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Summary and Chronology of
EmergencyNet News Military-Related Reports:
02 Jan 2001 to 29 Nov 2001
Summary and
Historical Chronology of ERRI/
EmergencyNet News
Stories Concerning A Conflict With Iraq and Disarmament 01 Dec 2002 to Present
Click to visit:
EmergencyNet News/Other Military-Related Articles:
Fourth-generation warfare, which is now playing out in Iraq and Afghanistan, is a modern form of insurgency. Its practitioners seek to convince enemy political leaders that their strategic goals are either unachievable or too costly for the perceived benefit. The fundamental precept is that superior political will, when properly employed, can defeat greater economic and military power.
Because it is organized to ensure political rather than military success, this type of warfare is difficult to defeat.
-- Strategically, fourth-generation
warfare remains focused on changing the minds of decision makers.
-- Politically, it involves transnational, national, and sub-national
organizations and networks.
-- Operationally, it uses different messages for different audiences, all of
which focus on breaking an opponent’s political will.
-- Tactically, it utilizes
materials present in the society under attack— to include industrial
chemicals, liquefied natural gas, or fertilizers.
Although these modern insurgencies are the only type of war that the United
States has lost (Vietnam, Lebanon, and Somalia), they can be
overcome—witness Malaya (1950s), Oman (1970s), and El Salvador (1980s).
Winning, however, requires coherent, patient action that encompasses the
full range of political, economic, social, and military activities.
The United States cannot
force its opponents to fight the short, high technology wars it easily
dominates. Instead, the Nation must learn to fight fourth-generation wars
anew.
Read the whole paper, click here to access No. 214, January 2005, Institute
for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University:
http://www.ndu.edu/inss/strforum/SF214/SF214.pdf
(requires Adobe .pdf reader/plug-in to review)
Proposal For Increase in Veteran Death Benefits Presented
WASHINGTON, DC: President Bush will
propose that families of U.S. troops killed in Iraq, Afghanistan and war
zones of the future receive an extra $250,000 in government payments.
The plan, which includes retroactive payments to the spouses or surviving
relatives of the more than 1,500 who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan since
October 2001, will be part of the 2006 budget proposal submitted to Congress
next week, the Pentagon's personnel chief said.
A tax-free "death gratuity," now $12,420, would grow to $100,000. The
government would also pay for $150,000 in life insurance for troops.
Veterans groups and many in Congress have been pushing for such increases.
"We think the nation ought to make a larger one-time payment, quite apart
from insurance, should you be killed in a combat area of operations," David
Chu, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, said in an
interview in his Pentagon office.
"We can never in any program give someone back their loved one," he added.
"There is nothing we can do about the hurt, to make it go away. But we can
make your circumstances reasonable, in terms of finances." Chu was
unveiling the administration's full proposal in congressional testimony
Tuesday. Read more about at the NYPost online:
http://breakingnews.nypost.com/dynamic/stories/M/MILITARY_DEATH_BENEFITS?SITE=NYNYP&SECTION=HOME
ERRI ANALYSIS/COMMENTARY/OPINION
CHICAGO, IL: "Any politician who opposes this proposal should be voted out of office at the next possible opportunity," ERRI senior analyst and spokesman Clark Staten said in response to the increased death benefit. "The families of all of those killed in the line of duty (KIA) deserve everything we can do to help them...both financially and psychologically," Staten continued. "We would recommend immediate passage and implementation of these measures," the ERRI CEO added.
"Since the inception of this country, the American people have owed a tremendous debt to the men and women of our armed forces, who have risked and lost their lives to protect the rest of us and the freedoms that we enjoy everyday," the U.S. Army veteran added.
"Although we can't replace the
family's loved one, we can surely make sure that their spouse and children
don't suffer in poverty after the loss of their primary bread-winner," he
continued. "The statement that freedom is not free...is true and must
apply...both in regard to honor for our slain hero's and to the treatment
that is afforded their families, Staten concluded. As always, EmergencyNet
News welcomes reasoned opposing viewpoints and will consider them for
publication here. Send to:
sysop@mail.emergency.com
27 Jan 2005:
Pentagon Prepares to Rethink
Focus on Conventional Warfare;
New Emphasis on Insurgencies and Terrorism Is Planned
Can be found at:
http://www.emergency.com/2005/rethink_conventional_war.htm
"Urban Battle Fields of South Asia; Lessons Learned from Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan"
Prepared for the United States
Army, Approved for public release; distribution unlimited, UNCLAS, ©
Copyright 2004 RAND Corporation, 174 pgs.
(large 2.4MB file in .pdf format -
requires Adobe reader to review). Can be found at:
http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2004/RAND_MG210.pdf
The Dynamic Terrorist Threat; An Assessment of
Group Motivations
and Capabilities in a Changing World
Shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United
States, Air Force Chief of Staff General John Jumper asked the RAND
Corporation to conduct a study entitled “Thinking Strategically About
Combating Terrorism.” The yearlong project was divided into four research
tasks, each undertaking different yet complementary aspects of the
counterterrorism problem:
• Threat assessment—identifying the character and boundaries of the threat
• The international dimension—assessing the impact of coalition and other
international actors on U.S. options
• Strategy—designing an overarching counterterrorism approach
• Implications for the Air Force—identifying promising applications of air
and space power.
The research for this report was conducted as part of the first task on
threat assessment. It assesses the threat that terrorist groups pose to the
United States and to its interests overseas by proposing a framework for
evaluating their relative motivations and capabilities. The report describes
the tools that various terrorist groups use to maintain group cohesion and
to conduct successful terrorist attacks.
Also,after identifying the potential vulnerabilities of terrorist groups,
it discusses how these groups adapt and change and concludes with
implications for the ongoing struggle against terrorism. This report
therefore should be of interest to policymakers confronted with the task of
reducing the threat that terrorism poses to the United States today. But
terrorist threats change over time, so the authors have attempted to present
a framework of use to decision-makers and academics involved in terrorism
analyses and counter-terrorism responsibilities in the future.
-- Source:
http://www.rand.org/publications/MR/MR1782/MR1782.pdf
(126 pgs.)
ERRI Staff Laments Death of Afghan Hero
By C. L. Staten
CHICAGO,
IL: It isn't often that you read here about the heroics of America's
military forces. It isn't that many men and women of our armed services
don't deserve recognition...we know they do. In fact, we would respectfully
suggest that heroics are often commonplace on the very difficult
battlegrounds in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Maybe our failing in the matter relates to the fact that the people who run this website and EmergencyNet News have spent much of their lives in one uniform or another...and have seen bravery and honor in the military and emergency services on an almost daily basis. To us, courage and service are a watchword and a common expectation. And, then there comes a tragic event that highlights an extraordinary individual who is of deserving of everyone's praise and admiration...most of all ours. This man, Pat Tillman (above), truly demonstrates what sacrifice and being an American are all about.
Reports
are coming in that, Tillman, an Arizona Cardinals safety, has today been
killed while serving as a U.S. army ranger in Afghanistan. NFL officials
said that Tillman had given up a multi-million football contract to
volunteer for the 75th Ranger Regiment and go confront America's enemies,
where ever they might be found. Sadly, his chosen duty came to an end today
as he was killed in the line of duty during a firefight in eastern
Afghanistan
The staff of ERRI and EmergencyNet News would like to express our most
profound sorrow at Specialist Tillman's passing and would like to extend our
condolences and prayers to his family, friends, and co-workers. Tillman was
truly a hero and an extraordinary individual. Specialist Tillman's service
reflects the very best things about America and Americans.
(Subsequent reports say that Tillman was laterally moved to Corporal from
SP/4 and that he was awarded the Silver Star posthumously)
Jan, 2004 -- "Coping with an Attack, A Quick Guide to Dealing with
Biological, Chemical and ‘Dirty Bomb’ Attacks"
While our (military) forces are well-trained and capable of responding to a CBRN
attack, the safety of their dependents and our DOD civilian workforce remains a
concern. If a military base with dependents were attacked, it is doubtful the
family members or civilian employees would know what immediate actions to take.
By not managing such an attack properly, contamination could be spread around a
base and the base medical facilities could be overwhelmed by the “worried well.”
To address this concern, the CTNSP Life Sciences Office created Coping with an
Attack, A Quick Guide to Dealing with Biological, Chemical and ‘Dirty Bomb’
Attacks, a colorful, easy-to-read poster that can be hung on bulletin boards in
military and civilian offices and refrigerator doors at home. The poster
consists of simple matrices describing immediate actions to take in case of a
biological, chemical, or “dirty bomb” attack, plus answers to frequently asked
questions. This poster can be reproduced locally and adopted for use by any
local, state, federal agency, as well as non-governmental organizations.
--
Full Color Poster (25
inches by 38 inches, Adobe Acrobat pdf.)
December, 2003 -- "The American
Soldier" has been named Time Magazine's
Person of the Year for 2003
The Management and Staff of ERRI and
EmergencyNet News would like to send
our congratulations to all of the men and women who are defending our nation...
throughout in the world...
13 Sep 2003:
Response to
Terrorism: Legal Aspects of the Use of Military Force
By David M. Ackerman, Legislative Attorney, American Law Division
Summary:
The terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, has precipitated
widespread calls for the use of military force in response. Under U.S. and
international law a variety of legal considerations attach to such use. This
report briefly summarizes several salient aspects...
