The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Security Incidents for Tuesday, July 31, 2007

1) MNF-Iraq is reporting the death of a Marine from enemy action in Al Anbar Province on Monday, July 30th.

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Baghdad:
#1: six people were wounded when a roadside bomb blew up at about 8:15 a.m. near an Iraqi Army vehicle in the 14th Ramadan Street in Baghdad's western neighborhood of Mansour. The explosion was instantly followed by heavy gunfire between anonymous gunmen and Iraqi soldiers, the source added.

A bomb targeting an Iraqi army patrol killed one soldier and wounded seven, a hospital source said. Police said the only casualties in that incident were six wounded civilians.

#2: Another bomb explosion missed a US patrol in al-Jadidah region southeast of Baghdad in the morning, leaving three civilians wounded, the source said.

#3: A U.S. helicopter went down Tuesday after coming under fire in eastern Baghdad, and the crew members were safely evacuated, the military said. The AH-64 Apache helicopter made a precautionary landing after facing ground fire east of the predominantly Shiite New Baghdad district, according to a statement.

#4: Gunmen killed an engineer who was repairing the famous Sarafiya Bridge, damaged by a bomb in April, near his home in northern Baghdad, police said.

#5: At least seven Iraqis were killed and 15 others wounded Tuesday in a blast in north Baghdad, pan-Arab al-Arabiya TV broadcaster reported. No further details were immediately available

#6: Around 9.20 am, a roadside bomb exploded at Palestine street targeting an joint troops (American and Iraqi) injuring two Iraqi policemen.

#7: Around 10.15 am, a roadside bomb targeted an American patrol at Zayouna neighborhood (east Baghdad) . No casualties reported.

#8: Around 10.30 am, a roadside bomb targeted an American patrol at Zayouna neighborhood (east Baghdad) injuring one resident.

#9: Police patrols found on Monday 25 unidentified bodies dumped in different parts of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, a security source said.


Iskandariya:
#1: Gunmen killed two men in a drive-by shooting in Iskandariya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, on Monday, police said


Kut:
#1: Police retrieved the bodies of six people, shot and tortured, from the Tigris River in the city of Kut, 170 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, and in the town of Suwayra, 40 km (25 miles) south of the capital, police said.


Basra:
#1: Pharmacists in the southern city of Basra went on strike after gunmen kidnapped the head of their syndicate on Monday, the Basra health directorate said.


Samarra:
#1: Two policemen were killed and one wounded when a roadside bomb exploded close to their patrol near the city of Samarra, 100 km (60 miles) north of Baghdad, police said


Balad:
#1: An unmanned U.S. drone also crashed late Monday while landing at an air base north of Baghdad but it did not appear to be from hostile activity and no casualties were reported, the military said separately.

An MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle crashed at the end of the runway while landing at approximately 11 p.m. local time July 30 at Balad Air Base.


Hawija:
#1: Unidentified gunmen killed a teacher in the district of al-Huweija, southwestern Kirkuk, on Tuesday morning, a police source said. "The gunmen shot down Karim Askar Hassan, a teacher, inside a souk (local market) in Huweija," the source, who asked not to be named, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq


Kirkuk:
#1: After 15 minutes of Monday mid-night , clashes took place at Rizgari area in Altoun Copry neighborhood north of Kirkuk injuring one resident who was transferred to Kirkuk hospital.

News from Monday ( Kirkuk)
#1: Around 8.45 am of Monday morning, gunmen opened fire on woman teacher Shourja neighborhood near Ameen building in downtown Kirkuk killing her at once.

#2: Around 10 am, a roadside bomb exploded at Al-Hajaj neighborhood near Khansaa elementary school in downtown Kirkuk targeting a police patrol of Irouba police station injuring two policemen and one civilian who was near the explosion scene .

#3: Around 11.40 am, gunmen riding a sedan car (Toyota, Mark model) opened fire randomly on people at Al-Atba’a Street in Hawija killing two brothers.

#4: Around 11.45 am, gunmen opened fire on an employee of he new Iraqi army on the way between Kirkuk –Mosul near Sirkran check point ( north of Kirkuk city) injuring the employee who was taken to hospital for treatment.

Around 1.20 pm, gunmen riding a sedan car ( Opel model) opened fire on the mayor of Siray neighborhood in Hawija in the big market of the city near the power department killing him after suffering from serious injury .

#5: Monday night, gunmen killed a teacher while he was doing shopping in Hawija market ( west Kirkuk) while he was from Tareeq Baghdad neighborhood in downtown Kirkuk.


Al Anbar Prv:
#1: A Marine assigned to Multi National Force-West died July 30 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province.

#2: Dozens of Iraqis were transferred to hospitals in the capital of Anbar province after eating suspected toxic foodstuffs distributed as part of relief efforts, a provincial police source said on Tuesday. "Dozens of families in Ramadi, and five other nearby towns, were transferred to hospitals on Monday after apparently being poisoned by toxic foodstuffs," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. The relief foodstuffs had been distributed by unknown groups of men to poor families earlier in the day in the violence-laden province, the source said. The exact number of victims were not available yet, said the source, adding that some of the victims were in critical conditions.



Afghanistan:
#1: A suicide car bomber blew himself up near a convoy of U.S. troops on the outskirts of Kabul on Tuesday, leaving up to seven civilians and three soldiers wounded, officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility. In the aftermath of the attack, U.S. troops opened fire on police arriving at the scene, killing one policeman, officials and a witness said.
The bomber targeted the convoy outside Camp Phoenix, a U.S. base on Jalalabad road - an area frequently targeted by suicide bomb attacks. A statement from the U.S.-led coalition said three Afghan civilians and three coalition service members were wounded. Lt. Cmdr. Brenda Steele, a spokeswoman for NATO forces, said one foreign soldier suffered minor injuries in the attack and seven civilians were wounded. She would not disclose the nationality of the wounded soldier. The differing casualty figures could not immediately be reconciled.

#2: in southern Kandahar province, the Taliban attacked a police checkpoint Monday night in Maiwand district, and the ensuing two-hour gun battle left three Taliban dead, including a senior commander, said provincial police chief Syed Agha Saqib. He said the police suffered no casualties.

#3: Also Monday in northern Kunduz province, a suicide bomb attack killed one employee of the intelligence service, and wounded eight civilians, a policeman and three other intelligence personnel, the Interior Ministry said Tuesday in a statement.

#4: A roadside bomb wounded six paramilitary troops on Tuesday as they delivered food to colleagues in Pakistan’s troubled tribal belt near the Afghan border, officials said. The troops’ vehicle had just entered the rugged South Waziristan tribal zone “and was distributing rations at a checkpost when it hit an improvised explosive device,” local police official Mumtaz Zareen told AFP. Security officials said two soldiers were seriously injured and four others suffered minor wounds in the blast near the town of Tank.

#5: Earlier troops traded gunfire with pro-Taleban militants in the neighbouring region of North Waziristan after rebels launched rockets at government and army buildings, officials said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

#6: One rocket damaged a government-run student hostel in Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan, while two landed on the lawns of the main military base in the town, local security officials said.

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