NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - A Navy admiral assumed command today of Joint Task Force Guantanamo, the force responsible for detainee operations and intelligence gathering here.

WASHINGTON - U.S. soldiers deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq are prohibited from wearing non-standard-issue body armor, a senior Army officer told reporters here today.

WASHINGTON - A coalition military operation on Iraq's Jabouri Peninsula has yielded numerous mortar and artillery rounds, weapons and ammunition, bomb-making materials, and suspected insurgents, military officials reported today.

WASHINGTON - There was a time when women veterans didn't feel welcome at Veteran Affairs Department medical facilities, but the causes of such feelings have changed dramatically over the last few years, VA's top advocate for women's health said.

WASHINGTON - The commander of Multinational Division Baghdad expressed thanks today to the American people for supporting U.S. troops in Iraq and their families and urged Americans to recognize the contributions and sacrifices servicemembers are making.

WASHINGTON - A new Defense Department Web site that debuts April 3 will feature government-funded scientific studies of medical issues experienced by military members during deployments, a contractor involved with the project said here today.

WASHINGTON - The beefed-up force in and around Baghdad is helping curb violence and likely will stay at current levels as Iraq's new unity government forms, the force's commander told Pentagon reporters today.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Navy Cmdr. Catie Hanft knows she asks a lot of the sailors and soldiers she commands. They work 12- to-14 hour shifts in intense heat, dealing with a difficult group of people from a culture foreign to them, all the while knowing their work is under international scrutiny.

WASHINGTON - A controversial weekend raid in Baghdad was expertly executed several blocks from the nearest mosque, a U.S. general said yesterday.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - Afghan and coalition forces engaged an insurgent group this morning, killing one and seizing munitions in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province, military officials reported.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Joint Task Force Guantanamo operations have continued to improve over the last two years, and the task force still plays a vital role in the war on terrorism, the unit's outgoing commander said in an American Forces Press Service interview here yesterday.

NORFOLK, Va. - The need to get more intelligence to warfighters faster so they can act on it is fueling big changes in how information is gathered, processed and shared, a U.S. Joint Forces Command official said.

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Army wrestlers overcame the Marine Corps' home field advantage to win both the Greco-Roman and freestyle disciplines in the 2006 Armed Forces Wrestling Championship here March 23 and 24.

WASHINGTON - U.S. 5th Fleet assets and personnel responded immediately at approximately 10:15 p.m. today after learning that a vessel capsized in a Bahraini harbor, approximately one mile east of the command's headquarters in Bahrain.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department's Military Health System must transform to continue its commitment to protecting the health of its servicemembers and other beneficiaries, a top DoD official told Congressmen yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The nature of the United States' enemies has changed, and Americans must maintain patience and will as the country fights the Long War against extremists, a top DoD policy official said here today.

WASHINGTON - The old concept of mutually assured destruction -- the idea that a nuclear attack would have such devastating consequences that neither the United States nor its foes would dare launch one -- isn't enough of a deterrent in today's strategic environment, a senior defense official told Congress yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department is taking a new approach to combat the threat of weapons of mass destruction in a complex and uncertain world, a DoD official said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Corporate support for the nation's troops means a lot, especially to their families, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here last night as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus began its annual series of performances in the nation's capital.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and U.S. soldiers captured a terrorist cell leader, and more weapons caches have been found and destroyed, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Most of the first 11,000 Defense Department civilian employees to convert to the new civilian personnel system in April will receive a pay increase, an official said today.

WASHINGTON - With the war on terror in its fifth year, U.S. military personnel continue to pack duffle bags and don desert camouflage uniforms -- many not for the first time.

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. servicemembers died in Iraq today, and defense officials have identified a soldier killed earlier in the week.

MEHTAR LAM, Afghanistan - Afghan and coalition troops provided medical care to 1,500 people in Laghman and Nuristan provinces in recent operations.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The global war against terrorism is as much a struggle of ideas as it is a military conflict, the Pentagon's No. 2 military officer said here today.

WASHINGTON - The United States will leave Iraq, "but we will not retreat from Iraq," President Bush said today during a speech at Freedom House here.

WASHINGTON - Though training Iraq's warfighters and front-line security forces will remain the top priority, training the cooks, clerks and medics who allow the forces to operate against the enemy is an important part of the equation, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said this week.

WASHINGTON - A once-unidentified sailor killed in the Pearl Harbor attack almost 65 years ago was laid to rest today with full honors and a grave marker bearing his name, thanks to sleuth work by a Pearl Harbor survivor and U.S. Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command's expertise.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department is working on ways to use technology to save lives on the battlefield, and has created a full scholarship program to increase its talent pool of scientists, engineers and mathematicians, a top official said here recently.

WASHINGTON - An MQ-1B Predator unmanned aerial vehicle engaged three insurgents in the process of planting a homemade bomb along a road near Balad Air Base, Iraq, yesterday evening and launched an AGM-114 Hellfire missile against the group.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - Gunmen killed one U.S. servicemember and a coalition servicemember from another country during an enemy attack on a forward operating base in the southern Afghanistan province of Helmand today, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The teenage co-founder of an "America Supports You" organization in Massachusetts that distributes prepaid phone cards to deployed troops has earned a $5,000 grant and is competing for another.

JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Hundreds of people gathered March 25 to celebrate the renovation of Agam High School in the Pachir wa Agam district in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province. Coalition forces funded the $25,000 project.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces killed 32 insurgents and destroyed two Taliban headquarters buildings in Afghanistan's Helmand province today, officials at Bagram Air Base said

CHICAGO - Grassroots supporters of America's troops agree their efforts are acts of gratitude, not charity.

WASHINGTON - Millions of Shiite Muslims from around the Middle East recently were able to make a pilgrimage to the Iraqi holy cities of Karbala and Najaf with few security problems. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said today that this shows a lot about the capabilities of Iraqi security forces.

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court today heard oral arguments in a case that could make or break the government's military commissions process for terror war detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. soldiers died and three others were injured in two incidents in Iraq today.

WASHINGTON - The Department of Veterans Affairs remains "vibrant, dynamic, flexible, and ... forward-looking" as it pursues "the best care for America's defenders," the department's secretary said.

