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, December 4, 2007

War News for Tuesday December 04, 2007

Baghdad:
#1: An attack on the home of Iraq's Minister of Electricity in east Baghdad Tuesday left two of his guards injured, according to a ministry source. "Gunmen in a car fired shots at the home of the Minister of Electricity Karim Wahid," the source told the Voices of Iraq VOI news agency. The minister was not home but two of his guards were injured in the attack, the source said.

Gunmen attacked the home of Iraqi Electricity Minister Karim Waheed, killing one of his bodyguards and wounding another, a member of Waheed's security detachment said. Police said three guards were wounded.

#2: A roadside bomb wounded two civilians in the New Baghdad district in the east of the capital, police said.

3: Police found 6 bodies in Baghdad today in the following neighborhoods (2 bodies in Sadr city, 1 body in New Baghdad, 1 body in Atifiyah, 1 body in Doura and 1 body in Amil).

#4: Eight militants were killed and 14 detained in several operations around Iraq during the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Defence said.


Diyala Prv:
Jalula:
#1: A suicide bomber blew himself up near a police station northeast of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least eight people and wounding 30, police and hospital officials said. The attack occurred as police were gathered near the main gate of the station in Jalula with Kurdish troops who came to the area as part of a security crackdown, police said. The dead included four Iraqi police, two Kurdish troops and two civilians, police said. Ahmed Khatab, a doctor at the local hospital, confirmed the death toll and said eight of the 30 wounded were in critical condition.

Muqdadiyah:
#1: A civilian was killed and 4 others wounded in an attack by Qaeda insurgents that targeted Al Zherat village in Mudadiyah town east Baquba today afternoon.


Diwaniya:
#1: A security source in Najaf province said that Mun’im Hadi an employee of Diwaniyah city intelligence directorate office was killed by unknown gunmen in front of his house south Najaf city last Saturday.


Mahaweel:
#1: Two bodies were found in the town of Mahaweel, 75 km (45 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.


Tarmiya:
#1: U S. soldiers mistakenly shot four Iraqi civilians, killing one, during operations against al Qaeda militants, the U.S. military said on Tuesday. U.S. soldiers had detained a suspected al Qaeda fighter in Tarmiya, 30 km (20 miles) north of Baghdad, on Monday when they were approached by a car that did not obey an order to stop. The car continued moving towards the soldiers despite two sets of warning shots. U.S. soldiers then fired on the car, hitting the four people inside. One of the passengers died while being taken to a military hospital for treatment.


Tuz Khurmato:
#1: An Iraqi army officer was killed and his brother was injured in armed attack southwest of Kirkuk on Tuesday, a police source said. "Unknown gunmen opened fire on an Iraqi army office in Touz Khormato district, southwest of Kirkuk, killing him and injuring his brother," the source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI) under condition of anonymity.


Riyadh:
#1: Patrols of the 5th brigade of the Iraqi army found on Sunday evening four bodies nearby Ali Soltan village, part of Reyadh town west of Kirkuk. A source in the Iraqi police said that three of the bodies are for soldier from the 3rd battalion of the 6th brigade of the Iraqi army and there were signs of shooting on the bodies.


Kirkuk:
#1: Gunmen killed Ataallah Eskander, the member in the local council of Hawija town west of Kirkuk and his driver Hamad Ali Hussein. The incident took place inside the town yesterday night. The gunmen burnt the bodies of the council member and his driver inside the car after killing them.


Mosul:
#1: A roadside bomb killed one policeman and wounded three others in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, on Monday, police said.

#2: Policemen in Ninewa province found a headless body of a kidnapped policeman in southwestern Mosul on Tuesday, an official source said.

Three bodies were found around the northern city of Mosul during the past 24 hours. All had bullets in the head and chest, police said.


Al Anbar Prv:
#1: A U.S. Soldier was killed as a result of injuries sustained from a vehicle explosion during a vehicle recovery operation in Al Anbar province Dec. 3. Additionally, two other U.S. servicemembers were wounded in the explosion and transported to a Coalition Forces medical facility for further evaluation and treatment.



Afghanistan:
#1: The Taliban today carried out a suicide attack on a Nato convoy that injured at least 22 Afghan civilians to "welcome" the US defence secretary to Kabul. The attacker drove into the convoy during the morning rush hour on a road just outside Kabul's international airport. There were no casualties among Nato troops.

#2: A British soldier has been killed in an explosion in southern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence said. The soldier's next-of-kin have been notified, but no further details were available, it added

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