Dawn Patrol

Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and other 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.

IRAQ

U.S. Troops Are Good, Kind People -- [A Soldier's Perspective]
Here's a heart-warming, wonderful story of the decency, kindness and goodness of U.S. Troops. It comes from a somewhat surprising source - CBS News - and shows some of the good things our troops are doing in Iraq.
No matter what else you do today, you MUST watch this video segment and then send it on to everyone you know.

U.S. and Iraqi forces rescued more than 2 Baghdad Orphanage

Eye To Eye: Baghdad Orphanage (CBS News) TMG Editor's Note : extended video from above MUST watch video link

UPDATE: Labor and Social Affairs minister lashes out, calls the US Iraq's the enemy

Labor and Social Affairs minister of Baghdad does not except responsiblity for orphanage, instead lashes out, calls the US Iraq's the enemy. Says boys of orfanage are all perfectly healthy and report is a lie.

Life After Curfew -- [first words, first walk, first.... in IRAQ -- an Iraqi in Iraq]
When the curfew was imposed and the repercussions of the bombings of the shrines belied expectations, I was told to brace for the mayhem to come and that it was premature to pin too much hope on fellow Iraqis’ resilience.
...What I liked the most about running an errand after curfew was the traffic. The 15-minute-trip took us only five minutes. Feels like the old days!
On the trip back home, we dropped by the drugstore and kind of liked what we saw. Baghdadis strangely wore smiles on their faces, I thought I’d never see those again. Shops were bustling. People are reverting to their Iraqi manners, mum noted, referring to a policeman who helped a woman get into a minibus. This too was non-existent few weeks ago.
Mum’s words reminded me of what she once told me, you’ll never know which people are good and which ones are bad until you’re struck by a crippling crisis.

Let Beasts Devour Beasts -- [Talisman Gate]
I hereby declare victory. I believe the Sunni insurgency in Iraq has collapsed, and all the casualty tallies that the insurgents are desperately trying to ratchet-up won't convince me otherwise. The odor of defeat hangs heavily around the "dead-enders" — a term I'd like to bring back into vogue because it's an apt description for those gangs that remain to be hunted down, and who will be responsible for the baseline violence we will continue to see there, but at levels Iraqis can live with and still prosper.

The Battle of Iraq – 2007 -- [The Fourth Rail]
...The corps level operation is being conducted in three zones in the Baghdad Belts -- Diyala/southern Salahadin, northern Babil province, and eastern Anbar province --- as well as inside Baghdad proper, where clearing operations continue in Sadr City and the Rashid district. Iraqi and Coalition forces are now moving into areas which were ignored in the past and served as safe havens for al Qaeda and Sunni insurgent groups. As the corps level operation is ongoing, Coalition and Iraqi forces are striking at the rogue Iranian backed elements of Muqtada al Sadr's Mahdi Army and continuing the daily intelligence driven raids against al Qaeda's network nationwide.

Operation ‘Arrowhead Ripper’ continues in Baqouba --[MNF- I]
BAQOUBA, Iraq – Task Force Lightning continued its offensive operation in and around the capital of Diyala province, Iraq, today as part of a powerful crack down on al-Qaida terrorists operating in the area.
U.S. and Iraqi combined forces engaged and killed at least 30 al-Qaida operatives, and discovered four IEDs emplaced in houses, and 10 buried IEDs during the first full day of Operation Arrowhead Ripper.
“These criminals will know no safe place to hide in Diyala,” said Brig. Gen. Mick Bednarek, Deputy Command General for Operations, Task Force Lightning and Multinational Division North. “The people of Diyala are tired of the terror and violence these al-Qaida thugs have brought to their province and are cooperating with us in order to root them out.”

Operation Marne Torch continues to net results in insurgent safe haven -- [MNF-I]
BAGHDAD — Four insurgents have been killed and 62 detained at the start of Operation Marne Torch’s fourth day in southeast Baghdad.
Ten caches have been seized, 17 boats destroyed, and five improvised explosive devices have been found.
The operation’s purpose is to clear insurgents from safe havens.
Phase one of Marne Torch began in mid-May and focused on intelligence gathering and shaping the conditions for offensive operations.