WASHINGTON - Asked how the United States is faring in the war of ideology against violent extremism, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld puts it squarely in the "needs to improve" box.

WASHINGTON - Caspar W. Weinberger, the nation's 15th secretary of defense, died today. He was 88.

WASHINGTON - The Ad Council has teamed with the Defense Department's "America Supports You" program to help drum up support for American servicemembers.

WASHINGTON - President Bush met today with his Cabinet "to make sure that we're using every element of national power to win the war on terror and to secure the peace," he told reporters in the Rose Garden.

WASHINGTON - Lessons learned on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq will be incorporated into the annual Unified Quest joint war game and some day likely will be taught in military classrooms, a senior military transformation expert said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - In the past three days, U.S. soldiers and coalition forces have detained insurgents, seized a weapons cache and rescued hostages in Iraq, military officials said.

WASHINGTON - Over the past three years Iraq has witnessed a tremendous boom in reconstruction and economic development, the U.S. director of the Iraq Reconstruction Management Office said.

CARLISLE BARRACKS, Pa. - Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told senior officers at the Army War College here today that the American people must stay resolved in fighting terrorism.

SHANKSVILLE, Pa. - Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld today paid respects to the 40 passengers and crewmembers killed here when they struggled against terrorist hijackers and crashed on Sept. 11, 2001. He declared their heroic effort a turning point in the war on terror.

WASHINGTON - Sexual assault is one of the most underreported crimes in the military and in society as a whole, a top defense personnel and readiness official said.

WASHINGTON - Partnerships and cooperation with allies and friendly nations are essential for the U.S. to address threats in the global war on terrorism, the deputy defense secretary said here today.

WASHINGTON - When Dorothy Moore was commissioned as a Navy warrant officer in February after a long application and selection process, she was fulfilling a career goal. But, she said, the most rewarding experience of her career had already passed -- her deployment to Iraq.

WASHINGTON - As evidenced by their votes, the Iraqi people want unity and peace, the president's national security adviser said yesterday.

KRTSANISI, Georgia - A U.S. Marine-led task force marked the completion of training for two Georgian logistics battalions in a ceremony here March 24.

WASHINGTON - U.S. officials in Iraq have released further details on an operation in a Baghdad neighborhood yesterday.

BAGHDAD - Iraqi special operations forces conducted a twilight raid today in the Adhamiyah neighborhood in northeast Baghdad to disrupt a terrorist cell responsible for attacks on Iraqi security and coalition forces and kidnapping Iraqi civilians in the local area.

WASHINGTON - Marine Gen. Peter Pace called his weeklong trip to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey "very productive," and said American military officials must continue to develop relations with such important American allies.

WASHINGTON - The Iraqis are going through a historic process to form a government of national unity, and success in that country will provide a basis for a more stable Middle East, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday morning talk shows today.

WASHINGTON - The international community agrees that Iran cannot have nuclear capabilities that could lead to the development of a nuclear weapon, and the U.S. is working with other countries to make sure that doesn't happen, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday morning talk shows today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. soldiers discovered four weapons caches in separate operations throughout Iraq March 24 through today, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi soldiers, with assistance from U.S. troops, detained 52 suspected insurgents March 24 during Operation Scorpion, a sequential cordon and search of eight villages in and around Hawijah, Iraq, that military officials said yesterday had ended.

NORTH ARABIAN GULF - The Kiribati-flagged merchant vessel M/V Rokya 1 and U.S. Navy ship USS McCampbell collided at 11:09 p.m. yesterday about 30 miles southeast of the Iraqi coastline in the North Arabian Gulf.

WASHINGTON - A national company's program offering free amusement park tickets to the nation's troops and their families has become so popular it will be extended another year.

WASHINGTON - An Iraqi unit took control of battlespace north of Baghdad March 20, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - A combined U.S.-Iraqi patrol detained a terrorist near Kirkuk yesterday, and U.S. soldiers captured two improvised-explosive-device triggermen near Balad, Iraq, March 23, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - One U.S. servicemember was killed, and one U.S. servicemember and one Afghan National Army soldier were wounded during joint offensive operations in the Sangin District of Helmand Province, Afghanistan, today, military officials reported.

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Afghan National Army Air Corps and Task Force Falcon leaders met March 19 in what officials are calling a first step toward building an aviation partnership.

RAMADI, Iraq - One newly graduated 196-member Iraqi police unit returned here for duty yesterday, while another group -- about 220 Iraqi police recruits -- left here and arrived safely at the Baghdad Iraqi Police Basic Training Academy yesterday.

ISTANBUL, Turkey - Turkey is in a tough neighborhood, and the questions Turkish reporters raised to Marine Gen. Peter Pace in Ankara today showed that concern.

WASHINGTON - Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was so convinced that the United States was unwilling to accept casualties that he never believed the country would invade Iraq, and was far more worried about an internal revolt, a new, unclassified version of a Defense Department report issued today reveals.

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Coalition forces identified and disposed of an improvised explosive device near Forward Operating Base Zormat in Paktia province today after three people were seen emplacing it.

WASHINGTON - Pentagon officials released a report today assessing the Defense Department's reaction to three suspected anthrax incidents in March 2005 and concluding that the department followed correct procedures, but needs to improve notification and coordination.

WASHINGTON - Emerging automotive technology may eventually assist Americans -- and their military -- in reducing their dependence on hydrocarbon-based fuels for transportation needs.

SUFFOLK, Va. - Can history be wrong? Not exactly, but history can be distorted if data is provided by only one side's perspective.

WASHINGTON - Multinational Force Iraq officials have provided details of recent operations conducted by U.S. and Iraqi forces, including today's early morning launch of Operation Scorpion.

CAMP STRIKER, Iraq - For five months, the wounded and sick soldiers here have been treated in old, deteriorating tents. A sick soldier from 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, would have to walk through the mud and gravel only to sit in the entrance of a dark, hot tent and wait on wooden benches to be seen.

WASHINGTON - Two soldiers assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 28th Division, died due to enemy action yesterday while operating in Iraq's Anbar province, Multinational Force Iraq officials announced today.