17 July 2003
Gen. Abizaid Says Coalition Is Facing 'Guerrilla-Type Warfare' In Iraq
Source: Washington File
IRAQ/WASHINGTON, DC: Coalition forces are facing a classic guerrilla-type warfare campaign being waged by Ba'athist remnants and some foreign terrorist elements throughout Iraq, and are adapting their tactics in order to end the attacks, says General John Abizaid, commander of the U.S. Central Command. "We're fighting Ba'athist remnants...that have organized at the regional level in cellular structure and are conducting what I would describe as a classical guerrilla-type campaign against us," he told reporters at the Pentagon July 16.
"We're seeing a cellular organization of six to eight people...attacking us sometimes at times and places of their own choosing. And other times we attack them at times and places of our choosing. They are receiving financial help from probably regional-level leaders," he said.
Abizaid said there is also significant terrorist group activity in Iraq. "Ansar al-Islam, which is a terrorist group that we hit very hard in the very opening stages in the war up in the area of northern Iraq and northeast of Sulimaniyah...is reforming and is presenting a threat to us." They could be infiltrating through Iran, he added.
He also cited a threat from al-Qaeda or "al-Qaeda look-alikes" who are "making an opportunity to move against us." But, the primary resistance is from mid-level Ba'athist leaders, he said. "It is getting more organized, and it is learning. It is adapting to our tactics, techniques and procedures, and we've got to adapt to their tactics, techniques and procedures..."
ERRI
references:
"29
Mar 2003: Urban Warfare Considerations; Understanding and Combating
Irregular and Guerilla Forces During A 'Conventional War' In Iraq"
5
May 2002: “Military Response to Fourth Generation Warfare in Afghanistan”
24 Sep 2001:
WAR ON TERROR-2001; What We Expect in The Coming "War on Terrorism"
19 February 2001:
"Anticipating the Nature of the Next Conflict"
IRAQ: On the anniversary of the revolution that put the former
leader's party in power in Iraq, a speaker purported to be Saddam Hussein
urged his followers to wage a holy war against U.S. and British forces. The
new recording was played Thursday on two Arabic television stations. U.S.
troops were on the alert for attacks timed to coincide with the anniversary
of the 1968 Ba'ath party revolution. Saddam officially took power 11 years
later. This latest tape has not been authenticated by Western military and
intelligence sources at the time of this report.
24 May 2003
Report Says China's Military Lags Far Behind U.S.
NEW YORK CITY: A new report says that China has emerged as an increasingly powerful competitor in global markets, but its military technology remains at least 20 years behind the United States. The report, by the Council on Foreign Relations, said the United States is likely to continue to lead China in military capability for at least 20 years if the United States continues its rate of military spending. The 92-page report, released Thursday, was prepared by a task force led by former Secretary of Defense Harold Brown and retired Navy admiral Joseph Prueher, a former U.S. ambassador to China.
The task force found that China's military spending rose throughout the
1990s, and that the country is poised to become the predominant military
power in East Asia, though it said North Korea could spark a change in the
balance of power in the region. While the report pinpointed the Taiwan
Strait as an area of concern, the task force said China is unlikely to
invade Taiwan, though it said China could impose blockades on Taiwan or lay
mines in the strait. The report said that U.S. forces would prevail in a
conflict with China, but China could "impose serious risks and costs" on the
U.S. military if the United States battled with China over Taiwan...
09 Mar 2003
U.S. Forces May Be Targeted By Al-Qaeda In War
WASHINGTON:
Counterterrorism officials said on Saturday that members of al-Qaeda are
planning to strike at U.S. and allied forces taking part in a war in Iraq.
According to information acquired by U.S. intelligence, the operatives are
subordinates of Abu Musab Zarqawi, whom CIA officials describe as a senior
associate of the fugitive Usama bin Laden. The intelligence report does not
suggest any kind of coordination between the Iraqi government and the al-Qaeda
members. Instead, a CIA report said that analysts believe the terrorists are
looking to capitalize on the chaos created by any military conflict to
strike at American and allied troops.
ERRI analyst Steve Macko said, "It should be remembered that members of al-Qaeda and the Taliban were promised a 'glorious battle' against the U.S. military in Afghanistan. They were amazed and sorely disappointed when they found their numbers dropping dead from an enemy they couldn't see or even hear until it was too late."
The counterterrorism officials said operatives may be planning to use explosives or toxins to conduct the attack. At the center of U.S. allegations that there are links between Iraq and the terrorist group is Zarqawi, a Jordanian terrorist operative, and some of his followers. The CIA has described Zarqawi as a senior associate of bin Laden, but officials acknowledge some difference of opinion within U.S. intelligence whether it is accurate to describe him as a formal member of the organization.
ERRI spokesman and Sr. National Security Analyst, Clark Staten, said,
"Our most current assessment would suggest that should a conflict in Iraq be
joined in 2003, that we will again see what we saw during the 1991 Persian
Gulf War...namely, numerous convergent and concurrent terrorist attacks in
multiple locations, of either a sympathetic or opportunistic nature."
"During Desert Storm, we recorded about 100 terror events of greatly varying
intensity...we would anticipate a greater number than that, should an armed
conflict occur in Iraq this year," the veteran terrorism analyst added.
01 Mar 2003:
ERRI Force Protection Advisory Issued
By C. L. Staten, ERRI Senior National Security Analyst
CHICAGO,
IL: Given the details of recent threat indicators, the Emergency
Response & Research Institute (ERRI) would respectfully recommend a force
protection alert for U.S. military and diplomatic forces world- wide at this
time, particularly those based in the Mid-East and Asia. A 28 February
shooting attack on the U.S. consulate in Karachi, Pakistan, and
anti-American demonstrations in Yemen and Bahrain would seem to indicate
that a heightened state of alert at all diplomatic and military facilities
in these regions would now be prudent. Additionally, our monitoring of
recent radical internet statements and contiguous "calls for Jihad" from
several sources would further buttresses our assessment. Given these
circumstances, we would predict an increased likelihood of possible
additional attack(s) on U.S. installations or forces OCONUS in the coming
days and therefore recommend an increase in THREATCON levels.
INSTANT UPDATE -- 16:30CST - 19 Feb 2003
302 Dead in Iranian Plane Crash
TEHRAN, IRAN:
- An Iranian military aircraft, operated by the Islamic
Revolution's Guards Corps (IRGC), crashed near a central city Wednesday
evening, killing all 302 people aboard,
the official state news agency IRNA reported. "All those aboard were the personnel of Division 41 of Sarallah of the Islamic Revolution's Guards Corps," Kerman governor,
Mohammad Ali Karimi, told the IRNA, adding that 18 of those aboard were
the airplane crew. IRNA blamed the crash on "bad weather."
Additional data to be published in tomorrow's EmergencyNet Daily Emergency
Service Report...
14:00CST - 23:30 Tehran time - 19 Feb 2003
Plane Reported Down in S.E. Iran
TEHRAN, IRAN: (EmergencyNet News) -- According to preliminary and as yet officially
unconfirmed reports from the region, an Iranian airliner with as many as
250 people on board is missing and believed to have crashed. The incident
was being reported as occurring at around 17:30 hrs. local time. There is
some suggestion that the plane may have been carrying "military
personnel." The cause of the crash is not presently clear. Few official
details are currently available and EmergencyNet News is monitoring events
in Iran and will bring you additional facts as they emerge...
30 Jan 2003
Chairman Of U.S. Joint Chiefs Confirms U.S. Troops In N. Iraq
IRAQ/WASHINGTON: General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed on Wednesday that a small number of U.S. troops have been inserted in northern Iraq. Myers declined to specify the number or type of soldiers but called it an "insignificant" number. The troops, most likely special operations forces, are presumably embedded with Kurdish military units who would be relied on to help fight the northern front near Turkey if the United States invades Iraq.
Military and intelligence officials have acknowledged privately that CIA officers may be working with friendly Kurdish factions, but Myers statement was the first time the Pentagon publicly confirmed their presence. History reveals that small numbers of Special Forces soldiers were instrumental in organizing, equipping and training Afghan rebel forces, and only a few hundred were necessary to guide the Northern Alliance to victory over the Taliban in Afghanistan.
ERRI's Clark Staten said today that Gen. Myers statement points out the
unique capabilities of American special operations forces. "U.S. special
operators are everywhere and nowhere, all at the same time...known
terrorists, throughout the world, should be concerned that U.S.
counter-terrorist forces may be waiting around the next corner," Staten
said.
21 Jan 2003
U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division Gets Deployment Orders
WASHINGTON: A U.S. Army Division with a total of 37,000 soldiers has received its orders to deploy to the Persian Gulf. The 4th Infantry Division, equipped with tanks, attack helicopters, artillery and other weaponry designed to defeat armored forces is known as Task Force Ironhorse. The Army announced on Monday that the task force has been ordered to "reposition" to the Central Command area that covers the Persian Gulf, where tens of thousands of other American forces are assembling in preparation for possible war against Iraq.
The 4th Infantry Division is considered the Army's most lethal, modern,
and deployable heavy division, with the most sophisticated information-
gathering and command and control equipment. In addition to about 12,500
soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Hood, Texas, nearly 4,000
soldiers from the division's 3rd Brigade at Fort Carson, Colorado, and more
than 20,000 troops for 10 other installations comprise the task force...
