April
1-15 Stories
Rumsfeld
Singles Out Iraq, Iran, Syria
Defense
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld singled out Iraq, Iran and Syria as countries
that are encouraging terrorists while oppressing their own populations.
"Murderers are not martyrs. Targeting
civilians is immoral whatever the excuse," Rumsfeld said during
a press conference April 1. "Terrorists have declared war on civilization
and states like Iran, Iraq and Syria are financing a culture of political
murder and suicide bombing." (Full
Story)
Uncovering
the Connections
As
the one time Egyptian turned PLO leader pulls the world into his campaign
against Jews and Israel, Yasser Arafat slyly tells the press he wants
peace. Playing the role as victim, Arafat in fact has all along supported
the reign of terror from groups that have turned out terrorists and
suicide bombers.
The smoke screen and propaganda moves
apparently give Arafat permission from countries to continue his reign
of terror behind smiles and a scarf. Today,
there has been no place in Israel that is safe, terrorists have struck
at family homes, places of worship, buses, the grocery store and even
where Israelis and tourists from around the world visit and gather.
U.S. leaders have denounced the continuos onslaught of terror, including
episodes like the shipment of arms from Iran that was headed to Arafat
and his terror groups. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich reminded us of Saddam
Hussain’s campaign to recruit more suicide bombers to attack the Jewish
State of Israel that includes a recent raise in cash from $10,000 to
$25,000 as a reward to families of terrorists that kill innocents in
the Jewish State of Israel. (Full
Update)
Honoring
the Lovely Queen Mum
Tuesday,
April 9th, First Lady Laura Bush led a delegation to represent the United
States at the United Kingdom’s ceremonial funeral of Her Majesty Queen
Elizabeth, The Queen Mother of England. The delegation includes: The
Honorable William S. Farish, United States Ambassador to the United
Kingdom; The Honorable Anne Armstrong, former United States Ambassador
to the United Kingdom; and Mr. Tobin Armstrong.
The "Queen Mum" is widely loved
and remembered throughout the British empire and the world. Now a brilliant
star in history, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth gained great love from
her people and the free world with her gallant show of courage during
the Nazi German bombing attacks in attempts to conquer England in the
1940s. The "Queen Mum" continued to be adored throughout her
life and now she remains a powerful foundation of sovereignty and tradition
for the United Kingdom.
"Terrorism
Remains an International Threat."
US
General Franks said that "terrorism remains an international threat.."
but points to the fact that efforts have been successful in keeping
innocent people safe in the past 6 months since U.S. and Coalition forces
began combat operations in Afghanistan.
Evidence discovered in Afghanistan, such
as layouts of buildings, ID cards, GPS equipment believed by some to
have once belonged to a US soldier in Somalia and much more shows terrorist
groups’ unwavering determination to kill and conquer for their purposes.
Franks says much remains to be done, "and it will continue to be
dangerous business in the days ahead." (Read
Full Story)
Mideast
Terror, Iraq and the Way Ahead in Afghanistan
In
a CNN interview Myers responded to questions about Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld’s statements linking Iran, Iraq and Syria to attacks
on civilians in Israel. "I think what the secretary was saying
was that beautiful young lady that was a suicide bomber … didn’t just
wake up that morning and decide to put on a bomb costume."
And now with reports surfacing of a large
hidden infrastructure of terror, Myers noted that people or groups had
to provide money and equipment to launch suicide bombings, acknowledging
"there’s probably a system of support there." (Full
Story)
Rumsfeld:
‘Suicide Bombing Is Terrorism’
"What’s
happening in the Middle East is terrible. It is a tragedy. It is terrorism,"
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said at the Pentagon today. "Innocent
people are being killed — men, women and children of all religions."