WASHINGTON - As Iraqi forces assume more responsibility for security duties, they're receiving backup and other kinds of support from the U.S. military, a senior Defense Department spokesman said here today.

TAHOUA, Niger - Traveling through the crowded, sandy streets here, most people would be reminded of the animated film "Aladdin." Street vendors, blacksmiths and potential customers trying to haggle and barter with merchants down alleyways are found throughout the town.

SOUTHWEST ASIA - The convoy travels down the dusty desert road. Soldiers keep watchful eyes, surveying the barren landscape surrounding them. Today, their minds are slightly at ease. Overhead, an armed F-16 in direct contact with their team is watching the road ahead. No one will be lost today.

WASHINGTON - The United States is seeing big returns on its three-year investment in Iraqi security forces, the U.S. commander in charge of training Iraqi forces said today.

WASHINGTON - Defense Department officials are hoping to attract applicants to the department's new SMART scholarship program for students in science and math disciplines.

WASHINGTON - Turkish-American relations are critical to the health of the United States, the top U.S. military officer said here today.

ANKARA, Turkey - The war on terrorism is a partnership that will require all elements of international power and the patience of populations, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today.

WASHINGTON - Raymond Harris hopes to do something no other performer is doing. The country music singer plans to spend five years on a tour to every possible military installation to support America's troops.

WASHINGTON - A document released today outlines the Defense Department's strategy for combating weapons of mass destruction and will serve as the foundation for assigning specific responsibilities throughout DoD toward that goal, a senior military official said.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - When Kasha Zilka went through Army basic training, she never touched a weapon, trained in the field, or dropped facedown to pound out push-ups.

WASHINGTON - Reigning Miss America Jennifer Berry had nothing but good to say about servicemembers she met in a tour of the Pentagon today.

WASHINGTON - The only way to prevail in the war against violent extremists is "if we are in it all the way," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told Pentagon reporters today.

ANKARA, Turkey - The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff arrived here today for discussions with Turkish military leaders and a counterterrorism conference with 11 other chiefs of defense.

WASHINGTON - Women throughout history would be proud of what today's community of DoD women has accomplished, a top DoD personnel official said here March 21.

WASHINGTON - Operation Swarmer, a combined operation involving Iraqi soldiers and police commandos and coalition forces wrapped up yesterday without any casualties and all of the tactical objectives met, Multinational Force Iraq officials announced today.

WASHINGTON - The United Service Organizations of Metropolitan Washington honored several individuals and the Miss America Organization here last night during its 23rd annual awards dinner.

WASHINGTON - Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan on March 21 left 10 enemy fighters dead, military officials reported.

NORFOLK, Va. - The concept of a standing joint force headquarters core element is proving its value in Iraq and elsewhere around the world, senior officers at U.S. Joint Forces Command said.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces rescued three hostages held by terrorists in Iraq since November in an early morning raid today, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman said.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - The top U.S. general met with Saudi Arabian leaders here yesterday and discussed cooperation between the United States and the kingdom.

WASHINGTON - Americans need to recognize the sacrifices made by men and women in the military, whose service has liberated millions of people in the Middle East and made this country more secure, President Bush said yesterday in Wheeling, W.Va.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department is considering issuing new instructions to military commissions that specifically prohibit the admission of evidence that's been obtained by torture, a senior DoD official told reporters here today.

WASHINGTON - As more time passes since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Americans must not forget the lessons of that fateful day - lessons that are being applied today in the global war on terror, President Bush said today in Wheeling, W.Va.

WASHINGTON - A motorcycle group that travels the country attending military funerals is experiencing near-explosive growth, the group's national spokesman reported today.

WASHINGTON - The proposed U.S. ballistic missile defense system is intended to tie numerous independent elements into a sophisticated web of protection, U.S. military officials said.

WASHINGTON - Women have come a long way in the military services and federal government, and many of them have left legacies for future generations to follow, a top Defense Department official said here yesterday.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - American and international intervention prevented a humanitarian catastrophe in the aftermath of a devastating October earthquake in a rural region of this mountainous country, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here.

WASHINGTON - U.S. and Iraqi forces have detained 32 suspects and seized three weapons caches in Iraq since March 19, with one detention resulting from an Iraqi citizen's tip that foiled a kidnapping, Multinational Division Baghdad officials reported.

DUBROVNIK, Croatia - Participants in a disaster preparedness conference here this week are breaking new ground in regional cooperation that may pay off in many ways, the conference's opening speakers said.

KIRKUSH, Iraq - Building a 16-kilometer pipeline in eastern Iraq recently took well over its originally scheduled month and cost much more than dollars. But the water it carries will improve the quality of life for Iraqi soldiers and workers here.

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. - Vice President Richard B. Cheney visited the U.S. military's transportation hub here today to thank U.S. servicemembers for their support in the global war on terror and assure them that the country won't abandon Iraq before the mission is completed.

ARLINGTON, Va. - Annual observances provide a chance to reflect on history that defines "how women were treated and how they struggled, organized and contributed significantly to the positive change in this country," a history-making woman general said here today.

WASHINGTON - A robust, fully operational missile defense system is on its way to becoming a reality, the director of the Missile Defense Agency said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Military spouses looking to further their education are receiving a helping hand, thanks to America Supports You team member the National Military Family Association.

WASHINGTON - Fundraising for a memorial to the 184 people killed during the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack on the Pentagon is nearing the halfway point in raising the almost $21 million needed to begin construction.

WASHINGTON - The commander of the Army unit that played a key role in routing terrorists from Tal Afar, Iraq, last fall agreed today with President Bush's assertion that headway in the city represents a concrete example of progress taking place in Iraq.

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan - The U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff today had nothing but praise for Pakistani leaders who coordinated relief efforts after a devastating earthquake here in October.

WASHINGTON - Sectarian violence that erupted after the Feb. 22 bombing of a mosque in Samarra, Iraq, could have led to civil war. But Iraqis stayed united and are working to build a united government, President Bush said here today.

WASHINGTON - A U.S. soldier was killed in Baghdad today, and the Defense Department has identified two previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - The best way for the American people to promote freedom and liberty around the world is to stand behind the U.S. armed forces, President Bush told a group yesterday at the City Club of Cleveland.

