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The news is not that American combat troops withdrew from Iraqi cities. The news is that American combat troops withdrew from Iraqi cities in victory — rather than in defeat. Two years ago at this time, few in the foreign-policy establishment considered that outcome possible. Some did not even see it as desirable. There were those who believed that the conflict in Iraq was “unwinnable,” that America had met its match on the hot and dusty streets of 21st-century Mesopotamia. Others thought Americans needed a Vietnam-like refresher course about the futility of the use of U.S. military force anywhere in...

Dozens killed in Iraqi bombings Aftermath of the bomb attacks in Sadr City, Baghdad More than 50 people have been killed in a series of bomb attacks in Iraq in the worst day of violence since US forces withdrew from urban areas on 30 June. The most lethal attack was in Talafar, near Mosul, where at least 34 people were killed and more than 60 injured in a double suicide bombing. In Baghdad, two attacks at markets left at least 16 dead. Several other people were killed in smaller attacks in the capital and in southern Kirkuk. The BBC's Gabriel...

KIRKUK — Since the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraqi cities, and in accordance with the Security Agreement, the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, has begun adding signs reading “Iraqi partnership provincial approved convoy. Thank you for your patience and support” to the sides of their vehicles. U.S. Forces serving in an advisory and assistance role continue to travel within the city to meet with their Iraqi counterparts or government officials. “These signs show that we are working with our partners and that we’re abiding by the Security Agreement,” explained Maj. Frazier Epperson, an Information Operations officer...

The Iraqi National Police take the lead and escort a U.S convoy through Baghdad, July 6. Photo by Capt. Tommy Avilucea. Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq. BAGHDAD — The Iraqi National Police (NP) and Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq (MNSTC-I) joined forces for convoy operations July 5 - 6, to comply with U.S./Iraq Security Agreement articles. The NP led a convoy through the streets of the Iraqi capital, supporting a U.S. Army mission to transport Americans to various locations. The well-coordinated movement took the convoy through city streets and on highways. The convoy aggressively moved through the traffic...

7/8/2009 AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — After serving in Iraq for approximately three months, a detachment of Marines from Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 will soon join the remainder of their squadron serving in Afghanistan. “This is an amazing opportunity for every Marine within the squadron, because there aren’t a whole lot who get to serve in two operational theaters within one deployment,” said Maj. Gerry Kearney, detachment officer-in-charge for HMLA-169. More than half of the squadron is already in Afghanistan and the remaining Marines will be joining their counterparts. “We have been operating with about a third...

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 – A detainee transfer and two base renaming ceremonies recently signified the changing role of U.S. forces in Iraq. Soldiers salute behind a tribute to Army Staff Sgt. Todd Olson during a base renaming ceremony in Samarra, Iraq, June 30, 2009. The base had been named in honor of Olson, who was killed in an attack in Samarra in 2006. It is now called Fond'k Abo Hera. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jazz Burney   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Iraqi officials traveled to the Remembrance II theater internment facility on Camp Cropper in Baghdad...

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by coalition advisors, arrested suspected terrorists, including an insurgent cell leader, in operations in Iraq yesterday, military officials reported. Members of an Iraqi Emergency Response Brigade, along with coalition advisors, arrested a suspected key leader of an insurgent cell in Ladafiyah. The suspect is believed to be tied to terrorist activities against coalition and Iraqi security forces in the area. Elsewhere, the Iraqi National Police Justice Battalion, with coalition advisors, arrested a suspected terrorist in Salahuddin province. The suspect is believed to have emplaced roadside bombs and supplied terrorists in the province...

BAGHDAD, July 9, 2009 – A San Antonio-based Army Reserve unit is getting much praise for its road improvements around Baghdad. A bulldozer operator with the 277th Engineer Company completes the ripping process for the reshaping of a roadway on Victory Base Complex in Iraq, July 5, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. George Velez  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The “Dirt Devils” of the 277th Engineer Company have wrapped up resurfacing and upgrades to the roadways north of Western Bypass Road connecting Camp Liberty and Camp Victory here. The Soldiers worked to keep the road serviceable so...