20 Jan 2003
US Soldiers Injured In Afghanistan
AFGHANISTAN: Six American soldiers have been injured in Afghanistan in recent days. A military spokesman at the main US base north of Kabul said five of the injuries were the result of hostile action. These instances and regular rocket attacks against American military bases underline the continuing insecurity in large parts of the country beyond the capital.
Some 8,000 US troops are still based in the country, many of them hunting for al-Qaeda remnants in the Pashtun tribal lands of the east. Four of the soldiers were injured in two separate incidents in eastern Afghanistan. One explosive device went off under a vehicle and another apparently went off attached to a parked bicycle.
Another American was shot in the leg while patrolling on horseback in
western Afghanistan. Rockets are frequently fired at American bases, though
few do any damage as they usually miss their targets. Afghans helping the
Americans are also under threat. Three have been injured in southern
Afghanistan in recent days, one by gun- shots and two in a grenade blast.
The identity of the attackers remains unclear and under investigation.
07 Jan 2003
Rumsfeld: Special Operations Forces To Be Given Larger (Operational)
Role in Terrorism War
WASHINGTON: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, saying the global war on terrorism is unlike any war the nation has fought before, announced that the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is being given an expanded role in the war on terrorism and will receive additional funding and manpower to carry out its new missions. "In Afghanistan and elsewhere, we've seen the indispensable role that special operations forces have and are currently playing," Rumsfeld said at a January 7 Pentagon news briefing. "Today we're taking a number of steps to strengthen the U.S. Special Operations Command so it can make even greater contributions to the global war on terrorism."
"Since 1987 the Special Operations Command has been organized as a
supporting command, meaning it provides warriors and materiel to the various
regional combatant commanders, who then plan and direct missions," he said.
"By organizing at SOCOM headquarters in Tampa, as well as at smaller Theater
Special Operations Commands in regional theaters, the Special Operations
Command will have the tools it will need to plan and execute missions in
support of the global war on terror. This expanded operational role will be
in addition to the current role it plays as a supporting command."
Source:
http://usinfo.state.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/ display.pl?p=/ products/washfile/latest&f=03010701.plt&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml
01 Jan 2003
U.S. Orders Infantry Division To Persian Gulf
WASHINGTON: U.S. military officials said on Tuesday that an
infantry division from Georgia has been ordered to the Persian Gulf region
as a part of the military's preparations for war with Iraq. The troops, from
the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized), received prepare-to- deploy orders
earlier this week. The division's 2nd Brigade -- several thousand soldiers
based at Fort Stewart, Georgia -- is already in Kuwait on a regular troop
rotation.
30 Oct 2002
U.S. Forces Said to Be Operating In Djibouti
CENTCOM: U.S. Central Commander General Tommy Franks said on Tuesday that between 700 and 800 U.S. Marines are operating in Djibouti, a tiny country in the Horn of Africa. The Marines are said to be there for potential anti-terrorist missions. At a Pentagon news conference, Franks said: "We do have more forces in that region, down around Djibouti. Well, as we have better refined and defined our relationships and what we're looking at, it seems to make sense to us to put this capability -- Marine capability -- in the vicinity of Djibouti to work with countries in the Horn of Africa."
Some of the Marines are at sea off Djibouti while others are on land, most likely at a French base. News reports in September said there were about 800 U.S. forces in the region, including Force Recon, Special Forces, and CIA officers. Franks said: "Having that force there gives us the ability to increase our exercise work with all those nations."
Djibouti is bordered by Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Red Sea, and the
Gulf of Aden (see map above). The movement of
U.S. forces to the region reflects the possible widespread presence of al-Qaeda
and other alleged terrorist groups, who are believed to be using a
no-man's-land in Yemen and parts of Somalia as a base of operation since
being expelled from Afghanistan...
13 Oct 2002
KUWAIT: Officials said U.S. forces came under fire from two
civilian vehicles near a training area in northern Kuwait on Monday. No
one was hurt. It was the third case of gunfire involving American forces
in Kuwait in less than a week. On Tuesday, two Kuwaitis ambushed U.S.
Marines during training exercises, killing one and wounding a second.
Marines killed the two attackers.
07 Oct 2002
WASHINGTON: In one of his most detailed justifications for disarming Iraq immediately, POTUS told a selected audience at a Cincinnati museum America "cannot wait for the final proof -- the smoking gun that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud." He warned in a broadcast address on Monday night: "If the Iraqi regime is able to produce, buy or steal an amount of highly enriched uranium a little larger than a single softball, it could have a nuclear weapon in less than a year." In a speech that quoted President John F. Kennedy and was clearly designed to be reminiscent of JFK's warning to the Soviet Union upon discovering missiles in Cuba, Bush said his aim was not war, but disarmament.
Click
here for
Full Text of U.S. President George W. Bush's Remarks
Tonight Concerning the Threats Involving Iraq, From the Official White
House website...Cincinnati
Museum Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, Monday Night, Oct. 7, 2002, 20:02-20:31EDT
05 Oct 2002
CIA Report Says Iraq Hides Large Portions Of Its Weapons Programs
WASHINGTON: A new Central Intelligence Agency report says Iraq has the capacity to produce and weaponize a variety of biological weapons agents -- including anthrax -- for delivery "by bombs, missiles, aerial sprayers and covert operatives," giving the Iraqis the capability potentially to threaten the continental United States. Since United Nations weapons inspections ended in 1998 the CIA report, titled: "Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction Programs," says the Iraqi regime "has maintained its chemical weapons effort, energized its missile program, and invested more heavily in biological weapons," with "most analysts" finding that Iraq is seeking to reconstitute its nuclear weapons program.
The report, released on Friday, asserts that Iraq "has expanded its chemical and biological infrastructure under the cover of civilian production." It also suggests that Iraq has probably stockpiled "a few hundred metric tons" of chemical weapons agents. Meanwhile, Iraq's offensive biological weapons (BW) program has become more advanced than before the Persian Gulf war more than a decade ago. "Baghdad has established a large-scale, redundant, and concealed BW agent production capability, which includes mobile facilities" which are highly survivable and can evade detection, according to the report.
The report points to Iraq's unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as capable of
delivering chemical and biological agents that "could threaten Iraq's
neighbors, U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf and the United States if brought
close to, or into" the United States. Iraq has defied U.N. resolutions and
restrictions by continuing to pursue weapons of mass destruction (WMD), the
report states, and if left unchecked Iraq "probably will have a nuclear
weapon during this decade..." The report may be viewed on the Internet
at:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/iraq_wmd/Iraq_Oct_2002.htm#01
01 Oct 2002
NorthCom Goes On-Line Today
The Northern Command Headquarters
at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado assumed command of military Homeland Security (HLS) activities in a ceremony today. Air Force Gen. Ralph Eberhart is double-hatted as both NORAD and Northern Command commander. The Northern Command will have to provide unified support for civil authorities as well as for the president and the secretary of defense, Eberhart added. That, in turn, will require improving relations with local law enforcement agencies to detect and deter terrorist acts and to train and work with emergency responders, he added.29 Sep 2002
10:39 A.M. EDT - 12 Sep 2002
Now Available....
ERRI/EmergencyNet News Special Report on the Attacks
of 9/11
Click here to access
"One Year After; 9/11 First Anniversary Special Report," compiled by ERRI
and EmergencyNet News...
10 September 2002 - INSTANT
- 16:30EDT
NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 10, 2002
DOD CHANGES STATUS OF AIR DEFENSE EXERCISE
The Secretary of Defense announced today a transition of air defense assets from Exercise Clear Skies II into an Operation Noble Eagle deployment. This transition involves the movement of missiles from storage in the local area to the deployed systems, beginning later today. This is not a response to any specific threat, but is a prudent precaution to increase the radar and air defense posture in the National Capital Region. For security and deterrent reasons, we will not disclose exact locations of the air defense equipment.
[Web version:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Sep2002/b09102002_bt460-02.html][ERRI analysts said that essentially this means that the air-defense launchers will now be armed and prepared for action, should a specific threat present itself.]
09 September 2002
"Clear Skies 2" Exercise Begins in Washington Area
WASHINGTON, DC (EmergencyNet News) -- "Avenger" anti-aircraft missile systems will be stationed at Washington area military installations during an exercise that is taking place for at least the next four days. The time-frame for the exercise coincidently includes Wednesday's anniversary of the Sept. 11 hijack airliner attacks on America.
Military officials, who asked not to be identified, said that the "Clear
Skies 2" exercise did not call for launchers to be loaded with live
warheads. The exercise, similar to one previously held, will test the
integration and coordination of F-16 fighter jets and ground forces
protecting Washington with missiles, and radar and emergency communications
between a variety of both military and civilian agencies.
26 Aug 2002
The Six Standard Phases of A Government Project/Investigation:
Phase One: Enthusiasm
Phase Two: Disillusionment
Phase Three: Panic
Phase Four: The Search For the Guilty
Phase Five: Punishment of the Innocent
Phase Six: Praise and Honor for Higher Ranking Non-Participants
-- Source Unknown, Reprinted from "Success-One Day At a Time," Pg. 60, by John C. Maxwell, Thomas Nelson/Hallmark, Inc.-Publishers
Editorial Note to Our Readers: It is NOT the intent of the provision of this information to engage in political recrimination based on hindsight, nor to batter the hardworking and dedicated men and women of our nation's intelligence, law enforcement, and military agencies, nor to expose our collective weaknesses to our enemies...rather, this information is presented in an effort to provoke thought, encourage discussion, and foster change that will enable better overall preparedness for the USA. The time for a "sea change," among those who protect our country, has come...failure to do so now will surely result in a disaster that will dwarf 11 Sep 2001 by comparison.
