Combined Joint Task Force 76. The task force, which also will include other supporting Army and Air Force elements, will serve in Regional Command East under the NATO-led ISAF.

The exercise built on a troop-level training exercise at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La. About 50 Afghan soldiers trained with their 82nd Airborne Division counterparts in late October.

Eikenberry called the Afghan troops’ first deployment to the United States for field training a significant step that “underscores the continuing development of the Afghan national security forces.”