The president and secretary of state and
others are addressing the complexities of the Middle East situation,
not the Department of Defense, Rumsfeld continued. There are no plans
to involve U.S. troops in the crisis. (Full
Story)
Bush
and Blair: Building Strategies for Peace
After a weekend
of talks, President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair reaffirmed the
importance of wiping out terror—wherever it is in the world. The two
world leaders spoke to the press bluntly about the issue of Iraq, choosing
not to shy away from peace in order to appease mounting political pressures
and slanted media reporting.
In recent months the Prime Minister has
taken several blows from his own leftist Labour Party, who would rather
he continue to ignore Saddam Hussein, while the dictator continues to
fund terrorists richly and use his own people as scientific guinea pigs.
While speaking alone at the George H.W.
Bush presidential library in College Station, Texas, Prime Minister
Blair stated that "we must be prepared to act where terrorism or
Weapons of Mass Destruction threaten us. The fight against international
terrorism is right." The Prime Minister also explained the dangers
of pushing aside warnings: "But to allow weapons of mass destruction
to be developed by a state like Iraq without let or hindrance would
be grossly to ignore the lessons of September 11 and we will not do
it."
During Saturday’s press conference at
Crawford High School, President Bush and Prime Minister Blair gave their
stance on Israel, with President Bush saying the two leaders "…share
a vision of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in
peace and in security." (Full
Briefing)
U.S.
Concludes Military Talks with China
April 12, 2002 —
The annual meeting of the Military Maritime Consultative Agreement between
the United States and China concluded in Shanghai today.Rear Adm. William
Sullivan, director of Strategic Planning and Policy for the U.S. Pacific
Command, headed the U.S. delegation. Rear Adm. Zhou Borong, deputy chiefof
staff for the People’s Liberation ArmyNavy, headed the Chinese delegation.
The three-day meeting was conducted in
a professional and cooperative atmosphere. Both sides exchanged views
in a spirit of mutual respect on relevant issues of Sino-U.S. military
maritime safety, identified common ground and remaining differences.
This was the third annual meeting held
under the Agreement on Establishing a Consultation Mechanism to Strengthen
Military Maritime Safety between the Department of Defense of the United
States and the Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Republic
of China, signed in January 1998.
In conjunction with this meeting, the
delegation also met with the commander of China’s East Sea Fleet and
was provided a tour of a Chinese naval ship.
At
Least 3 Killed in Afghan Ordnance Disposal Accident
By
Jim Garamone
April
15, 2002 — At least three U.S. service members died in an accident
near Kandahar, Afghanistan, DoD officials said.
Officials said at least three members
of an explosive ordnance disposal team were killed and others injured
April 15 at 11:30 a.m., local Afghan time, when a 107 mm rocket detonated.
DoD officials said they have little information on the blast and indicated
the number of dead may rise. The names of those killed and injured are
being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
"It points out what we’ve been saying
since this started: That Afghanistan is still a very dangerous place,"
said Marine Lt. Col. Dave Lapan, a DoD spokesman.
April
15-30 Stories
Girl
Scouts’ ‘Operation Thin Mint’ Supports Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Enduring Freedom troops who missed this year’s Girl Scout
cookie sale are about to be deluged by more than 104,000 boxes of Thin
Mints or other favorites.
To hoopla and fanfare April 9, hundreds
of military personnel and cheering Girl Scouts from San Diego and Imperial
counties in California watched the first 36,000 boxes start their voyage
to Singapore. Truckers loaded 28 pallets aboard a refrigerated container
and carried them off to Long Beach, Calif., to meet an Asia-bound freighter.
(Full
Story)
Secretary
Rumsfeld Meeting with Troops at Bagram
" Thank
you very much. That kind introduction kind of makes it sound like I
can’t hold a job. (Laughter) I am delighted to be here, to be back here
I should say, in free Afghanistan.
I also want to say how important it is
for me to be able to thank each one of you for the wonderful job that
you are doing — coalition forces, U.S. forces — the job you are doing
for freedom." (Full
Comments)
New
York City Fire Chief Peter J. Ganci, Jr. Honored by US in Kyrgyzstan
U.S. forces arrived at Manas International Airport in mid-December.