(Moderator note: comments for www.regimeofterror.com are now activated at the end of each post)During a series of email and telephone exchanges Matthew Degn relayed to www.regimeofterror.com his vast array of experiences working with intelligence issues relating to the current and former situation in Iraq. Among his responsibilities during his years in Iraq Degn worked as a civilian interrogator attached to the U.S. Army in Iraq before working as a Senior Policy/Intelligence Adviser to Deputy General Kamal and other top intelligence officials with the Iraq's Ministry of Interior. Degn, currently working on a book about his experiences in Iraq (personal website...

If Barack Obama's idea of ending the occupation in Iraq is to transfer most of the troops to Afghanistan, he won't have accomplished much.

It will be the largest-ever resettlement of Palestinian refugees into the US - and welcome news to the Palestinians who fled to Iraq after 1948, but who have had a tough time since Hussein was ousted in 2003. Targeted by Iraqi Shi'ites, the Palestinians, mostly Sunni Muslims, have spent recent years in one of the region's roughest refugee camps, Al Waleed, near Iraq's border with Syria in the west.

BAGHDAD — The historic Ibn Sina Hospital will return to Iraqi Government control this fall. In accordance with the Iraq Security Agreement, U.S. forces are scheduled to return the facility to the Iraqis, October 1. Currently operated by the U.S. Army’s 10th Combat Support Hospital (CSH), the staff will continue to provide quality healthcare for all patients throughout the next two months of transition. Col. Raphael De Jesus, 10th CSH Commander, wants to reassure servicemembers and civilians that they need not worry about care. "The mission of the 10th CSH is sustaining,” says De Jesus. “Our ability to provide excellent...

Lt. Col. Michael Fadden, the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment commander, speaks with civilians hired to assist with the renovations of one of the water stations his civil affairs unit just finished renovating. Photo by Pfc. Jared Sollars, 145th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment. MOSUL — In the rural areas outside this city, U.S. Soldiers are helping local villagers obtain running water by repairing and building water pumping stations in eight different locations of the Qayyarah Sub-District in Ninewa province. Four of the water stations were completed June 27, which included a ribbon cutting ceremony at each of those stations.Lt. Col....

Members of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity teach first aid to Iraqi Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts during a recent partnership session. Photo by Lt. Col. Pat Simon, 225th Engineer Brigade. BAGHDAD — "From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life." That quote from former tennis great Arthur Ashe is not just a famous saying, it's a way of life for a unique group of Soldiers deployed here.They are members of the college fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi, who meet every week at the Pegasus dining facility on Camp Liberty. They are fraternity "brothers...

WASHINGTON, July 8, 2009 – U.S. forces strengthened relationships with their Iraqi counterparts in recent days as they worked to help a city in need and to improve health care and quality of life throughout Iraq. U.S. forces are providing humanitarian aid to the residents of an Iraqi city recovering after a devastating truck bomb attack in June. Representatives from the 1st Cavalry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team and the Kirkuk provincial reconstruction team traveled to Taza, south of Kirkuk, on June 27 to assist in the recovery. Forces assessed the security situation, delivered much-needed water and inspected a tent...

The U.S. State Department said on Tuesday it will grant asylum to 1,350 Arabs in Iraq who claim to have the right to live in Israel based on ancestry. The unprecedented numbers to be allowed to resettle in the United States may anger Israel, the Christian Science Monitor (CSM) reported. Most of them lived well in Iraq under former dictator Saddam Hussein but then were thrown out of their homes after his downfall.