WASHINGTON - An unmanned aerial vehicle crashed this morning in Iraq, and combined operations continued in Salah ah Din province as part of Operation Swarmer.

ARLINGTON HALL STATION, Va. - Soldiers, families and the people who support them gathered at the Army National Guard Readiness Center here March 17 for the installation's first Open House focusing on the military family.

WASHINGTON - In the past week, U.S. and Iraqi forces detained more than five dozen suspected insurgents in Iraq, U.S. military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - President Bush today pointed to the dramatic turnaround in Tal Afar, Iraq -- a city once gripped by terrorist oppression that's now undergoing a vibrant revitalization -- as concrete evidence that the national strategy for victory in Iraq is working.

NAPLES, Italy - The Africa Center for Strategic Studies, U.S. European Command and U.S. Naval Forces Europe jointly are hosting a workshop titled "Maritime Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea" in Accra, Ghana, March 19-22.

WASHINGTON - President Bush today praised NATO for its help in Iraq and Afghanistan and made suggestions for dealing with the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan.

WASHINGTON - Participants, as well as some non-participants, in the Thrift Savings Plan are targets of a "phishing" scam, an official with the board administering the program said today.

SOUTHWEST ASIA - A single U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III transport jet set a record by airdropping 32,400 pounds of humanitarian aid within 40 minutes to four locations in central and eastern Afghanistan March 16.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - The top U.S. general arrived here today to meet with his Pakistani counterpart and U.S. troops providing assistance in an earthquake-devastated area of the country.

WASHINGTON - Extremists cannot hope to match the United States and its coalition allies in battle, but that might not matter at all. Al Qaeda and like terrorist groups understand that they only have to win the battle for American resolve to be successful, a top military strategy official said.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and coalition troops detained suspects and seized weapons caches throughout Iraq, and an Iraqi review board recommended the release of a number of male detainees being held in the country, Multinational Force Iraq officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Agreements announced today regarding Iraq's unity government "prove that the civil war is out of the question and that the Iraqi people will not accept a civil war to take place," Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said during a Baghdad news conference today.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and coalition forces continued in recent days to detain terrorist suspects and search, find and destroy weapons caches through a series of patrols and operations designed to bring stability to that country, officials in Iraq reported today.

WASHINGTON - The best way for Americans to commemorate the third anniversary of U.S. operations in Iraq is to thank the servicemembers carrying them out and the families that support them, President Bush said today.

WASHINGTON - The top U.S. general in Iraq said today, on the third anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom, that despite media reports of an imminent or impending Iraqi civil war, the vast majority of Iraq is stable, calm and peaceful.

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney said today the evidence that Iraqis and the coalition will succeed in Iraq "is overwhelming" and that it's important, when assessing the situation there, to keep perspective of its impact on the global war on terror.

WASHINGTON - Three years after the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom, now's the time for resolve, not retreat, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wrote today in an editorial in The Washington Post.

WASHINGTON - Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld sends a message to the U.S. armed forces on the third anniversary of the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi security forces and U.S. servicemembers participating in Operation Swarmer and other combined operations continued to capture hidden terrorist weapons caches, while detaining and processing terrorist suspects yesterday, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - Thanks to a tip by a local Afghan citizen, coalition forces disarmed an improvised explosive device that had been placed in a mosque in the Pachir Wa Agam District of Nangarhar Province yesterday, officials in Kabul, Afghanistan, reported.

MANAMA, Bahrain - USS Cape St. George and USS Gonzalez returned fire early today on a group of suspected pirates in the Indian Ocean, killing one and wounding five, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command officials reported today.

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. soldiers were killed and another was wounded March 16 in an indirect fire attack on Contingency Operating Base Speicher in Iraq, Multinational Force Iraq officials announced today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush asked Americans in his weekly radio address today to look beyond the dramatic television footage and disconcerting newspaper headlines coming out of Iraq to see the clear progress that country is making on the road to stability, self-rule and democracy.

WASHINGTON - Had the terrorists possessed the means and the know-how, they would have killed 3 million people instead of 3,000 on Sept. 11, 2001, the deputy defense secretary said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - An enthusiastic crowd of about 1,000 airmen, soldiers, sailors, Marines and civilians gave Vice President Dick Cheney a Lowcountry welcome as he traveled to Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., today to thank them for their support in the war on terror.

WASHINGTON - Australia has been a strong U.S. ally for decades in a relationship based on common values and belief in the virtue of democracy, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today in Melbourne, Australia.

WASHINGTON - More than a half million U.S. and coalition forces are now engaged in the fight against global terrorism in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East, a senior U.S. general said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The Quadrennial Defense Review is not a glossy book that will gather dust on a bookshelf, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today.

WASHINGTON - The relationship between the United States and China has been improving, but the U.S. must balance this constructive relationship with the need to hedge against possible threats, two Defense Department officials said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - U.S. officials are sure Iran is conducting intelligence operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan, the commander of U.S. Central Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday.

WASHINGTON - A Task Force Band of Brothers soldier from 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, was shot and killed while manning an observation post in Samarra yesterday, and Defense Department officials have identified some recent war casualties.

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. - Tucked away on a sliver of land at this Army facility in Maryland is a cluster of ordinary-looking, tan-colored buildings encircled by a chain link fence. What goes on inside these buildings, however, is anything but ordinary.

WASHINGTON - The commander of Multinational Corps Iraq has directed further investigation into events surrounding a Nov. 19 insurgent attack in Haditha, Iraq, military officials reported today.

WASHINGTON - Afghan and coalition troops detained several suspects and seized weapons during two March 15 operations in Afghanistan, Combined Forces Command Afghanistan officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The sectarian violence that surged after the Feb. 22 bombing of a Shiite mosque in Samarra, Iraq, has tapered off, and Iraqis are optimistic about the future, a top U.S. commander in Iraq said today.

WASHINGTON - Three years after the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said on morning talk shows today he's impressed by significant progress that's been made on the political, economic and security fronts.

WASHINGTON - There's more to do, but U.S. and coalition efforts in Afghanistan have achieved considerable progress in helping that nation to become a stable member of the world community, a senior U.S. military officer told Pentagon reporters yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Morphing threats have created the need for change in the U.S. intelligence community, a top Defense Department intelligence official said here March 14.