Additional. References: Military Analyst's Terror Warning Fell on Deaf Ears," 1 of 3 parts, By Bill Gertz, THE WASHINGTON TIMES
30 July 2002
AFGHANISTAN: A top Afghan intelligence official reported on
Tuesday that a would-be homicide bomber with more than a half-ton of
explosives packed into his car was just 300 yards from the U.S. Embassy on
Monday when he was stopped by a chance traffic accident. Foreign
intelligence information indicated the alleged terrorist, who was captured
by Afghan authorities after a car chase through Kabul, is a foreigner and a
member of the al-Qaeda terror group.
*Assessment by ERRI's C. L. Staten: Our most current assessment at
ERRI suggests that lower level Al-Qaeda associates are in the midst of
undertaking a series of small or medium strikes on "easier" targets to
retain public attention...and to include car bombings and assassinations.
See above. These acts are being undertaken by "independent cells" with
motivation by (and funding?), but little direction from top leadership of
Al-Qaeda. It would be our estimate that we will see this trend continue and
that there is a greater than even chance of an attack of much greater
magnitude (possibly involving Weapons of Mass Destruction) during August or
September. We are particularly concerned about a major "anniversary attack"
on Sept. 11th, 2002, in the continental U.S.
4GW:
“Military Response to Fourth Generation Warfare in Afghanistan” By Wilcox,
G, and Wilson, G. I.
16 July 2002
Resource Notification:
National
Strategy For Homeland Security, from Office of Homeland Defense, July 2002
Can be downloaded at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/homeland/book/nat_strat_hls.pdf
(Note: Requires Adobe Acrobat .pdf reader/plug-in to
view)
ERRI
Annual Report Of International Terrorist Activity: 2001
(Statistics, analysis, charts,
terrorist groups, etc. -- requires Adobe Acrobat reader/plug-in to review.
Caution is urged for those with slow internet connections, this is a large 626kb
file)
07 June 2002
U.S. Says Embassy Kabul Could Be Attacked; Force Protection Alert II
AFGHANISTAN: On Wednesday, U.S. Marines guarding the embassy in Kabul detained a man who was seen photographing the walled, strongly fortified U.S. Embassy compound from a slow-moving white van. Military intelligence and other sources said it was the second such incident in two weeks. Earlier, another man in a maroon van had also been detained under similar circumstances.
U.S. military officials believe an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kabul is being planned for the day after the end of the loya jirga, the Afghan tribal council that is supposed to determine the country's political future later this month. Violence is widely expected in Kabul during or immediately after the six-day meeting that will bring together representatives of Afghanistan's complex and conflict-ridden patchwork of ethnic groups and tribes. One military official was quoted as saying: "0Something is definitely going to happen..." U.S. officials are on particular alert for car bombs or a rocket-propelled grenade attack.
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul's New City quarter was reopened earlier this
year following the collapse of the Islamic militant Taliban regime. Taliban
remnants and warlord Hekmatyar's forces -- alongside Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda
network -- are tops on the United States' list of those thought to be
plotting attacks in Kabul. (See Force Protection Advisory
below - Dtd. 12 May 2002)
01 June 2002
Wolfowitz Says World Faces Worse Terror Attacks Than 9/11
SINGAPORE: According to US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, the 9/11 terror attack on the United States was a warning of worse terrorist atrocities to come. Speaking at a conference of Asia-Pacific, North American and European defense ministers and policymakers, he said that there were warning signs that "as terrorists continue to murder innocents, their methods will only grow more deadly. It would be a mistake to think that we have seen either the last or the worst of such attacks. It would be a mistake to think that, in the future, they will strike only in the United States." His emphasis on the likelihood of further terrorist strikes extended warnings from US Vice President Dick Cheney earlier this month that "there is no doubt" further attacks were being planned in the United States.
Wolfowitz told the Asia Security Conference that the threat of terrorism was global and "threatens hundreds of millions of moderate Muslims in East Asia who are among the principal targets of the terrorists." Intelligence analysts have reported increased communications among al-Qaeda cells, which they said could be an indication that preparations for a new terrorist attack were be under way.
In a speech opening the conference on Friday, Singapore Senior Minister
Lee Kuan Yew said militants linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network
were plotting to overthrow governments in Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines and Singapore to set up an Islamic state...
12 May 2002
ERRI Force Protection Advisory
CHICAGO: Given the details of two recent threat indicators detailed below*, the Emergency Response & Research Institute (ERRI) would respectfully recommend a force protection alert for U.S. military forces worldwide, and particularly in the Mid-East and Asia. Add to these two incidents the recent attack in Karachi, Pakistan on French naval contractors, our monitoring of recent radical internet statements, and other general threat indicators -- and our preliminary assessment would indicate an increased likelihood of possible additional attack(s) on U.S. installations or forces at this time...
Rocket Attack Targets U.S. Forces In Pakistan
*PAKISTAN: A local official said on Saturday that for the second time in two weeks, a rocket missed U.S. special forces searching for Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters in Pakistan's frontier tribal belt. The target was said to be a vocational school in Miran Shah, where about seven Americans are thought to sleep while assisting Pakistani troops in the semi-autonomous region along the Afghan border. U.S. officials have not confirmed their presence in the building. The first rocket fired Friday hit a sports complex 150 to 200 yards from the school. The second rocket was set to fire Saturday but was found and defused by EOD experts.
Missile Launcher Found Near U.S. Base In Saudi Arabia
*SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi military officials said on Saturday that
Saudi soldiers found an empty tube from a shoulder-fired anti-aircraft
missile near a military base used by U.S. warplanes. A patrol discovered the
missile launcher tube about a half-mile from the remote Prince Sultan Air
Base, south of the Saudi capital, Riyadh, "at the end of the week." The
Saudi officials commented after the Pentagon reported on Friday that a
launcher tube had been found about two miles from a base runway...
26 Apr 2002
Spring Thaw Likely to Spark Attacks in Afghanistan
By Linda D. Kozaryn
American Forces Press Service
SHANNON, Ireland, April 25, 2002 – The spring thaw in Afghanistan may
mean more al Qaeda and Taliban attacks on U.S. and coalition forces, Defense
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Thursday on his way to Central Asia. "My
guess is that as…the weather improves, and as they find ways to communicate
with each other, that they will probably again try to attack the interim
authority and opposing factions in the country, as well as U.S. and
coalition forces," the secretary said. The terrorists will try to "create an
environment that is inhospitable for everyone except themselves," he told 12
reporters traveling with him. Rumsfeld left Washington Thursday afternoon on
his third trip to Central Asia since the United States launched military
operations in October against the al Qaeda terrorist network and
Afghanistan's Taliban regime....
Article continues at:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Apr2002/n04262002_200204262.html
WASHINGTON, DC: According to a report in the New York Times, Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia yesterday reportedly warned President Bush bluntly that the United States must "temper its support for Israel or face grave consequences throughout the Arab world," Saudi officials said. Despite previous concerns by a number of analysts, including ERRI, that Saudi Arabia could use petroleum as "leverage" in an attempt to change U.S. policy and lessen support for Israel, both Saudi and U.S. officials flatly denied that such an action was possible. "Saudi Arabia made it clear, and has made it clear publicly, that they will not use oil as a weapon," President Bush said.
Islamic extremists in a number of forums, and Saddam Hussein and the
country of Iraq in particular, continue to call for the use of oil as a
"weapon of coercion" in their conflict with the West. ERRI
analysts are also in general concurrence with unofficial allegations that
fundamentalists, including the Bin Laden/Al-Qaeda organization, are
attempting to use the oil issue to "drive a diplomatic wedge" between
Saudi Arabia and other moderate Arab states, and the United States.
Never-the-less, ERRI analysts today said that it is also imperative that
Saudi Arabia not be seen to be supporting "suicide/homicide" bombers
in any way, nor
engaging in the promotion of terrorism through educational, financial, or other
efforts. According to the
Times, Saudi Arabia is America's second-largest foreign supplier of oil,
and in 2001 exported nearly 605 million barrels to the United States, or
8.5 percent of what the U.S.A. consumes.
23 Apr 2002
IRAQ: General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, said on Monday that the Iraqi military has moved more surface-to-air
missiles into the northern and southern parts of the country in the last few
days than it has for the last few years and has used them to target U.S,
air- craft enforcing no-fly zones. After nearly three months of quiet, Iraq
fired on at least three U.S. aircraft in the space of five days -- twice
from surface-to-air missile sites in Mosul in the northern zone on 19 April,
and once from near Talil in the southern zone on 15 April. The fighter
planes responded with air strikes. The last time U.S. forces were targeted
or fired on in northern Iraq was February.
"Online since '95"
ERRI/EmergencyNet News Undergoing Assessment Period
By Paul Anderson, St. Analyst
Chicago, IL (EmergencyNet News) -- ERRI corporate CEO and Sr. National Security Analyst, C. L. Staten, today said that as part of an on-going reevaluation of the services provided by ERRI, that consideration is currently being given to changing the focus and function of this website. "As indicated by a continued increase in our number of page views (hits) that we receive, we apparently invoke a tremendous amount of interest from the emergency, military, intelligence, and business community...and we are probably the most popular emergency service website on the World-Wide-Web." "That said, we have so far not been able to prompt the necessary amount of financial support necessary for the website to become completely self-sustaining," Staten said.