They set up work and living areas in extremely cold-weather conditions.
Working with coalition counterparts, U.S. forces also built two munitions
storage areas to sustain fighter operations, an aircraft fuel and diesel
fuel storage area and a 420,000 square-foot compacted gravel aircraft
maintenance area.
The Americans have dubbed the site Ganci
Air Base in honor of New York City Fire Chief Peter J. Ganci, Jr. The
fire chief was killed after he managed to get 50 firemen to safety before
the second tower of the World Trade Center collapsed. Ganci had died
upholding the same creed the military follow: leave no man behind. (Full
Story)
Israel
Hands US Names of Jenin Hizballah and al Qaeda Fighters
DEBKAFile- A terrorist attack in one of Israel’s main cities was prevented
by the 24-hour Israeli incursion into the West Bank town of Qalqilya,
which ended Friday night, April 26. Prior intelligence of this plan
prompted the foray. This information was passed to the United States.
Another batch of intelligence, transferred earlier in the week to Washington,
consisted of materials that Israeli forces collected during their eight-day
stay in the Jenin camp. (Full
Story)
Giuliani’s
Former Federal Prosecutor in L.A. with President Bush
Century City, CA
– President Bush visited Bill Simon, a prosecutor for over 3 years under
then US Attorney Rudy Giuliani, to rally behind Simon’s campaign for
Governor. Earlier this year Giuliani made several L.A. stops with Simon,
including meeting with folks at a popular Jewish restaurant in the Fairfax
district. The visits were upbeat and optimistic. This evening, President
Bush brought about a similar message: "This great and diverse state
is going to vote for a breath of fresh air, a positive vision."
(Full
Comments)
Rumsfeld
"The World is Determined to Stop the Tyranny of Terrorism"
Rumsfeld
arrived aboard a C-17 transport plane after a meeting with officials
in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Afghanistan is his second stop in a five-day
trip to Central Asia. He came to thank U.S. and coalition forces for
the jobs they are doing for freedom. The secretary said he was delighted
to be back, "in free Afghanistan."
This was his second visit to the former
terrorist haven. He first traveled to Afghanistan in December when he
met with about 100 U.S. troops deployed here. Today, around 6,000 American
personnel are deployed in Afghanistan. (Full
Story)
Kazakhstan
Offers More Support for War on Terror
Kazakhstan
is ready to do more in the global war against terrorism, top government
officials have told Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.
Rumsfeld arrived in the Kazakhstan capital
Sunday, and his Kazakh counterpart welcomed him. The visit was the fourth
leg of a five-day swing through Afghanistan and neighboring Central
Asian nations.
The secretary and members of his delegation
met with President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Defense Minister Mukhatar Altynbayev
and other government officials for more than an hour. At a press conference
following the session, Altynbayev said his nation declared its support
for the struggle against terrorism after the Sept. 11 terrorist attack
on the United States. "Everyone knows you can’t stand alone in
that struggle," he said through an interpreter. "You must
fight jointly." (Full
Story)
Iraq:
Act 2
Tensions continue
to mount between Iraq and the West as recent reports allude that the
Bush Administration may have been strategizing a campaign against Iraq
that would take place next year. Spokesman, Ari Fleischer has responded
by saying there had been "multiple contingency plans", but
the President "has no plan on his desk."
The standoff between the U.N. and Iraq
also continues. With knowledge that at least one of the 9-ll terrorists
had meetings with Iraqi intelligence prior to attacks on the US, suspicions
over Iraq having Weapons of Mass Destruction have not subsided. The
fact that Saddam Hussein has not given U.N. weapons inspectors full
access in years is cause for increased global concern. As the stalemate
continues on the inspection stage, the Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri
arrived In Moscow Sunday for talks with Russian Foreign Minister Igor
Ivanov. (Full
Story)