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Piracy never really disappeared; it plagues maritime commerce as much today as it did in the Caribbean in the 18th century and on the Barbary Coast in the 19th century. But until recently, modern-day pirates mostly rustled some cargo and let their captives continue, leaving the crew unharmed. That's changed. Pirates in the waters off Somalia, and from the Gulf of Aden to south of the equator, are no longer simply interested in seizing ships and cargo. Now they are out for the multimillion dollar ransoms paid by ship operators to rescue their crews. They've come up with a good...

Staff Sgt. Javier Zapata looks over a sector of fire with an Iraqi Army Soldier. Photo by Sgt. Doug Roles, 28th Infantry Division. CAMP TAJI — Threats to Soldiers come in all shapes and sizes on the streets and roadways of Iraq. Constant training for the unexpected is the norm.For Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers, simulating improvised explosive device attacks served as a training objective for their Iraq Army (IA) counterparts, April 7.The U.S. Soldiers worked with an IA commander for two weeks to conduct individual Soldier task training for an IA logistics platoon. The course culminated with convoy exercises...

Gun Platoon Protects Convoys Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division 'Gun Platoon' risk their lives to protect vital supply lines and to ensure that efforts of coalition soldiers serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom continue. By U.S. Army Capt. Lyn Graves 133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment KIRKUK, Iraq, July 10, 2006 -- Protecting the convoys that supply and equip the 101st Airborne Division is an important mission, and one group of soldiers understands that importance and experiences the reality of protecting convoys every day. Soldiers of the “Gun Platoon” A Company, 426th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st...

AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq (April 1, 2006) -- Working long hours under the sweltering Iraqi sun may not sound like an ideal work environment, but Marine mechanics here are not only unfazed by the situation, they're enjoying it. "I just like being a mechanic here, I'm getting more hands-on experience," said Lance Cpl. Adriana R. Anderson as she took a moment to rest while replacing an air compressor on top of a V8 engine. The 22-year-old, part of a Marine motor transportation platoon at this U.S. airbase in Iraq’s western Al Anbar Province, has been working on the engine...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (March 9, 2006) -- In 2004, President George W. Bush declared March to be further known as National Women’s History Month. Throughout the years, countless women have proven their importance to our great nation and women in the military are no exception. Corporal Jessica L. Curtis of San Francisco is one Marine who will go down in history as well, at least where fellow Truck Company, Headquarters Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, Marines are concerned. The field radio operator deployed to Iraq in February 2005 in support of Operation Iraq Freedom. During her time in...

FORT GORDON, Ga. (Army News Service, Feb. 21, 2006) -- Engineers conducting show-and-tell with a 20-ton robot on the last day of two weeks of trials on Fort Gordon were cautiously optimistic. Karl Murphy, a software engineer from Robotic Research, said there was a new principle of “Murphy’s Law” at work on the test field Feb. 10. "One of my professors reminded us that we have 'sight-ons' present whenever an experiment is being viewed,” Murphy said. “The more 'sight-ons' you have, the greater is the potential for something to go wrong." Tongue in cheek, he continued explaining that sight-on fields...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HIT, Iraq (Jan. 25, 2006) -- Rolling through treacherous terrain, convoys or combat logistics patrols of the Marine Expeditionary Unit Service Support Group 22 are constantly on the move delivering supplies and transporting Iraqi soldiers and U.S. Marines throughout the Al Anbar province of Iraq. Aboard the convoys leaving Forward Operating Base Hit, every Marine and sailor knows their role. Some are prepared to counter small arms fire from insurgents and all are vigilant of the improvised explosive device threat. “On convoys, everyone has a job to do,” said Capt. Troy M. Pugh, the Baltimore native and...

Last update - 22:36 13/12/2005 U.S. to Israel: Bus convoys must start on schedule By Akiva Eldar and Gideon Alon, Haaretz Correspondents, and Haaretz Staff The American administration is demanding Israel implement an agreement it signed with the Palestinian Authority and allow bus convoys traveling between the Gaza Strip and West Bank begin on the agreed upon date. Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz said Tuesday that Israel would not allow the convoys until the PA cracked down on rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israel. "Israel has no intention of allowing passage to Palestinian convoys from...

Last update - 03:05 11/12/2005 U.S.: Gaza convoys must start this week By Akiva Eldar, Haaretz Correspondent Israel must fulfill all its obligations under last month's Rafah agreement with the Palestinian Authority by this coming Wednesday, when an international conference of donor states will open in London, the United States and other members of the Quartet demanded this weekend. In particular, they said, Israel must resume talks with the Palestinians on running regular convoys between Gaza and the West Bank  which, under the agreement, were supposed to start this Thursday  and significantly ease movement restrictions within the West...

