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PREFLIGHT — A 40th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron pilot and co-pilot preflight their parachutes prior to a B-52 Stratofortress close air support mission May 14, in support of ground forces conducting operations in Afghanistan. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Richard Freelandt. More News Photos (6)

U.S. Indicts Two Yemeni Nationals in Cole Attack

Sgt. 1st Class Doug Sample / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, May 15, 2003 Two Yemeni nationals were indicted on charges for plotting the attack on the naval destroyer USS Cole in the Gulf of Aden in Yemen in 2000, officials said today.
      Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller unsealed a 50-count indictment, naming Jamal Mohammed Al-Badawi and Fahd Mohammed Ahmed Al-Quso for their roles in the Cole attack that killed 17 sailors and wounded more than 40 others. The two were also charged with a previous failed attempt to bomb another destroyer, the USS The Sullivans, in early 2000.
      Today's indictment at FBI headquarters came after Ashcroft and Mueller met with family members of the USS Cole victims earlier in the day. "For these loved ones, Oct. 12, 2000, is still a fresh wound on their hearts," Ashcroft said." And it is a wound that will always be felt.
     Mueller said today's indictment is "another step toward closure for the families of the 17 brave sailors, but I can assure you that it is not the last step." More

Security Still Most Serious
Concern for Forces in Iraq

By Kathleen T. Rhem / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, May 15, 2003 Security is currently the most serious concern of U.S. forces in Iraq, and commanders are taking substantial steps to stem lawlessness, several American officials said today.
     Maj. Gen. Buford Blount, commander of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division, which is responsible for maintaining the peace in and around Baghdad, said 90 percent of the problems his unit deals with stem from common criminals. The rest comes from attacks by forces loyal to deposed dictator Saddam Hussein, he said in a video teleconference from Baghdad with reporters in the Pentagon.
      Also, in a Baghdad news conference today, Ambassador L. Paul Bremer, the career diplomat President Bush sent to act as Iraq's civil administrator, noted that shortly before the war began, Hussein released more than 100,000 prisoners in a nationwide amnesty.
     "Many of these people were political prisoners, but many of them were common, violent criminals," he said. "It's time the criminals were back in jail, and that's where we'll put them." He added that U.S. forces in Iraq have arrested 300 criminals in the past two days.

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OPERATION TRIBUTE TO FREEDOM

Thanking the Troops

Over the past year, DefendAmerica.mil has received an untold number of e-mail messages from readers expressing their support for America's Troops. Here are some of their many expressions of gratitude.

Dear troops,
Thank you for all your devotion to us and America's ideals. Thank you for your courage and sacrifice.
J. D. W.

More Messages

	U.S. Views Quotes by President Bush & other U.S. leaders
	Defense Views Quotes by U.S. defense leaders
	Maps of Iraq Maps of the nation of Iraq and the region

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld

“Our troops have been and are doing a truly superb job all across the globe, and we are certainly grateful to them for their dedication and their courage, and also for the fact that they are all volunteers who stepped forward to serve their country. They crossed hundreds of miles in Iraq, facing death squads and dust storms, and liberated Baghdad in less than a month. What they accomplished is very likely to go down in history books.”

To the Defense Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee, May 14, 2003

Coast Guard Cutters Complete Mission in Arabian Gulf

Coast Guard Cutters (from L-R) Baranof, Walnut and Boutwell steam in the North Arabian Gulf in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. They each represent the three classes of the six cutters deployed to the Gulf as part of OIF, alond with Port Security Units, Law Enforcement Detachments, National Strike Force pollution response personnel and support units.

ARABIAN GULF Coast Guard cutters Boutwell, a 378-foot high endurance cutter homeported in Alameda, Calif., and Walnut, a 225-foot buoy tender homeported in Honolulu, began heading home today after completing their missions in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.
Both cutters conducted a wide range of missions while serving in the Gulf, including maritime force protection, coastal and terminal security, and maritime interception and marine environmental response. The cutters also assisted in the post-Saddam economic recovery of Iraq by securing vital oil infrastructure and improving the safety of the navigational approach to its only international seaport. More

