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


Friday, November 19, 2010

War News for Friday, November 19, 2010

The DoD is reporting a new death unreported by the military. Staff Sgt. David P. Senft died from an undisclosed non-combat related incident at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan on Monday, November 15th.

The DoD is reporting another new death unreported by the military. Pfc. Kyle M. Holder died from an undisclosed non-combat related incident at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan on Wednesday, November 17th.


Swedish suicide bomber killed in Iraq

US backs trans-Afghanistan natural gas pipeline

US sending M1 Abrams battle tanks to Afghanistan

U.S., NATO troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond 2014 handover


Reported security incidents

Diyala Prv:
#1: A former anti-al-Qaida militant was killed while two others were wounded in two bomb explosions in Iraq's eastern province of Diyala on Thursday, a provincial police source said. Firas Ahmed, also known as a member of the Awakening Council group, was killed when a homemade bomb exploded as he was in his farm south of Diyala's capital city of Baquba, a source from the provincial police told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

#2: In a separate incident, a sticky bomb attached to a civilian car parked near a popular restaurant in northern Baquba went off, wounding two people, the source said.


Mosul:
#1: A lawmaker from Diala escaped an attempt on his life when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off near his motorcade in Mosul city on Friday, wounding three of his bodyguards, a security source in Ninewa province said. “The IED went off near the motorcade of Diala legislator Mohammed Othman al-Khalidi at al-Nabi Younis area, in eastern Mosul, wounding three of his bodyguards,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. Khalidi was present in the motorcade during the blast but escaped unscathed, the source said, adding some of his bodyguards were slightly injured.


Baiji:
#1: A government-backed Sunni militia's leader was wounded when a roadside bomb went off near his car outside the town of Baiji, 180 km (112 miles) north of Baghdad, a police source said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Three members of a Finnish-Swedish patrol were injured Friday when a grenade hit their vehicle in northern Afghanistan, the Finnish and Swedish military said. The two injured Finnish soldiers and a Swedish officer were flown by helicopter to a German-run hospital in Marmal. The attack took place some 45 kilometres west of Mazar-e Sharif. It appeared that a rocket-propelled grenade launcher had been used, the Swedish military said.

#2: 3 KILLED IN U.S. DRONE STRIKE IN PAKISTANI TRIBAL AREA - LOCAL SOURCES

#3: A combined Afghan and NATO force killed 13 insurgents while conducting a patrol in the SirKani district of Kunar province Thursday. A press release issued by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said the patrol came under attack from small-arms and indirect fire. The force positively identified multiple insurgent firing positions and returned fire with mortars and guided missiles, said the ISAF press release.


MoD: Guardsman Christopher Davies

DoD: Staff Sgt. David P. Senft

DoD: Pfc. Kyle M. Holder

DoD: Spc. Justin E. Culbreth

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