TOP STORIES
U.S. 'Almost All Wrong' On Weapons
Report On Iraq Contradicts Bush Administration Claims
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
The 1991 Persian Gulf War and subsequent U.N. inspections destroyed
Iraq's
illicit weapons capability and, for the most part, Saddam Hussein did
not
try to rebuild it, according to an extensive report by the chief U.S.
weapons inspector in Iraq that contradicts nearly every prewar assertion
made by top administration officials about Iraq. Charles A. Duelfer,
whom
the Bush administration chose to complete the U.S. investigation of
Iraq's
weapons programs, said Hussein's ability to produce nuclear weapons
had
"progressively decayed" since 1991 and inspectors found no
evidence of
"concerted efforts to restart the program."
Hussein Used Oil To Dilute Sanctions
Report Says He Gave Valuable Vouchers To Those Who Helped Iraq
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
Saddam Hussein made $11 billion in illegal income and eroded the world's
toughest economic embargo during his final years as Iraq's leader through
shrewd schemes to secretly buy off dozens of countries, top foreign
officials and major international figures, according to a new report
by the
chief U.S. weapons inspector. Oil "vouchers" that could be
resold for large
profits were given to officials including Indonesian President Megawati
Sukarnoputri, French Interior Minister Charles Pasqua and former Russian
presidential candidate Vladimir Zhirinovsky as well as governments,
companies and influential individuals in Europe, the Middle East and
Africa,
the report said.
Saddam Worked Secretly On WMDs
(Washington Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
Saddam Hussein's goal through the 1990s and until the 2003 U.S. invasion
was
to end U.N. sanctions on Iraq, while working covertly to restore the
country's ability to produce weapons of mass destruction, a report by
the
chief U.S. weapons inspector says. "Saddam wanted to re-create
Iraq's WMD
capability-which was essentially destroyed in 1991-after sanctions were
removed and Iraq's economy stabilized, but probably with a different
mix of
capabilities," the report said.
U.S. Forces Capture Insurgents' Weapons
(New York Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
About 2,500 Marines and soldiers set up camps and conducted night raids
on
Tuesday and Wednesday over a wide swath of territory roughly 30 miles
south
of Baghdad, rolling over desert terrain in armored vehicles, taking
gunfire
from insurgents and uncovering at least two large caches of weaponry.
The
U.S. military said the operation also included Iraqi commandos and national
guardsmen, although none were evident during operations west of the
Euphrates River, which runs through the area of the raids, northern
Babil
Province. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit led the operation
Intelligence Bill Passed By Senate
House to Consider Differing Measure
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
The Senate voted overwhelmingly to revamp the structure of the nation's
intelligence community by creating a national intelligence director,
a
counterterrorism center and other agencies in response to the Sept.
11
terrorist attacks. The legislation contains many of the recommendations
of
the Sept. 11 commission. But a confrontation looms with the House, whose
leaders have drafted a bill with many provisions not in the Senate measure.
Karzai Hopes To Become Leader In His Own Right
(Los Angeles Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
In Saturday's presidential election in Afghanistan, interim President
Hamid
Karzai hopes to secure more legitimacy by winning a popular mandate,
which
might give him the power to rein in warlords, halt widespread opium
cultivation and set the country more firmly on a path to democracy and
development.
IRAQ
Suicide Car Bomber Kills 16 At Iraqi Guard Camp
(USA Today, October 7, 2004, Pg. 17)
A suicide car bomber plowed into an Iraqi military checkpoint northwest
of
Baghdad, killing 16 Iraqis and wounding about 30. Elsewhere, U.S. and
Iraqi
forces sealed off roads south of the capital in a campaign to curb the
insurgency before January's elections.
NATO Obstacles Delay Training Of Iraqi Force
(New York Times, October 7, 2004)
A NATO program to help train the new Iraqi army will probably not begin
until the end of the year, the alliance's top commander said, dealing
a
setback to the Bush administration's effort to speed the rebuilding
of Iraqi
security forces in advance of elections there in January. Gen. James
Jones
said the alliance's deliberative, often time-consuming process to approve
the details of the program and to recruit trainers from members nations
could eat up months.