HADITHA DAM, Iraq (Oct. 26, 2005) -- Traveling on the roads in Iraq can be dangerous as insurgents continue placing roadside bombs and targeting Marines and civilians. On the road everyday, helping keep many of the convoys for 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment safe, is Idaho Falls, Idaho, native Cpl. Christopher L. Carney. The convoy security element commander with the battalion’s motor transport section is seen on nearly every convoy above the first vehicle in the gunner’s seat. Being the first vehicle in the convoy helps him see what lies ahead of the convoy and be the first line of...

Iraqi and U.S. troops respond to two separate attacks; ordnance disposal teams detonated unexploded ordnance discovered at the scene. MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq, July 26, 2005 — Iraqi Army and U.S. soldiers assigned to Task Force Baghdad helped treat victims of two separate terrorist attacks in Mahmudiyah and Al-Dora, July 21. Prior to the explosions, U.S. troops assigned to 3rd Platoon, E Troop, 108th Cavalry Regiment, 48th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, and the Iraqi Army’s 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Division operations and intelligence leaders met to plan future combined missions near Siad Abdullah and the surrounding areas which are known...

12/9/2004 - LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- When a convoy heads out on the roads of Iraq, it can be a life or death mission. Faced with violent threats from insurgents, the troops are armed and ready. But in this hostile environment, a “protective posture” requires more than mere Kevlar. Airmen of the 90th Information Operations Squadron here help the troops roll through the red zone with another layer of armor -- information. The information operators are adding another element to the Basic Combat Convoy Course, a 17-day program held at nearby Camp Bullis. The course, which is...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. .................................................................. .................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. .................................................................. .................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. Welcome to "Warrior Wednesday" Where the Freeper Foxhole introduces a...

Baseplate Baghdad: Convoy in the Kill Zone by Jami Jones, feature editor with OOIDA member Mark Taylor The day starts like any other. Mark Taylor rolls out of bed, grabs a cup of coffee, maybe a bite to eat and gets ready for another day in the truck. He pulls on his jeans, T-shirt, boots — standard attire when on the road. He rips open the Velcro straps to adjust his body armor into place, puts on his Kevlar helmet and steps outside into another hot day in the desert of Iraq. Driving a truck in Iraq is literally and...

An article in the Geostrategy-Direct Intelligence Brief says new evidence suggests that many of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction were transferred to Syria before the U.S.-led war in Iraq, and then moved into Lebanon's Bekaa Valley. (Meanwhile, they sure had enough time to. As the liberals kept whining that Bush was "rushing to war", he was busy being overly courteous to them by going through ever avenue and channel possible, before going in.)

Trucks made to drive without cargo in dangerous areas of Iraq BY SETH BORENSTEIN Knight Ridder Newspapers WASHINGTON - (KRT) - Empty flatbed trucks crisscrossed Iraq more than 100 times as their drivers and the soldiers who guarded them dodged bullets, bricks and homemade bombs. Twelve current and former truckers who regularly made the 300-mile re-supply run from Camp Cedar in southern Iraq to Camp Anaconda near Baghdad told Knight Ridder that they risked their lives driving empty trucks while their employer, a subsidiary of Halliburton Inc., billed the government for hauling what they derisively called "sailboat fuel." Defense Department...

The discovery of an Iraqi artillery shell armed with nerve gas has the liberal community and mass media in a panic. The 155mm nerve gas shell was rigged to kill U.S. troops but it failed. U.S. Brig. General Mark Kimmitt confirmed the discovery during a news conference in Baghdad. Yet, the discovery of nerve gas was followed by a second revelation. A second shell, equipped with mustard gas was found two weeks ago. The mustard gas shell identified by the special WMD inspection team in Iraq appears to be one of 550 declared by Saddam to U.N. inspectors during the...

Dear Lord, There's a young man far from home, called to serve his nation in time of war; sent to defend our freedom on some distant foreign shore. We pray You keep him safe, we pray You keep him strong, we pray You send him safely home ... for he's been away so long. There's a young woman far from home, serving her nation with pride. Her step is strong, her step is sure, there is courage in every stride. We pray You keep her safe, we pray You keep her strong, we pray You send her safely home...

U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. Welcome to "Warrior Wednesday" Where the Freeper Foxhole introduces a different veteran each Wednesday. The "ordinary" Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine who participated in the events in our Country's history. We hope to present events as seen through their eyes. To give you a glimpse into the life of those who sacrificed for all of us -...

The Why of the Sawgrass Rebellion It's on the eastern border of the Everglades, down on the southern tip of Florida, Miami-Dade County. For decades bungling and sometimes viciously renegade officialdom has called it "The 8.5 Square Mile Area". Resident Madeleine Fortin calls it "Pariah". On October 19, Real Americans are going there to do something about it. It's called The Sawgrass Rebellion. In the delivered-under-oath words of another "Pariah" resident, Ibel Aguilera, this is why: TESTIMONY OF MRS. IBEL AGUILERA RESIDENT OF THE 8.5 SQUARE MILE AREA AND DIRECTOR UNITED PROPERTY OWNERS AND FRIENDS OF THE 8.5 SMA,...