The Big Lie Propaganda approach is: If you state a big enough lie often enough, people will believe it. This concept took off when the National SOCIALIST German Workers Party (Hitler) used it in the 1930s and 1940s and the Communist (Stalin) adopted it from them. In this article, Murdoc askes "Spot Anything Questionable?": "Early in the Iran-Iraq War, an AK-47-toting Iranian soldier watches smoke rising from burning oil refineries near the Iranian city of Abadan. The Iraqis under Saddam Hussein, armed and supported by the United States, used mostly M16s. Photo: Henri Bureau/Sygma/Corbis" From Wired

August 14, 2005 -- LONDON — The $21.3 billion United Nations oil-for-food scandal has now widened to include the brother of U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Kobina Annan, the Ghanaian ambassador to Morocco, is said by investigators to be "connected" to an African businessman at the center of the scandal. The probe into Kobina's dealings are at an early stage and he has not been interviewed. However, investigators are understood to suspect that Michael Wilson, an African businessman, and Kobina had a business relationship at the time of the scandal. A source close to the investigation said: "We believe Kobina Annan...

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2009 – U.S. forces in Iraq demonstrated their ongoing commitment to building Iraqi sovereignty in recent days with a historic first visit by a U.S. Navy ship and joint operations and training efforts. Soldiers with the 4th Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team completed construction on this bridge, June 29, 2009, southeast of Qurnah, Iraq. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The USS Scout, an avenger-class mine countermeasure ship, pulled into port in Umm Qasr on June 30, marking the first visit by a U.S. Navy ship since the port transitioned to Iraqi control. "Today...

BAGHDAD, July 7, 2009 – A two-man team from MTV’s “Real World” program spent a week at Joint Security Station Saydiyah here filming the final portions of a follow-up story on one of the show’s former participants. Army Spc. Ryan Conklin, an infantryman for the North Carolina National Guard’s 252nd Combined Arms Battalion, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, stands between Jason Williams, left, and Matt Ruecker from MTV’s “Real World” at Joint Security Station Saydiyah in Baghdad, July 3, 2009. Conklin was a housemate on the show when he was recalled to active duty to deploy. U.S. Army Photo by...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ-EAST, Iraq, July 7, 2009 – Army Sgt. 1st Class JennyAnne Bright believes noncommissioned officers have to practice what they preach. Army Sgt. 1st Class JennyAnne Bright re-enlists at Contingency Operating Site Marez-East, Iraq. The former drill sergeant and current Sergeant Audie Murphy Club member holds herself and those around her to high standards. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. "Soldiers look up to NCOs, because NCOs hold themselves and their soldiers to the highest standards," said Bright, shower laundry and clothing repair noncommissioned officer for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 18th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion,...

The most exciting and underreported news of the past few weeks in Iran has been that the emerging challenger to the increasingly frantic and isolated "Supreme Leader" Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. And Rafsanjani has recently made a visit to the city of Najaf in Iraq to confer with Ayatollah Ali Husaini Sistani, a long-standing opponent of the Khamenei doctrines, as well as meeting in the city of Qum with Jawad al-Shahristani, who is Sistani's representative in Iran. It is this dialectic between Iraqi and Iranian Shiites that underlies the flabbergasting statement issued from Qum...

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, centre right, talks with his son, U.S. Army Capt. Beau Biden, centre left, at Camp Victory on the outskirts of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 4, 2009. Biden celebrated the Fourth of July with his son and other American troops in Iraq on Saturday, a day after warning Iraqi leaders that U.S. assistance will be jeopardized if the country reverts to ethnic and sectarian violence. Biden began Independence Day by greeting more than 200 U.S. soldiers who were becoming American citizens at a naturalization ceremony in a marble domed hall at one of Saddam Hussein's palaces...

WASHINGTON -- The withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Baghdad and other key cities in Iraq marks the beginning of the end of the tragic war there. While it’s not over yet, the Iraqis are celebrating and happy -- free at last from American control. Well, almost. We have had six-and-one-half years of the on-going conflict, with American war dead totaling 4,320 and more than 31,000 wounded. More than 100,000 Iraqis also were killed and thousands more wounded. Add some 4 million refugees to those formidable numbers of human cost. Then there is the small matter of an estimated $682...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his top deputies have not formally asked for U.S. aid or permission for possible military strikes on Iran's nuclear program, fearing the White House would not approve, two Israeli officials said. One senior Israeli official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, told The Washington Times that Mr. Netanyahu determined that "it made no sense" to press the matter after the negative response President Bush gave Mr. Netanyahu's predecessor, Ehud Olmert, when he asked early last year for U.S. aid for possible military strikes on Iran.

