Iraq: Virginia National Guard Calvary unit makes final preparations to leave Iraq

By Army Reserve Spc. Anthony Zane
Army Reserve

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq – With Operation New Dawn coming to an end, the Virginia Army National Guard exited Iraq in its final convoy out of here Friday.

"We were a convoy escort team," said Army Staff Sgt. Raymond Bunch, a convoy commander with Able Troop, 2nd Squadron, 183rd Cavalry Regiment.

"We would pick up logistic supplies … and escort them from one base to another to their final destination."

Soldiers' equipment and vehicles were inspected and made ready for the final journey.

Able Troop prepared to leave the base and head south across the border into Kuwait, and start turning in all of our gear for our end of deployment, said Bunch.

The mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles the unit will convoy out of the country in had been lined up just outside the Soldier living area.

"Our squadron was all housed here," Bunch said. "Our squadron tactical operation center was right across the road, and the main motor pool was behind there. That's why we've moved all the vehicles over here – to be closer to the containerized housing units and [to] get everything out."

The unit was scheduled to leave earlier, but stayed on after being tasked with a few last missions.

"Things got pushed along," said Bunch. "We ended up having to run a few more missions, and it seems like every time we thought we were running our last mission, they said, 'We need you to run one more.' And of course, the needs of the Army come first."

The convoys throughout the deployment were successful, although Soldiers had to learn new tasks and responsibilities for the mission.

"Able Troop itself is just a conglomeration of where they pulled a whole bunch of people from across the state to make this [mission] come together," Bunch said. "Military occupational specialties and people [who] aren't necessarily used to working together had to come together quick and learn a whole new role than what any of us were trained for. I think we did an excellent job in doing that."

This is the final mission preparation for Able Troop.

"Today is a culmination of everything we've done," said Army Cpl. Josh Brainard, a vehicle commander, 2nd Squadron, 183rd Cavalry Regiment here Friday. "Now, it's our final convoy to Kuwait, to leave today."

Essentially what they did to prepare for departure was like a regular mission preparation, Brainard said.

They had to inspect the vehicles, lay out medical equipment, organize their weapons cleaning kits, and everything else – safety gear, meals-ready-to-eat and water – to be inspected for this mission, he said.

All of this is ultimately for the trip home, for which many are ready for.

"I'm very, very excited," Brainard said. "My wife actually had our first child, so I'm really very anxious to get home."

The Soldiers are hopeful to be home before the holidays, Bunch said.

"Of course here at the end [the mission] is to get everybody out," he said. "And then today is the end for us. We're basically escorting ourselves out. Everybody's pumped and excited about that because we're done. We're getting ready to go home."

Senior Leaders Condemn Insurgent Suicide Attacks

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force and ISAF Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2011 – WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2011 – Afghan President Hamid Karzai and senior U.S. military and diplomatic leaders in Afghanistan jointly condemned today’s terrorist attacks in Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif that reportedly killed and wounded dozens of innocent Afghan civilians observing the Ashura religious festival, military officials reported.

“An attack against Ashura pilgrims on one of the holiest of days in the Islamic calendar is an attack against Islam itself, and we denounce and condemn these atrocities in the strongest of terms,” said Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, commander of the International Security Assistance Force. “Our prayers and deepest sympathies are with the families and loved ones of those innocent civilians killed or injured in today’s horrific attacks.”

NATO’s senior civilian representative in Afghanistan, Ambassador Simon Gass, said, "The attacks today in Afghanistan, on such an important religious day, are horrifying and to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.

“That men, women and children are killed and injured on Ashura is particularly tragic,” Gass continued. “Our prayers and condolences are with them all and their family and friends.”

“Just a few days ago,” Allen said, “20 scholars from prestigious Islamic religious centers around the world condemned violence under the name of Islam in Afghanistan and other countries.

“This insurgency, which wraps itself in a false veil of Islam, must know that killing innocent pilgrims will spell their own demise,” the general said. “Once again, I call on Mullah Omar to condemn this grotesque act of terrorism.”

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- A Haqqani network leader responsible for a recent car bomb attack was captured by a combined Afghan and coalition security force in the Pul-e ‘Alam district of Logar province.

The leader was responsible for the Dec. 2 car bomb attack in the Muhammad Aghah district, which killed a civilian and wounded nine others. One suspected insurgent also was detained.

-- A combined force captured a Taliban leader and a suspected insurgent in the Dehdadi district of Balkh province. The leader conducted attacks against Afghan forces.

-- A Taliban leader was captured by a combined Afghan and coalition security force in the Nawah-ye Barakzai district of Helmand province. The leader manufactured roadside bombs.

-- A combined force captured a Taliban insurgent and detained several suspects in the Qalat district of Zabul province.

