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Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various sources around the world. If you're a blogger, you can join the conversation. If you link to any of these stories, add a link to the Dawn Patrol too and your trackback will be added to the list. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.

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A member of the Afghan-international security force pulls security in the woods near the Sayed Abad District where intelligence sources reported militant activity, Wardak province, Afghanistan. Photo by Spc. Jordan Huettl

AFGHANISTAN

NATO details its Afghan night raids policy -- [Breitbart/AP]
KABUL-- A new directive from NATO's top commander in Afghanistan orders coalition forces to avoid night raids when possible, but to bring Afghan troops with them if they must enter homes after dark.
The coalition released details of Gen. Stanley McChrystal's new policy Friday - changes that are meant to cut down on the storm of complaints from Afghan people. --

McChrystal bans night raids without Afghan troops -- [Reuters]
U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan will be permitted to carry out raids at night only when there are Afghan security forces present, their commander, U.S. General Stanley McChrystal, ordered on Friday.

This Is Just What We Do -- [Fast Surgeon - in Afghanistan]
On this day, the soldiers were evacuated by PJ's (AKA Pararescue Jumpers). This is not typical, as the PJ's are not the typical Medevac unit (I will post something for them later). The PJ's are airforce special operations medics. They are a special breed with intense training, not only medical, but in all aspects of special ops warfare.
Their mission is typically geared toward rescuing downed pilots or any soldier behind enemy lines. This war is uniquely challenging for the PJ mission, as there are no enemy lines. Everything outside a FOB is essentially dangerous territory...

The Contest for Respect and Trust -- [Your experience may vary - in Afghanistan]
There was a great article by C.J. Chivers in the NY Times earlier this week about the Afghan National Security Forces operating in Marjah.
It's NOT a great article because it's got great news. On the contrary. It's great because transparency about ANA and ANP deficiencies is the first step to fixing them.

Need More Ink Cartridges -- [Afghanistan My Last Tour - in Afghanistan]
I really sense their aggravation with the ANA supply system. Even when they fill out the paperwork correctly and get the ANA General's signature and approval, they still can't get the supplies they need. As mentors, we have tried to intervene by working with other mentors to no avail.

It's March already...pretty cool. -- [My View; Our Mission - in Afghanistan]
The biggest thing I've been working on surrounds the Afghan National Police (ANP) Drug Rehab Facility. This facility, which I believe I have talked about before, was conceived from the notion that since the ANP started drug testing there needed a place to send those who need help.

Waiting to go out on bomb patrol -- [Channel 4 News]
Been another quiet day today, a couple of patrols went out but on the whole a chilled day. The lads are getting restless, they cannot wait to get back to camp.
I have been told that I am going out with one of the patrols tomorrow to conduct Barma (checking that there are no IEDs on the tracks that we are walking on). It should be interesting.

The Anti-Afghans Kabul - Day 24 -- [30 Days Through Afghanistanin Afghanistan]
...I was struggling to find a simple phrase to describe "bad guys" since it's too generic and Taliban and Al Qaeda are too specific. Then, when we were up north, one of the soldiers called them anti-Afghan fighters. That pretty much summarizes it, but now that I know what to call them, who are they?
Taliban and Al Qaeda are well covered so I'll only mention one interesting fact about them. When I went through counter insurgency training, they said there were approximately 20,000 of them in Afghanistan. That seems like quite a lot to me, until I compare it to the total population of this country, which is roughly 30 million. They aren't the only people who cause damage to society here though. The other people could be anyone from full blown warlords to simple farmers.
For starters...

Afghanistan war: NATO unfolds blueprint to rebuild Marjah -- [Christian Science Monitor]
Down white-tiled corridors and behind code-locked doors on their base in Helmand Province, a handful of American and British officials planned for months how to turn this swath of irrigation ditches and mud compounds, ruled for two years by Taliban militants and crime syndicates, into a beacon of peace and prosperity.

