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


Wednesday, October 5, 2011

War News for Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Polish Soldier Killed in Afghanistan


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: Gunmen tossed a hand grenade at an Iraqi army patrol, wounding two soldiers in Baghdad's western al-Adil district, an interior ministry source said.

#2: Gunmen using silenced weapons opened fire at a police patrol and wounded two policemen in Baghdad's southern Ilaam district, an interior ministry source said.


Diyala Prv:
#1: Gunmen attacked an Iraqi army check point, killing two soldiers and wounding three on Tuesday near Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) northeast of Baghdad, police said.

One cop was killed and another wounded in an armed attack in the center of Baaquba city, security sources said today. The source told Aswat al-Iraq that last night an armed group attacked a police checkpoint in the center of the city with weapons equipped with silencers, which led to the casualties.

#2: A bomb planted inside a shop for selling CDs and tapes of songs killed one person and wounded six others on Tuesday, police said.


Taji:
#1: A roadside bomb went off near a bus carrying Iranian pilgrims and wounded four in the town of Taji, 20 km (12 miles) north of Baghdad, an interior ministry source said. Another police source said five pilgrims were wounded.


Tuz Khurmato:
#1: Gunmen in a speeding car opened fire and killed a local mayor in the town of Tuz Khurmato, 170 km (105 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.


Taza:
#1: A bomb attached to a lorry went off and wounded the driver on Tuesday in the town of Taza, 210 km (130 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.


Riyadh:
#1: A civilian was killed and two injured in a bomb blast in southwest Kirkuk, police sources said today. General Sarhat Qadir told Aswat al-Iraq that a bomb exploded in a civilian car, Riyadh area, 45 km southwest of Kirkuk, that led to the casualties.


Kirkuk:
#1: The body of a government-backed Sahwa militia member was found with gunshot wounds in the head and chest on Tuesday in the town of Qaiyara, 330 km (205 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: At least eight civilians and one policeman were killed, and around 25 people were wounded, when insurgents attacked a police patrol on the outskirts of Kandahar city, the provincial governor's spokesman said.

#2: An Afghan soldier fired a rocket-propelled grenade at an outpost manned by French and Afghan troops in Kapisa province, north of Kabul on Monday, but caused no casualties, the French military said.

#3: An Afghan delegation dispatched to investigate reports of civilian deaths in a NATO raid in eastern Afghanistan on Sept. 25 has found that 13 people were killed and that some of them were armed, the president's office said. Villagers said the operation by foreign and Afghan troops had killed civilians, which prompted the investigation. ISAF sent its own team to the area and has finished its assessment but has so far not released its findings.

#4: At least 13 people were shot dead by gunmen in a suspected sectarian attack on a passenger bus in Pakistan's southwestern Baluchistan province, police said.

#5: Afghan and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) eliminated two Taliban insurgents and captured five others in Helmand province 555 km south of Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday, a press release of the alliance said.


DoD: Pvt. Danny Chen

News: Pfc. Rafal Nowakowski

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