-- In the Ghorak district of Kandahar province, a combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Taliban facilitator who distributes narcotics and roadside bomb-making materials.

-- A combined force seized bomb-making materials and detained several suspects while searching for a Taliban leader in the Khogyani district of Ghazni province. The leader directs insurgent operations in the district.

In Dec. 4 Afghanistan operations:

-- A combined force confiscated a weapons cache containing 31 pressure plates, 15 30mm rounds, nine recoilless rifle rounds, 15 pounds of explosives and electronic detonation devices in Helmand’s Kajaki district.

-- In Helmand’s Musa Qal’ ah district, a combined force seized a weapons cache containing 14 mines and one 105 mm casing with nine pounds of explosive material and metal fragments.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Ryan D. Sharp, 28, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, died Dec. 3, at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds suffered Nov. 21 at Kandahar province, when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.

For more information, please contact Fort Riley public affairs at 785-240-6359 or 785-307-0641 or via email at matthew.howard1@us.army.mil or nathaniel.s.smith@us.army.mil .

Sailor and AIM-9 Sidewinder missile

ARABIAN GULF (Dec. 3, 2011) A Sailor removes the cap from an AIM-9 Sidewinder missile attached to an F/A-18C Hornet from the Golden Dragons of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 192 aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). John C. Stennis is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility conducting maritime security operations and support missions as part of Operations Enduring Freedom and New Dawn.

(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Benjamin Crossley/Released)

Official: Sustainment Skills Key in Iraq, Afghanistan

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2011 – As the United States wraps up operations in Iraq and looks to scaling back its force in Afghanistan, a senior defense official emphasized the importance of ensuring that Iraq’s and Afghanistan’s national security forces have the maintenance and logistics capabilities they’ll need.

The U.S. goal is to leave Iraqi and Afghan national security forces able to control activity along and within their borders, John B. Johns, deputy assistant secretary of defense for maintenance policy and programs, said last week at this year’s defense logistics conference.

A huge part of that effort, Johns emphasized, is making sure the two nations are able to maintain equipment the United States and other coalition partners have sold or provided them.

“If we don’t teach them how to operate it and sustain it and what an institutional logistics system looks like that will enable them to continue to generate and sustain readiness, then we will have failed,” Johns told the audience.

“All the years we have spent in Iraq and Afghanistan will be wasted,” he said, “because we failed to train and advise them on how to sustain their military and police forces.”

Johns noted, for example, that 140 M1 Abrams tanks are to remain in Iraq when U.S. troops depart. Although the Iraqis have a long history of tank maintenance, never before have these tanks been equipped with a jet-like turbine engine.

“We all know … how jet engines survive in the middle of the desert -- or don’t survive, depending on how you maintain them,” he said.

Long-term maintenance contracts aren’t the answer, Johns said, due to the high cost of providing security for those contractors.

“It’s more expensive than the actual maintenance and supply operations,” he said. “They can’t afford it. They don’t want to afford it.”

This underscores the point that capability isn’t based solely on what the United States gives or sells to the Iraqis or Afghans, he said. “It’s generated by how we train them to operate and maintain,” he said. “And if we miss this point, … we will have made a serious mistake.”

Johns said the training models established in Iraq and Afghanistan are likely to set the stage for future U.S. engagements. Deployed U.S. maintainers and logisticians have split their focus, supporting U.S. warfighters, but also advising and training host-nation national security forces in these skill sets.

This dual-focus mission “won’t be the last,” Johns predicted, emphasizing that the United States must continue to train its own forces to conduct both missions successfully.

“At this point, the skill sets and demands required for our maintainers and logisticians to engage this way with foreign militaries is critically important,” he said, noting this involves more than just an ability to “move stuff in theater in support of U.S. operations.”

Also essential is an ability to “see cultures in a different way, [and to] step outside what we have been doing in the past and recognize what might work for a foreign police force or military,” he added.

“These skill sets don’t just happen,” he said. “And we can’t forget this.”

Combined Forces Destroy Explosives-laden Building

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2011 – A combined Afghan and coalition security force detained several suspected insurgents and destroyed an explosives-laden building during a search for a Taliban leader in the Wali Muhammad Shahid Khugyani district of Afghanistan’s Ghazni province Dec. 3, military officials reported.

The insurgent leader coordinates suicide bomb attacks and plans abductions of Afghan government officials in Ghazni province.

The security force discovered a building inside which insurgents had stored a large amount of explosives. The security force seized multiple mines, four 50-pound roadside bombs, 10 pounds of dynamite, and 20 pounds of explosives.

The village was evacuated during which time the security force safely destroyed the building and the explosives. No civilians were injured and there was no significant damage to a nearby mosque.

In other Dec. 3 Afghanistan operations:

-- In the Nahr-e Shahi district of Balkh province, a combined force detained several suspected insurgents during a search for a Taliban leader. The leader distributes roadside bombs and weapons, and plans attacks against Afghan officials.