WASHINGTON - New, modular brigade combat team units accompanied the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division on its third tour to Afghanistan, the division's commander told Pentagon reporters today.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. government has announced plans to remove its forces from Naval Air Station Keflavik, in Iceland, this fall, but reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to the island nation's security.

WASHINGTON - Wounded troops can eat a lot of steaks on $75,000, which is the amount the Italian company, Finmeccanica, Inc., gave Washington's Fran O'Brien's Stadium Steakhouse today during a Pentagon ceremony hosted by the deputy secretary of defense.

WASHINGTON - The White House today released President Bush's second-term National Security Strategy, a 49-page document that details how the administration intends to protect the United States, its interests and its people.

WASHINGTON - The primary threats to Afghan stability include remnant Taliban members, followed by al Qaeda-affiliated and other terror groups, and criminals engaged in the opium trade, a senior U.S. military commander told Pentagon reporters here today.

WASHINGTON - More people are trying to hold Iraq together than trying to take it apart, the commander of U.S. Central Command said here today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Southern Command's area of responsibility is one of the least armed areas of the world, but it can hardly be considered benign, the command's leader said today.

WASHINGTON - The partnership between the United States and Indonesia has grown much in the past three decades, America's senior diplomat said yesterday, but the two countries must continue improving their military ties to meet new threats.

WASHINGTON - Three years after a multinational force liberated Iraq from Saddam Hussein's regime, steady progress continues to be made in the nation, U.S. military and embassy officials said.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi soldiers and national police did a good job in helping quell unrest during the hours and days following the Feb. 22 bombing of a prominent Shiite mosque in Samarra, Iraq, a senior U.S. military leader said today.

WASHINGTON - Past victories over ideologies of hatred serve as a reminder that such triumphs require time, patience and sacrifice, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in Australia today.

WASHINGTON - A Multinational Division Baghdad soldier was killed yesterday in a mortar attack southwest of Baghdad, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and coalition forces have boosted their presence in Baghdad in response to a surge in attacks against Iraqis that officials link to today's seating of the country's new parliament, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman told reporters.

WASHINGTON - The discovery that avian, or bird, flu has come to Afghanistan poses no danger to American troops conducting operations there, a U.S. general told Pentagon reporters today.

WASHINGTON - The days of the clearly defined enemy who plays by a set of rules are over, the Joint Staff's director for strategic plans and policy said here March 13.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and coalition forces today launched Operation Swarmer in the south of Iraq's Salah Ad Din province to clear a suspected insurgent operating area northeast of Samarra, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department's second annual report on its sexual assault prevention and response program reflects increased understanding about what sexual assault is and more willingness to report it, the commander of the joint task force overseeing the program said.

WASHINGTON - Iraq is not on the verge of a civil war, and sectarian issues in the country are controllable, the commander of U.S. Central Command told the House Armed Services Committee here today.

WASHINGTON - As the 21st century progresses, the United States must be prepared to deal with threats posed by terrorists, corrupt regimes and emerging state powers, a top Pentagon leader said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The first Quadrennial Defense Review undertaken during a time of war provides the military more options and more capabilities, a senior defense official said here today.

WASHINGTON - The organization that helps veterans become entrepreneurs by hooking them up with national franchises and contracts with industry and the federal government celebrated its fifth anniversary yesterday with an open house at the Department of Veterans Affairs here.

BAGHDAD - A battalion task force from the 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division -- part of U.S. Central Command's "call forward force" in Kuwait -- has deployed to the Baghdad area, Multinational Force Iraq officials announced today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. soldiers and Iraqi security forces in recent days have continued to detain suspected insurgents and to find and destroy weapons caches, military officials reported.

ABOARD USS CARR - For the second time in as many months, sailors aboard guided-missile frigate USS Carr and embarked crew of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 44 visited the island nation of Cape Verde, off the coast of West Africa, March 8-10.

WASHINGTON - Arabs throughout the Middle East are taking note of Iraq's extraordinary march toward democracy, the commander of U.S. Central Command said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department has announced the names of three Marines who died recently in Iraq and Afghanistan:

BALTIMORE - Questioning policies or maintaining vigilance is good for America, but not allowing a full discussion of issues is unfair to all concerned, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Nearly three years into Operation Iraqi Freedom, it's fair for people to ask why the United States should see the mission through, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said today.

WASHINGTON - Latin America faces security problems and threats to the region's stability that must be solved with an integrated, long-term effort by the United States and the countries in that region, the U.S. commander responsible for the area said here today.

WASHINGTON - It's imperative to provide aerial reconnaissance assets during natural disasters and other emergencies so first responders can quickly determine the extent of damage and ascertain requirements of the relief effort, a top DoD official said.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Special Operations Command is transforming to meet changing needs as it leads the fight in the global war on terrorism, the command's leader said here today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. military might is only one piece of the solution to winning the war on terrorism, a defense official said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - When U.S. forces first deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, the services had several different systems in place to track "blue," or friendly, forces. But those systems didn't "talk" to each other, leaving big gaps in a joint forces commander's ability to see the big picture.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department and U.S. Northern Command learned valuable lessons from the government's response to Hurricane Katrina, and those lessons are being applied to prepare for future civil support operations, the commander of Northern Command said here today.

WASHINGTON - The new Iraqi parliament is scheduled to convene March 16 for the first time since its members were chosen in the Dec. 15 nationwide election, a senior Defense Department official said here today.

KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan vendors won 84 percent of contracts awarded by the U.S. military's regional contracting centers in February, up from 55 percent in October, military officials here reported.

WASHINGTON - With high operational tempos and multiple deployments increasingly becoming the norm, more servicemembers and their families are seeking counseling services, the Pentagon's family policy chief said.

WASHINGTON - U.S. soldiers detained 16 terrorists and found two weapons caches in several operations throughout Iraq yesterday, and terrorists targeted a mosque in Baghdad in a rocket attack the same day, military officials in Iraq reported.