We Won? -- [Strategy Page]
June 20, 2007: After weeks of maneuvering in and around Baghdad, U.S. and Iraqi forces have isolated and cornered large numbers of terrorists in Diyala province (northeast of Baghdad), and especially in the provincial capital, Baqouba. This is a major operation, with 9,000 Americans and a thousand Iraqi troops (and police) involved. In addition, there are several hundred local irregulars, who have switched sides. This is a big change in the Baghdad suburbs. While tribal leaders and warlords in the west (Anbar province) have been turning on terrorist groups, especially al Qaeda, for several years, the gangs of Baghdad were more resistant to changing sides. That's because ...

Food Drive in Fallujah

Marines provide security for a food drive in Fallujah

In the kitchen with Dennis -- [Fightin' 6th Marines! - in Iraq]
Cpl. Dennis K. Derr, 26, from Watson Town, Pa., stirs a pot of food on a gas stove while on patrol. The Marine from Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, was helping an Iraqi woman prepare dinner while conducting census operations. By helping out in such a small way he is assisting in earning the trust of the people in this area. Unfortunately he had to leave and continue the patrol before the food was ready; however, he left behind a favorable impression on the family that sat down to dinner that night.

The Iraqi Silent Majority -- [Calvery in Iraq - in Iraq]
I wish all Americans could see and meet some of the very brave, freedom-loving Iraqis I have met. In the news, it seems like all you hear about are the ones causing trouble, or the ones with complaints.
Everyone has complaints about their government. I have numerous complaints about our government, and when some of my complaints become moot, I can always find others.
But if someone were to focus merely on my complaints about our government, they would be ignoring the love I have for America. To focus on the negative would be a one-sided view.
Similarly, it is easy to focus on the significant minority of Iraqis who are part of the problem, who don't want a free society.
But every week, if not every day, I see Iraqis who are quietly part of the solution. Perhaps ...

Baqubah's Biometric Squeeze -- [Danger Room]
10,000 U.S. troops have surrounded western neighborhoods in the Iraqi city of Baqubah. The goal "is not merely to reclaim [it] from insurgent control, but to capture or kill the estimated 300 fighters to 500 [Al Qaeda] fighters who are believed to be based" there, according to the New York Times.
But with so many civilians -- nearly 300,000 -- in Baqubah, the Islamists can easily blend with the local population. "To frustrate such plans, the Americans intend to take fingerprints and other biometric data from every resident who seems to be a potential fighter after they and Iraqi forces have gained control of the western side of the city. The Americans will also test for the presence of explosive material on suspects’ hands."
These biometric sweeps are becoming an increasingly common U.S. tactic in Iraq. American forces are fingerprinting new militia allies. Advisers training the Iraqi police have been fingerprinting recruits -- and cross-checking the results against Saddam's old biometric databases. Marines in Anbar province have done an end-run around the Pentagon bureaucracy to get fingerprint scanners into the field. Now, $320 million from the latest war-funding bill will go towards biometric programs.

Early frustrations -- [Jason's Iraq Vacation - in Iraq]
On a positive note, we have had a couple fun nights with the Iraqi officers.
... The conversation was also pretty interesting. Some of the Iraqi officers speak decent English so they acted as interpreters for the rest of those who don't speak any English. I continue to sharpen my Arabic, and I was pretty happy when they commented on how impressed they are with my progress. We talked about everything from Soccer to politics and it's really interesting to get their point of view. For example, the officers we were talking to are fully aware that outside influences are causing havoc trying to ignite sectarian violence, as in the mosque bombings in Samarra. It's interesting to me, at least, because it offers at least a faint glimmer that people in Iraq understand. I know that the opinions are coming from officers in their army, so they are a little more educated and have access to info that others don't, so they are able to comprehend the situation better too.

Rules of Engagement Marked as: Mature

The procedures Marines have to go through before using deadly force.