There has been an unprecedented unleashing of violence against women in Iraq in recent years. What is the link between the US-led invasion of the country and the rise in women's rights violations? Before the invasion of their country in 2003, women formed forty per cent of Iraq's public work force. Today, ninety per cent of them are unemployed. Polygamy, previously virtually unheard of in Baghdad is making a comeback as women become second and third wives in order to survive economically.

War is not the answer. That is what we were told about the war in Iraq. But recent comments from Helen Thomas and an old report from the UN seem to confirm the opposite. War WAS the answer and President Bush saved thousands of Iraqi lives by going to war instead of continuing sanctions. Helen Thomas wrote that "We have had six-and-one-half years of the on-going conflict... More than 100,000 Iraqis also were killed and thousands more wounded." So according to Thomas-An average of 15,384 Iraqis died each year of the war. The alternative to war? Continue sanctions. A UN...

Multi-National Security Transition Command- Iraq J4 observed the July 4th holiday by raising flags to be sent to the United States. U.S. Army Col. Keith Kodalen receives the flag from U.S. Army Sgt. Maj. Rosa Harmon. Photo by Van Williams, Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq. BAGHDAD — July fourth, the day of American independence, was celebrated in the International Zone with special flag raising ceremonies by Soldiers with Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq (MNSTC-I). The flags, after being raised and flown here, will be sent to servicemembers, family and friends in the United States.U.S. Army Col. Keith Kodalen,...

BAGHDAD – As Coalition combat forces have lowered their public profile by pulling back from Iraqi cities, towns and villages, so, too, have the trainers and advisors to the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF). The Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq’s (MNSTC-I) mission is to train, mentor and advise the ISF, at the request of the Iraqi government. This role is a key element of the U.S.-Iraq Security Agreement. Although the public may see them less often, MNSTC-I advisors and trainers continue their important jobs, in accordance with the terms of the Security Agreement. With the Iraqi government, they share a common goal...

Maj. Gina "Torch" Sabric, an F-16 fighter pilot and 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing flight-safety officer, sits on her aircraft after a flight. Sabric proudly attributes the progression of women in aviation to the Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP). President Barack Obama presented the WASP the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest and most distinguished award Congress can award a civilian, July 1. Courtesy photo, 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing. BALAD — It's been more than 60 years since the Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) took the skies by storm as the first women in U.S. history trained to fly American...

FOB HUNTER — U.S. Soldiers recently transferred a military base to Iraqi Security Forces near Majaar Al Kabir in a ceremony attended by key U.S. and Iraqi leaders in the Maysan province. "This is a historic event for the citizens of the Maysan province and for all Soldiers operating in Iraq," said Lt. Col. William Walski, commander, 2nd Squadron, 13th Cavalry Regiment. "We are proud of the relationships we have built with the Iraqi Security Forces and are confident of their ability to protect the citizens of Maysan province." During the ceremony, remarks were given by Muhammad Shia, governor of...

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by U.S. soldiers and coalition forces, arrested several suspected terrorists in operations in Iraq over the past five days, military officials reported. Iraqi soldiers, aided by U.S. soldiers, detained a wanted insurgent July 4 in Hawijah in Kirkuk province. Mahdi Saleh Khalil is believed to be associated with vehicle-bomb detonations June 30 and April 15, both in Kirkuk city, that killed 37 people and wounded 114 Iraqi civilians. Elsewhere, the Beiji special weapons and tactics team, aided by coalition advisors, arrested a suspected terrorist July 3 in Salahuddin province. The man is...