On Assignment: Into the Maw at Marja -- [NY Times]
Using one another as pillows, like a family huddled together for warmth in a house without heat, most of the Marines were catching a little sleep before their mission was to begin. But one sat wide awake at the edge of their huddle.
Tyler Hicks caught this quiet moment.
Another Marine gazed at a snapshot of himself and his wife. The picture's tattered edge conveyed how well traveled it was. And how often it was so lovingly examined.
Mr. Hicks was there. Along with members of Company K, Third Battalion, Sixth Marines, Mr. Hicks, a staff photographer for The Times, was preparing to go into battle.
...Sometimes the most serene-looking war photographs speak volumes of the danger afoot: body language or the subtlest of expressions will betray it. Then, Marines scurry across a field, in a hail of bullets, and the picture making continues. A Marine's brief glance towards the camera shows the fear in his eyes.

Lejeune Marines deploy to Afghanistan -- [WRAL]
Camp Lejeune, NC -- More Camp Lejeune-based Marines are headed to Afghanistan as US and Afghan forces firm up their grip on an insurgent stronghold.

Pakistan: Another Taliban leader captured -- [AP]
Pakistani intelligence officials say have arrested another Afghan Taliban leader.
The arrest of Agha Jan Mohtasim is the latest step in an apparent crackdown against a movement that has long enjoyed relative safe haven in Pakistan.
The officials said Thursday that Mohtasim was arrested in the southern city of Karachi, but did not say when. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to give their name to the media.

Departing U.N. envoy has strong words for Afghan government -- [LA Times]
Eide said he was encouraged by Karzai's invitation to the Taliban to attend a peace conference this year.

IRAQ

Defying bombers, Iraqi security forces vote en masse -- [McClatchy/Stars and Stripes ]
BAGHDAD -- Shrapnel had flown into Ali al-Tamimi's eyes, partially blinding him, and both of his legs were broken in several places.
Not even 24 hours after receiving the injuries in a suicide bombing northeast of Baghdad, however, al-Tamimi cast a ballot from his hospital bed, joining hundreds of thousands of other Iraqis who voted Thursday in an early round reserved for security forces, detainees and hospital patients who might not be able to make it to the polls for Sunday's parliamentary election.

Trees, Forest. Forest, Trees. -- [Castle Argghhh!!! - Bill - in Iraq]
As I turned the corner, I spotted a convoy forming up about fifty meters ahead, with a couple of cammied, Up-Armored Hummers in the lead. From the green-brown-sand splotch-'n'-blotch paint scheme, I knew they were Iraqi Army (for those of you who *might* be curious, I posted some pix in this post last year), so I walked a bit faster to see what was gonna happen.
Because I *knew* what was gonna happen.
Sure enough...

Preview -- [Neptunus Lex]
Despite sporadic and ongoing violence in Iraq, Newsweek magazine is forced to admit that something that looks a lot like representative government is in place there, even if it falls short of the Jeffersonian Ideal
None of this was deemed remotely possible by those currently in power in Washington, although the vice president has been keen to take cautious credit for it - a frankly appalling display of chutzpah, considering the fact that he suggested the one scheme that had no chance of working while serving in the Senate: ....

The Born Insanity -- [Greyhawk]
"What tales we'll tell
when that time comes
when tales can be told..."
- Another quote from that first tour.
Now there are tales being told, in the form of memoirs and movies, guaranteed to piss people off. Perhaps, then, it's time to tell more of mine...

Iraq on the Eve of elections -- [ISW]
...Roughly 18.9 million Iraqis are registered to vote in the upcoming election, at more than 10,000 polling centers across the country. Each polling center comprises one or more polling stations, of which there are more than 50,000 in total. More than 300,000 domestic election observers and observers from various political parties will monitor the election; in addition, eight diplomatic missions and international organizations have been asked to participate as international election monitors. Security for the polling sites will be provided by the Iraqi Security Forces, with some planning assistance and enablers provided by U.S. forces.

Iraqi election violence may sway U.S. stay -- [Washington Times]
Iraq faces the prospect of a protracted battle to form a new government after Sunday elections, including possible violence, that could complicate President Obama's plans to pull out nearly half the U.S. troops there by the end of August, diplomats and analysts say.
...Ms. O'Sullivan said that, although "you don't have parties that are exclusively sectarian in nature," as was the case in the 2005 elections, the likely "vacuum" the protracted government negotiations will create could invite violence. "If you don't have a government until late spring or early summer," that could affect the pullout of U.S. troops, she said.