War's Rationales Are Undermined One More Time [Analysis]
Revelations May Hurt Bush's Image
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 35)
One by one, official reports by government investigators, statements
by
former administration officials and internal CIA analyses have combined
to
undermine many of the central rationales of the administration's case
for
war with Iraq-and its handling of the post-invasion occupation. The
risk for
the Bush campaign is that the drip-drip of the revelations will slowly
erode
the advantage that the president has held among voters for his handling
of
the Iraq war and especially the struggle against terrorism.
Outside Baghdad, A Close Encounter With A Roadside Bomb
(Christian Science Monitor, October 7, 2004)
Attacked four nights in a row while on patrol, U.S. marines rolled out,
deliberately preparing to pick a fight. But instead of targeting the
Americans with bullets and grenades, Iraqi insurgents laid another surprise:
A softly blinking blue cellphone hidden in a bush, wired and taped as
a
detonator, and linked to a long red cord that disappeared into the cab
of a
burned-out oil tanker on the side of the road.
Elections Fail To Excite Iraqis
(Miami Herald, October 7, 2004)
Iraqi voters are losing interest in elections scheduled for January,
and not
because they are worried about security. Instead, potential voters said
they
had no interest in or understanding of the process, according to a poll
by
the Iraq Center for Research & Strategic Studies.
Sign Of Democracy: Not-So-Civil Service
(USA Today, October 7, 2004, Pg. 17)
Iraq's 3-month-old interim government has generated a civil service
marked
by little civility and even less service.
Recovery Eyed Of Saddam Loot
(Washington Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 15)
Iraq still hopes to recover at least a portion of the estimated $10
billion
stolen by Saddam Hussein and his allies under the U.N.'s scandal-plagued
oil-for-food program, Finance Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi said.
Only Hussein Had Full Picture
(Los Angeles Times, October 7, 2004)
Shortly before the U.S. bombing and invasion of Iraq last year, Saddam
Hussein gathered his top generals together to share what came to them
as
astonishing news: The weapons that the United States was launching a
war to
remove did not exist.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Pacific Command Nominee Withdraws; Army Pick Questioned
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 2)
A top Air Force general became the first uniformed victim of his service's
contracting scandal, withdrawing his nomination to be the new U.S. commander
for the Pacific and East Asia a few hours after a tumultuous confirmation
hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Gen. Gregory S.
Martin,
who has been intimately involved in Air Force acquisition issues for
years,
was criticized by Sen. John McCain who is battling the Air Force over
a
tanker leasing deal with Boeing.
Pacific Command Nominee Withdraws
(Honolulu Advertiser, October 7, 2004)
The president's pick to lead U.S. Pacific Command, Air Force Gen. Gregory
Martin, asked that his name be withdrawn after being fiercely questioned
about his role in a controversial Boeing contract. A hearing earlier
in the
day before the Senate Armed Services Committee was dominated by questions
by
Sen. John McCain about what Martin knew about the Boeing contract and
whether he was stonewalling a Senate investigation.
Joint Chiefs Of Staff Chairman Speaks At Annual Chamber Banquet
(Missoula Missoulian, October 6, 2004)
Terrorists are planning more attacks on the United States, and they
want to
use weapons more destructive than the airplanes they utilized on Sept.
11,
2001, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Richard B. Myers told Missoulians.
ARMY
Black Recruits Slide As Share Of Army Forces
(Wall Street Journal, October 7, 2004, Pg. B1)
The Army's ability to attract African-American soldiers has plummeted
recently, a trend that threatens to place further strains on a military
already stretched by wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Blacks attracted
to the
force numbered 12,103, or 15.6 percent of the total enlistment pool,
in the
year ended Sept. 30, down from a peak of 16,695, or 21 percent of recruits,
in fiscal 2002, statistics gathered by the Army's recruiting command
show.
Comanche Funds To Meet Other Army Needs, Bush Pick Says
(Defense Today, October 7, 2004, Pg. 3)
The Army can use money originally slated for the now-dead Comanche
helicopter program to meet a variety of other needs, according to President
Bush's nominee for the post of secretary of the Army. The Army's decision
to
kill the Comanche would free up $14.6 billion while key technologies
developed through the program can be moved to other projects, Francis
Harvey
told senators during his confirmation hearing.
Army Warns Spending Cuts Threaten Training Sites
(San Diego Union-Tribune, October 6, 2004)
The Army's largest major command is worried that spending cuts will
make it
unable to comply with environmental laws, which would put military training
sites at risk of being shut down by activists' lawsuits. Proposed spending
levels "for the sustained management of the training lands . .
