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Three days after Muqtada al Sadr ordered the Mahdi Army to withdraw from the fighting in Baghdad and the Shia South, the fighting has dropped dramatically. The Iraqi government has denied that it has agreed to Sadr's terms, but has softened its rhetoric against Mahdi Army, instead shifting its focus on the "criminal elements" just as the US military has done over the past year. Meanwhile, the Iraqi security forces are continuing operations in Basrah. The Iraqi military has continued to target Mahdi Army elements in Basrah and in Baghdad and southern Iraq, but the government is now referring to...

With the fifth day of fighting in Baghdad, Basrah and the South completed, the Mahdi Army has suffered major losses over the past 36 hours. The Mahdi Army has not faired well over the past five days of fighting, losing an estimated two percent of its combat power, using the best case estimate for the size of the militia. A look at the open source press reports from the US and Iraqi military and the established newspapers indicates 134 Mahdi Army fighters were killed, 81 were wounded, 98 were captured, and 30 surrendered during the past 36 hours. Since the...

Muqtada al Sadr.Click to view. BAGHDAD, IRAQ: The cease-fire extension issued by Muqtada al Sadr, the leader of the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army, appears to be in jeopardy after the Iraqi government has launched an offensive against the Shia terror group in the southern city of Basra. Dubbed Operation Knights' Assault, Iraqi security forces have gone on the offensive to wrest control of the strategic oil hub and Iraq's second largest city from Mahdi Army control. The fighting has spread to Baghdad and the southern provinces. The Knights' Assault is an Iraqi-led operation, and was ordered directly by Prime Minister...

The controversy over Iran's involvement with the Shia continues to rage in the media. Late this week, a report indicated the top leaders at Multinational Forces Iraq believe Iran has ended its support for the Shia terror groups attacking Iraqi and Coalition forces. This report was incorrect. As the debate over Iran's involvement in Iraq's violence continues, Coalition special forces continue to target Iranian Qods Force-backed Special Groups cell On January 3, The Washington Times reported that Colonel Steven Boylan, the spokesman for General David Petraeus said Iran's leadership has cut off support for the Special Groups. We are ready...

US and Iraq forces continue to target the Iranian-backed Special Groups in southern and central Iraq. The latest raid in Al Kut in Wasit province resulted in 11 Special Groups fighters killed, Multinational Forces Iraq reported. Al Kut, a logistical hub for the Special Groups and center of power for Muqtada al Sadr's Mahdi Army, has seen an uptick in activity over the past two weeks. Today's raid in Al Kut targeted "a Special Groups criminal element member reportedly responsible for attacks against Coalition forces and supporters of Coalition forces" who "was also reportedly an associate of criminal element leaders...

An Iraqi National Policeman walks past one of the cars damaged in the triple bombing attack in Amarah. Reuters photo. The city of Amarah in Iraq's Shia South was rocked by a string of coordinated car bomb attacks designed to kill civilians. At least 41 civilians were killed and over 140 wound after three car bombs were detonated in a market in Amarah. It is unclear if the attack was carried out by al Qaeda in Iraq or the Iranian-backed Special Groups terror cells. The three bombs were detonated in a manner to inflict maximum casualties. A small blast...

Coalition forces capture Special Groups leader, 11 detained (Baghdad) Tuesday, 11 December 2007 MULTI-NATIONAL FORCE-IRAQPRESS DESKBAGHDAD, Iraqhttp://www.mnf-iraq.com703.343.8790    Press Release A071211bDecember 11, 2007Coalition forces capture Special Groups leader, 11 detainedBAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces captured a suspected Special Groups criminal element leader and detained ten other suspects during operations early Tuesday in the Baghdad area. The targeted individual reportedly supervised criminal splinter group trainers throughout Iraq. He allegedly coordinated the explosively formed penetrator, improvised explosive device, operational security and computer security training of numerous criminals, and was personally responsible for paying each trainer every month. He also reportedly directed his cell to...

CBNNews.com - The Pentagon has said the security situation in Iraq is rapidly improving, with deaths among coalition forces dropping the past five months. Last month it was said casualties declined to the lowest level since February 2004. Iraqi civilian deaths are also down and much of the progress has been attributed to a recent troop surge. Michael Yon has been embedded with coalition forces in Iraq and runs a blog reporting from the front lines there. He spoke with CBN News on his observations of changes in the country. Click the play button for his comments.

