[ WAR IN IRAQ ] Latest Developments
Key developments in the war against Iraq,
compiled by the Associated Press:
- Marines battled pockets of Iraqi resistance in Nasiriyah; four Marines with the 1st Expeditionary Force were reported missing. Explosions from tank fire, artillery and rockets fired by Cobra helicopters reverberated through the city of 500,000 as Marines battled to clear the main supply route north to Baghdad.
- Iraq's information minister said at least 58 people were killed in a crowded market in northwest Baghdad by what local officials called a coalition bombing. The U.S. Central Command in Qatar said it was looking into the report.
- U.S. warplanes firing laser-guided missiles destroyed a building in Basra where 200 paramilitary fighters were believed to be meeting.
- Two Army helicopters, returning from an attack mission south of Baghdad, crashed while landing at a base the 101st Airborne Division has set up in a remote part of the southern Iraqi desert. Both aircraft were heavily damaged.
- President Bush said fierce Iraqi resistance "will demand further courage and further sacrifice" from U.S. troops as they advance on Baghdad. He told a gathering of veterans that victory is certain for a U.S.-led coalition.
- A missile fell into the sea and exploded near a major shopping mall in Kuwait City early today, but officials said it caused no injuries and little damage. U.S. officials said it appeared to be a Silkworm cruise missile launched from southern Iraq.
- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld accused Syria and Iran of meddling in the Iraq war and warned that both Iraqi neighbors would be held accountable if it continued. Syria rejected Washington's claims.
- Coalition forces control more than a third of Iraq's territory and 95 percent of its skies, the Pentagon's top general said.
- Iraqi paramilitary forces in Basra fired mortars and machine guns on 1,000 Iraqi civilians trying to leave the besieged city, forcing many to retreat, British military officials and witnesses said. An initial group of about 1,000 fled the city safely.
- Iraqi Kurds are preparing camps to hold as many as 500,000 people fleeing Saddam Hussein's territory but face severe shortages of tents and other equipment, officials said.
- The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to resume a massive U.N. humanitarian program for Iraq once the U.S.-led war subsides.
Tons of food and water reached the Iraq port city of Umm Qasr escorted by attack helicopters and a mine-sweeping ship.
BACK TO TOP |
LIHUE >> About 70 Kauai residents staged a rally yesterday at the entrance to Lihue Airport in support of U.S. troops in Iraq. Kauai rallies support
for U.S. troops in Iraq warBy Anthony Sommer
tsommer@starbulletin.comThe 6:30 a.m. demonstration was "designed to catch the full rush-hour crowd," said Jim Itamura, a Kauai attorney who organized the event.
"There are a lot of Kauai people who have relatives over there right now," Itamura said. "It didn't take much organizing. I just called a few people, and they called more people."
A similar rally is planned for Friday in front of Kauai Community College.
Ron Wiley, a KONG radio announcer, has been collecting the names of Kauai servicemen in Iraq and Kuwait and has come up with a total of 57 so far, with others still expecting to be sent.
Mary Alvarez-Manuel has a brother-in-law, Galen Manuel, 22, serving aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and a nephew, Ryan Manuel, aboard the destroyer USS Porter.
"Galen called us last week, and we told him we were praying for him. He thanked us but asked us to pray for those on land more. I almost cried," Alvarez-Manuel said.
Lt. Col. Douglas Miles, son of Mr. and Mrs. Phil Miles, of Princeville, is at Camp Virginia in Kuwait serving as a liaison officer to the U.S. Army.
Phil Miles said they receive an e-mail from their son every three or four days.
"He's a bit frustrated," Miles said. "During Desert Storm he was a navigator on a B-1 bomber, and they never used the B-1 in that war. Now that he's off flight status, B-1s are flying missions against Iraq."
BACK TO TOP |
[ WAR BRIEFS ]
Abercrombie supports more security funding
Honolulu's police officers, firefighters, paramedics and other emergency response workers need more assistance from the federal government in the fight against terrorism, U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie said yesterday.After meeting with Honolulu's homeland security officials yesterday, Abercrombie said states and local governments would get $1.4 billion of the $3.8 billion proposed by President Bush for homeland security, but that is not enough. That amount is part of the administration's $75 billion supplemental appropriations request.
"These folks are our first line of defense for homeland security," Abercrombie said.
Cites, counties and states across the country are facing similar difficulties in needing more federal funds to help pay for homeland security duties, Abercrombie said. When Congress meets next week, Abercrombie plans to fight for more funding.
Iraqi terrorist attacks thwarted, officials say
WASHINGTON >> The State Department said yesterday it had information that Iraqi intelligence officers planned terrorist attacks against U.S. interests in two foreign countries.In both cases the operatives were arrested, terrorist material was confiscated and attacks were not carried out, spokesman Richard Boucher said.
Last week, the State Department announced the three Iraqi diplomats remaining in Washington had been ordered to leave. The government called on countries with diplomatic ties to Iraq to expel Iraq's senior envoys as well.
Some 17 countries have expelled Iraqi intelligence officers, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Hawaii military links and information