-- A combined force captured a Taliban facilitator and six suspected insurgents in the Zharay district of Kandahar province. The facilitator provided roadside bombs, munitions and money to insurgents.

-- A combined patrol discovered five improvised explosive devices in the Now Zad district of Helmand province.

-- In the Sabari district of Khost province, a combined force killed the Haqqani leader, Burhanuddin, and another insurgent. The force also detained five suspected insurgents and confiscated five assault rifles, a pistol, multiple grenades and a chest rack.

-- A coalition airstrike killed several insurgents and wounded two others in the Tagab district of Kapisa province.

-- In the Arghandab district of Kandahar province, a combined force discovered a drug cache containing 1,000 pounds of marijuana. The drugs were destroyed.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Taliban facilitator in the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province. The facilitator provides weapons to insurgents.

-- A combined force captured a Taliban leader and two suspects in the Nawah-ye Barakzai district of Helmand province. The leader planned attacks against Afghan forces.

-- A combined force captured a Haqqani leader in the Gurbuz district of Khost province. The leader conducted roadside-bomb attacks, transported fighters and provided safe havens for insurgents.

-- In the Bati Kot district of Nagarhar province, a combined force captured a Taliban leader, detained five suspects, and confiscated several assault rifles, two grenades and two chest racks.

In Dec. 2 Afghanistan operations:

-- A combined patrol discovered a cache containing ten 107mm rockets, 19 assorted munitions, 50 artillery rounds, 337 mortar rounds, 50 mines, 800 rounds of machine-gun ammunition, 50 rocket-propelled grenades and 1,000 rounds of small-arms ammunition in the Ghazni district of Ghazni province.

-- Two coalition patrols each discovered two IEDs in Zabul province. The first patrol consisting of Afghan and Romanian troops found two IEDs south of Forward Operating Base Sweeney. The second patrol consisting of Afghan soldiers and Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team members found two IEDs south of the base.

In Dec. 1 Afghanistan operations:

-- In the Maiwand district of Kandahar province, a combined force seized a drug cache containing about 165 pounds of hashish. The drugs were destroyed at the scene.

Face of Defense: Marine’s Christmas Song Salutes Families

By Marine Corps Cpl. Brian Adam Jones
2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, Dec. 5, 2011 – During an earlier deployment to Iraq, Marine Corps Master Sgt. Robert Allen wrote and recorded a song for his wife, Carla, and sent it to her on Christmas Eve.

 “She said she bawled her eyes out when she heard it,” Allen said. “My wife can’t stand it at all when I leave, but she understands what I do. She understands being a Marine is not just my job, it’s my passion.”

Allen can be seen playing his guitar and singing, “A Marine’s Christmas Song,” on YouTube. He said his song salutes military members and their families who endure separations during the holidays.

This year, Allen is serving in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He’s the aircraft rescue firefighting chief for Marine Wing Support Squadron 371, based out of Camp Leatherneck.

Allen’s squadron, deployed from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., provides aviation ground support for 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward), the aviation combat element for the southwestern regional command of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, which encompasses Helmand and Nimruz provinces, where the Marines have centered their counterinsurgency operations.

“I joined the Marine Corps to make a difference and to be part of a force that protects my country,” said Allen, a native of Pawnee, Okla. The son of an Air Force mechanic, Allen enlisted in 1996 at age 22.

“I just wanted to be in the military, and I always knew that as a young man,” Allen said. “As I grew older, seeing Marines and hearing the stories about [the Marine Corps], the honor that came with being a United States Marine, that appealed to me.”

Allen said he began playing the guitar as a corporal stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, S.C., when his wife bought her father’s guitar.

“I started writing my own music right away, because I didn’t know anyone else’s music. I didn’t have anyone to teach me how to play, except an old music book,” Allen said. “When I was a young Marine and didn’t have money for gifts, I used to write my wife songs for anniversaries.”

There are now 12 guitars in the Allen household. His two sons -- Aaron, 17, and Aidan, 15 -- also are avid guitarists.

“My daughter is really good at playing the maracas or the tambourine,” Allen said of his 8-year-old daughter, Lainie. “She loves to jump in there, and she sings beautifully.”

Allen’s story of family awaiting his return resounds with many men and women who wear a uniform in Afghanistan.

“The Marines don’t need anything to help remind them of what they miss from back home,” Allen said. “For the spouses, they should know we’re constantly thinking about them.

“Even though we’re busy throughout the day,” he continued, “there are many times where we stop and think about home and how much we miss them -- just miss the little things that we share with them or the stuff we’re missing out on.

“Having them in our arms to hold is one of the most important things that you miss while you’re out here,” he added.

