Iraq war

Senators ask Secretary Gates to ensure soldiers with traumatic brain injuries have access to proven therapy

August 4, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - With an estimated 320,000 American soldiers who have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan experiencing a possible traumatic brain injury (TBI), Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Barack Obama (D-IL) today called on Defense Secretary Robert Gates to extend military health care coverage to include proven treatment for the signature injury of the two wars.    » read more »

Washington, D.C., 07/18/2008 -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement on reports that President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki will work to include a “general time horizon” in the security agreement between the United States and Iraq:

“Congressional Democrats have repeatedly urged President Bush to bring our troops home from Iraq honorably, responsibly, safely and soon. After rejecting 18 months of attempts by the Democratic majority in Congress to adopt redeployment timetables, the President now proposes a vague ‘general time horizon’ that falls far short of a commitment to ending our involvement in Iraq.    » read more »

June 25, 2008 -- PRESIDENT BUSH: It's been my honor to welcome a friend, President Talabani, back to the Oval Office. He is the President of a free Iraq. He is a man who's been on the front lines of helping to unify Iraq and to help Iraq recover from a brutal regime -- that of Saddam Hussein.

George W. Bush shakes hands with Jalal Talabani, President of Iraq: White House photo by Eric Draper.

I complimented the President on the progress that the government has made. I complimented the President on the fact that as security has improved, he and his fellow officials are reaching out to all aspects of society to help people realize the blessings of a free life.    » read more »

25 June 2008 -- The U.S. military says a roadside bombing in Baghdad has killed an American soldier - the 10th U.S. fatality in Iraq since Monday.

The military says the powerful bomb went off Wednesday in the predominantly Shi'ite eastern half of Baghdad.

Iraq has seen an increase in deadly attacks on Americans in recent days. Bomb attacks in Baghdad and northern Iraq killed seven U.S. nationals Tuesday, including soldiers and civilians. On Monday, a gunman killed two U.S. soldiers south of Baghdad.

At least 26 U.S. troops have died in Iraq this month, an increase over the 19 who died in May. But, U.S. fatalities are well below last year's figures and the U.S. military says violence in Iraq has dropped to a four-year low.    » read more »

Irbil -- 24 June 2008 -- The U.S. military says bomb attacks in Baghdad and northern Iraq on Tuesday killed at least 16 people, including seven Americans. In the deadliest attack, a bomb exploded inside a local council building in Baghdad's Sadr City district, killing 10 people. The bomb went off as a group of U.S. officials and soldiers entered an office for a meeting with Sadr City council members.

A U.S. military spokesman for the Baghdad area, Lieutenant Colonel Steve Stover, says it appears that a bomb was planted inside the District Advisory Council building in a southern neighborhood of Sadr City.    » read more »

STAMFORD, Conn., June 19, 2008- Thirty wounded soldiers and veterans will be special VIP guests of World Wrestling Entertainment® at the June 30 “Monday Night RAW®” when the show is broadcast live from the Ford Center in Oklahoma City on USA Network.    » read more »

June 20, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Edward M. Kennedy today introduced a bill to establish a senior position at the White House to coordinate, develop and implement strategies to more effectively address the plight of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons. Since the 2003 invasion, more than four million Iraqis have been displaced from their home or have become refugees. Senator Kennedy is Chairman of the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Refugees.    » read more »

Nick News with Linda Ellerbee Celebrates July 4th Weekend by Honoring Kids of U.S. Troops in Coming Home

NEW YORK, June 17, 2008 -- By the end of July, 20,000 U.S. troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan will have come home -- and today nearly half (43%) of all deployed U.S. troops are parents. Nick News with Linda Ellerbee honors the bravery and sacrifices of those men and women by honoring the bravery and sacrifices of their kids in a special, Coming Home: When Parents Return from War premiering Sunday, July 6, at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon.    » read more »

June 17, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Pvt. Eugene D. M. Kanakaole, 19, of Maui, Hawaii, died June 11 in Balad Iraq, of injuries sustained in a non-combat related incident.

He was assigned to the 87th Engineer Company, 8th Engineer Battalion, 36th Engineer Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas.

The incident is under investigation.

Source: DOD

June 17, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Sgt. 1st Class Gerard M. Reed, 40, of Jacksonville Beach, Florida, died June 11 in Baghdad, Iraq, of injuries sustained in a non-combat related incident.

He was assigned to the 86th Combat Support Hospital, Fort Campbell, Ky.

This incident is under investigation.

Source: DOD

Part I of the Committee’s Inquiry into the Treatment of Detainees in U.S. Custody

June 17, 2008 -- Today’s hearing will focus on the origins of aggressive interrogation techniques used against detainees in U.S. custody. We have three panels of witnesses today and I want to thank them for their willingness to voluntarily appear before the Committee.

Intelligence saves lives. Knowing where an insurgent has buried an IED can keep a vehicle carrying Marines in Iraq from being blown up. Knowing that an al Qaeda associate visited an internet café in Kabul could be the key piece of information that unravels a terrorist plot targeting our embassy. Intelligence saves lives.    » read more »

17 June 2008 -- Iraqi officials say a car bomb has killed 51 people and wounded 75 others at a market in a mainly Shi'ite area of Baghdad. Tuesday's bombing in the Hurriyah district of western Baghdad was the deadliest in the Iraqi capital in more than three months.

The car bomb triggered a fire that engulfed a multi-story building containing shops and apartments. Many of the victims were trapped in that building.

Baghdad had been relatively calm since May 11, when U.S. and Iraqi forces began observing a truce with Shi'ite militants that ended weeks of fighting.

In another attack Tuesday, an Iraqi television news reporter, Muhieddin Abdul-Hamid was shot dead near his home in the northern city of Mosul.    » read more »

June 16, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Lance Cpl. Kelly E. C. Watters, 19, of Virginia Beach, Virginia died June 11, from wounds suffered while supporting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.

He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

   » read more »

June 16, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Lance Cpl. Javier Perales Jr., 19, of San Elizario, Texas, died June 11, from a non-hostile incident in Al Anbar province, Iraq.

He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

The incident is currently under investigation.

Source: DOD

16 June 2008 -- Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama said Monday he will visit Iraq and Afghanistan sometime before the November election. Obama made the comment after a phone conversation with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, who is visiting the United States.

Barack Obama with Al Gore in Michigan: Photo by joscrei (CC)

Campaigning in Michigan, Senator Obama told reporters he would visit Iraq and Afghanistan sometime before the election, but did not give any specifics.    » read more »