BAGHDAD, July 6, 2009 – In 2006, an insurgent’s bomb destroyed the police station in Tarmiyah, Iraq -- near Taji, north of the Iraqi capital -- leaving a burning pile of rubble. Today, the station has risen from the ashes and is a new source of pride and an improvement for security for the town. Army Pfc. Jordan Robinson pulls security watch from a guard tower at the new police station in Tarmiyah, Iraq, July 3, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jon Soles  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Soldiers of the 591st Military Police Company, 93rd Military Police...

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2009 – Vice President Joe Biden and Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Force Iraq, presided over a July 4 naturalization ceremony in which 237 servicemembers deployed to Iraq became American citizens. U.S. servicemembers take the citizenship oath inside Al-Faw palace at Camp Victory, Iraq, July 4, 2009. White House photo by David Lienemann  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “You are the reason America is strong,” Biden told the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who hailed from 59 countries, including Iraq, during the ceremony in the rotunda of former dictator Saddam Hussein’s Al-Faw palace...

BAGHDAD, July 6, 2009 – Red, white and blue are the colors associated with American independence, but this year, we can add another color: brown. An Iraqi-born U.S. soldier turned American citizen, Spc. “Brown,” right, an interpreter attached to the 225th Engineer Brigade, shakes hands with Vice President Joe Biden during a naturalization ceremony at Camp Liberty, Iraq, July 4, 2009. Brown joined 236 other U.S. servicemembers from more than 50 countries to take the U.S. oath of citizenship on Independence Day. U.S. Army photo by Lt. Col. Pat Simon  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Army Spc. “Brown,” an...

This Iraqi Security Force Update provides a summary of changes to the ISF during May and June 2009. The Iraqi Security Force Order of Battle as of 30 June 2009 is published at Montrose Toast. Previous updates were published at The Long War Journal.

WASHINGTON – Colin Powell says the U.S. took too long to strengthen its forces in Iraq after Baghdad fell early in the war. Powell, the nation's top military officer under President George H.W. Bush and secretary of state for President George W. Bush, said the decision to use a lighter force to defeat the Iraqi army was correct. But he said in a television interview broadcast Sunday that the younger Bush's administration should have realized the initial success in 2003 was only the start of a longer fight.

Capt. Dorothy Watkins and Spc. Joshua Watkins, both of Hazleton, Pa., are deployed to Camp Taji, a base camp north of Baghdad, with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania National Guard. Photo by Jon Soles, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. TAJI — One Pennsylvania National Guard Soldier has two ways he can address Capt. Dorothy Watkins. He can call her ma'am or he can call her mom. Spc. Joshua Watkins and his mother, Capt. Watkins, are both serving here with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division. The mother and son from Hazleton, Pa., are...

Former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Bill Cowher (right) and Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher share some laughs with U.S. servicemembers during a National Football League coaches USO tour of Iraq, at Al Faw Palace, Baghdad, July 2. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Edwin L. Wriston, Joint Combat Camera Center – Iraq. KIRKUK — It was a long line for Soldiers and Airmen, but awaiting them at the end were legendary NFL coaches ready to sign photos, shirts or anything else you could scribble a signature on. The coaches, who included New York Giants’ Coach Tom Coughlin, Baltimore Ravens’...

Vice President Joseph Biden told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in an interview taped in Iraq on Saturday for "This Week" that the United States does not intend to slow its withdrawal plan in Iraq even if violence spikes after U.S. troops leave. Asked what happens "if the violence flares up again," the vice president replied, Well, that's going to be a tragic outcome for the Iraqi people. We made a commitment." Stephanopoulos then asked, "are we going to put our lives on the line again," if violence flares back up in Iraq, and Biden flatly said "no."

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the Obama administration would not stand in Israel's way should the latter chooses to take military action to eliminate Iran's nuclear threat. Israel has the right to determine its own course of action with regard to the Iranian nuclear threat regardless of what the Obama administration chooses to do, Biden told ABC reporter George Stephanopoulos. When asked whether the Obama administration would restrain Israeli military action against Iran, Biden responded: "Israel can determine for itself - it's a sovereign nation - what's in their interest and what they decide to do...