Top Ten System Users of Emergency.com, by Domain Name
April 2002
1. nipr.mil
2. navy.mil
3. af.mil
4. adelphia.net
5. comcast.net
6. attbi.com
7. pacbell.net
8. bellsouth.net
9. optonline.net
10. webtv.net
"Part of the problem relates to our attitude towards marketing and refusal so far to make the website a totally commercial concern," the veteran analyst added. "So far, we have focused on providing useful content and thoughtful analysis in an expeditious manner to the communities that we serve, rather than selling ads or filling our pages with promotional gimmicks," Staten continued. "It has always been our hope that the community would recognize the usefulness and accuracy of our products and support the ERRI and the website in some way," the retired emergency chief added.
"Unless additional fiscal support is forthcoming, it is becoming
increasingly obvious that we will soon no longer be able to offer all of the
services that we presently do for free to the communities that we serve
...many of our competitors already charge a substantial amount of money to
access their websites with similar information...and we may have to consider
that option in the future." Staten concluded. Per usual, questions,
comments, or suggestions concerning these potential developments can be sent
to webmaster@emergency.com
06 April 2002
Oil As an Economic Terrorist Weapon...
IRAQ/IRAN: The Reuters news service is today reporting that the
Iraqi Baath party, largely controlled by Saddam Hussein, has called for
terrorist attacks on U.S. interests and the
use of "oil as a weapon," in an apparent attempt to coerce allies of Israel
to reduce their support for the beleaguered nation. A similar statement also
came from hardliners in Iran in the past two days, also calling for an
month-long "oil boycott" for U.S. and other countries, who may support
Israel's right to self-defense against terrorist acts.
ERRI analysts warned
previously of this possibility and urged lesser U.S. dependence on Mid-East
oil.
25 Mar 2002 - From http://www.emergency.com/ennday.htm
U.S. Calls For NATO to Prepare For Terrorist Disaster
Brussels, Belgium -- According to the Reuters News service in a report today, Joe Allbaugh, director of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), briefed ambassadors of the 19-nation NATO alliance on the key lessons in handling the aftermath of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. A major priority in the briefing was to convince the European allies of the reality of the threat of terrorist or weapons of mass destruction attacks on their own countries, Allbaugh said. "It can happen literally anywhere," he told reporters after the meeting. "The only way we're going to be able to whip this is to deal with it collectively."
The Reuters report said that France, often
reluctant to see NATO's mission expanded, reportedly wanted the European
Union (EU) rather than the NATO alliance, to coordinate civilian emergency
service response to catastrophic terrorist events. Interestingly, ERRI's
Clark Staten presented a similar briefing to that issued by Mr. Allbaugh to
senior NATO military officers in Norfolk, VA in 1999, at an operational
seminar on "Emerging Asymmetric Threats and Trans-National Security Risks to
NATO." ERRI terrorism analysts said today that both military and emergency
services units will undoubtedly be needed to manage a major terrorist Chem/Bio/Nuclear
attack in Europe.
10 Mar 2002
BEAUFORT, S. CAROLINA: Two people were killed and a U.S. Marine Corps crew member remains missing after a USMC helicopter went down in the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday during a mission to rescue passengers from an earlier helicopter crash. The civilian helicopter, carrying two workers on a Marine Corps project, crashed on Friday after 20:00EST. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued one man on Friday night, but he died later at a hospital.
The USMC helicopter, based in Beaufort, South Carolina, was searching for
the second occupant when it went down at about 09:30EST. A USCG cutter
rescued four of the five crewmembers. One injured crewman was taken to a
hospital, where he was in stable condition. The body of the other civilian
was found Saturday morning. No information on the cause of the crashes was
released.
05 Mar 2002
Reprise: ERRI Assessment/Analysis on Afghanistan
From Thursday, November 15, 2001 1:29 PM
By C. L. Staten, Sr. Analyst
"The Taliban and Al-Qaeda are falling back and melting into the mountains, where they have a tactical advantage and great knowledge of the terrain. The real problem comes in six months, as guerilla attacks and terrorism are then undertaken by the reconstituted remnants of Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
I don't want to "beat a dead horse" here, but if you look back at the history of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan...you'll see that they were also most successful at the onset of their operations. The problems came over time as small bands of guerillas undertook attacks on fixed installations and convoys. These successful attacks then contributed to the growth of the Taliban and other rebel groups. IMHO, the problem is yet to come somewhere down the road...both political and humanitarian issues will also play a large role in future considerations of these issues.
Incidentally, nothing precludes the Al-Qaeda network from undertaking a
major terrorist attack on the U.S., her allies, or our installations
overseas....in the nearer term. In fact, as greater pressure comes to bear
on Bin Laden, Al-Qaeda, and the Taliban, we feel it likely that there will
be another significant terror attack by these groups. The current facts
would suggest that this is the only way that they have to strike back at the
USA. We remain concerned about the possibility of the use of "Weapons of
Mass Destruction"...this potential further reinforced by recent statements
by Omar and the discovery of documents on these topics in the Kabul area."
14:45CST - 21 Feb 2002
Reports of Army Helicopter Down in the Philippines
Manila, Philippines (EmergencyNet News) -- Early reports are coming
into EmergencyNet News concerning a report that a CH-47 Chinook
helicopter, carrying American troops, is believed down in the sea off the
coast of the S. Philippines. Twelve U.S. personnel are said to be missing
in the crash. The incident is being confirmed by Pentagon officials,
though few details are being released as search and rescue operations
continue. The incident happened at about 02:30 Philippine time on Friday
(13:30EST - Thursday). A military spokesman said that there was no
immediate evidence that the crash was the result of "hostile action."
We'll bring you additional details if/when they become available...
07 Feb 2002
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS
CIA Director Warns Of Continued Al-Qaeda Threat
From the ERRI/EmergencyNet News Watchdesk
WASHINGTON: The Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) George Tenet said on Wednesday that al-Qaeda terrorist attacks remain a real threat, with cells working secretly around the world on new and more deadly strikes. In testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Tenet said: "Al-Qaeda's leaders still at large are working to reconstitute the organization and resume its terrorist operations. We must be prepared for a long war, and we must not falter."
The Director said terrorists have planned high-profile strikes on government and private facilities, landmarks and infrastructure such as airports, harbors and dams. He said: "High-profile events, such as the Olympics or last weekend's Super Bowl, also fit the terrorists' interest in striking another blow within the United States that would command worldwide media attention."
The CIA director also said al-Qaeda, the Islamic terror group led by Osama bin Laden, has ties to Saddam Hussein's Iraqi government. Tenet said Iraq and al-Qaeda have a common aim in their opposition to the United States and the Saudi Arabian monarchy, suggesting "tactical cooperation between them is possible, even though Saddam is well aware that such activity would carry serious consequences."
Iraqi links to al-Qaeda were raised by the Czech Republic last year after Czech intelligence uncovered a meeting in Prague between an Iraqi intelligence agent and Mohamed Atta, believed to be the operations chief for the 9/11 attacks. Since 9/11, almost 1,000 al-Qaeda terrorists in more than 60 nations have been arrested and the group's training structure in Afghanistan has been dismantled.
In a detailed briefing on national security threats, Tenet, flanked by intelligence chiefs from the FBI, Defense Intelligence Agency and State Department, outlined the key dangers:
-- Al-Qaeda is working on "multiple-attack plans" and putting cells in place to carry them out.
-- Iran continues to support terrorist groups and has sent arms to Palestinian terrorists and the group Hezbollah. Tenet said: "Tehran also has failed to move decisively against al-Qaeda members who have relocated to Iran from Afghanistan."
-- Terrorists could attack U.S. nuclear plants or chemical industry sites using conventional means "to cause widespread toxic or radiological damage."
-- Attacks could be launched by al-Qaeda cells in major European and Middle Eastern cities, and al-Qaeda is connected with groups in Somalia, Yemen, Indonesia and the Philippines.
-- There are fears al-Qaeda and other terrorists will attack using nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. The Director said: "Terrorist groups worldwide have ready access to information on chemical, biological and even nuclear weapons via the Internet, and we know that al-Qaeda was working to acquire some of the most dangerous chemical agents and toxins."
-- Tensions between India and Pakistan remain high over a 13 December terrorist attack in India, and the two nations could resort to nuclear weapons. Tenet said: "We are deeply concerned that a conventional war, once begun, could escalate into a nuclear confrontation."
-- Terrorists could attempt to attack the United States by conducting cyber-strikes designed to cripple U.S. electronic-based infrastructures.
The CIA director, appearing in public for the first time since 9/11, also defended the U.S. intelligence community from charges that it failed to anticipate and prevent the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Tenet told the Senate Intelligence Committee that he welcomed congressional inquiries into "our record on terrorism."
Alabama Senator Richard Shelby, who is very knowledgeable on intelligence matters and who has been critical of Tenet as of late, asked the DCI how U.S. intelligence could be "utterly unaware" that terrorists were planning the 9/11 attacks. Tenet responded that intelligence agencies suspected an attack by al-Qaeda inside the United States but lacked details of when or where they would take place. He added, "The shock was where it occurred, not the fact that the attack occurred."