Allen said he hopes his Christmas song “will help people understand that though we’re willing to do it, it’s still heartbreaking.”

“For a military that’s willing and ready to leave their families to serve their fellow Americans, it’s all those little things that are hardest to deal with when you leave home,” Allen said.

Somali fisherman speaks with sailor

GULF OF ADEN (Nov. 28, 2011) Somali fisherman Mohamed Abdirahman Mohamud speaks with a member of the visit, board, search and seizure team from the guided-missile destroyer USS Kidd (DDG 100) during an approach and assist visit. Kidd is assigned to Combined Task Force 151, a multi-national, mission-based task force established by the Combined Maritime Forces to conduct counter-piracy operations in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Somali Basin and Arabian Sea.

(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class John Hulle/Released)

Afghanistan: 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team mission changes

ARLINGTON, Va. - The Department of Defense on Wednesday announced changes to the mission of the 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team due to reduced requirements in Afghanistan.

The 37th IBCT, 38th Infantry Division – consisting primarily of Army National Guard units from Ohio and Michigan – began mobilizing in early October 2011, for deployment to Afghanistan.

All of the re-missioned 37th Soldiers will be serving in various security force assignments guarding U.S. forces and facilities in both Afghanistan and Bahrain.

The National Guard has mobilized more than 700,000 Soldiers and Airmen in support of overseas contingency operations and domestic operations since Sept. 11, 2001, some more than once.

There are 26,000 National Guard soldiers currently mobilized and deployed supporting the Operation New Dawn and/or Operation Enduring Freedom missions.

The Department of Defense understands that members of the National Guard make major commitments when they are mobilized, often leaving jobs and school, terminating leases, and moving families in advance of deployment.

Employers, schools and families must make plans months in advance for deployments that routinely last longer than a year. Whenever possible, we will find suitable alternate missions for mobilized units affected by changing requirements.

DoD will continue to announce major unit deployments and mission changes as they are identified, and those units are alerted.

Logisticians Position State Department for Success in Iraq

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2011 – As the logistical drawdown continues full-steam-ahead in Iraq, U.S. Transportation Command is working with the Joint Staff and Defense Logistics Agency to ensure the State Department has what it needs to continue the mission there, Transcom’s deputy commander said yesterday.

Defense and State department leaders are working together to ensure the needed capabilities remain on the ground for a smooth transition to a civilian-led mission, Army Lt. Gen. Kathleen M. Gainey told attendees here at this year’s Defense Logistics Conference.

"We sat down with [State Department leaders] and said, 'What is it you want to be able to do, then we translated that into what type of equipment was needed,'" Gainey said. "So we worked with them to ensure that equipment would be left in theater."

As the last U.S. troops on the ground depart by Dec. 31 in accordance with the 2008 U.S.-Iraq security agreement, she said, designated equipment is being transferred to the U.S. Embassy to support the civilian-led mission.

In addition, she added, the Defense Department is assessing what contracts it has in place in Iraq that the State Department can leverage. Gainey cited contracts for fuel, prime vendor food and mail delivery that can support the embassy-led mission.

With the exodus of military medical capability, she said, contract medical personnel will be required to provide hospital care, and when required, medevac and aeromedical evacuation support.

The changing environment in Iraq highlights the need for flexibility in providing an effective, efficient supply chain, Gainey said. That includes reliance on some of the efficiency measures that Transcom, based at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., and the Defense Logistics Agency, based at Fort Belvoir, Va., are introducing worldwide, she said. But in many cases, she added, it relies on forward-based warehouses and distribution points that may no longer exist.

"We need to constantly revisit assumptions and capabilities and see where we have taken lessons learned and inculcated them into our business progresses and changed the rules," she said. "But the rules need to be flexible .... They may have to change based on the lay of the land, where forces are and the infrastructure. We don't want to be so rigid that we can't fall back, when appropriate."

Gainey reported solid success at Transcom as it implements an initiative started in 2008 to improve end-to-end delivery to warfighters while saving costs where possible. The goal, she explained, is to "provide better capability and meet the requirements of our warfighters, but also try and do it in the most effective manner and with greater efficiencies."

That effort is three-pronged, she said, and involves improving processes and optimizing both surface and air deliveries.

Gainey reported $162 million in cost savings already, and said Transcom is "right on track" to reach its goal of $500 million in savings by the end of 2012.

While keeping a close eye on ways to improve the bottom line, Gainey emphasized that warfighters’ needs always will come first. The idea, she said, is to give warfighters options so they can weigh in to the decision-making process. For example, she posited, is a specific piece of equipment needed immediately, or would it be acceptable for it to arrive within a few days?

"There are different ways to do things: an expensive way and a cheap way," Gainey said. "We cannot sacrifice effectiveness for the warfighter. But we can show them what the options are and ask them, 'If you are willing to do this and wait two more days for this, here's the option I can provide to save money.'"

