As of 11:00 PM EDT, Tropical Storm RITA had sustained winds near 70 MPH with higher gust… Satellite and Radar data indicate that RITA is getting better organized and it should become a Hurricane during the next few hours. It could become a Category TWO Hurricane as it approaches the Florida Keys...
For complete up to date ADVISORIES & WARNINGS about this storm click here: National Hurricane Center
(Click HERE for the latest satellite imagery IR Loop)
Monday, September 19, 2005
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Today is for FREEDOM and the Millions that Wish It
“We are making History… It's the day of self-determination for the Afghan people. After 30 years of wars, interventions, occupations and misery, today Afghanistan is moving forward-- making an economy-- making political institutions.”
By President of Afghanistan- President Hamid Karzai
(Comments made while he was casting his ballot during the parliamentary election- September 18, 2005- Afghanistan.)
By President of Afghanistan- President Hamid Karzai
(Comments made while he was casting his ballot during the parliamentary election- September 18, 2005- Afghanistan.)
********** OPEN-ENDED POST START **********
Good reads today on topic of Afghanistan elections:
>> CBC World News ‘Polls close as Afghans vote for new parliament’
>> ABC NEWS International ‘Afghan Polls Close Without Much Violence’
>> ABC NEWS International ‘Afghan Polls Close Without Much Violence’
>> CHINA VIEW ‘French soldier killed in bomb blast in Afghanistan’
>> WFTV.com9 ‘Historic Afghan Ballot Count Begins’
>> The Australian ‘Thanks for the troops, says Afghan leader’
************** POST CLOSED **************
“FREEDOM”
“FREEDOM”
From around the world
they protested the wars…
Yet Behold-
There’s a new march
A new sign
a new hand gesture
That millions now use
To carry their connotations
Of Peace and Defiance…
From around the world
they protested the wars…
Yet Behold-
There’s a new march
A new sign
a new hand gesture
That millions now use
To carry their connotations
Of Peace and Defiance…
“FREEDOM”
Its such a Powerful Thing
AubreyJ
©2005
(Photo courtesy of DoD & is in the Public Domain)
Its such a Powerful Thing
AubreyJ
©2005
(Photo courtesy of DoD & is in the Public Domain)
Rebuild With You, Mr. President
I came across this read today at the Washington Post website and just had to pass it on… This article was written by Donna Brazile who back in 2000 was a Democratic political consultant and also helped manage Al Gore’s 2000 Presidential Campaign.
Click it out here: ‘I Will Rebuild With You, Mr. President’ -you’ll be glad you did…
Click it out here: ‘I Will Rebuild With You, Mr. President’ -you’ll be glad you did…
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Photo for the Day- September 17, 2005
Sergeant First Class Jerome Jackson with 448th Civil affairs Battalion B Company gives toys to children during a mission in Zafaraniya, Baghdad, Iraq, 6 September, 2005. (Courtesy of MNF-I)
U.S. Army Photo by SPC Gul A. Alisan
The people of Afghanistan cast their ballots Sunday, 9/18/05
Not to many hours from now the Afghan people will be going to the polls in the Hundred of Thousands… It just gives me the chills thinking about this part of the world and how far they have come in just a few short years…
Today and tomorrow, I AubreyJ shall dedicate my time and words to all of those millions on millions of wonderful people who so believe in the most powerful word in the world today-- “FREEDOM” Its such a Powerful Thing.........
(And I’ll always have in heart-- the ones who protect it.)
AubreyJ………
Great reads today at the following sites:
>>> DoD.mil: ‘Afghan Police, Army Ready to Secure National Elections’ by Sgt. Lynnette M. Jefferson
>>> Times.com: 'Afghanistan Votes' by Tim McGirk
Today and tomorrow, I AubreyJ shall dedicate my time and words to all of those millions on millions of wonderful people who so believe in the most powerful word in the world today-- “FREEDOM” Its such a Powerful Thing.........
(And I’ll always have in heart-- the ones who protect it.)
AubreyJ………
Great reads today at the following sites:
>>> DoD.mil: ‘Afghan Police, Army Ready to Secure National Elections’ by Sgt. Lynnette M. Jefferson
>>> Times.com: 'Afghanistan Votes' by Tim McGirk
Friday, September 16, 2005
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
No. 945-05 Sep 16, 2005DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Sgt. Alfredo B. Silva, 35, of Calexico, Calif. , died in Baghdad, Iraq, on Sept. 15, 2005, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV during patrol operations. Silva was assigned to the Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division, Modesto, Calif.
For further information related to this release, contact Army Public Affairs at (703) 692-2000.
Routing Foreign Fighters from Tal Afar, Iraq
Commander Describes Routing Foreign Fighters from Tal Afar
By Kathleen T. Rhem
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2005
The commander of coalition troops in Iraq today described "an extremely successful tactical operation" in which U. S. and Iraqi troops all but cleared Tal Afar, Iraq, of foreign fighters.