. dwindles
dramatically" this year and the next several years, Maj. Gen. Larry
D.
Gottardi, a deputy chief of staff of the Army Forces Command at Fort
McPherson, Ga., wrote in a Sept. 24 letter.
2 Bases Given Closure Reprieve
Forts Gillem And McPherson Should Be Saved, Group Says
(Atlanta Journal-Constitution, October 7, 2004)
Fort Gillem, Ga., has dodged a bullet-for the time being. A delegation
of
Clayton County officials learned last month during a trip to Washington
that
the Base Realignment and Closure process set for 2005 may be delayed
by
military involvement in Iraq and the war on terror. That translates
into a
temporary reprieve for Fort McPherson in Atlanta as well as Gillem.
MARINE CORPS
Water Probe Backs Marine Corps Defense
Critics Say Contamination Caused Illnesses At Base
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 37)
The Marine Corps failed to evaluate health risks after discovering toxic
chemicals in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, N.C., in the early
1980s
and did not provide enough detailed information about the contamination
to
residents of base housing, according to a report issued by an investigatory
panel. The panel criticized military water experts for not helping base
officials "understand the significance of the contamination,"
but it
ultimately concluded that the Marine Corps "acted responsibly."
BUSINESS
EADS May Sue Over Pricing Data
Ex-Air Force Official Admitted To Giving Boeing Information
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. E4)
European Aeronautic Defense and Space, Europe's largest aerospace and
defense firm, is considering legal action after former Air Force procurement
official Darleen Druyun admitted sharing the company's pricing data
on an
Air Force program with rival Boeing. Boeing officials have said that
EADS
had been eliminated from the competition and that the information was
too
general to be considered proprietary.
SEPTEMBER 11
One Man's Unorthodox Ideas About The 9/11 Attack On The Pentagon Go
Global
In A Flash
Welcome To The Internet, Where Conspiracy Theories Flourish
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. B1)
A growing number of Web sites, books and videos contend that something
other
than a commercial airliner hit the Pentagon. Most make their case through
the selective use of photographs and eyewitness accounts reported during
the
confusion of the first hours after the attacks. They say they don't
know
what really happened to American Airlines Flight 77 and do not offer
other
explanations.
GUANTANAMO
Pentagon Wants To Let Detainee Defend Himself
(Miami Herald, October 7, 2004)
Pentagon prosecutors want the Bush administration to change the rules
that
govern U.S. war-crimes trials and let an alleged propagandist for Osama
bin
Laden defend himself at Guantanamo Bay. The brief in the case of Al
Hamza
Bahlul, 36, a Yemeni, cites the cases of Slobodan Milosevic, Zacarias
Moussaoui and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski as entitling a defendant to defend
himself, if he behaves.
Army Denies Detainee-Release Remark
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 29)
An Army officer at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, denied making
statements attributed to him in a British newspaper that suggested many
of
the alleged Al Qaeda and Taliban detainees were no threat to the country
and
would be freed. In a statement, the military unit running the detention
facility said remarks by its deputy commander, Brig. Gen. Martin J.
Lucenti
Sr., were "misquoted or taken out of context" by the Financial
Times.
AFGHANISTAN
Karzai Running Mate Targeted In Bombing
Attack Mars Final Day Of Campaign
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 22)
A roadside bomb exploded under a convoy carrying one of interim Afghan
President Hamid Karzai's two running mates in the upcoming presidential
election. The attack, in remote Badakshan province, killed one man and
injured five others.
Pride, Jitters As People Prepare For First Vote
10 Million Register Despite Threats, Chance Of Violence
(USA Today, October 7, 2004, Pg. 1)
Afghanistan's freshly minted democracy is about to hold the first open
election in its history, but Saturday's vote fills Afghans both with
elation
and fear. Taliban guerrillas are threatening to bomb polling stations
and
disrupt the voting. An upsurge in violence, which has left nearly a
thousand
dead this year, has scared away some foreign election monitors who had
been
expected to keep the balloting honest. And there is evidence that some
Afghans may try to vote twice.
ASIA/PACIFIC
US Confirms Plan To Delay S Korea Troops Pullout
(London Financial Times, October 7, 2004)
The United States had to agree to South Korea's request to postpone
planned
American troop withdrawals from the peninsula to preserve the countries'
alliance, analysts said. Washington and Seoul confirmed, in separate
statements released simultaneously, that Washington's plans to reduce
sharply its troops in South Korea would be delayed to 2008.