Improving the transportation and distribution process and making it more efficient requires an enterprise approach, she said.

"We want to deliver better capability," Gainey said. "We want to ensure that we inculcate a cost culture, but not forgetting about effectiveness and giving the warfighters options for them to choose."

Face of Defense: Army Captain Earns Soldier’s Medal

By Army Staff Sgt. Joe Armas
1st Cavalry Division

CAMP MARMAL, Afghanistan, Dec. 2, 2011 – An officer assigned to the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, was awarded the Army’s most prestigious peacetime award for valor, the Soldier’s Medal, during a ceremony here Dec. 1.

Army Capt. Dennis Edwards received the award for his efforts to extract two drivers whose vehicles had caught fire during a traffic accident in Killeen, Texas, on the morning of Jan. 27, 2011, according to the citation.

Edwards, who hails from Baton Rouge, La., was on his way to work when he was at a stoplight and two vehicles collided on the other side of the intersection.

Edwards recounted his initial shock when the crash occurred.

“Initially, it took me back for a second,” he said.” I couldn’t believe that both vehicles had burst into flames.

“As I approached the first vehicle,” he continued, “all I could think to myself was that I had to react quickly to get both of the drivers out of those vehicles.”

When Edwards approached the first vehicle, he said his initial intention was to extract the driver from the driver’s side door.

But “there was too much fire on that side of the car, so I had to resort to the passenger side,” Edwards said.

After extracting the passenger from the first vehicle, Edwards dashed to the second vehicle, and with the assistance of some other people who were at the accident scene, he extracted the driver of the sedan which was also in flames. After Edwards had repositioned both drivers away from the crash scene, one of the individuals who had assisted him called 911 and fire trucks soon rolled into the area to extinguish the fires.

Army Lt. Col William Huff, Edwards’ supervisor, saw Edwards later that day. Huff said he was in awe of Edwards’ subdued demeanor.

“He maintained his calm and cool, collective attitude the whole time; he was absolutely unflappable,” Huff said.

Huff said Edwards had called in late that morning and hadn’t mentioned anything about the accident.

“Come to find out, he was late because he was saving someone’s life,” Huff said. “He was thinking about his impact on the mission; he’s the epitome of selfless service.”

Moreover, it took an act of selfless service for Edwards to be awarded the Soldier’s Medal. According to Army Regulation 600-8-22, Edwards’ actions in earning the award, “must have involved personal hazard or danger and the voluntary risk of life under conditions not involving conflict with an armed enemy.”

Huff said Edwards deserves the medal.

“Without thinking twice about his own personal safety, he ran across that intersection without hesitation to pull both drivers out of those vehicles,” Huff said. “It just speaks volumes about his professionalism.”

Edwards said the experience was one he would never forget.

“I learned a lot from that day -- especially to not take the little things in life for granted,” he said.

Edwards received the award from Army Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, commander of International Security Assistance Force Joint Command.

“It’s an absolute honor to receive this award,” said Edwards, who joined former secretary of state and retired four-star Army Gen. Colin Powell as a fellow recipient of the prestigious honor.

San Diego Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to al Shabaab

SAN DIEGO—Nima Yusuf, 25, a resident of San Diego, pleaded guilty today in federal court in San Diego to conspiring to provide material support to al Shabaab, a foreign terrorist organization, U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy announced. Yusuf entered her plea before Magistrate Judge Ruben B. Brooks, and the plea is subject to final acceptance by U.S. District Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz at or before sentencing.

As part of her plea, Yusuf admitted that she entered into an agreement with Mohamed Abdullahi Hassan, Abdisalan Hussein Ali, Cabdulaahi Ahmed Faarax, and Abdiweili Yassin Isse to provide material support to al Shabaab in the form of money and personnel to work under the direction and control of al Shabaab. Yusuf admitted that she entered this agreement despite knowing that the United States had designated al Shabaab as a foreign terrorist organization and that it was illegal to provide money or other material support to al Shabaab.

Hassan, Ali, Faarax and Isse are charged separately in a federal grand jury indictment in Minnesota for conspiring to provide material support to al Shabaab, among other offenses. The Minnesota indictment also charges Faarax with solicitation to commit a crime of violence, based on his alleged recruitment of three other men to travel to Somalia to fight for al Shabaab, one of whom is believed to have carried out a suicide bombing on al Shabaab’s behalf in or about October 2008.

As part of her guilty plea, Yusuf admitted that she knew Hassan, Ali, Faarax and Isse had left the United States to join and fight for al Shabaab in Somalia. She admitted that, between approximately February 2010 and November 2010, she sent approximately $1,450 to these men, who were then fighting in Somalia for al Shabaab. She also admitted that, when she was twice interviewed by agents from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security concerning her activities, she falsely denied sending any money to Somalia.