The man who said the surge wouldn't work and thought we should partition Iraq, not to mention criticized Petraeus, has a few words for Saddam (Who had no WMD as he always remimded us)

The head of Mossad, Israel’s overseas intelligence service, has assured Benjamin Netanyahu, its prime minister, that Saudi Arabia would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran’s nuclear sites. Earlier this year Meir Dagan, Mossad’s director since 2002, held secret talks with Saudi officials to discuss the possibility. The Israeli press has already carried unconfirmed reports that high-ranking officials, including Ehud Olmert, the former prime minister, held meetings with Saudi colleagues. The reports were denied by Saudi officials. “The Saudis have tacitly agreed to the Israeli air force flying through their...

The soldiers expressed their gratitude over and over to the NFL coaches who made the trip to Iraq. "They kept thanking us," said the Tennessee Titans' Jeff Fisher. "We kept thanking them." Fisher, the New York Giants' Tom Coughlin, the Baltimore Ravens' John Harbaugh, former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden are taking part in the first NFL-USO coaches tour over the Fourth of July weekend. A world they knew only through the distant glimpses of news reports turned very real for the coaches as they met with hundreds of soldiers in three...

KEYSER, W.Va. – More than two years since leaving her prison cell, the woman who became the grinning face of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal spends most of her days confined to the four walls of her home. Former Army reservist Lynndie England hasn't landed a job in numerous tries: When one restaurant manager considered hiring her, other employees threatened to quit.

The video is an abridged history of war in the 20th century, told through the use of food. The key to the battles represented and the foods used to represent each nation is found below. 1. The World 2. WWII – Holocaust/French surrender/London Bombing/Pearl Harbor/Battle of Midway/D-day /fall of Berlin /Hiroshima 3. Arab-Israeli War – Brits leave Israel/Israel expands territory 4. Korean War – China and Russia back the North/The US back the South 5. Cuban Missile Crisis 6. Viet Nam – China and Russia back the North/The US back the South 7. Cold War/Arms race 8. Intifada 9. Gulf...

Link only due to copyright. Our Foreign Policy Expert Veep dictates policy to the Iraqis.

An Iraqi city worker prepares to unload new trash containers to be distributed to local citizens of Basrah, July 1. Approximately 12,000 trash containers were delivered that day, with a total of 350,000 to be delivered in the near future. Photo by Sgt. Rodney Foliente, 4th Infantry Division. BASRAH — U.S. Soldiers and members of the Basrah Provincial Reconstruction Team joined Governor Sheltag Aboud al-Mayah here as he distributed the first trash can to a city family, July 1. The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, coordinated with the local government to provide trash cans to residents here as...

KIRKUK — "If terrorists knew this explosion would have unified Arabs, Turks, and Christians, they wouldn't have done it," said Mayor Talib of Taza, referring to a truck bomb attack here in June. "It has united us!" Representatives from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and Kirkuk's Provincial Reconstruction Team traveled to Taza, June 27, to assist in the recovery. Capt. Nathan Jennings, a company commander with 2nd BCT, met with Talib. According to Jennings, the purpose of the visit was to assess the security situation in the city, deliver much needed water, and examine a tent city...

A hilltop view of the ancient city of Babylon, where King Nebuchadnezzar II, whose life spanned 630-562 B.C., built his hanging gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Photo by Maj. Mike Feeney, 172nd Infantry Brigade. HILLAH — Soldiers of the 172nd Infantry Brigade are enabling documentarians, historians and preservationists as they work to ensure ancient Iraqi history is preserved and documented in Babil province. The Soldiers provide these experts transportation and security as they conduct site surveys of Babylon, an ancient city near the modern city of HillahThe Babil Provincial Reconstruction Team hosted the World Monuments Fund...