The Sidewalk to No Where -- [Badgers Forward - in Iraq]
Recently the decision was made to increase security around Camp Ramadi. Among other things this has led to the addition of a base security force of Ugandan ex-military employed by a Private Military Contractor. They have assumed guard internally, at the DFAC, the PX, the MWR Facilities, and a few other places around post. External security remains the purview of coalition forces.
Apparently it was also determined the PX needed a chain link fence around it. Not sure if it is to keep things in or out or what the problem was before that they are trying to eliminate, but the chain link fence has now turned the extension of the sidewalk into the "Sidewalk to No Where."

Again, Where Do We Find These Guys...? -- [BlackFive]
PFC Bradley Clark reports on an interesting day for PFC Daniel Weber:
...Weber’s company commander, Capt. Bradley Nelson, was in a convoy heading to Forward Operating Base Marez for a meeting and Weber just hitched a ride so he could re-enlist.
“We were riding along just fine when we heard over the radio that Delta Troop was in some trouble, so we decided to turn around and help them out because we had a medic with us,” said Weber.

Relief in sight -- [My Desert Adventure - in Iraq]
Last fall I was told that I was going to Iraq. I had a general idea what I would be doing, but I had no idea what exactly, or where I’ll be going. It was very unnerving. Would I be living in a tent, eating MREs and getting mortared every night? I had no idea.
I didn’t find out that I was coming to my brigade until the night prior. Pretty unsat.
The guy that is taking my job now knows a couple months out exactly what he’ll be doing, where he will living, etc. I also work in a fantastic unit and I’m glad to see that my job is going to a good guy.

AFGHANISTAN

Axeghanistan Day 9: Heading Out (Maybe) -- [Danger Room - David Axe - in Iraq]
On the way to my hooch, I passed one of my new Aussie buddies. He was covered in grime, breathing hard, and bent under his armor and gear. After nearly a week, their mission to protect the engineers working on the Tarin Kowt boys' school had wrapped. But with all the fighting in nearby Chura, there wasn't any transport to spare to bring them home to Kamp Holland, their base in the region. So they had marched, for miles, under a blazing sun. How miserable is that particular experience? Just ask Pasha, a Soviet soldier in Kandahar in 1982:

RAF AFGHAN DIARIES: SPECIAL FEATURE: B Flight interviews -- [royalairforce]

PC? -- [ETT PA-C - in Afghanistan]
Alright people, get on board. I have my own quote. So, you all know KAF is a big place mainly inhabited by US, British and Australians and little pockets of other smaller players in the coalition effort. Smaller in the size not heart, most of these countries are fairly endowed with manly marbles if you get my drift. Anyway, there is a company of Portuguese Commandos getting ready to deploy back to Portugal and they are all over the place. Over the last week, I’ve noticed

U.S. AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

New Simulation Of WTC Collapse -- [Blue Crab Boulevard]
I'm quite sure that this will make no difference to the "truthers" and their particular insanity, but Purdue University has just released a new computer simulation of the effect of a jetliner plowing into the World Trade Center. They concentrated on the effect the impact had on the fireproofing of the structural steel in the buildings.
The two-year Purdue University study, funded in part by the National Science Foundation, was the first to use 3-D animation to provide visual context to the attacks, said Christoph Hoffmann, a professor of computer science and one of the lead researchers on the project.

Creative chaos; Iran's way -- [Iraq the Model - Iraqis in Iraq]
...I think that when the president of the united states counted Iran among the members of the axis of evil the description was not unjustifiably incriminating, it just came before the evidence that support this claim became available.
In Iran there's an ideology that alienates everyone different, and that with power in the hands of extremist and the presence of wild ambitions based on a mythical vision, this combination can only lead us to the simple conclusion that Iran has a project that is in conflict with the new orientation of the region and most importantly this project aims far beyond the borders of Iran

The Turkmenistan pivot -- [Peace Like a River]
...Russia scored a coup in making that deal with Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, and this deal with Lukoil is evidence of a step or two towards the Russian camp. As Vladimir Socor wrote a couple weeks ago, the deal left the US in the dust.