MIDEAST
Nuclear Quest Said To Be Benign
(Washington Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 15)
Iran's minister of finance said that his country's quest for nuclear
energy
is an integral part of its plan to become a regional economic powerhouse
and
has nothing to do with offensive weapons.
EUROPE
Russia: 10 Qaeda Agents Said To Be In Caucasus
(New York Times, October 7, 2004)
More than 10 Al Qaeda members are in the Caucasus collaborating with
Chechens, Russian intelligence officials have been telling Russian news
outlets. The fresh details seemed intended to bolster the Kremlin's
claim
that the war in Chechnya is part of the battle against Al Qaeda.
OPINION
No Victory In Iraq
Robert D. Novak
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 39)
While politicians talk about "victory" in Iraq and President
Bush implies
it, war planners such as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld do not. These
realists recognize that aims in this ugly war have been reduced. And
whoever
wins the election Nov. 2, it is hard to imagine the winner condoning
an
endless war in Iraq that would mean long casualty lists unacceptable
to
Americans.
Think Of The Battlefield
Duncan Hunter
(Wall Street Journal, October 7, 2004, Pg.
The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee points out that that
the
Senate version of the intelligence reform bill would give a national
intelligence director unfettered authority to transfer funds among
intelligence agencies, including major transfers away from defense
intelligence agencies, by far the largest producers and consumers of
intelligence, to the CIA. "If that happened over Defense Department
objections, our troops could be at risk."
A 5,000-Year First
Zalmay Khalilzad
(Wall Street Journal, October 7, 2004, Pg. 18)
The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan writes that life for Afghans is
immeasurably better than under the Taliban, and they are profoundly
grateful
for the help received from the United States and the rest of the world.
"However, we all know that, to succeed fully in Afghanistan, we
must sustain
the positive momentum developed to date for at least five years."
Spread The Threat
Richard Cohen
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 39)
"I do not necessarily favor restoring the draft. I've been through
one
myself and it's no fun. But I have to wonder about a system that asks
so
little of us that we can make war for mythical reasons, conduct it ineptly
and issue one justification after another-each with the lifespan of
store-bought flowers. It makes me wonder which is worse-an unnecessary
draft
or an unnecessary war?
Debating How To Win The War
William Hawkins
(Washington Times, October 7, 2004, Pg. 19)
A senior fellow for national security studies at the U.S. Business and
Industry Council writes that the vigor Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld
put
behind the drive on Baghdad has been lacking in fighting the insurgency-the
pullback from Fallujah last April was an unimaginable strategic blunder.
But
now there is a new offensive spirit, as shown in the Samarra operation.
This
must be expanded to convey to any doubters that the Bush administration
has
a real plan to crush the insurgency and will carry it out.
EDITORIAL
The Verdict Is In
(New York Times, October 7, 2004)
Sanctions worked. Weapons inspectors worked. That is the bottom line
of the
long-awaited report on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, written
by
President Bush's handpicked investigator. The authoritative findings
of his
Iraq Survey Group have left the administration's rationale for war more
tattered than ever.
Weapons That Weren't There
(Washington Post, October 7, 2004, Pg. 38)
The case of Iraq has shown that it is possible that the intelligence
on
which a war decision may be based may later prove to be mostly wrong.
Does
that mean the president cannot act in such cases? That's a question
Mr. Bush
and Mr. Kerry would do well to discuss.
Intelligence Stampede
(Wall Street Journal, October 7, 2004, Pg. 18)
The danger of an all-powerful intelligence czar being contemplated by
Congress is that you will get more intelligence conformity, not less.
One
reason policy makers can get different intelligence perspectives now
is
because the services are divided into different bureaucracies. If everyone
suddenly reports to one master, the bureaucratic incentives are for
everyone
to want to please him.
Who Needs Camp Delta?
(Baltimore Sun. October 7, 2004)
The Bush administration argued again in federal court this week that
the
president could declare and detain "enemy combatants" indefinitely
outside
U.S. courts in order to "prevent the captured individual from serving
the
enemy." That's easily, and more fairly, done under the conventions
applying
to prisoners of war. At the least, the Army should move quickly to release
those at Guantanamo it does not plan to charge, prepare its cases against
those it believes are guilty of acts of war against the United States
and
close Camp Delta. And next time, follow the rule of law.
Source: Defense News