Tenet said that in the spring and summer of 2001, "we saw a speculative threat reporting about massive casualties against the United States. These threat reports had very little texture with regard to what was occurring inside the United States. We again launched a massive disruption effort. We know that we stopped three or four American facilities from being bombed overseas. We know we saved many American lives. We never had the texture that said the day, time and place of the event inside the United States would result in September 11. It was not the result of the failure of attention and discipline and focus and consistent effort, and the American people need to understand that."
Still hitting hard on the point, Shelby said the CIA has a "rocky history of intelligence failures," including the 1996 bombing of a U.S. military barracks in Saudi Arabia, terrorist bombings in 1998 of U.S. embassies, the 1993 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole. Shelby said: "Examined individually, each of these failures, tragic in their own way, may not suggest a continuing or systemic problem. But, however, taken as a whole, and culminating with the events of September the 11th, they present a disturbing series of intelligence shortfalls that I believe expose some serious problems in the structure of and approaches taken by our intelligence community."
Tenet explained: "Intelligence will never give you 100 percent predictive capability on terrorist threats and terrorist events. We know that they will hurt us again. We have to minimize their ability to do so, because there is no such thing as perfect security in this business." The DCI added intelligence alone could not protect the country, saying security procedures must be in place at airports, embassies and other places to minimize risk. He said: "When the information isn't available we need to make sure our backside is protected. We know they will hurt us again, we have to minimize their ability to do so," he said, adding that nearly 1,000 members of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization have been arrested worldwide since 9/11.
Defense Intelligence Agency chief Vice Admiral Thomas Wilson said in written testimony that he is worried a new massive attack against the United States or its interests abroad could occur during the next 12 months and singled out Colombia, the Philippines, or Indonesia as potential centers for planning violence against U.S. citizens or interests. Wilson wrote: "We must continue to be vigilant and never assume that we have 'won the war'. We will be most vulnerable when the threat appears to have diminished, security measures are relaxed, and we return to 'normal.' Terrorists work on their own timeline and are patient. They are content to wait for the right opportunity -- even if it takes years -- to increase their chances of success."
Wilson said the intense attacks on al-Qaeda training camps had a devastating effect on the organization. He said: "What was removed in Afghanistan for al-Qaeda was, in essence, their Fort Bragg, their Fort Irwin. It was truly military-style training that was ongoing...It is difficult to establish the scale and the complexity of that kind of operation."
According to the DIA director, bin Laden has no identified successor that
could rally his forces as effectively if he is killed or captured, but
warned that could cause the organization to splinter into different groups
with different agendas. Wilson said, for the near-term, terrorists will
likely favor easily fashioned or bought conventional weapons, but said the
psychological and economic impact of last fall's anthrax attack has probably
not gone unnoticed by the terrorists.
05 Feb 2002: From http://www.emergency.com/ennday.htm
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS
Rice Says "It's Time To Get Serious" About North Korea, Iran, Iraq
WASHINGTON: National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice defended the strongly worded warning about North Korea, Iran and Iraq made on 29 January by POTUS in his State of the Union address, saying these countries pose a serious threat and "it's time to get serious about it."
Interviewed on Sunday on the Fox News Sunday TV program, Rice said "you don't get anywhere by pulling punches about the nature of regimes like the Iraqi regime, or the North Korean regime. It's not as if anybody really believes that these are good regimes that are just engaging in a little bad policy.
"We've seen, in this war on terrorism," she said, "that speaking plainly is the way to rally people, not the other way around."
Rice noted that the president said in his address that the United States wants to work with its allies on this issue. "I would say to everyone, Let's step back here, and instead of worrying so much about what the president said on Tuesday night, let's put equal energy into working to make sure that these regimes don't get these weapons of mass destruction."
These countries, she said, "are a clear and present threat to us and to all of the responsible and civilized world. Because the Iranians, who spread and support terror around the world, the North Koreans, who proliferate these weapons, the Iraqis, who make a region of great importance to us unstable, clearly are a clear and present threat to America, America's interests and America's allies."
The focus on these three countries is not a change in U.S. policy --
"they've been on notice for some time," Rice said. But Bush's words were "a
call to the international community, to our friends and our allies, to do
what all of us must do in terms of non-proliferation, in terms of cutting
off the vehicles for these regimes to get these weapons..." (Article
continues in EmergencyNet News Daily Intelligence Report, Vol. 8, No. 036)
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:
Wolfowitz Says Coalitions Are Vital To Defeat Terror
GERMANY: Addressing an international security conference in the German city of Munich, US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz has stressed the importance of coalitions in the war against terrorism. He said there would not be one all-embracing coalition, but different alliances for different missions.
Wolfowitz is seen as one of the most hawkish members of the US policymaking team, but his speech was carefully tailored for an international audience. He said some allies might join with the United States publicly, while others might choose quieter, more discreet forms of cooperation.
He said NATO's role was still important, but stressed that the Western defense alliance needed new capabilities to face new challenges in a new era. Wolfowitz was speaking in Munich on the first day of an annual security conference which brings together key officials and strategic experts from around the world.
This year, the discussions among the world's defense policymakers are overshadowed by the fear of terrorism and doubts about NATO's relevance. Wolfowitz made an apparent reference to the US President's State of the Union address, when he described Iran, Iraq and North Korea as an "axis of evil" which had tried to develop weapons of mass destruction. Wolfowitz said that since the 9/11 suicide attacks on the United States, "we have acquired a visceral understanding of what terrorists can do with commercial aircraft." He added: "We cannot afford to wait until we have acquired a visceral understanding of what terrorists can do with weapons of mass destruction."
Police dispersed several thousand anti-war protesters who took to the streets of Munich on Friday evening in defiance of a ban on demonstrations in the city during the two-day conference. Several dozen were detained. About 400 defense experts from almost all the NATO countries are attending the conference to discuss the fight against terrorism and the alliance's planned expansion.
Authorities are hoping that checkpoints in the city, on roads leading into it
and at the railway station will prevent trouble. Police say they have evidence
that up to 3,000 of the 5,000 protesters expected are bent on violence. Many
demonstrators are expected to arrive from Italy, Austria, Switzerland and the
Netherlands.
From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-Sunday, January 13,
2002-Vol. 8 - 013
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:
U.S. Sees Battles After Afghan War in Lawless Areas
Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and Abu Sayyaf
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst
WASHINGTON: Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz said this past week that the war on terrorism after Afghanistan could focus on denying terrorist groups sanctuary in places like Somalia, Yemen, Indonesia and the Philippines, countries where they have sometimes operated freely. Wolfowitz's remarks provided one of the clearest outlines of the military's strategy for destroying terrorist networks.
While Wolfowitz has a reputation as one of the more aggressive members of the White House war council, his statements suggested that the Pentagon could opt to put off the bigger and politically more difficult targets in the war on terrorism like Iraq, and therefore avoid conflict with some of its most important Arab and European allies, which have been leery about taking on Baghdad. Instead, Wolfowitz said, the military is now engaged with friendly countries like the Philippines that would welcome U.S. help in ridding themselves of terrorist networks. The Pentagon is also looking hard at possible terror bases in countries like Somalia and Yemen that are weakly governed and ill equipped to uproot them.
Wolfowitz stressed that he was not providing an explicit forecast for the next step in the war on terrorism and that the Pentagon had not ruled out imminent military action against any country. He asserted that the U.S. military's devastating air campaign in Afghanistan had already induced many nations that have supported terrorism to change their ways, and that it would serve as a powerful deterrent against future acts of terrorism.
He said: "I'd say almost everywhere one has seen progress. A lot of that progress is motivated by the sense of American seriousness and the fear of getting on the wrong side of us. To the extent that's the motivation, then obviously you don't want to issue a report card on those people and have them let up, because they're not doing it out of the goodness of their heart."
Iraq, however, has shown no signs of opposing terrorism. Wolfowitz said while Saddam Hussein "is keeping his head down these days, that should not leave the impression that he doesn't continue to do a bunch of things that concern us." Those things include firing at U.S. warplanes patrolling the no-flight zones in southern and northern Iraq.
While careful not to identify countries where the U.S. might next aim its military might, Wolfowitz said Somalia, perhaps more than any other place, fitted the bill of a lawless state that draws terrorists like a magnet. But he acknowledged that U.S. options were limited in Somalia, where, he said, "by definition you don't have a government you can work with." The Central Intelligence Agency, he added, is "looking for exactly those sorts of people" that the United States can use as proxy forces, as it did with anti-Taliban groups in Afghanistan.
In the Philippines, he said the government was eager to quell a rebellion by Muslim militants from the Abu Sayyaf group who have been linked to al-Qaeda and have been battling government forces on Basilan Island, in the southern part of the country. U.S. officials have already begun training the country's forces in counterterrorist and Special Operations activities. He said U.S. involvement "might include direct support of Philippine military operations. "There's no question that we believe that if they could clear the Abu Sayyaf group out of Basilan Island, that would be a small blow against the extended al-Qaeda network."
In Indonesia, Islamic militants have fought with Christians on Sulawesi Island and in Maluku Province, areas where the government is extremely weak. Wolfowitz said: "You see the potential for Muslim extremists and Muslim terrorists to link up with those Muslim groups in Indonesia and find a little corner for themselves in a country that's otherwise quite unfriendly to terrorism. In the case of Sulawesi, the concern is there isn't enough military to protect the local population or to create the kinds of stable conditions that keep terrorism down."
