Military News « Feral Jundi

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Iraq: U.S. Military Rushes Bomb Dogs To Iraq

Filed under: Iraq,Military News — Tags: bomb sniffing, Dogs, Iraq, Military News — Matt @ 2:01 PM

Now if we can actually get the Iraqis to play nicely with the puppies, we can really celebrate. But somehow I have this vision of the dogs being neglected or ‘accidently’ dying or running away under the control of the Iraqis. Maybe not, and I certainly hope they can man up and make friends with the dog. Because that animal, if taken care of properly, will certainly be more effective than those idiotic bomb detecting wands that they have been using. (eyes rolling) –Matt

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US military rushes bomb dogs to Iraq

Feb 4 2010

By CHELSEA J. CARTER

BAGHDAD (AP) – The American military is stepping up the delivery of bomb-sniffing dogs to Iraq with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government under pressure for using equipment that may be ineffective in finding explosives.

The first 25 of 145 trained bomb-detection dogs are due to arrive Friday in Baghdad, Army Maj. Sylvester Wegwu told The Associated Press. The remaining 120 dogs will be delivered over the course of a year, said Wegwu, who works as military adviser to the Baghdad Police College.

The airlift follows a request to the U.S. military from Iraqi officials for more of the trained dogs, signaling that Iraq is looking to use other bomb-detection methods after questions were raised about the capabilities of a wand-like, bomb-detection device widely used at checkpoints across Iraq.

The dogs will be paired with Iraqi police handlers at the college and will undergo training as a team.

The dogs’ arrival comes as U.S. and Iraqi officials warn of a possible increase in violence ahead of national elections slated for March 7.

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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Afghanistan: Tribe To Fight Taliban In Return For Aid From U.S.

Filed under: Afghanistan,Military News — Tags: Afghanistan, Jezailchis Scouts, Jim Gant, Military News, pseudo operations, Shinwari tribe, Taliban, tribal engagement teams — Matt @ 11:32 AM

This is good news, if in fact these guys want to oppose the Taliban. Boy, a 400,000 strong tribe is impressive, and 1 million dollars in aid for their loyalty is a good deal in my book. Now will they actually produce and truly run the Taliban out of town is the big question? Now would be an excellent time to keep on ODA team right there with these tribal leaders, and ensure that we get what we paid for. Some of that TET that Jim Gant was talking about. Hell, throw in a couple of shotguns as gifts, and lets fire this thing up.

I would be curious to hear what all the Afghan hands have to say about this latest deal. Also, this would be a prime opportunity to get a few folks from this tribe to help in a pseudo operations. Or they could set up a Jezailchis Scout program, and give a little capability to the tribe. The point is, if these folks are serious about joining the fight, then we should be taking full advantage of that. –Matt

Edit: Check out Tim’s post about the subject here.

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Afghan Tribe to Fight Taliban in Return for Aid From U.S.

January 28, 2010

By DEXTER FILKINS

JALALABAD, Afghanistan — The leaders of one of the largest Pashtun tribes in a Taliban stronghold said Wednesday that they had agreed to support the American-backed government, battle insurgents and burn down the home of any Afghan who harbored Taliban guerrillas.

Elders from the Shinwari tribe, which represents about 400,000 people in eastern Afghanistan, also pledged to send at least one military-age male in each family to the Afghan Army or the police in the event of a Taliban attack.

In exchange for their support, American commanders agreed to channel $1 million in development projects directly to the tribal leaders and bypass the local Afghan government, which is widely seen as corrupt.

“The Taliban have been trying to destroy our tribe, and they are taking money from us, and they are taking our sons to fight,” said Malik Niaz, a Shinwari elder. “If they defy us now, we will defeat them.”

The pact appears to be the first in which an entire Pashtun tribe has declared war on Taliban insurgents.

But the agreement, though promising, is fragile at best. Afghan loyalties are historically fluid, and in the past the government has been unable to prevent Taliban retaliation. The agreement may also be hard to replicate, since it arose from a specific local dispute and economic tensions with the Taliban.

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Sunday, January 24, 2010

Military News: Marines’ Iraq Command Ends–Job Well Done!!!

Filed under: Iraq,Military News — Tags: Anbar, end of mission, Iraq, Marines, shia, sunni — Matt @ 4:11 AM

Well to make up for Avatar, or the lack of coverage by the media, I hope I can at least spread the good word here on FJ. Seven years of blood, guts and tears, fighting their way through the insurgent infested towns of western Iraq, and getting the job done with some authority. That is the kind of awesomeness I would like to see the film industry take on. The work the Marines did in the Anbar was close to miraculous, and here is a big Semper Fi to all of you hard chargers that made that happen. –Matt

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Marines’ Iraq command ends

By Adam Schreck

Saturday Jan 23, 2010

RAMADI, Iraq — The Marines marked the end of nearly seven years in Iraq on Saturday by handing the Army their command of Anbar province, once one of the war’s fiercest battlefields but now a centerpiece of U.S.-Iraqi cooperation.