Al Shabaab is a terrorist organization based in Somalia, with objectives including the overthrow of the Transitional Federal Government, the elimination of African Union support for the TFG and the imposition of Shari’a law in Somalia. Al Shabaab has engaged in and used violence, intimidation and acts of terrorism, including suicide bombings, in Somalia and elsewhere to further its objectives.

Yusuf is next scheduled to appear in court for sentencing on Feb. 10, 2012, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz in San Diego. She remains held without bail pending sentencing. She faces a potential maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

This investigation was conducted by the San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force and the FBI.

Biden Expresses Gratitude to U.S., Iraqi Forces

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2011 – Joined by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad yesterday, Vice President Joe Biden thanked U.S. and Iraqi armed forces for their sacrifices, commitment and success.

“I also know you gentlemen will acknowledge that America sent you the very best our country has to offer -- our young men and women, … but also their leaders,” Biden told the Iraqi leaders, praising the leadership of U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James F. Jeffrey and Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of U.S. Forces Iraq.

The vice president surveyed the U.S. and Iraqi troops assembled in Al Faw palace, all “bound together by a shared sacrifice in the service of both their countries.”

Given a mission “as complicated and as challenging as any in our history,” they adapted with the changing situation on the ground tackled everything they were asked to do, he said.

“You succeeded,” he said. “You helped defeat a tyrant, helped beat back violent extremists, and enabled the rise of a new democratic nation, and gave the Iraqi people a chance, at long last, for a better future -- a future they deserve.”

Working side by side, the U.S. troops and Iraqi security forces “have laid the foundation for a long-term, strategic partnership between our nations and also for an Iraq that, against all odds, can serve as a source of stability not only for its people, but here in the region, and for years to come,” he said.

Biden noted how far the situation in Iraq has progressed, and he acknowledged the troops’ “heroic work” that made it possible. “Because of you and the work those of you in uniform have done, we are now able to end this war,” he said.

The United States has kept its promises – to remove all U.S. troops from Iraqi cities, to end its combat mission last August and reduce its forces in Iraq to 50,000, and now, to remove all troops by the year’s end, Biden noted.

Biden shared Maliki’s observation that some have questioned whether Iraqi security forces would be ready to assume full security responsibility for their country.

“But the Iraq security forces proved to be more than ready,” he said. “You met the challenge. Throughout the downturn of United States forces and coalition forces, you kept your people safe. And violence has remained at its lowest level since 2003 -- because of you.”

Now comes a time of transition, Biden said, as the United States and Iraq explore ways to expand their relationship for the future, calling it a new chapter and a fresh start that both the Iraqi and American people want and deserve.

The strategic framework agreement between Iraq and the United States will guide this relationship, with broad cooperation across wide areas he said, noting that unlike the security agreement, it does not expire.

It represents “a fundamentally different type of relationship, grounded in civilian cooperation between equal sovereigns,” he said, and a long-term comprehensive relationship between the two nations.

“It means America will remain deeply engaged here in Iraq, and throughout the region,” he said. The United States will remain a loyal partner, he added.

Biden offered high praise for U.S. service members and Iraqi security forces for paving the way for a new generation of Iraqis to face a hopeful future with decreased violence.

“It was the sacrifice and bravery and professionalism of all of you assembled before me in uniform that made it possible,” he said. “And it will not and should not be forgotten -- either in Iraq, or in my home country of the United States of America.”

He paid special tribute to the 4,486 who made the ultimate sacrifice, and more than 30,000 who were wounded in Iraq.

“We honor their sacrifice, as well as yours, and we take immense pride and success in what you have done,” he told the assembly, noting the nation’s responsibility to care for its veterans.

“We owe you,” he said. “The only sacred obligation our nation has is to care for those who we send to war, and care for them when they come home.”

As the last of U.S. forces return home this month and their mission ends in Iraq, Biden acknowledged that the threats they confronted haven’t disappeared. He expressed confidence, however, that the Iraqis are ready to confront them.

“Iraqi security forces have been well trained [and] prepared, and you are fully capable of meeting the challenge,” he said. “And Iraq’s emerging, inclusive political culture will be the ultimate guarantor … of this stability.”

Biden challenged the Iraqis to seize the opportunity to provide their people a normal, prosperous future, knowing that the United States remains a committed partner.

“Our forces are leaving with their heads held high,” he said. “But the hard-won ties between our two nations, pray God, will live on.”

Military-Civil Partnership Shines in Helmand, Diplomat Says

By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2011 – The senior U.S. civilian representative in Afghanistan today described as “rich” and “complex” the military-civilian partnership he and others say has brought great progress to the country’s southwest region.