RUMSFELD

Afghan, Iraq War Success Validates Budget Request

By Gerry J. Gilmore / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, May 15, 2003 DoD's fiscal 2004 budget proposal now before Congress "is the first to fully reflect the new defense strategies and policies, and the lessons of the global war on terror," the military's top civilian told senior legislators here May 14.
     U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld testified before the Defense Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He said the $379.9 billion DoD fiscal 2004 request would be applied "to meet the threats that this dangerous new century poses, and threats that emerge often without warning."
     "We have to apply the lessons from the experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq," the secretary emphasized, in transforming DoD and the services "as to how they organize, how they train, how they equip and exercise and fight" in the 21st century. More

U.S., South Korea Committed to Nuke-Free Korean Peninsula

By Linda D. Kozaryn / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, May 15, 2003 President Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun met at the White House May 14 and reaffirmed they will not tolerate nuclear weapons in North Korea.
     White House officials said the two leaders expressed serious concern over North Korea's statements about reprocessing nuclear material and possessing nuclear weapons, as well as its threat to demonstrate or transfer these weapons. Bush and Roh stressed that North Korea's moves to escalate will lead only to its greater isolation and a more desperate situation in the North.
     Both leaders, officials said, reaffirmed their strong commitment to work for the complete, verifiable and irreversible elimination of North Korea's nuclear weapons program through peaceful means based on international cooperation. More

Civil Affairs on the Job More Photo Essays

Civil affairs soldiers speak to workers at a local mosque as they survey a Baghdad neighborhood. AFPS photo by Jim Garamone
2 More Photos

Force Protection Equipment Demo: Something for Everyone

Sgt. 1st Class Doug Sample / American Forces Press Service

     WASHINGTON, May 14, 2003 One passenger riding the shuttle bus to the main entrance said the line of people waiting to get in stretched for what seemed like a mile. Another said he had waited at least an hour the day before to get through the gate. However, neither seemed to mind the inconvenience.
    They, along with thousands of others, had come to Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., to see the latest in force protection equipment and technology And for them, the delays were worth the wait.
    Under rows of tents and inside large aircraft hangars, more than 2,600 force protection products were demonstrated and exhibited for Defense Department, federal and local agencies at Force Protection Equipment Demonstration IV May 6-8. More

'A Day in the Life of
The United States Armed Forces'

Coast Guard recruits wait for their eggs to finish cooking at the training center at Cape May, N.J. The photo, by Al Diaz, is included in a new book, entitled "A Day in the Life of the United States Armed Forces," which features some 300 photos of service members and DoD officials. Photos from the newly released book are on exhibit at the Women's Memorial in Washington, D.C., until July 8. Story8 More Photos

Coalition Aids Iraq's Recovery

     CAMP DOHA, Kuwait, May 15, 2003 U.S. Central Command officials report coalition forces continue to assist in developing a safer and more secure environment in Iraq. Among recent developments:
    Karbala: Marines completed repairs on the city's fire and rescue vehicles, which are now in better condition than before Operation Iraqi Freedom. Marine Civil affairs personnel have initiated a public announcement effort to assist the city in to eliminating trash dumping outside of the landfill.
    Ad Dinwaniyah: 18 joint Iraqi-Marine police patrols were conducted and eight joint static security positions were manned. The local police have obtained better transportation and communication capabilities, which has increased their ability to perform their mission. More

Native American Marines
Check Out Iraqi Countryside

ILCpl Kayzehn Enas, 22, bulk fuel specialist, Bulk Fuel Co Charlie, 6th ESB, mans a M240G machinegun during a convoy. Photo by: Cpl Jeff Hawk

AL KUT, Iraq, May 15, 2003 As the sun sinks into the sand-crested horizon here, it turns the baked, earthen abodes a brilliant burnt orange. It's a familiar site for 22-year-old Lance Cpl. Craig Long, a Native American who hails from Arizona's Navajo Reservation.
"Some of these buildings look like pueblos and hogans. It reminds me of home," says Long as he rides shotgun for a convoy traveling northward to Al Kut. Long and two fellow Native American Marines volunteered to provide convoy security to get the chance to see the Iraqi countryside. More

Marines Move Soviet Missiles

Kalid Al-Aziew, Iraq's postmaster general, and Sgt. 1st Class Kent Chizoski, a platoon sergeant with the 422nd Civil Affairs Battalion, cut a ribbon signifying the reopening of the Alkahdmia Post Office. (photo by Spc. Adam Nuelken

