Thursday, August 09, 2007
U.S. commander - Iranian explosives undermining security in Iraq
Security
(CNN) -- An increasing number of attacks using an Iranian-based explosive is undermining security in Iraq, a senior U.S. military commander said Wednesday. The attacks come amid a diplomatic push by the United States to encourage Iranians to help improve the security situation in Iraq. Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno told CNN that weapons of Iranian origin, such as bombs called explosively formed projectiles, are making their way into Iraq.
There were 99 EFP attacks in Iraq in July -- the most since counting began in December, Odierno said. That type of explosive accounted for one-third of the 79 U.S. troop deaths last month, he said. The military says both parts for the weapons and the weapons themselves are being brought across the border. The United States can't prove that Iran's central government is responsible for providing the weaponry, but officials have been saying for months that such activity is being conducted by Iran's Revolutionary Guards-Quds Force.
Iran officially has denied being involved in promoting insurgent activity, but some U.S. officials think the country's senior leaders must be aware of the activity if the Quds Force is involved. Asked about the EFP numbers, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters Wednesday that "we have not yet seen any positive results from the Iranians" and that at future meetings, "we will convey that we have not seen any positive developments."
Odierno said the United States is taking defensive action against the attacks, specifically by targeting Shiite extremist cells in Baghdad. "We continue to go after these EFP networks in Baghdad and all over the country," he said. Additionally, new armored vehicles are being shipped to Iraq. More than 17,000 are needed in Iraq, but right now there are only about 200, the Pentagon says.
Iran -- which says the huge border with Iraq is porous and has acknowledged that smugglers and black marketers do traverse it -- frequently likens the dilemma with problems the United States faces along its vast border with Mexico.
Military officials have said for weeks that they expect as many weapons as possible to be shipped from Iran to Iraq before September, when Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker issue a report about progress there. The thinking is that Iran intends to make it look like the United States is not making any progress.
In addition to the Iranian-based explosives, military elements in Iran are also hurting Iraq's security, Odierno said. Insurgents trained in Iran have been firing rockets and mortars at Baghdad's Green Zone with greater precision, and money from Iran is ending up in the hands of Iraqi insurgents, he said.
All of this comes as a thaw has unfolded between the United States and Iran, which have been meeting in Iraq to discuss security. The ambassadors have met and a subcommittee has been formed to deal with security matters that have popped up. Iraq has spearheaded the effort. Officials have said the United States has made its position about Iranian involvement clear in the meetings, the last of which was Monday. Additionally, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was visiting Iran, where he was discussing security and other matters with officials there.
There were 99 EFP attacks in Iraq in July -- the most since counting began in December, Odierno said. That type of explosive accounted for one-third of the 79 U.S. troop deaths last month, he said. The military says both parts for the weapons and the weapons themselves are being brought across the border. The United States can't prove that Iran's central government is responsible for providing the weaponry, but officials have been saying for months that such activity is being conducted by Iran's Revolutionary Guards-Quds Force.
Iran officially has denied being involved in promoting insurgent activity, but some U.S. officials think the country's senior leaders must be aware of the activity if the Quds Force is involved. Asked about the EFP numbers, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters Wednesday that "we have not yet seen any positive results from the Iranians" and that at future meetings, "we will convey that we have not seen any positive developments."
Odierno said the United States is taking defensive action against the attacks, specifically by targeting Shiite extremist cells in Baghdad. "We continue to go after these EFP networks in Baghdad and all over the country," he said. Additionally, new armored vehicles are being shipped to Iraq. More than 17,000 are needed in Iraq, but right now there are only about 200, the Pentagon says.
Iran -- which says the huge border with Iraq is porous and has acknowledged that smugglers and black marketers do traverse it -- frequently likens the dilemma with problems the United States faces along its vast border with Mexico.
Military officials have said for weeks that they expect as many weapons as possible to be shipped from Iran to Iraq before September, when Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker issue a report about progress there. The thinking is that Iran intends to make it look like the United States is not making any progress.
In addition to the Iranian-based explosives, military elements in Iran are also hurting Iraq's security, Odierno said. Insurgents trained in Iran have been firing rockets and mortars at Baghdad's Green Zone with greater precision, and money from Iran is ending up in the hands of Iraqi insurgents, he said.
All of this comes as a thaw has unfolded between the United States and Iran, which have been meeting in Iraq to discuss security. The ambassadors have met and a subcommittee has been formed to deal with security matters that have popped up. Iraq has spearheaded the effort. Officials have said the United States has made its position about Iranian involvement clear in the meetings, the last of which was Monday. Additionally, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was visiting Iran, where he was discussing security and other matters with officials there.
Labels: EFPs, explosively formed projectiles, Green Zone, Iran, Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, MRAPS, Quds Force, Revolutionary Guards
Thursday, August 02, 2007
U.S. - $5.3 billion for mine resistant vehicles for Iraq
Military
(AP) -- The White House asked Congress Tuesday for $5.3 billion for new vehicles that are better able to withstand roadside bombs in Iraq. The $5.3 billion request for the vehicles - whose V-shaped undercarriages deflect roadside bomb blasts - will help get production lines humming at full capacity.
The funding comes on top of $5.6 billion already approved for 6,400 mine-resistant vehicles and will be added to the Pentagon's $141.7 billion request for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the budget year beginning Oct. 1. The additional money would help pay for those vehicles and purchase an additional 1,520 of them, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told the House Budget Committee.
Procurement of mine-resistant, ambush-protected, or MRAP, vehicles that have been saving lives in roadside bomb attacks has been a politically sensitive issue, with Republicans and Democrats alike demanding the Pentagon do more to protect troops from roadside bombs.