The changing of the guard — overseen by military brass and some of Anbar’s influential Sunni sheiks — signals the start of an accelerated drawdown of American troops as the U.S. increasingly shifts its focus to the war in Afghanistan.

American commanders are trumpeting security gains in places such as the western Anbar province as a sign that their partnership with Iraqi security forces is working, and that the local troops can keep the country safe.

But fears are growing about a possible resurgence in sectarian tensions — fed by the Shiite-dominated government’s plans to blacklist more than 500 parliamentary candidates over suspected links to Saddam Hussein’s regime.

In Baghdad, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met with Iraq’s leaders Saturday to try to alleviate the pressures. While he kept expectations of a breakthrough low — telling reporters after a meeting with President Jalal Talabani it was up to the Iraqis, not him, to resolve the issue — his visit alone underscored Washington’s concern.

The White House worries the bans could raise questions over the fairness of the March 7 parliamentary election, which is seen as an important step in the American pullout timetable and a way to break political stalemates over key issues such as dividing Iraq’s oil revenue.

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Film: Cameron Says Avatar Not A Slam On Corps? Oh Really?

Filed under: Film,Military News — Tags: 3D, Avatar, Film, James Cameron, Marines, war — Matt @ 3:51 AM

Why is it that most of the characters in the movie, to include the main character, are former Marines? You have laced the fabric of your movie with everything Marine, and then you put a PMC bow on top of it and say ‘oh, we aren’t slamming the Marines’. Oh really?

Not to mention that he tries to make out the main character of the film, as the hero, because he turned on his fellow Marines or ‘mercenaries’ (whatever is convenient for Cameron) during the process. We have a term for that in the real world, and that is called traitor.

By the way, am I immoral because I am a former Marine, and I also protect people and things in war zones as a civilian security contractor? Do I get to be the hero in Cameron’s eyes, if I switch sides in this war and kill whomever I am guarding or working with? With this twisted movie plot logic, that would make Maj. Hasan of the Ft. Hood incident a hero. I love how Hollywood works. When are we going to see some good movies that celebrate the military and their service in this war, as opposed to this crap?

Finally, if Cameron was really interested in appeasing the Marines for his 3D traitor movie, he would donate a ton of money to some Marine wounded warriors. Thats if they would even take the money. –Matt

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Cameron: ‘Avatar’ not slam on Corps

By James K. Sanborn

Saturday Jan 23, 2010

James Cameron’s “Avatar” has been met with enthusiasm by audiences across the globe. But despite commercial success, the film has been the target of some who see it as an affront to the Marine Corps.

Cameron tells Marine Corps Times that “Avatar” was meant in part to pay homage to the Corps.

“The highly sympathetic main character of the film … is a former Marine,” Cameron said in an e-mail. “His courage in the face of overwhelming odds makes him a hero of mythic proportions by the end of the story.”

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Friday, January 22, 2010

Weapons Stuff: Bible Versus On Trijicon Scopes? Who Cares….

Filed under: Military News,Weapons Stuff — Tags: , ACOG, bible versus, JN 8:12, Military News, Trijicon — Matt @ 7:33 AM

I am ashamed at the reaction the military ‘PC police’ is having towards this. So I guess the dollars that we spent on purchasing these scopes should have the ‘In God We Trust’ part removed as well? Also, get rid of all of those chaplains and the thousands of bibles that are handed out to the military too. The political correctness in our military and society is killing me. This same political correctness is what allowed Major Hasan to get as far as he did in our military, and do his deed at Ft. Hood, and there comes a point where someone in charge needs to make a stand.

From a collector’s point of view, I think this is pretty cool, and now I am glad I have an ACOG with that little JN 8:12 on it. Not because I am a religious guy, but because the value of my scope just doubled. It will probably triple in value, and in twenty or thirty years from now, collectors will be drooling over these things. So with that, I will gladly keep using my ACOG for work, just in spite of this ridiculous reaction to ‘bible versus on scopes’. Ridiculous. That is my take on the whole thing, and I guarantee that I am not alone in that thinking.

The really frustrating part about all of this, is that soldiers will have to turn in scopes so the little inscription could be removed. Thousands of scopes with armorers dedicating valuable time to this idiotic task, when instead they could be working on more important tasks like changing out barrels or tuning up weapons. Ridiculous. –Matt

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CNN

Company offers to stop putting biblical references on military scopes

January 21, 2010

(CNN) — A manufacturer that has been inscribing Bible references on rifle sights used by U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan announced Thursday that it will stop putting scripture references on products the U.S. military uses.

Gen. David Petraeus, commander of United States Central Command, said Wednesday — apparently before learning of the company’s announcement — that the references were a “big concern” to the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps, which have contracts for the scopes.

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