The State Department’s J. Paul Reid, who is located with the U.S. 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, and Michael O’Neill, the senior British civilian representative in the area, spoke to the Pentagon press corps via video teleconference about dramatic changes in Helmand province and surrounding areas.

“Anyone who wants to create a model of best practices should come here to Helmand,” Reid said of the partnership that includes U.S., British, Danish, Estonian and Afghan forces alongside the State Department and other international civilian agencies.

“We work hand-in-glove,” O’Neill agreed. “And the areas of the best progress are where communications and coordination are the closest. Teamwork is absolutely essential.”

Even people in Afghanistan have been unaware of how much things have changed in Helmand since U.S. and British Marines pushed out the Taliban and secured the area, Reid and O’Neill said. Only a few years ago, they said, Helmand was under harsh Taliban rule without government services, medical care or roads, and girls weren’t permitted to attend school.

Today, through the work of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, Helmand has a network of paved roads that make a loop through the region and extend to the Iranian border, allowing commerce to thrive and making it harder for insurgents to plant roadside bombs, they said.

Poppies -- the root of the illegal heroin trade -- are being replaced with high-value alfalfa and other crops, they said, and irrigation systems are improving agriculture.

Helmand’s residents are enjoying a closer relationship with the national government in Kabul, which has improved services and sent numerous judges, prosecutors, teachers and other public servants to the province. There are now 133 schools in Helmand, the officials said, and 20,000 of 90,000 students are girls, they said. Helmand’s elected representatives include 38 women.

“We’re in a better place today than we’ve ever been in,” Reid said.

As security improves, they said, the emphasis now is on training and bringing in foreign investments. The World Bank, United Nations, and Asia Development Bank were among the participants in a recent international donors conference, the officials said, which included two days of seminars on investment needs in construction of dams, canals, roads and other projects.

The Afghans also have made great strides toward self governance, Reid said. “We’ve moved from doing these things for them to making it possible for them to do it themselves,” he said.

Perhaps the greatest threat to sustained progress in the area is government corruption, the pair said. “It’s definitely a serious impediment to foreign investment,” Reid said, adding that he considers it the biggest obstacle to private investment in Afghanistan.

ISAF workers have been working to reduce corruption, but “ultimately, it’s a cultural shift that will have to go on” as Afghans increasingly work with the international community, Reid said.

The Afghan government will make an important showing as the sole host of the upcoming 3rd Bonn Conference on International Development Policy in Germany, O’Neill said. The conference, he said, will set the stage for other major venues for potential investment in Afghanistan, such as the NATO summit to be held in Chicago in May.

“We look to this conference to demonstrate, once again, how Afghanistan is taking control of its own destiny,” Reid said.

Marine Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Staff Sgt. Vincent J. Bell, 28, of Detroit, Mich., died Nov. 30 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.  He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

For additional background information on this Marine, news media representatives may contact the 1st Marine Division public affairs office at760-725-8766.

Biden Trip Marks New Alliance with Iraq

By Cheryl Pellerin
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2011 – Troops may be leaving Iraq by year’s end, but meetings yesterday between Vice President Joe Biden and Iraqi leaders promise continuing civilian engagement between the two sovereign nations after the end of the War in Iraq, a senior administration official said in Baghdad.

After co-chairing a meeting of the U.S.-Iraq Higher Coordinating Committee with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Biden held separate meetings with Maliki, President Jalal Talabani and Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi.

“They covered a broad array of issues in these meetings, including the transition to a civilian lead in Iraq for the United States [and] the security relationship going forward,” the official told journalists traveling with the vice president.

“They talked about the resolution of some of Iraq’s remaining international issues,” he added, including obligations under Chapter 7 of the Charter of the United Nations placed on Iraq after its 1990 invasion of and war with Kuwait, and its current relationship with Kuwait.

Biden and the Iraqi leaders, the official said, also discussed regional issues, including those involving Syria, Turkey and Iran.

On the topic of Iran, the vice president “made clear something that we’ve made clear repeatedly, which is, one, we fully expect Iraq to have a relationship with Iran,” the official said.

“There’s a long border and a long history [between the countries],” the official added, “and that is fully understood. But what is not acceptable and not understood would be to in any way allow Iran to use our presence in Iraq as a target.”

The United States has committed in the past not to use Iraq as a staging ground to act against other countries, he said, and that includes Iran.

“Reciprocally,” he added, “it is fully our expectation that the government of Iraq not allow Iraq to be used as an area to target U.S. personnel.”

Biden and the Iraqi leaders also discussed Arab-Kurd relations, internal security -- especially the need to keep pressure on violent extremist groups -- and Maliki’s visit in Washington with President Barack Obama later this month.

“All of this is very powerful evidence that the United States is not disengaging from Iraq,” the official said. “Rather, the nature of our engagement is changing from what has been a military lead to a civilian lead.”