Hundreds of Children Found in Mass Grave -- [The Hawler Tribune]
Three mass graves were discovered in the sub district of Dubiz in Kirkuk. Announced the Kurdish daily news paper ASO on Sunday, Feb.21st. These graves are to be excavated by the Ministry of Anfaled and Martyrs of Kurdistan regional government in a near future.
"The graves are holding remnants of children from both Chamchamal and Garmyan areas". Sayd Fazil Amin the head of KRG martyrs office in Kirkuk told ASO, these kids were taken into captivity during 1988 Anfal campaign against the Kurds.
Anfal genocide was a campaign against the Kurds in 1980s. It was aimed at the elimination of the Kurds in Iraq, by destroying and burning Kurdish villages down. Killing and burying alive the people of these villages. It costed over 200,000 lives of innocent Kurds.

U.S. AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Pentagon Shooter: Anti-Bush Nut Case and 9/11 Truther -- [Patterico's Pontifications]
There was a shooting just outside the Pentagon today, at a security checkpoint. Two cops were injured; breaking reports say the suspect, J. Patrick Bedell, has died.
...And Internet research shows that the guy was a 9/11 Truther and an anti-Bush nut case.

When truthers go wild -- [This Ain't Hell]
I'd never heard of this James Sabow, so I went looking and found some real nutty shit. Apparently, the story of James Sabow rolls a butt load of conspiracies into one, so the nutters have a single story to which they can point for all of their nutty stories. That "Salem-News" website is the same one that posts all of Gordon Duff's nutter theories. Oddly enough, this particular article was written merely one day before the shooting at the Pentagon Metro Station.

House Panel Says Armenian Deaths Were Genocide -- [NY Times]
The House Foreign Affairs Committee voted narrowly on Thursday to condemn as genocide the mass killings of Armenians early in the last century, defying a last-minute plea from the Obama administration to forgo a vote that seemed sure to offend Turkey and jeopardize delicate efforts at Turkish-Armenian reconciliation.
...Historians say that as many as 1.5 million Armenians died amid the chaos and unrest surrounding World War I and the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey denies, however, that this was a planned genocide...

Turkey recalls Ambassador after US vote on Armenia 'genocide' -- [Times (UK) Online]
..."We condemn this resolution, which accuses the Turkish nation of a crime it did not committ," he said. As Armenian observers applauded the vote on Capitol Hill, the Turkish Ambassador to Washington was recalled.
...Mr Obama promised as a candidate to break with longstanding US practice and start calling the First World War era killings genocide if elected to the White House. He broke the promise last year...

WAR ON TERROR /TERRORISM

Obama advisers set to recommend military tribunals for alleged 9/11 plotters -- [Washington Post]
While Obama has favored trying some terrorism suspects in civilian courts as a symbol of U.S. commitment to the rule of law, critics have said military tribunals are the appropriate venue for those accused of attacking the United States.
If Obama accepts the likely recommendation of his advisers, the White House may be able to secure from Congress the funding and legal authority it needs to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and replace it with a facility within the United States. The administration has failed to meet a self-imposed one-year deadline to close Guantanamo.

Exclusive: Navy SEAL in Terror Abuse Case Speaks Out -- [Fox News]
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: You will not see this anywhere else, three Navy SEALs accused of abusing a terror suspect who was captured in Iraq in 2009. Now, the terror suspect is accused of plotting the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater contractors. Well, today two Republican congressmen held a press conference defending the Navy SEALs and demanding the charges against them be dropped...
RIFF JENKINS, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: I'm with Petty Officer Matthew McCabe and his attorney, Lieutenant Colonel Neal Puckett. Petty Officer McCabe, you maintain you did nothing wrong, you did nothing disgraceful. Do you still maintain your innocence today?
PETTY OFFICER MATTHEW MCCABE, U.S. NAVY: I apologize, I'm not really at liberty at this time to talk about my case.