AL HILLAH, Iraq, May 14, 2003 -- Marine Explosive Ordnance Disposal specialists recently recovered three functioning artillery rockets that should give military intelligence officials additional insight into the former Iraqi regime's weaponry.
Marine Capt. Ron Heflin, the I Marine Expeditionary Force's explosive ordnance disposal officer, said the Soviet Free Rocket Over the Ground systems, or FROGs, were left in an Al Hillah playing field after being recovered during the war. More

Iraqi Police to Get Captured Weapons

BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 14, 2003 -- Inside several large metal containers, a variety of enemy rifles, mortars and rocket launchers captured during the war collect dust as members of the Army's 24th Ordnance Battalion wait to move them to a military camp 10 miles south of the city.
Battalion members will destroy some small arms and crew-served weapons. Many will go to arm a new Iraqi Army once its parameters are established. More

NMCP Welcomes Home Fleet Hospital 15

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (NNS) -- After a 14-hour flight originating in Kuwait City, approximately 270 officers and sailors assigned to Fleet Hospital (FH) 15 and Construction Battalion Units 414 and 415 returned to Hampton Roads May 5.
The group completed a seven and a half week deployment to the Middle East, where they served at the Kuwaiti Naval Base and in Camp Coyote with a compliment of 255 officers and Sailors stationed primarily at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, with several servicemembers coming from the surrounding branch medical clinics. More

Lancers Return Home

ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. (AFPN) -- Capt. Steve Gerken, 34th Bomb Squadron aircraft commander, and his 3-year-old son, Diedrich, embrace May 13. Six B-1 Lancers and their crews return to a crowd of family and friends welcoming them home here. As of May 8, B-1s flew 497 combat sorties supporting operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom and dropped 4.56 million pounds of munitions. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Karah McNeill
More Photos

On Terrorism

• Bombings Show 'The War on Terrorism Goes On,' Rice Says

On Afghanistan

• Afghanistan More Stable Than a Year Ago

On Homeland Security

• Homeland Defense Exercise Starts May 12 in Two Cities

On Iraq

• Soldiers Find Second Suspected Mobile Bio-Weapons Lab in Iraq

• Cheney Assails Terrorism at Rumsfeld Award Presentation

• 'Despicable' Saudi Bombings 'Have Fingerprints' of Al Qaeda

Military News

• CENTCOM Forward Troops Return Home to Florida Base

• Defense Honors Fallen Troops at Asian-Pacific Heritage Ceremony

• Air Force Eases Stop-Loss Restrictions

• National Guard, Reserve Update

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     ORLANDO, Fla., May 15, 2003 Orlando County, Fla., is honoring the nations military men, women and their families through a community-wide program, called Orlando Salutes The Military, that thanks them for their continuing sacrifices while serving the country both at home and abroad.
     Orlando-area attractions, hotels, dinner shows and others are offering complimentary or specially reduced rates to visiting military families at a dedicated Web site, orlandoinfo.com/military, administered by the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc.
     The special offers, most of which are available from Memorial Day, May 26, 2003 to Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2003, range from free entrance for the military member at SeaWorld Orlando, Universal Orlando and Walt Disney World Resort with free or reduced tickets for family members to a special rate of just $69 for a three-night stay at a local hotel. Most offers apply to both active duty and reserve military members. More

Armed Forces Day
"A Force for Freedom"
May 17, 2003

Armed Forces Day - A Force for Freedom - 2003

In 1949, under the direction of President Harry S. Truman, Defense Secretary Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy, Marines Corp and Air Force Days. The single-day celebration stemmed from the unification of the Armed Forces under one department -- the Department of Defense. Truman led the effort to establish a single holiday for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country. For information on this year's Armed Forces Day events , go to:
http://www.defenselink.mil/afd

Marine Killed in
Explosion Identified

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2003 Defense officials have announced that Lance Cpl. Nicholas Brian Kleiboeker, 19, of Irvington, Ill., was killed May 13 near Al Hillah, Iraq, when the munitions bunker he was working in caught fire and exploded. He was assigned to the 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, based at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Profile

Navy Chaplain Alan Wilmot

The Carrier Air Wing 3 chaplain stands behind the 'foul line' observing the launch of an F-14 Tomcat from the flight deck of USS Harry S. Truman. Truman and CVW-3 are currently on a six-month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate Airman Ryan O'Connor.