BALTIMORE - Iraq is at a crossroads, and the Iraqi people have critical decisions to make in the near future, the top U.S. general said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Funding and public opinion are two major challenges the United States faces in fighting the global war on terrorism, a top defense official said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Terrorists in Iraq resort to using improvised explosive devices because they lack the ability to engage in conventional military operations, President Bush said here today.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department acted as rapidly as law would allow in providing assistance to civil authorities coping with Hurricane Katrina, which hit the Gulf Coast late last August, a senior DoD official told a Senate Armed Services subcommittee March 10.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. military has sculpted its strategy to account for the different threats, cultures and circumstances posed by the global war on terror, the Joint Staff's chief of strategic plans and policy said in an interview here.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - A U.S. service member died today from injuries suffered when the Humvee in which he was riding rolled over during offensive operations in the Torkham district of Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - A high-tech Defense Department identification system has linked some captured terrorists to previous crimes and prevented their release from overseas detention facilities, a senior defense official said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing here March 10.

WASHINGTON - A Multinational Division Baghdad soldier and a Marine assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, are the latest U.S. casualties in Iraq, military officials reported today.

TACOMA, Wash. - The enemy in the war on terror is not limited to al Qaeda and its associated movements in Iraq and Afghanistan, but includes a global network of extremist groups, a U.S. Central Command general said here March 11.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and multinational forces have captured more terrorism suspects and discovered more weapons caches in recent days, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - Scores of Iraqis have been killed or injured in terrorist attacks in the Baghdad area over the last two days, military officials reported.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE SALERNO, Afghanistan - The 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division - known as the Spartans - assumed authority for the coalition's Regional Command East from the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment in a ceremony here today.

SUFFOLK, Va. - Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan are reaffirming every day the military must improve the way it conducts and trains to work in joint and coalition operations, U.S. Joint Forces Command's training chief told the American Forces Press Service.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - Coalition forces are continuing assaults against extremists in the Pech Valley of Afghanistan's Kunar province following a roadside bomb attack that killed four U.S. servicemembers yesterday, military officials reported today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. soldiers discovered four weapons caches in a four-day period in areas outside of Baghdad, officials said.

WASHINGTON - Four U.S. servicemembers were killed today in an improvised explosive device attack in Afghanistan.

TACOMA, Wash. - The U.S. Army is the greatest it's ever been, but to remain effective for the future, it must make changes, a top Army commander said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi leaders took a "very positive step" today toward establishing a government of national unity, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq said moments after an emergency meeting with Iraqi leaders.

WASHINGTON - A U.S. Marine was killed yesterday when a car bomb detonated near the city of Fallujah, Iraq, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and coalition forces detained eight suspects today in a joint operation in Baghdad. The men are suspected of kidnapping, manufacturing car bombs, and financing and supporting terrorists, officials said.

WASHINGTON - Crude, homemade bombs hidden in cars or by the side of the road pose the biggest threat to U.S. servicemembers and the future of a free Iraq, President Bush said today in his weekly radio address.

TACOMA, Wash. - The U.S. faces a new enemy and must adopt a new operational approach that focuses on joint operations and irregular warfare, military leaders said here yesterday.

TACOMA, Wash. - The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks weren't the first attacks the U.S. has experienced, but officials at U.S. Northern Command are resolutely committed to making sure they are the last, the combatant commander said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The leaders of several grassroots organizations associated with the Pentagon's America Supports You program met today at the White House to discuss their efforts to support the men and women of the U.S. armed forces with President Bush and first lady Laura Bush.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - Two strike fighter squadrons arrived at Naval Air Station Oceana here today, ending a six-month deployment and closing the book on the Tomcat as an asset in the Navy's war fighting arsenal.

WASHINGTON - Recruiting and retention statistics released today reflect continued across-the-board success and continuation of a nine-month trend, officials said.

WASHINGTON - The National Guard and reserves are being employed as an operational force in the global war against terrorism, necessitating change in how they are structured and funded, the chairman of a Congressionally-appointed commission looking into the services' reserve-component operations said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - High School seniors involved in the Senate Youth Program learned about life in the Pentagon and got to ask questions of senior military leaders as part of their Washington program today.

WASHINGTON - The United States is doing all it can to prevent civil war from breaking out in Iraq, but it's ultimately up to Iraqis to maintain political and security progress, President Bush said here today.

WASHINGTON - Al Qaeda is still the biggest short-term threat facing the United States, President Bush said here today, adding that North Korea and Iran pose equal security threats to the U.S.

CAMP TAHOUA, Niger - A company of Milwaukee, Wis.-based Marine reservists has begun to teach Nigerien soldiers the basics of security and stability operations during exercise Shared Accord 06.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - Kevin Majors was used to facing down tough opponents. An aspiring Army boxer with a state middleweight championship under his belt, Majors was known for his strong right hand and effective jab.

WASHINGTON - The proliferation of ballistic missile technology threatens the security of the United States, the director of the Missile Defense Agency said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi and U.S. soldiers found and destroy 26 roadside bombs and 17 weapons caches and killed and captured suspected insurgents in several operations in Iraq in recent days.

WASHINGTON - The military's recruiting mission in and around New Orleans is slowly recovering in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, local recruiting officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department's emergency supplemental budget request provides funds necessary to fight the war on terror, Army Gen. John Abizaid told the Senate Appropriations Committee today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. European Command's ability to transform and achieve U.S. national security objectives depends on investment in critically important areas, the command's leader said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - President Bush put his signature on documents reauthorizing the USA Patriot Act at a White House ceremony here today.

WASHINGTON - Reconstructing and replacing equipment, force protection, defeating improvised explosive devices, and "resetting" the Army are among necessities that DoD's emergency supplemental budget request would fund, Marine Gen. Peter Pace said today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. European Command is actively engaged in a diverse and expansive area of responsibility while transforming to better meet the challenges of a changing security landscape, the command's leader said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The conventional "Trident" missile program the Pentagon will ask Congress to fund is part of a larger strategy to better address diverse threats facing the United States and will further the country's defense goals, a Defense Department spokesman said here today.

WASHINGTON - Retired Marine Gunnery Sgt. R. Lee Ermey, famous for his role as a drill instructor in the movie "Full Metal Jacket," has joined forces with a Midwest Junior ROTC unit to help support troops and their families.