The New Arms Race -- [Weekly Standard Blog]
At this point Russian and American defense business stopped being a one-on-one game, and the two industries went off in different directions. U.S. defense contractors starting thinking about different places they might need to deploy in the post-cold war world--and what type of a military machine you would need to be victorious in the brave new conflicts they envisioned.
And Russian companies became primarily concerned with what their export customers wanted, with barely a care as to what their own military establishment wanted or needed.

WAR ON TERROR /TERRORISM

New from the NEFA "Target: America" Series: "The East Coast Buildings Plot" -- [Counterterrorism Blog]
On the heels of the foiled plots targeting Fort Dix and JFK Airport, the Nine Eleven Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation announces the release of the fourth in a series of reports examining the multitude of terrorist plots directed at the United States since 9/11. This week's report details the chillingly detailed surveillance British Al Qaeda operative Dhiren Barot and his co-conspirators conducted on the Citigroup Center, the New York Stock Exchange, the Prudential Plaza, the IMF Building, and the World Bank. By striking at the heart of the U.S. economy, Barot hoped to further Osama bin Laden's goal of "bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy" and...

Taliban Suicide Bomb Teams Sent to U.S

Sixty Years of Stove-Pipe -- [Dadmanly]
Mike McConnell, US Director of National Intelligence (DNI), calls for a dramatic overhaul of the US Intelligence Community (IC) in the July/August edition of Foreign Affairs.
...Few Americans seem to have paid attention to ongoing efforts to reform, improve, and redirect the efforts of the US IC, as reflected most recently by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), which itself created the post of director of national intelligence (DNI), currently inhabited by McConnell. However much change has already been implemented, McConnell advocates for much more.

Al Qaeda Loves Lawsuits -- [Strategy Page]
June 20, 2007: One reason there is no shortage of suicide bombers is because of the money involved. Several Islamic charities provide one time payments, or even monthly "pensions," to the families of suicide bombers. Saddam Hussein is still popular among Islamic radicals because, when he was in power, he made large (up to $30,000) payments to the families of such "martyrs." That made recruiting a lot easier, and took the PR sting out of the loss of life. Saddam is no longer writing checks, but there are several other sources that are still active.

SUPPORTING THE TROOPS...OR NOT

Free Camp for Kids of Military Parents Deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007 -- [ScrappleFace]
THIS IS NOT SATIRE.
Faithful ScrappleFace readers know that editor Scott Ott is also director of a Christian children’s camp called Victory Valley Camp, in Zionsville, Pennsylvania.
As an expression of gratitude for the sacrifice of our troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, Victory Valley Camp is offering a free week of day camp (ages 5-to-11) or overnight camp (ages 8-to-13) for their children during summer 2007.
This offer applies to families of troops deployed to either of these theaters of operations during the 2007 calendar year. A week of Valley Day Camp normally costs $135. A week of overnight Camp or Outpost costs $335. For these families, we will charge nothing.

A Face of Freedom ~ Army SSG Christian Bagge -- [Gazing at the Flag]
I first learned of SSG Christian Bagge in June 2005 when I received an email about an Oregon soldier who was wounded in Iraq and headed back to the United States. Later, I received his address at Brooke Army Medical Center. We packed up a small care package and supportive letters and sent them off, along with our prayers. We never expected to hear of the SSG again, but we kept him in our prayers.
The following year, SSG Christian Bagge was at the White House to go jogging with President Bush. When the President visited him at the hospital, he was newly arrived and had lost both legs to an IED - one above the knee and one below.
Now, SSG Christian Bagge is a finalist for the Energizer "Keep Going" Hall of Fame.
Vote for SSG Christian Bagge

MILITARY

COMBAT DEATHS ARE PART OF VICTORY -- [SandGram]
This is a letter from my Dad. It could be a two part letter to the people, but I told him it was fine as stated. There are so many things in this piece that ring true and need to be said. I truly believe that we are on the brink of something very big here in the world between our cultures and people.
Anyway, I asked him to write something for you, so here he goes.
Combat Deaths are part of victory,...