He said that while Indonesia had expressed a willingness to crack down on
terrorists, the government there was fearful of causing a violent backlash among
its large Muslim population. He also said the United States was prepared to
provide assistance. Wolfowitz said it was unlikely, however, that the United
States would consider direct military action in Indonesia, "because it's such a
big and disparate place."
11 Jan 2002
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:
War On Terror Said To Accelerate Worldwide
[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda]
From ERRI/Emergencynet News Watchdesk
WASHINGTON: According to U.S. officials, the U.S.-led war on terrorism is
proceeding worldwide, with increasing results even in problem areas
ranging from Sudan in Africa and Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula to the
Philippines in Southeast Asia. The United States is said to have tangible
evidence that terrorist attacks outside Afghanistan have been disrupted,
delayed or prevented by the four-month global effort.
The growing number of arrests and the freezing of financial assets are,
according to one U.S. official, "beginning to impair al-Qaeda operations
and their ability to launch terrorist actions," referring to Usama bin
Laden's terrorism network.
As the fighting winds down in Afghanistan, the focus will increasingly be
on this largely invisible half of the war and expanding it deeper into
areas such as Somalia, an unruly country on the Horn of Africa where al-Qaeda
has been active in the past--and still has ties.
Between 800 and 1,000 terrorism suspects have been arrested or detained in
more than 50 countries, not including the more than 640 held in the United
States. Many of the foreign arrests have not been made public. More than
140 countries have also frozen funds in 270 accounts with assets of US$65
million. Most of the arrests and frozen assets are linked to al-Qaeda, but
other extremist groups have also been affected.
In contrast to the Afghan operation, the other half of the war, so far,
involves limited or no military use of U.S. troops. In the other half of
the war, covert intelligence operations or operations involving local
militias or militaries are more likely to be used. Each operation has been
tailored to
local circumstances.
According to U.S. officials, in the war outside Afghanistan, countries
fall into one of three tiers. The first is made up of countries, most
notably in Europe, that have the will and means to act on their own
against terrorism. The U.S. role on the first tier has usually been
limited to sharing intelligence.
The second tier includes countries that have the will but need active
support from U.S. law enforcement, intelligence, counter-terrorism or
military advisors. The third tier consists of countries whose desire or
ability to deal with terrorism remains in question.
The five nations under the most intense scrutiny because of their
political environments or past links to al-Qaeda, are Sudan, Somalia,
Yemen, the Philippines and Indonesia. Four are unstable Muslim nations,
and the Philippines has a militant separatist movement within its Muslim
minority.
As ERRI has reported several times in the past weeks, Somalia has long
been the biggest concern because conditions there are even worse than in
Afghanistan. Somalia is a largely destitute Muslim country, a failed
nation-state, with a power
vacuum and a highly armed population prone to internal clashes. After
9/11, the United States put the Somalian movement Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya
on its terrorist list and froze the assets of Al Barakaat.
Counterterrorism analysts tell ERRI that the U.S. is particularly
interested in Ras Kamboni, an area near the border with Kenya where al-Qaeda
cells have operated in the past. U.S. intelligence is also closely
monitoring
the coastline for suspicious shipping traffic that might infiltrate al-Qaeda
forces back into Somalia.
Progress has been made in some of the aforementioned most vulnerable
countries. One of the most interesting break-throughs has been in Sudan,
where Bin Laden lived, ran terrorist training camps and set up
multinational business interests and a bank from 1991 to 1996. Sudan
remains on the U.S. State Department's list of state sponsors of
terrorism. But the country, ruled by an Islamic government, is now
cooperating closely with Washington, most notably by arresting about two
dozen al-Qaeda operatives and making them available to U.S. investigators
for interrogation. Sudan also has provided intelligence data about bin
Laden's
activities, allies and financial network.
In the Philippines, U.S. troops have trained local forces, which have
carried out a series of raids on Muslim militants. Among them is the Abu
Sayyaf group, believed to have long-standing ties to al-Qaeda.
After more than a year of tension with Yemen over the slow investigation
into the attack on the USS Cole in October 2000, the U.S. turned a corner
with the country after a visit to Washington in November by President Ali
Abdullah Saleh. According to diplomatic sources, U.S. intelligence guided
Yemeni forces who launched raids in search of militants in Marib province
in mid-December. Al-Qaeda has reportedly long had operatives and allies in
Hadhramaut province. After its concerns about Somalia, the U.S. has the
greatest worry about al-Qaeda operatives infiltrating into poor,
overpopulated Yemen.
Another of the five nations under scrutiny is also the biggest unknown and
that is Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country, which is undergoing a
troubled political period. As one U.S. official put it: "Indonesia is
potentially a real harbor for al-Qaeda elements and Muslim extremists, and
it's not clear what the attitude -- or capability -- of the government
will be to deal with it."
Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, Philippines and Indonesia ... these are the
countries to keep your eye on for the next few months. Beginning on
Monday, these five plus Afghanistan will be included in the new "U.S.
Counterterrorism Operations" section of the ERRI Daily Intelligence
Report. Click here to learn
how to get the latest EmergencyNet News every day on your desktop
05 Jan 2002
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:
War On Terrorism Already Enter Phase Two?
[Terror Group Reference: al-Qaeda and World-Wide War on Terrorism]
From: ERRI/EmergencyNet News Watchdesk
WASHINGTON, DC: Those of us who read daily intelligence reports such as this may have already noticed but many ordinary people have not -- the U.S. has quietly began phase two in the war on terrorism. No, there hasn't been any bombing runs but there has been some low-grade activity in some of the countries we have previously mentioned were next on the list that the United States was looking at.
Yemen, for one, has been, by all appearances, doing whatever Washington has asked to crack down on militants in its jurisdiction. Somalia, has, on one hand, invited U.S. operatives to come in country and take a look for any terrorist elements. On the other hand, they say there are no terrorist elements in their "country," if you will.
One unnamed foreign diplomat assigned in Eastern Africa said: "These governments are afraid they might be the next U.S. target, and are therefore clearly keen to show they are cooperating in the war against terrorism." In recent weeks, the authorities in both Yemen and Somalia have tracked down and arrested several people with suspected links to master terrorist Usama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. Dozens have been killed in these operations, on both the insurgent and government side -- especially in Yemen.
One country that is being closely monitored is Somalia. In recent weeks, top U.S. officials have repeatedly said they suspect links between the transitional government in Somalia and extremist actors -- and have hinted that action might be taken soon against these forces. Interim Somali President Abdiquassim Salad Hassan has, as we mentioned, denied any such links and vowed to help the U.S. find any terrorists there. Last week, his government arrested eight Iraqis and a Palestinian on suspicion of having links with al-Qaeda. The arrests came one day after a diplomat from U.S. Embassy Nairobi went to Mogadishu, the first visit by a U.S. official to the Somali capital since 1995. Coincidence?
A counterterrorism adviser to the U.S. government, who requested anonymity, says the arrests are a sign that U.S. pressure on Somalia is bearing some fruit. But the arrests, the adviser said, were largely symbolic, adding that he is skeptical that the Somali government would risk a destabilizing backlash by arresting any real extremists.
Since the arrests in Somalia, violent clashes have occurred among different clan groups there, with 35 reported killed within the following week. While it is difficult to link the fighting directly to the government arrests, the out- breaks are symptomatic of rising tensions in the country -- and reminders of how quickly violence can flare up there.
Meanwhile, in Yemen, the U.S. has reportedly asked the government to allow U.S. forces to participate in the hunt for members of al-Qaeda. While the U.S. State Department denies those reports, the Yemeni government says its own troops have been searching since 18 December for people identified by Washington as al-Qaeda members, and that at least 24 solders and six tribesmen have been killed in the ensuing battles.
A Yemeni government spokesman said: "Yemen and the United States are
cooperating in intelligence in the current anti- terror campaign." He added
that Yemeni security forces are "capable of doing their duty and tracking
down wanted terrorists and any elements who threaten the country's security
on their own."
01 Jan 2002
TODAY'S CENTRAL FOCUS:
Forecast For Parts of Asia in the New Year Looks Pretty Grim
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst
With India and Pakistan becoming the world's top hot spot, Afghanistan's future uncertain and many insurgencies still festering, the forecast by analysts for Asia in 2002 is looking pretty grim. Many regional experts believe that decades-old points of tension will in the next year lead to a repeat of the thousands of violent deaths that occurred in 2001. It would appear that a 2001 change in focus by the U.S. military to the Asian region is probably warranted.
If one were to closely study the conflicts in the Asian region, the main point that would come up is the apparent inability of countries to resolve tensions that lead to the conflicts. None of the conflicts are new. The military build-up of Pakistan and Indian troops along their border and in disputed Kashmir is an example of unresolved tensions leading to conflict. The disagreement over Kashmir dates back to 1947. The latest crisis actually stemmed from the same issues as those that sparked the previous conflicts between the two nations.
And even without all-out war, the Muslim separatist insurgency in Kashmir, which India accuses Pakistan of backing, continues to exact a deadly daily toll. According to official Indian figures, separatist-related violence in Kashmir claimed 3,440 lives in 2001, including 2,017 militants, 927 civilians and 496 security personnel. The reports of violence come in so regular from Kashmir that the analysts in the ERRI Watch Center sometimes have a difficult time keeping them straight.