SUPPORTING THE TROOPS

Brain Injury Awareness Month: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) -- [Chaotic Synaptic Activity]
March is Brain Injury Awareness Month for the Brain Injury Association of America. Pass the Word, please, as you can and know this is a very probable issue with our injured Vets.
For those who have long supported the Soldier's Angels Voice Activated Laptops for Our Injured Troops (VALOur-IT), this is one of the things the program has been addressing, along with the coputer contact with the world, by providing GPS Units for those wounded service members who are getting out and about. The reason: TBI has an associated symptom of loss of short term memory, and the GPS Units help remind the driver where they were headed.

Wyo. guardsmen record music video while in Iraq -- [Military Times]
Wyoming National Guardsmen Dustin Scott, Nathan Harvey and Jeremiah Eaton were about nine months into a yearlong deployment last December when they heard about GI Jams, a new Web site that allows soldiers to upload songs and lets listeners download them...
On Christmas Eve, they gathered in their tent, huddled in front of a laptop computer, gave themselves a name and recorded "Cowboy Soldiers," about longing for small comforts while serving in the hot desert. The song -- it's stick-in-your-head catchy and melancholy at the same time -- was an instant hit on the fledgling site, securing the top spot and spawning a music video.

Throw Down Issued to Benefit Soldier's Angels -- [You Served]
The hosts and producer of You Served radio show, CJ, Troy, and Marcus, are issuing a challenge to the MilBlogosphere in a charity fundraising event with bald heads at stake.
The new challenge is two-tiered with a third bonus tier added this evening during the You Served radio show.
The first tier is to raise $100 cumulative on the engravable memorial medallions we are auctioning in the You Served eBay Store (http://stores.ebay.com/userved). All proceeds will be donated to Soldiers Angels. The kicker and incentive on that cumulative total is that we have a generous anonymous donor who will donate $1,000 to Soldiers Angels if we can meet that $100 total. In addition to a donation of $1,000, CJ will shave his head along with Marcus! We currently have 2 coins auctioned with a total of $37.50, so we will need to raise $62.50 over the next 4 weeks (including this one). We will put up one coin a week to be auctioned.
The second tier is that if we can meet $250 cumulative total, not only will we garner that $1,000 donation, CJ and Marcus will allow Troy to shave their heads in Washington, DC during the Milblog Conference.

MILITARY

Joint Chiefs Chairman Readjusts Principles on Use of Force -- [NY Times]
Speaking at Kansas State University, he pointed to new rules restricting the use of combat force in Afghanistan, where civilian deaths caused by American troops and American bombs have outraged the local population and made the case for the insurgency. That kind of restraint, at the insistence of the field commander there, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, has been criticized in some quarters as reneging on the so-called Powell Doctrine, which favored overwhelming force to achieve unambiguous victories.
Even when the forces brought into combat are clearly superior, as in the huge assault on the Taliban stronghold of Marja in southern Afghanistan that began Feb. 13, there can be a difference from assaults of the past, Admiral Mullen suggested.
At Marja, he said, "We did not prep the battlefield with carpet bombing or missile strikes. We simply walked in, on time.
Admiral Mullen, the nation's senior military officer, steered clear of declaring an official new "Mullen Doctrine." Even so, ...

Army's Training Ability 'At Risk' Because Of Iraq And Afghanistan Wars ... -- [Huffington Post]
WASHINGTON -- The Army's ability to train its forces is "increasingly at risk" because of the nation's protracted commitments to Iraq and Afghanistan,

WELCOME HOME

Event to honor returning soldiers -- [The Huntsville Item]
Army reserve soldiers and the families of Huntsville-based Detachment 1 366th Military Police Company who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom will be honored Sunday in a public ceremony for their recent service in Afghanistan.
The "Welcome Home Warrior-Citizen" event takes place at 10 a.m. at the Sam Houston State University Criminal Justice building auditorium.

Effingham's Alpha Battery gets boots on home ground -- [Savannah Morning News]
Dreary skies and a cold wind didn't stop Effingham County from giving a rousing welcome home Wednesday morning to members of Alpha Battery returning from almost a year's deployment to Afghanistan. (View photos of the Alpha Battery return here.)

