Iraq

May 22, 2008 -- “Simply put, I cannot vote for another $165 billion to give President Bush a blank check and fund the continuation of the war in Iraq, without condition, for over another year.

This is a difficult decision and not one I take lightly. But I believe that the time has come for Congress to exercise the power of the purse and bring this war to a conclusion.

US Army soldier, Kirkuk, Iraq: Photo by soldiersmediacenter (CC)

I am a strong supporter of our troops in the field. They have done a tremendous job under difficult circumstances. They weren’t greeted as liberators as Vice President Cheney said they would be.    » read more »

May 22, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE), issued the following statement on the Senate’s failure to change course in Iraq.

“I am disappointed that the Senate voted down key provisions in the supplemental war funding bill that would begin to end the war in Iraq."

A US Marine base in Iraq: Photo by James Gordon (CC)

"I have been particularly outspoken on two of its provisions: the prohibition on permanent American military bases in Iraq and a restriction on a long-term security agreement with Iraq unless authorized by the U.S. Senate.    » read more »

21 May 2008 -- The United States has defended its policy of detaining juveniles in prisons in Iraq, and Afghanistan. The issue is expected to be high on the agenda Thursday when the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child examines U.S. compliance with U.N. rules on dealing with children in armed conflict.

In a report submitted to the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child, the United States acknowledges it has detained almost 2,500 youths under the age of 18 since 2002. Almost all have been detained in Iraq under President Bush's anti-terrorism campaign.

Washington says it is holding more than 500 juveniles suspected of being "unlawful enemy combatants" in detention centers in Iraq. Another 10 are being held at the U.S. base at Bagram, Afghanistan.    » read more »

21 May 2008 -- Iraqi police say at least 11 people have been killed by gunfire after a roadside bombing near Sadr City, a Shi'ite militia stronghold in Baghdad.

Local officials say the gunfire erupted Wednesday after roadside bombs exploded near a joint U.S.-Iraqi patrol in the Obeidi neighborhood. The U.S. military, however, says none of its troops were involved.

Sadr City, Baghdad: Photo by James Gordon (CC)

Sadr City itself remained calm, a day after some 10,000 Iraqi troops began an operation aimed at bringing government control over the Shi'ite stronghold.    » read more »

May 21, 2008 -- Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Russ Feingold is letting Senate leaders know today of his intent to offer an amendment to the Iraq supplemental spending bill to safely redeploy U.S. troops from Iraq, after which funding for the war would end.

Army National Guard soldier locked in an emotional embrace at homecoming: 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry of the 34th "Red Bull" Infantry Division of the Army National Guard in Anoka, MN. After having their tour extended by the troop surge, the "Red Bulls" were the longest serving guard unit, having been in Iraq since late 2005. Photo by Poppyseed Bandits (CC)    » read more »

May 19, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the alert of additional major units scheduled to deploy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The announcement involves four brigades from the Army National Guard.

All four brigades will have a security force mission and be assigned tasks to assure freedom of movement and continuity of operations in the country. Those tasks will include base defense and route security in Iraq and Kuwait.    » read more »

May 19, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today additional major units scheduled to deploy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The announcement involves one division headquarters and seven brigade combat teams consisting of approximately 25,000 personnel.

The deployment window for these units will begin in the fall and continue until the end of the year.

This announcement reflects the continued commitment of the United States to the security of the Iraqi people, and provides replacement forces required to maintain the current level of effort in Iraq. Subsequent deployment orders will be issued based on force level decisions made in the future.    » read more »

LAUREL, Md., May 20, 2008 – A group of wounded U.S. military veterans gathered at a Maryland ice rink for some fun, camaraderie and exercise May 17.

Armed Forces Day is an ideal time to start a free ice hockey clinic for wounded warriors, John Coleman, president of the Potomac Valley Amateur Hockey Association, said as he watched sled-mounted and upright disabled veterans skate across the slick, glistening surface at the Gardens Ice House in Laurel, Md.    » read more »

05/19/2008 - WASHINGTON - The Defense Department today announced force rotations for Iraq and Afghanistan, including upcoming active-duty deployments later this year and alerts to Army National Guard units to deploy in spring 2009 and 2010.

U.S. and Iraqi Soldiers conduct an information gathering patrol in Amariyah, Iraq, May 1, 2008: The U.S. Soldiers are from Charlie Troop, 2nd Platoon, 4th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Manuel J. Martinez.    » read more »

May 20, 2008 -- “The Inspector General credits the FBI for maintaining a higher standard in the interrogation of detainees. In a majority of circumstances, agents at the FBI appear to have adhered to a clear policy in the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I still wish that Director Mueller had been more forthcoming when I asked him about these matters at our May 2004 hearing. Had he done so, he might have helped paved the way for Congress to investigate allegations of abuse sooner. The Republican majority refused to subpoena documents relating to the interrogation and treatment of detainees. The Bush administration has delayed four years in providing them. This remains a sorry chapter in our nation’s history.    » read more »

May 20, 2008 -- (Washington, DC) - Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) said he is seeking answers to questions raised in a report issued today by the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report entitled, "A Review of the FBI's Involvement in and Observations of Detainee Interrogations in Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan and Iraq." He released the following statement in response to the report’s release:    » read more »

May 20, 2008 -- WASHINGTON – Senator Carl Levin, D-Mich., today released the following statement regarding the report released by the Department of Justice Inspector General entitled “A review of the FBI’s involvement in and Observations of Detainee Interrogations in Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan, and Iraq.”

Bush protesters, March 2007: Photo by Andrew Ciscel (CC)

“Some have suggested that the abuse of detainees in U.S. custody was simply the result of a few bad apples acting on their own. The report released today by the Department of Justice Inspector General is proof that that is simply not true.    » read more »

20 May 2008 -- Iraqi forces have moved into Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood in an operation aimed at bringing government control over the Shi'ite militia stronghold.

Iraq security officials say they launched "Operation Peace" early Tuesday to try to stabilize and secure the area.

Iraqi and US soldiers in Sadr City, Baghdad, April 2008: U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Adrian Cadiz

A military spokesman says hundreds of troops have deployed in several sectors of the city. He says no violence has been reported.

The operation is in line with a truce reached earlier this month between Iraq's government and Shi'ite militiamen loyal to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.    » read more »

Demands New Direction in Iraq, Addresses Urgent Domestic Priorities; Bill Blocks Harmful Medicaid Rules Threatening Maryland Service, Extends Unemployment

May 16, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC - Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) praised House passage today of a bill that demands a new direction in Iraq while providing funds for troops in harm's way and expanding educational opportunities available for them upon their return home. The bill also extends unemployment compensation to inject stimulus into the still troubled economy and includes a moratorium on seven Medicaid regulations that threaten critical services for 650,000 Maryland beneficiaries.    » read more »

WASHINGTON -- May 16, 2008 – Three measures sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to hold private security contractors and war profiteers accountable under U.S. law for the first time were approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee Thursday afternoon and included in the Senate version of the emergency supplemental spending bill for Iraq, Afghanistan, and key domestic programs.

Blackwater protesters, Seattle: Photo by Robert Whitlock (CC)    » read more »