Congress has led the way in funding the MRAPs, the latest White House request coming only as the House is about to take up a huge Pentagon funding measure containing more than $4 billion for them. The White House requested just $400 million in its February budget.
The requests brings the budget for Pentagon operations in Iraq and Afghanistan in the 2008 budget year to $147 billion, said Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who chairs a spending panel responsible for the Pentagon and Iraq war budgets. But that figure is likely to jump to more than $170 billion, Murtha said, citing the rapid pace of Pentagon spending in Iraq.
The funding comes on top of $5.6 billion already approved for 6,400 mine-resistant vehicles and will be added to the Pentagon's $141.7 billion request for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the budget year beginning Oct. 1. The additional money would help pay for those vehicles and purchase an additional 1,520 of them, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told the House Budget Committee.
Procurement of mine-resistant, ambush-protected, or MRAP, vehicles that have been saving lives in roadside bomb attacks has been a politically sensitive issue, with Republicans and Democrats alike demanding the Pentagon do more to protect troops from roadside bombs.
Congress has led the way in funding the MRAPs, the latest White House request coming only as the House is about to take up a huge Pentagon funding measure containing more than $4 billion for them. The White House requested just $400 million in its February budget.
The requests brings the budget for Pentagon operations in Iraq and Afghanistan in the 2008 budget year to $147 billion, said Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who chairs a spending panel responsible for the Pentagon and Iraq war budgets. But that figure is likely to jump to more than $170 billion, Murtha said, citing the rapid pace of Pentagon spending in Iraq.
Labels: Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, MRAPS
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Pentagon finds $1.2 bn. for mine resistant vehicles for Iraq
Security
(McClatchy Newspapers) - Military to buy Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, or MRAPs for use in Iraq Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, shifting money among the military branches, has come up with another $1.2 billion to supply troops in Iraq and Afghanistan with special armored vehicles that are built to withstand explosive devices and mines.
The money, which awaits a sign-off by key committee chairmen in Congress, would allow the military to order another 2,650 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles. Officials think that the vehicles are best equipped to fend off improvised explosive devices, the most common type of weapon launched against soldiers in the two countries.
Gates has said that getting more of the special vehicles to Iraq and Afghanistan is his highest priority, since such homemade bombs are responsible for 70 percent of U.S. casualties. Three times heavier than armored Humvees, MRAPs have V-shaped hulls designed to deflect blasts from below.
The money, which awaits a sign-off by key committee chairmen in Congress, would allow the military to order another 2,650 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles. Officials think that the vehicles are best equipped to fend off improvised explosive devices, the most common type of weapon launched against soldiers in the two countries.
Gates has said that getting more of the special vehicles to Iraq and Afghanistan is his highest priority, since such homemade bombs are responsible for 70 percent of U.S. casualties. Three times heavier than armored Humvees, MRAPs have V-shaped hulls designed to deflect blasts from below.
Labels: IEDs, Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, MRAPS, Robert Gates
Monday, May 14, 2007
Questions raised on vulnerability of Strykers
Security
(AP) - A string of heavy losses from powerful roadside bombs has raised new questions about the vulnerability of the Stryker, the Army's troop-carrying vehicle hailed by supporters as the key to a leaner, more mobile force.
Since the Strykers went into action in violent Diyala province north of Baghdad two months ago, losses of the vehicles have been rising steadily, U.S. officials said.
A single infantry company in Diyala lost five Strykers this month in less than a week, according to soldiers familiar with the losses, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to release the information. The overall number of Strykers lost recently is classified. In one of the biggest hits, six American soldiers and a journalist were killed when a huge bomb exploded beneath their Stryker on May 6. It was the biggest one-day loss for the battalion in more than two years.
"We went for several months with no losses and were very proud of that," a senior Army official said in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to comment publicly. "Since then, there have been quite a few Stryker losses. They are learning how to defeat them," the Army official said of Iraqi insurgents.
The military introduced the eight-wheeled Stryker in 1999 as the cornerstone of a ground force of the future - hoping to create faster, more agile armored units than tank-equipped units, but with more firepower and protection than light-infantry units. The Army has ordered nearly 2,900 vehicles for its $13 billion Stryker program.
Since the Strykers went into action in violent Diyala province north of Baghdad two months ago, losses of the vehicles have been rising steadily, U.S. officials said.
A single infantry company in Diyala lost five Strykers this month in less than a week, according to soldiers familiar with the losses, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to release the information. The overall number of Strykers lost recently is classified. In one of the biggest hits, six American soldiers and a journalist were killed when a huge bomb exploded beneath their Stryker on May 6. It was the biggest one-day loss for the battalion in more than two years.
"We went for several months with no losses and were very proud of that," a senior Army official said in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to comment publicly. "Since then, there have been quite a few Stryker losses. They are learning how to defeat them," the Army official said of Iraqi insurgents.
The military introduced the eight-wheeled Stryker in 1999 as the cornerstone of a ground force of the future - hoping to create faster, more agile armored units than tank-equipped units, but with more firepower and protection than light-infantry units. The Army has ordered nearly 2,900 vehicles for its $13 billion Stryker program.
The Army and Marine Corps already are pushing for new Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, or MRAPS, whose V-shaped hulls are designed to deflect bomb blasts outward, rather than through the vehicle. The Pentagon has requested nearly 7,800 of the new vehicles at a cost of $8.4 billion and is considering ordering thousands more to give soldiers better protection.
Labels: Diyala, Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, MRAPS, Stryker