Welcome Home SSgt. Marty Brownlee -- [Monticello News]
Marty Brownlee, who lives in Turtle Cove and was injured in Afghanistan received a big welcome home Saturday, as a celebration was held on the Monticello

VETERANS

Washington Conference Day II: Revenge of the Blue-cappers -- [American Legion/Burn Pit]
Day 2 at Washington Conference is upon us...
I will be addressing the Women's Veterans Forum. You are right that you should hear what I thought of it all, only collecting it into something useful may take me a bit. I have some down time tomorrow morning that will be devoted to it.
...Anyway, the highlight for me today will be the attendance of my friend Jim Marshall, Democrat from Georgia. Regardless of what votes Jim might ever cast, what party he is with or anything else, I will always be proud to have met the man, to have talked to him alone on many occasions, to even have borrowed books from his bookshelf when on leave from Afghanistan. Just read the man's bio:
"The son and grandson of army generals, Marshall was born in Ithaca, New York, but moved frequently during his childhood and graduated from high school in Mobile, Alabama.
...We will also have Secretary Shinseki and a host of others. I will live blog it all...

Important links for Vets...-- [The SandGram]
February 17th, 2010 Posted in The SandGram v1.0 | No Comments »
I got this today from a friend of mine, DiAnna Maxwell who is in the Army Nurse Corps and it's a fantastic collection of links for all things that our Vets need. Please feel free to pass this on to as many Vets as you know. one of them may be able to use something here... It looks like the links work. This transfer looks like crap on the website, if you want the email version, just drop me a line at

BLOGGING/MILBLOGS/SOCIAL MEDIA

Troops in Europe still waiting for access to social sites -- [Stars and Stripes]
More than a week after the Defense Department lifted its three-year ban on social media Web sites, U.S. troops in Europe are still waiting to gain access to sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
..."Local commanders still have to weigh security risk and bandwidth issues in their area of operation before they determine the best way to proceed," said Chris Joseph, a spokesman for U.S. Army Europe's 5th Signal Command.

POLITICS

Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Change -- [Merrill A. McPeak/NY Times OpEd]
I was one of the service chiefs when the "don't ask, don't tell" compromise was reached in 1993. Until then, every person coming into the military was asked questions directed at establishing sexual orientation, and admitted homosexuals were automatically rejected. Thus the "don't ask" part of the rule actually means gays no longer have to lie.

'I will take our troops out of the war zone and put them into space' -- [Ezra Klein/Washington Post]
Kesha Rogers is a Larouchie who just won the Democratic nomination in Texas's 22nd district. Her triumphant statement is pretty sweet...
The release goes on to mock her opponent for saying that "I can't believe that most people who voted for her knew that she wants to" impeach Obama.

A conversation with Jacob McFerren -- [You Served]
Who the heck is Jacob McFerren? He's the political advisor to Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, commander International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan. As you know, our military commanders are having to not only conduct military operations, but also standing up peaceful governments in foreign lands that are friendly to the US. For that reason, our Generals need political advisors. This was a pretty good read and I wanted to share it with you so you can see how our commanders on the ground do what they do so successfully.
As the political advisor to the top commander in Afghanistan, Jacob McFerren is responsible for ...

MILITARY HISTORY

Battle of the Hornburg, "I Have About 10,000 Orcs to Manage" -- [American Legion/Burn Pit]
Today in [Fictional] Military History - March 4, T.A. (Third Age) 3019
In the closing months of the year 3018, forces of evil moved to inundate all the other nations of Middle-Earth. Sauron, the evil, long-lived lord of Mordor, had been gathering his armies and preparing for the final war for the extermination and subjugation of men, elves, dwarves and all other peoples who opposed him.

HUMOR/SATIRE

FOBbits (photo essay) -- [FaST Surgeon - in Afghanistan]
This posting is one part humor, one part truth and a pinch of terminology. Today I let you in on the infamous term, "Fobbit"...
Unlike the combat soldier, who must endure each day carrying loads of 30 to 80 lbs on their backs as they move through the mountains of Afghanistan, the Fobbits must rely on their wits to stay fit. They find foolish ways to feel pain, like wearing shorts in 30 degree weather.
So, there it is. Fobbits are real. I encourage you to see a plethora of very humorous comic strips located at ROK Drop featuring "Bob on the FOB" by SGT Albert J. Merrifield.

Day By Day

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