Tal Afar is one of two major transit zones for foreign fighters coming into Iraq, Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., commander of Multinational Force Iraq, said from Baghdad today. The other route is through the Euphrates River Valley, farther south.
U. S. troops from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment and Iraqi forces from the 3rd Iraqi Army Division have been working for two months to plan and prepare for an operation to "restore Iraqi control to Tal Afar," Casey said.
Since Sept. 10, this combined force has been engaged in an operation to clear a roughly 600-by-800-meter section in the center of Tal Afar that foreign fighters had set up as a sanctuary.
The combined force killed about 150 insurgents and captured roughly 350 more. Casey said officials estimate this accounted for about 75 percent to 80 percent of the foreign fighters and other insurgents they believed were in the city. "It looked like a pretty tough fight," he said.
Strong support from the Iraqi government made the soldiers' mission significantly easier, Casey said. In the days leading up to the military assault, Iraqi government representatives spent time in Tal Afar and brokered an agreement with local leaders from all local ethnic groups: Shiia, Sunni and Turkoman.
"The other piece of this that sometimes gets lost is the Iraqi government was very much involved in setting the conditions for success," he said.
Casey explained that local sheiks signed statements saying basically: "We've had enough. We ask for the military to come in and clean the terrorists and foreign fighters out of Tal Afar. "
This led to support for the mission from the city's civilian population. "That had a huge impact on what we had to deal with with respect to the population of that city," Casey said.
About 20,000 civilians left Tal Afar before the fighting began. The Iraqi and coalition force was prepared with humanitarian assistance, but many of those who fled went to stay with friends or relatives elsewhere, Casey said. The Iraqi government also provided $50 million to compensate civilians whose property was damaged and to fund rebuilding damaged areas.
The mission was intended to allow Iraqi civilians to participate in the upcoming constitutional referendum Oct. 15.
To ensure a lasting success in Tal Afar, coalition and Iraqi forces will have to work together with the Iraqi government, Casey said. "The troops will continue to disarm the neighborhoods and clear the city," he said. "And the Iraqi government is working on the political reconciliation to keep all the sheiks together, to reconstitute the local government, to reconstitute the police force, (provide) compensation, and begin reconstruction all throughout the town.”
(Above- courtesy of DoD)
More news today, out of Iraq can be read at Guardian.co.uk: Iraqi Cleric Urges Unity
By Kathleen T. Rhem
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2005
The commander of coalition troops in Iraq today described "an extremely successful tactical operation" in which U. S. and Iraqi troops all but cleared Tal Afar, Iraq, of foreign fighters.
Tal Afar is one of two major transit zones for foreign fighters coming into Iraq, Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., commander of Multinational Force Iraq, said from Baghdad today. The other route is through the Euphrates River Valley, farther south.
U. S. troops from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment and Iraqi forces from the 3rd Iraqi Army Division have been working for two months to plan and prepare for an operation to "restore Iraqi control to Tal Afar," Casey said.
Since Sept. 10, this combined force has been engaged in an operation to clear a roughly 600-by-800-meter section in the center of Tal Afar that foreign fighters had set up as a sanctuary.
The combined force killed about 150 insurgents and captured roughly 350 more. Casey said officials estimate this accounted for about 75 percent to 80 percent of the foreign fighters and other insurgents they believed were in the city. "It looked like a pretty tough fight," he said.
Strong support from the Iraqi government made the soldiers' mission significantly easier, Casey said. In the days leading up to the military assault, Iraqi government representatives spent time in Tal Afar and brokered an agreement with local leaders from all local ethnic groups: Shiia, Sunni and Turkoman.
"The other piece of this that sometimes gets lost is the Iraqi government was very much involved in setting the conditions for success," he said.
Casey explained that local sheiks signed statements saying basically: "We've had enough. We ask for the military to come in and clean the terrorists and foreign fighters out of Tal Afar. "
This led to support for the mission from the city's civilian population. "That had a huge impact on what we had to deal with with respect to the population of that city," Casey said.
About 20,000 civilians left Tal Afar before the fighting began. The Iraqi and coalition force was prepared with humanitarian assistance, but many of those who fled went to stay with friends or relatives elsewhere, Casey said. The Iraqi government also provided $50 million to compensate civilians whose property was damaged and to fund rebuilding damaged areas.
The mission was intended to allow Iraqi civilians to participate in the upcoming constitutional referendum Oct. 15.
To ensure a lasting success in Tal Afar, coalition and Iraqi forces will have to work together with the Iraqi government, Casey said. "The troops will continue to disarm the neighborhoods and clear the city," he said. "And the Iraqi government is working on the political reconciliation to keep all the sheiks together, to reconstitute the local government, to reconstitute the police force, (provide) compensation, and begin reconstruction all throughout the town.”
(Above- courtesy of DoD)
More news today, out of Iraq can be read at Guardian.co.uk: Iraqi Cleric Urges Unity
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