War with Pakistan and the insurgency in Kashmir isn't the only problems India faces. It also has armed insurgencies in its northeast states with at least 30 rebel groups making demands that range from secession to greater autonomy and the right to self-determination. More than 75,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in the northeast since India's independence from the U.K. 54 years ago.
The US-led military action inside nearby Afghanistan during 2001 has also thrown up many potential regional security pitfalls for 2002, despite the early promise of the war- ravaged nation's new government. What will happen in Afghanistan during the year 2002 is really unpredictable. Hong Kong-based regional analyst Lau Siu Kai warns that Pakistan, which had previously supported the Taliban regime, now has a potentially unfriendly government on its western border in Afghanistan as well as India to the east. Lau, who is the associate director of the Hong Kong Institute of Asia Pacific Studies, said: "Right now Pakistan is facing hostility on both sides of its boundaries so it is under a lot of pressure."
Elsewhere in Asia, experts predict thousands of people will die in ongoing national crises in a manner little different from 2001 and previous years. In Sri Lanka, an average of 2,000 people have been killed each year since the Tamil Tigers began their push for an independent homeland in the island's northeast in 1972. And although Sri Lanka's new prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, is pushing for peace, most analysts are not optimistic. Currently there is a ceasefire between the two sides on the island. But history has shown that the Tamil Tigers have used peace negotiations and ceasefires as an excuse to regroup and reinforce and have come back even stronger.
In the basket-case nation of Indonesia, 2001 was another bloody year with an estimated 1,700 people killed in a government crackdown on separatist guerrillas in the province of Aceh. Indigenous Dayak tribes slaughtered about 500 Madurese migrants in the jungles of Borneo in March. And in the far eastern province of Irian Jaya, more than 50 people were killed as the government beefed up security forces. These numbers are probably conservative.
In the Philippines, the long-time battle between the national government and Muslims seeking an independent homeland in the south claimed hundreds of lives. A resurgent communist movement also caused deaths. Nepal is also on the radar screen. More than 500 people were killed as Maoist rebels stepped up a five-year rebellion to overthrow the monarchy. Things seem to be heating up there.
One shouldn't forget Burma. The unresolved battle between ethnic Karen rebels and the military junta has led to as many as 300,000 people being internally displaced and countless (because we really don't know) others killed.
Analysts say that besides from national insurgencies and India/Pakistan,
there are other major regional tensions that are poised, as always, to
become international flash points. There is always tension between China and
Taiwan and the two Koreas that might require watching.
Crisis in
Kashmir: 2001 Series of EmergencyNet News "Real-Time" Reports Concerning
Escalating Tensions Between Pakistan and India -- 13 Dec 2001 to Present
(Update, reference, and analysis - 03 Jan 2002)
Summary and Chronology of
EmergencyNet News Military-Related Reports:
02 Jan 2001 to 29 Nov 2001
DoD USS COLE COMMISSION REPORT, 9 January 2001, Executive Summary:
http://www.defenselink.mil/pubs/cole20010109.html
24 Dec 2000
WORLDWIDE-ASYMMETRIC WARFARE:
Low-Tech War Tools Used In Terror Threats
According to a sweeping new study by intelligence analysts and non-government experts, the main threats to U.S. territory over the coming 15 years will likely come from terrorists and other adversaries using low-tech tools of war. According to the assessment "Global Trends 2015," published last week, the threat is made more worrisome by a trend toward increasing collusion among terrorists, drug traffickers, weapons proliferaters and organized crime.
The report said: "Most adversaries will recognize the information advantage and military superiority of the United States in 2015. Rather than acquiesce to any potential U.S. military domination, they will try to circumvent or minimize U.S. strengths and exploit perceived weaknesses."
The report added that this kind of approach - known as "asymmetric warfare" -- will threaten U.S. interests not only abroad but also at home. The report said: "Such asymmetric approaches - whether undertaken by states or non-state actors - will become the dominant characteristic of most threats to the U.S. homeland." This will become the "defining challenge" of U.S. national security strategy and military force development in coming years.
According to the report, high-tech threats also will loom large. The report said: "Advances in science and technology will pose national security challenges of uncertain character and scale. Increasing reliance on computer networks is making critical U.S. infrastructures more attractive as targets. Computer network operations today offer new options for attacking the United States within its traditional continental sanctuary, potentially anonymously and with selective effects."
The report was 15 months in the making and was directed by
the National Intelligence Council, a group of intelligence officials
representing all elements of the U.S. national security establishment,
including the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency and
the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research. Also contributing
were experts from private think tanks and academic institutions...
17 Dec 2000
EmergencyNet Resource Notification:
This paper was approved for publication by the National Foreign Intelligence Board under the authority of the Director of Central Intelligence.
Available on-line at:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/globaltrends2015/index.html
15 Dec 2000
Resource Notifications: Major Reports on Homeland Defense
Combating Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Terrorism: A Comprehensive Strategy
Center for Strategic and International Studies Washington, D.C.
http://www.csis.org/homeland/reports/combatchembiorad.pdf
(Requires .PDF reader/plug-in to view)
ERRI's Clark Staten was a member of the panel that prepared this report.
*****
"Toward a National Strategy for Combating Terrorism"
Gilmore Commission Second Annual Report
http://www.rand.org/organization/nsrd/terrpanel/terror2.pdf
(Requires .PDF reader/plug-in to view)
11 Dec 2000
MCAS-NEW
RIVER, NC:
Tilt-Rotor Crash Kills Four Marines
A MV-22 Osprey has crashed overnight, killing four crewmembers and throwing the entire Osprey program into doubt. The incident happened as the helicopter/airplane went down Monday night in a densely wooded area in southeastern North Carolina.
USMC sources verified the names of the victims. They were identified as: Lt. Col. Keith M. Sweaney, 42, of Richmond, Va.; Maj. Michael L. Murphy, 38, of Blauvelt, N.Y.; Staff Sgt. Avely W. Runnels, 25, of Morven, Ga.; and Sgt. Jason A. Buyck, 24, of Sodus, N.Y.
The N.C. crash remains under investigation, but Marine Corp leaders, including Commandant Gen. James L. Jones, say that the entire fleet of Ospreys is grounded and further production will be stopped until they can ascertain the safety of the revolutionary new aircraft.
06 Dec 2000
PERSIAN GULF:
Security Increased In Persian Gulf
Pentagon officials said on Tuesday that U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen has authorized military commanders to send dozens of additional U.S. forces to the Persian Gulf to strengthen and augment port security. The move is said to be part of a Pentagon effort to improve the protection of U.S. warships and other military forces in the region in the aftermath of the 12 October terrorist bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen.
To strengthen port security in the Gulf, Cohen authorized the deployment of extra Navy and Coast Guard security personnel. The Pentagon would be deliberately vague about where the security forces would operate and how they would be equipped and deployed.
An investigation by an outside panel appointed by Cohen is reviewing whether the U.S. military as a whole can take steps to improve the way it protects and supports U.S. forces abroad.
04 Nov 2000: Series of EmergencyNet News reports concerning an apparent terrorist attack on the U.S.S. Cole in Aden, Yemen harbor...12 Oct to 14 Dec 2000 (Last Updated 11 Jan 2001)
Winter-2000: "Back to the Future with Asymmetric Warfare," By Colonel Vincent J. Goulding, Jr., USMC
WASHINGTON, DC:
WASHINGTON, Nov. 14, 2000 -- World War II veterans, many in
wheelchairs or with walkers, were out in force Nov. 11 to participate in
groundbreaking ceremonies for the National World War II Memorial on the
National Mall here.
"We're a lot like the season," said Andy Glover, a vet from Harrisburg, Pa., as he watched the gusting wind knock more leaves out of the trees near the site. "We're like the leaves in that there's more of us falling each day. I'm glad I'm here to see this."
President Clinton, former Sen. Bob Dole and Defense Secretary William S. Cohen joined with World War II veterans to begin the process of building the $140 million structure.
Speakers and veterans stressed that the memorial will honor the more than 400,000 Americans who died in the war. It will also pay tribute to the generation that fought the war. Another purpose is to school future generations about the sacrifices Americans have made for freedom. Plans call to dedicate the completed structure on Memorial Day 2003...
Read the whole article at:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Nov2000/n11142000_200011142.html
NATIONAL MILITARY FIRE/RESCUE:
Resource Notification:
"2000 WILDLAND FIRE SUPPORT After Action Review (AAR)," -- After-action report by 20th Engineer Battalion (Mech), 1st Cavalry Division
, following their assistance to local authorities in Wildfire Operations during Aug/Sep of 2000.Source: http://call.army.mil/call/trngqtr/tq1-01/firesptaar.htm
Resource Notification:
OCTOBER 27, 2000
Business Week -- COMMENTARY
By Stan Crock
Sticks and Stones Can Break an Army
Military theorists see conflicts such as in Israel as "fourth generation" warfare -- and warn that sophisticated weaponry no longer guarantees victory...
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/oct2000
nf20001027_861.htm
"There are no rear areas out here. There are no safe barracks. There are no safe places you could move. It's not just unique to the Middle East, although it's more intense and concentrated," Zinni said.
"We will continue to face asymmetric threats. Where you shut them down ... they go back and cook up a new way I think you're going to find, in this incident, this is a new way, a new technology," he said.
"We're going to see that again. We will