WASHINGTON - The military's persistence in determining the identity of an airman missing in action since World War II sends an important message to families of all missing servicemembers and all men and women serving in uniform today, the commander of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command told American Forces Press Service.

WASHINGTON - In a rare joint appearance before Congress, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to quickly pass a $91 billion supplemental spending bill.

WASHINGTON - The spread of democracy is the best way to advance human rights, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The United States always has planned to transfer authority for all detention facilities in Iraq to the Iraqis, but announcements regarding the imminent closure at the Abu Ghraib prison are premature, defense officials said today.

WASHINGTON - The people of Iraq are rising up against an insurgency bent on derailing democracy in the country, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman said today.

WASHINGTON - Two Marines assigned to 1st Marine Logistics Group were killed in Anbar province, Iraq, March 7 and 8, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - The common military defense principle that spawned NATO remains valid, but the alliance is now also engaged in security operations to deal with new 21st century threats, the U.S. general in command of the alliance's military forces said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Multiservice U.S. special operations forces are at the tip of the spear in the war against global terrorism, a senior DoD official said on Capitol Hill today.

WASHINGTON - A key element of the Quadrennial Defense Review is to strengthen allied operations and increase partner-nation capacity, senior defense officials told a Senate committee here today.

WASHINGTON - Modest near-term investments in Africa will prevent costly future intervention, U.S. European Command's leader Marine Gen. James L. Jones told the Senate and House Armed Services committees in statements prepared for delivery yesterday and today, respectively.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - Fort Sam Houston commemorated the 96th anniversary of the first military flight March 2 at the base's main flagpole, the same site where U.S. Army Lt. Benjamin Delahauf Foulois boarded the "Signal Corps 'Aeroplane' No. 1" and circled the fort.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department presented an award to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, an America Supports You member, at the U.S. Navy Memorial here yesterday evening.

WASHINGTON - Continued Senate support is essential to maintaining readiness and stability on the Korean peninsula and in the region, the commander of U.S. and coalition forces in Korea said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces destroyed an improvised explosive device-manufacturing site in Fallujah, Iraq, yesterday, and Iraqi forces freed an Iraqi hostage March 6 in Balad, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers found the bodies of 18 murder victims inside an abandoned vehicle at about 9:30 p.m. yesterday in Baghdad's Mansour district, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - There is still time for Iran to suspend its plans to enrich uranium and avoid sanctions, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said here today.

WASHINGTON - Winning the war on terrorism is U.S. Pacific Command's highest priority, the command's leader told the Senate Armed Services Committee today.

WASHINGTON - The military continues to be the most admired institution in America, according to the latest Harris Poll.

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi air force, along with its coalition partners, officially opened a new air base in Baghdad today.

SUFFOLK, Va. - While participants in an international experiment taking place here and at 10 sites around the world are looking at ways to improve future coalition operations, their findings are already being applied to coalition efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. Joint Forces Command officials explained today.

WASHINGTON - The will of the American people is the center of gravity for the war on terror, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said during a Pentagon news conference today.

WASHINGTON - Yesterday's Supreme Court ruling that military recruiters must have as equal access as other organizations to meet with students on college and university campuses is a matter of fairness, a military official said here today.

WASHINGTON - Supporting political freedom and peaceful change in Iraq and the Middle East will require long-term commitment and difficult work, but it is something the U.S. must do to protect itself and its allies from terrorism, Vice President Richard B. Cheney said here today.

WASHINGTON - A detainee died today of natural causes at Camp Bucca, Iraq, and coalition forces killed two suspected terrorists during combat operations near Baghdad March 5, military officials reported.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - To an American soldier, stepping into Mollai is like stepping back in time -- mud huts with no indoor plumbing or electricity built into the side of a mountain across from their main water source, a mountain stream.

WASHINGTON - More than 150 police recruits and a company's worth of Iraqi soldiers graduated from training in Iraq in recent days.

WASHINGTON - Restoration of the flood protection system in New Orleans is on track and by June 1 will be equal to or better than it was before Hurricane Katrina, the Army general in charge of the program said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - This may be "the most important year in the history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization," that body's commander said here today.

WASHINGTON - The commander of the 6th Iraqi Army Division was killed today in a terrorist attack in western Baghdad, military officials in Iraq reported.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department is preparing to implement the first phase of its new pay-for-performance civilian personnel system in late April, a senior official said here March 3.

WASHINGTON - The Taliban and al Qaeda cannot start a major insurgency in Afghanistan, but the country still faces huge problems, Marine Gen. James Jones, supreme allied commander in Europe, said today.

WASHINGTON - Cpl. Jordan S. Pierson, 22, is an unquestionably loyal and determined Marine. Despite the loss of his left leg due to combat injuries sustained in Iraq Dec. 7, Pierson is set upon returning to active duty.

WASHINGTON - A congressionally appointed commission will commence the most comprehensive review of the National Guard and reserves in history.

VAIL, Colo. - Amputees being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., wrapped up the third annual Vail Veterans Program here yesterday, having taken another step ahead in their rehabilitation and more convinced than ever that they have the support of the American people.

WASHINGTON - The end is drawing near for remnant Taliban, al Qaeda and other elements seeking to displace the Afghan government for their own purposes, the American general who oversees U.S. troops in Europe and NATO matters said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Two car bombs have killed six Iraqi civilians and wounded 34 in the past two days in Iraq, and troops from Multinational Division Baghdad discovered a roadside bomb and detained suspects who fled from the scene.

WASHINGTON - A soldier was killed in Iraq yesterday, and Defense Department officials have identified two soldiers previously reported killed.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department has asked the U.S. Army to launch a criminal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Cpl. Pat Tillman, who was killed in the spring of 2004 during a combat operation in Afghanistan.

WASHINGTON - "The Iraqi people responded to terrorist outrages by pulling back from the abyss of a civil war, Marine Gen. Peter Pace said on NBC's Meet the Press today.

WASHINGTON - Soldiers with the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division nabbed terrorists and confiscated weapons during an operation in Baghdad Feb. 26.

VAIL, Colo. - Wounded troops participating in the third annual Vail Veterans Program here got a surprise visit on the ski slopes yesterday when Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld arrived to cheer them on and congratulate them for their accomplishments.