The United States has “moved, as the vice president put it, from the security agreement that governed our military operations in Iraq to the strategic framework agreement, which is the basis for this comprehensive new relationship.”

As is the case at other embassies around the world, the official added, an Office of Security Cooperation has been established in Iraq to help Iraqis acquire and then learn how to use military equipment they buy from the United States.

In Iraq, that office will include 157 people assigned to the U.S. embassy and under the authority of the ambassador, he said, and some who might come in on individual contracts for two or three months at a time to help the Iraqis train on U.S. equipment.

“What we’re talking about going forward as possibilities of training beyond the Office of Security Cooperation includes things like … doing ongoing training of Iraqis outside of Iraq in other countries [and] integrating Iraqis into regional exercises,” the official added.

Today at Al Faw Palace at Camp Victory, Iraq, Biden spoke at an event hosted by the Iraqi government and held to honor the sacrifices of U.S. and Iraqi forces. "History will record that the liberation of our country was not only an important turning point in Iraq, but it was an important beginning for the region," Talibani said, referring to events of the Arab Spring.

Maliki thanked former President George W. Bush for signing the U.S.-Iraq status of forces agreement, which established the parameters for U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq. He also thanked Obama for seeing the agreement through.

"Because of you and the work those of you here have done, we are now able to end this war,” Biden said, adding that the Iraqi people have not and will not yield again to any kind of external domination.

Biden was presented with a medal called a “shield of commitment," as were Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commanding general of U.S. Forces Iraq, Jeffrey D. Feltman, assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, and ambassadors from other countries who fielded coalition forces.

After the ceremony, Biden met privately with troops for photos before traveling to Erbil in northern Iraq, 50 miles east of Mosul.

There Biden met with Kurdish Regional Government President Masoud Barzani at the official’s ceremonial residence before boarding his aircraft for Ankara, Turkey, the first stop on a four-day trip to Turkey and Greece.

Combined Force Captures Taliban Leader

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2011 – A combined Afghan and coalition security force captured a Taliban leader during an operation in the Khugyani district of Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province today, military officials reported.

The leader distributed bomb-making materials and planned roadside-bomb attacks against coalition forces. The security force detained another suspect during the operation.

In other Afghanistan operations today:

-- In the Musa Qalah district of Helmand province, a combined force detained several suspected insurgents during a search for a Taliban leader who places roadside bombs throughout the province and plans ambushes against Afghan forces.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Taliban leader in the Nerkh district of Wardak province. The leader coordinates attacks against Afghan forces in the Maidan Shahr and Nerkh districts.

-- In the Sabari district of Khost province, a combined force detained multiple suspects while searching for a Haqqani network leader who plans attacks against Afghan forces.

-- A combined force detained several suspects while searching for a Taliban leader in the Andar district of Ghazni province. The leader directs insurgent fighters in attacks in the Andar and Deh Yak districts.

-- A combined force detained several suspects and seized weapons, including a machine gun, while searching for a Haqqani network leader in the Jani Khel district of Paktia province. The leader coordinates attacks against Afghan forces.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- A combined force killed two armed insurgents and detained two suspects in the Sharan district of Paktika province. The deceased insurgents were carrying two assault rifles, four grenades, 90 rounds of small-arms ammunition and five blasting caps. The force also found three rocket-propelled grenades, 200 rounds of machine-gun ammunition and improvised explosive device-making components in a nearby building.

-- In the Arghandab district of Kandahar province, a combined force discovered 540 pounds of hashish.

-- A combined force seized an IED, 20 mortar rounds, six mines and some IED components in the Baraki Barak district of Logar province.

-- Combined forces killed two insurgents in an airstrike in the Sharan district of Paktika province. Forces seized an assault rifle with magazines, two grenades, five blasting caps, six cell phones, three RPGs, 200 machine-gun rounds, two bayonets, a two-way radio and three vehicles.

-- Afghan police detained two suspects and coalition forces killed one insurgent and wounded another in the Giro district of Ghazni province.

-- Afghan soldiers detained four suspects in the Jarkanah district of Paktika province. Afghan police captured an individual after he detonated an IED at the Koghani district center in Nangarhar province.

-- Combined forces captured five insurgents in the Sayidabad district of Wardak province.

-- An Afghan civilian turned in 20 mortar rounds, six landmines, 39 fuse heads, two anti-aircraft sights and three detonators and primers in the Barki Barak district of Logar province.

In Nov. 29 Afghanistan operations:

-- A combined force found two 12 2mm rockets, three 82 mm mortars, an anti-tank mine, four rocket-propelled grenades, five hand grenades, an assault rifle, more than 4,000 rounds of machine-gun and small-arms ammunition and IED-making components in the Zurmat district of Paktika province.