     ABOARD USS HARRY S. TRUMAN (NNS) Few pictures have captured the dedication and sacrifice of the Chaplain Corps than that of Father Mychal Judge, who died ministering to firefighters at the World Trade Center. Chaplains have always been among our bravest and can be counted on to comfort those in need, despite the danger.
     In Operation Iraqi Freedom, Carrier Air Wing 3s own Chaplain Alan Wilmot, an Alabama native, led the ready rooms in prayer at each brief and was an ever-present sight on the flight deck as its aviators launched into combat.
      Originally, Wilmot had planned on being an Air Force chaplain, but there were no slots matching the Chaplains' particular denomination. Wilmot said that he was under the impression that the Navy was gone for six months, every six months, but said that it was his wife who suggested he give them another look. More

More Profiles

Iraq's 55 Most Wanted

In Custody - May 15

Jack of Spades -

Muhammad Hamza al-Zubaydi
Three of Hearts -
Fadil Mahmud Gharib

Status of Iraq's 55 Most Wanted

In Kuwait

Band Member Takes Care
Of Wounded Marines

     CAMP COMMANDO, Kuwait (May 15, 2003) As a flute player in the 1st Marine Division Band, Cpl. Victoria R. Ortiz has played at countless ceremonies, homecomings and parades; each time boosting the morale of the Marines she played for. While deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, she lifted the spirits of those around her while never playing a single note.
     Ortiz served for two months as a hospital liaison at the 86th Casualty Support Hospital, taking care of Marines and boosting their morale. She and the other hospital liaisons were the critical link between the battlefield hospital and the parent unit of the injured Marine.
      In the past, wounded Marines' information would sometimes be lost in the paperwork shuffle.
     "The units were very concerned about the status and condition of their Marines," said the 19-year-old corporal.
      To correct this problem, the Marine Corps has taken a proactive approach and created the hospital liaison position to keep the command informed. More

• Services Conduct Earth Day Clean Up

• Fla. Army Guard Unit Serves Troops in Kuwait

In Djibouti

• Local Residents Honor U.S. Troops

• Troops in Africa Treat Local Civilians

In Afghanistan

• More Than Just Ordnance Blasters

• Korean Soldiers Celebrate Children’s Day

In Qatar

• Marines Compete for Martial Arts Tan Belt

• Australian Troops in Qatar Celebrate Holiday

In the Persian Gulf

• U.S. Soldiers Investigate Possible WMD Site

• Iraq, Iraqis and Coalition Troops

In Uzbekistan

• New Troop Provides ‘Flat-Out’ Support

'On The Ground' Archive

Transformation

Stryker Brigade Moves
Across Country for Evaluation

FORT POLK, La., May 15, 2003 (Army News Service) The Army's first Stryker Brigade Combat Team will complete a cross-country move this weekend from the west coast to air and seaports in Louisiana in preparation for the brigade's operational evaluation exercise at the Joint Readiness Training Center.
The exercise, named Arrowhead Lightning II, will assess the SBCT's ability to conduct early entry and combat operations in a mid- to low- intensity environment against an unconventional enemy, officials said. The exercise starts this weekend and will last through the end of May. More

More Profiles

End of article 1

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Germany on brink of recession
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Europe - Germany
BBC -- Thursday, 15 May, 2003, 06:41 GMT 07:41 UK
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Chancellor Schroeder is in Asia to drum up business

The German economy shrank slightly during the first three months of the year, pushing Europe's largest economy yet again to the brink of recession.

Weak exports were mainly to blame for the economy's poor performance, according to the Federal Statistics Office.

The total value of goods and services produced in Germany fell by 0.2% between January and March. This follows a "minus 0%" growth in the last quarter of 2002.

A recession is usually defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

The figures are worse than expected, with most analysts having forecast a poor but at least positive growth rate of 0.1%.

However, compared to the same period a year earlier, the German economy grew by 0.5%.

The state of the economy has pushed unemployment in Germany well above the 4 million mark and hurt the electoral fortunes of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrats.

Mr Schroeder hopes that a package of wide-ranging structural reforms can kick-start the economy, but both union and business leaders are putting up fierce resistance against measures that would hurt their constituencies.

Figures from the Statistics Office show that there is still a long way to go.

Official data show that Germany's economy now provides nearly half a million fewer people with work than it did a year ago.

Germany has flirted with recession before, narrowly avoiding it a year ago by rounding up a very small negative number to read as zero growth.

The German economy makes up about a third of the economy of the 12-country eurozone.

WATCH AND LISTEN

Hans Eichel, Finance Minister
"We are spending more than we can afford to spend"

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