WASHINGTON - One coalition servicemember died of wounds received in an engagement in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, today. Two insurgents were killed in the engagement.

WASHINGTON - The United States' and Pakistan's top leaders today renewed their pledge to work together to defeat global terrorism during a news conference held in Pakistan's capital.

WASHINGTON - President Bush used his weekly radio address today to report on his visit to Afghanistan and South Asia.

WASHINGTON - One day senior defense civilians could perform jobs now only filled by generals or admirals, and rank-and-file civilians could be deployed overseas to free up military members for combat-related duties, a senior DoD civilian said here today.

WASHINGTON - DoD has released 317 "unredacted" records on detainees being held at the U.S. facility in U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

VAIL, Colo. - Twenty-four servicemembers who lost limbs in Iraq and Afghanistan are here reaping the hospitality of a community first established by returning World War II veterans and to schuss down the slopes of this world-class ski resort.

WASHINGTON - When Nova Radke's husband came back from Iraq with pieces of shrapnel embedded in his skin from head to toe, she needed help supporting him. Military funds allowed her to fly to her husband's bedside, but once there, she found she needed additional moral support.

WASHINGTON - With support from the United States and India, the universal value of freedom has the power to change the world for the better, President Bush said in New Delhi today.

WASHINGTON - A new agreement between U.S. European Command and the Defense Logistics Agency spells out the level of service that EUCOM expects and that DLA agrees to provide in support of the theater mission.

WASHINGTON - A Multinational Force West soldier was killed in Iraq on March 1, and Defense Department officials have identified two servicemembers who were previously reported killed.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces operations in Iraq northeast of Fallujah and in Anbar province recently resulted in the detention of 62 suspects, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - While the threat of violence remains in Iraq, the main crisis caused by the Feb. 22 bombing of a Shiite mosque in Samarra has passed and the people have proven their determination to defeat terror, the commander of coalition forces in Iraq said today.

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - U.S. and coalition troops in the Baghdad area handed control of operations in western Baghdad and eastern Abu Ghraib to Iraqi soldiers in a ceremony yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Four brothers, all Army Reserve officers, are deploying to Iraq with the same division and are planning to chronicle their experiences in a forthcoming book.

BAGHDAD - A fully certified aircrew takes flight, and a single air base opens its gates. These feats represent giant steps toward independence and national security to Iraqi airmen training side by side here with U.S. Air Force members.

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Five coalition servicemembers were injured today in a suspected improvised explosive device attack east of here.

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld yesterday praised a group of young men and women planning to join the military for pursuing "a noble calling" in their country's service.

WASHINGTON - For a nation at war, spending about 4 cents out of every dollar on defense does not seem an exorbitant price to pay for security, Pentagon officials said before the Senate Budget Committee today.

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld visited the Truman Presidential Museum and Library here today to reflect on President Harry S. Truman's leadership during the early days of the Cold War and the lessons it offers today for the global war on terror.

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - The widespread use of Web logs, or "blogs," by online writers has proliferated information on topics as varied as the authors.

WASHINGTON - The United States and India have built a strategic partnership based on shared democratic values and a desire to defeat terrorism, President Bush said in New Delhi today.

WASHINGTON - Decisions made by a capable Iraqi government and executed by capable Iraqi security forces have limited damage and saved lives during recent violence, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman in Baghdad said today.

WASHINGTON - Defense Department officials have announced the identities of six Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom soldiers who died in recent days.

WASHINGTON - A coalition servicemember was killed and seven were injured after their vehicle rolled over in Afghanistan's Kandahar province today, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - An American diplomat was killed today in a suicide car-bomb attack near the U.S. consulate in Karachi, Pakistan.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department's new civilian personnel system will create a better environment for employees and will contribute to the overall transformation of the department, the deputy secretary of defense said in Baltimore Feb. 28.

WASHINGTON - Though the president's 2006 defense budget request is "a lot of money," the deputy secretary of defense told the House Budget Committee here today, it is needed to protect America.

WASHINGTON - The National Guard Youth Foundation honored a U.S. senator, two governors' wives and the chief of the National Guard Bureau at the organization's first ChalleNGe Champions dinner held here last night.

WASHINGTON - While economic and political discussions will dominate President Bush's time during his visit to India and Pakistan, security issues also are important.

WASHINGTON - Cadets representing 11 National Guard Youth ChalleNGe programs from 10 states were on hand here today to accept awards for excellence in the their programs.

WASHINGTON - U.S. military reserve forces are better trained and at a higher state of readiness than they've ever been as they continue to take on their new operational role in the war on terror, senior reserve-component leaders said here today.

WASHINGTON - Deployed reserve-component troops are receiving support packaged a little differently from they're used to, thanks to a Virginia-based nonprofit organization supporting them by supporting their children.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - A U.S. servicemember was killed and two were wounded in offensive operations in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province yesterday, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - American military commanders in Iraq are calmly assessing the impact of a week's worth of violence and civil strife that has erupted across Iraq since terrorists bombed a Shiite mosque, a senior Pentagon official said here today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush today thanked U.S. troops serving on the "frontier of freedom" at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan.

WASHINGTON - A U.S. soldier died in a non-combat incident in Iraq today, and Defense Department officials announced the identities of six servicemembers who died previously.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - Defense Department officials are working to create a pandemic influenza plan in time for the Department of Homeland Defense's end-of-March deadline, a DoD medical official said Feb. 27.

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon plans to appeal a recent federal court decision that stalled some labor-management provisions of the new National Security Personnel System, a senior Defense Department official said here today.

WASHINGTON - In two days of terrorist attacks, 17 Iraqis were killed and more than 40 injured in two separate incidents in the Dora neighborhood in southern Baghdad Feb. 26 and 27, officials said today.

WASHINGTON - The democratic process taking hold in Afghanistan is an inspiration to the cause of freedom, President Bush said in the country's capital, Kabul, today.

ABOARD USS GONZALEZ - Sailors from the guided missile destroyer USS Gonzalez, currently deployed to the Arabian Gulf, rescued six Iranian mariners yesterday after they had been adrift for 10 days.