The Long War Journal: Raid in Baghdad's Sadr City kills 49 Special Groups operatives Written by Bill Roggio on October 21, 2007 9:57 AM to The Long War Journal Available online at: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2007/10/raid_in_baghdads_sad.php Sadr delivers sermon in Kufa after returning from Iran in May. [AP Photo] Click to view. Multinational Forces Iraq conducted a major raid in Baghdad's Sadr City. Forty-nine Special Groups operatives were killed in a nighttime raid targeting a cell leader of the Iranian-backed Shia terror group. Coalition forces, often the cover name given to the special operations forces hunter-killer teams of Task Force 88, met heavy...

BAGHDAD – Iraqi Army Soldiers, with U.S. Special Forces as advisors, detained a cell leader of the rogue Jaysh al-Mahdi militia near the southwest neighborhood of Bayaa in Baghdad, July 26. The Iraqi Soldiers detained their primary suspect without incident during the early morning operation in Baghdad. The primary suspect is believed to command a rogue JAM improvised explosive device cell that is allegedly responsible for attacks on Coalition Forces. He is also alleged to have received financial support and explosively formed penetrators from Iran, which were distributed to other JAM cell members in the Bayaa and Aamel areas of...

A Glimpse Ahead Timothy Snodgrass The Impossible Will Come Alive In 2005 01/28/05 In January of 2004, as we began to intercede for the New Year the Holy Spirit gave us the prophetic slogan, "The Seas will Roar in 2004". This year we were given a new slogan, "The Impossible will come Alive in 2005". As the veil of darkness begins to come down over nations and regions, along with great shakings will come great breakthroughs; signs, wonders, healings and a spectacular release of miracles in impossible circumstances. This year, although we are ultimately poised to gain much ground, there...

New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has long been rumored as desperately seeking the democratic nomination for president in 2008. And while many political observers fully expect the power hungry former First Lady to hit the campaign trail within only a few months of being re-elected as a US Senator in 2006, US News & World report claims to have a confirmation of sorts. From USNews.Com's Washington Whispers: Hillary's in… You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends...

<p>I was trying to recall the exact moment I lost interest in the 2004 presidential race. It was March 7, the day The New York Times published Maureen Dowd's gushing paean to John Kerry.</p> <p>Dowd gloried in the "vast palette of cultural preferences" that paint the Kerry persona. Why, he not only reads Keats and Shelley and T.S. Eliot, he writes his own verse on the "barren desolation of the desert."</p>

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Iraq could try to jam U.S. military satellite signals during a possible invasion, but the United States has defenses against such attempts, Pentagon officials said Wednesday. Indonesia reportedly jammed signals from a commercial satellite leased by the Pacific nation of Tonga in 1997, and Iraq could try to do the same thing, said the Air Force's space operations director, Brig. Gen. Franklin Blaisdell. Iraq also reportedly is seeking ways to jam the Global Positioning Satellite signals that help guide U.S. bombs. "Any enemy that would depend on GPS jammers for their livelihood is in grave trouble," Blaisdell said at a...

When all those limos pull up to the red carpet at the Oscars this month, some will be outfitted more elaborately than the stars. Beneath their shiny exteriors is the hottest new automotive accessory—bulletproof armor. Just ask David Seelinger, president of Secure Car Worldwide. He’s struggling to keep up with calls from VIPs eager to pay $2,000 a day to ride in his steel-plated limos. CEOS ARE ARMORING themselves against terrorism, movie stars are getting death threats and rappers fear assassination. To keep up with demand, Seelinger has more than tripled his armored fleet to 10 cars. “This is absolutely...

My self search...or, "My Comments" is jammed. Keeps showing "New Posts to You" even though I'm read them all.

Defects in NYPD handguns Half subject to jamming By BOB KAPPSTATTER and ALICE McQUILLAN DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS Tuesday, August 20th, 2002 More than half of the Police Department's handguns are subject to jam without warning, a potentially dangerous flaw that can leave the weapons as "useless as paperweights," police sources said. Although the jamming is rare, the NYPD has been concerned enough to order a recall of 24,000 semiautomatic Glock handguns so they can be refitted. This problem affects the Glock Model 19S - the gun carried by about 60% of the department's 39,000 officers. The flaw, in which...