POLITICS

Democrats Try To End Secret Ballots For Union Elections -- [Captain's Quarters]
No one can accuse Democrats of reneging on this pledge. Senate Democrats plan to have a showdown with the GOP over a bill that would force workers to cast unionization votes without a secret ballot. They're trying to keep a campaign promise to union bosses who funded their campaigns:

Kerry says Iraq is worse than Vietnam

"We're Behind You All The Way!" -- [Real Clear Politics]
So, Ryan Crocker, the Ambassador to Iraq, needs personnel:
Ryan C. Crocker, the new U.S. ambassador to Iraq, bluntly told Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a cable dated May 31 that the embassy in Baghdad -- the largest and most expensive U.S. embassy -- lacks enough well-qualified staff members and that its security rules are too restrictive for Foreign Service officers to do their jobs. "Simply put, we cannot do the nation's most important work if we do not have the Department's best people," Crocker said in the memo.
And the Congressional majority--or at least one of its members--appears to respond with contempt.

New Gallup Head-to-Heads -- [Real Clear Politics]
Gallup is out with a new round of general election match ups based on its 6/11-6/14 survey of 927 registered voters. Below are the results, along with updated RealClearPolitics Averages for each pairing:...

THE MEDIA

Williams Sees 'Tremendous Victories,' But Frustrated by Question: 'How's the War Going?' -- [NewsBusters]
NBC anchor Brian Williams, on Tuesday's Daily Show, recognized that there are “tremendous local victories” in Iraq, but told Jon Stewart the constant suicide bombings killing scores of civilians leave him unable to answer the question: “How's the war going?” But, “when you look at the big picture you wonder how it's ever going to work?” Asked by Stewart about his March trip to Iraq, Williams offered a colorful detail about pleadings from Iraqi women as he answered:
“We go to Ramadi and Iraqi women, unprompted, didn't know who I was, come up and say in Arabic to the American commander, 'please don't ever leave us. Don't leave this town.' They've gone block by block talking to the Imans, making the town safe. Same day: I fly back with an American four-star General, we get to Baghdad to hear that 93 Shia pilgrims have been killed by two vest bombers. And then you come home after eight days and people say, 'How's the war going?' And how are you ever going to sum that up? You have tremendous local victories, and yet when you look at the big picture you wonder how it's ever going to work?"

The Ground Truth - movie review -- [The Will to Exist]
The Ground Truth tells the story of a few veterans who came away from the Iraq War very discontented, mentally disturbed or psychologically damaged in some major way. The stories reflected in the movie are real, but the packaging is designed to bias people into thinking that everything about the war is bad, which is simply not true. Many people are killed, maimed and injured - that is the case in every war (I am one of the veterans in question.) Many bad decisions are made and many lives are ruined when wars are fought, invasions launched and weapons brought to bear. But not every veteran walks away from war as disturbed in the head as the people portrayed here.

Seymour Hersh and Robert Fisk, wrong again -- [Media Blog - Tom Gross]
Emmanuel Sivan, writing in the Israeli daily Ha'aretz, relates how "Sharp-eyed reporters in Beirut read Pulitzer Prize-winner Seymour Hersh's article in astonishment," so obviously were Hersh's allegations about the Bush administration's cooperation with al-Qaeda-linked groups in Lebanon untrue:

Davids Medienkritik interviewed by CBN and the BBC on Anti-Americanism and Blogs -- [Davids Medienkritik]
Journalist Dale Hurd has put together an outstanding two part report on anti-Americanism in European media featuring an interview with Ray Drake of Davids Medienkritik. This is must-see material for anyone interested in the phenomenon. View it all now on Davids Medienkritik:

MILBLOGGING

Milbloggers Dominate Surge Coverage in Iraq -- [Gateway Pundit]
While the mainstream media continues its grim warnings and fatalistic reporting that has been going on since the war began, the milbloggers continue to bring responsible first hand reports from the battlefield...

HUMOR / SATIRE

Day By Day

(Need more? The previous Dawn Patrol is here.)