AFGHANISTAN: 4 American casualties identified

The Defense Department identified three soldiers and a Marine who died in Afghanistan, where at least 537 American military personnel have lost their lives since 2001.

Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey M. Radamorales, 32, of Naranjito, Puerto Rico; Master Sgt. Shawn E. Simmons, 39, of Ashland, Mass.; and Sgt. James M. Treber, 24, of Imperial Beach, Calif., died Sunday in Khosrow-E Sofla from injuries sustained when their vehicle rolled into a canal. They were assigned to the Army's 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Ft. Bragg, N.C.

Staff Sgt. Edgar A. Heredia, 28, of Houston died Thursday while supporting combat operations in Farah province. He was assigned to 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command.

*Read about the record number of U.S. and allied forces killed in June here.

IRAQ: Group pleads for judge to release Marine

A group supporting Marine Sgt. Jermaine Nelson has written to U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson pleading with the jurist to order Nelson released from jail in San Bernardino.

Larson ordered Nelson jailed last week after he refused to answer questions from a federal grand jury about the alleged killing of prisoners during a battle in Fallouja in 2004. The jury is particularly interested in former Sgt. Jose Nazario, who faces manslaughter charges in federal court.

By law, Nelson could remain in jail during the term of the grand jury, which is 18 months. Nelson faces charges in the military court system and is concerned that his testimony to the grand jury will be used by military prosecutors. He has also said he won't testify because Nazario saved his life during combat.

The letter writers note that Nelson has served three tours in Iraq and was also part of a humanitarian mission to the Philippines. The group suggests that keeping Nelson in jail will demoralize active-duty personnel and discourage young people from enlisting.

"Please consider the service of this young man, and the damage to his future, to the future of the United States military, and most importantly, to the future of the United States of America if he remains jailed with hard-core criminals (murderous gang members, drug dealers and rapists) simply because he remains loyal and faithful to his nation and the U.S. Marine Corps as he has been trained to do."

Signing the letter were Penny Alfonso, a registered nurse; retired Marine Col. G.I. Wilson; retired attorney Carolyn Blashek; and William McNulty, secretary of the Marine Corps Intelligence Assn., a group of active-duty and former Marines involved in intelligence gathering and analysis.

-- Tony Perry, in San Diego

Photo: Marines during battle in Fallouja.  Credit: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

IRAN: Word of Bush's alleged covert war hits Tehran

New Yorker magazine investigative journalist Seymour Hersh’s article this week alleging a major upping of the American campaign to fund and back covert operations against Iran became major news in Tehran today.

The 6,000-word article alleged a secret campaign to fund ethnic separatist groups fighting the Iranian government and U.S. commandos scooping up intel on clandestine forays onto Iranian soil.

But for both supporters and opponents of the Iranian government one thing stood out in the report above all else: the price tag.

Hersh alleges that the U.S. Congress secretly OKd up to $400 million to fund such activities.

To Iranians, that’s a lot of cash that you can throw around at a lot of people to do a lot of things.

Television news shows went bonkers with the report. “Sabotage of the U.S. in Iran and a new wave of psychological warfare,” was the title of one televised roundtable discussion.

One expert on the show called the Americans’ alleged move “state terrorism” that violated international law and the U.N. charter forbidding interference in the affairs of other countries.

Others called the U.S. Congress’ alleged approval of so much money late last year a strategic milestone that the Iranian government would have to address.

“We understand that  the US administration is sending conflicting signals,”  Iranian lawmaker Kazem Jalali said. “On the one hand they send signals to say they want to negotiate. On the other hand, they try to bully.”

EGYPT: Lawsuits over Egypt-Israeli gas deal

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has been sued by a citizens group over his government’s deal to sell natural gas to Israel at bargain prices. The suit is the latest in a national protest by the succinctly, if long-windedly, named Popular Campaign for Stopping the Export of Egyptian Natural Gas to Israel.

The group’s campaign includes a petition drive, mock trials of government officials and attempts to persuade clerics to issue fatwas against the deal. Since its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, Egypt has had strained relations with its Jewish neighbor, especially over the Palestinian question. Many Egyptians would prefer to tear up the accord rather than carry on with what they regard as a peace that exists on paper, but not in their hearts.

The gas deal, an attempt to further normalize relations with Israel, has become an embarrassment to the Mubarak regime at a time of widening public anger over corruption, low wages and inflation. One of those leading the opposition to the sale is Anwar Esmat Sadat, the nephew of former President Anwar Sadat, who was assassinated by Islamic radicals two years after making peace with Israel during the 1979 Camp David talks. 

The energy agreement reportedly calls for Egypt to annually sell 1.7 billion cubic meters of gas to the Jewish state at a much cheaper rate than it could charge on the world market.

“Banning the export of natural gas to Israel has become an issue which concerns all Egyptians,” reformist judge Mahmoud El-Khodeiri told Al-Ahram Weekly. “You can hardly find an Egyptian who approves selling gas to Israel or dealing with such a state in any way or form.”

— Jeffrey Fleishman in Cairo

Photo: Egyptian Oil Minister Sameh Fahmi, left, and the Israeli Minister of Infrastructure Binyamin Ben Eliezer as posted on citizens group's blog.

AFGHANISTAN: 4 American casualties identified

The Defense Department has identified three soldiers who were killed Thursday when their convoy  was attacked with roadside bombs, gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades near  Forward Operating Base Shank in Lowgar province, Afghanistan. At least 537 U.S. service members have died in the war.

Sgt. 1st Class Matthew L. Hilton, 37, of Livonia, Mich., was assigned to the 425th Infantry Regiment, Michigan Army National Guard, Selfridge, Mich.

Sgt. 1st Class Joseph A. McKay, 51, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Spc. Mark C. Palmateer, 38, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., were assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment (Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition), New York Army National Guard, Jamestown, N.Y.

Staff Sgt. Travis K. Hunsberger, 24, of Goshen, Ind., was killed by a roadside bomb while on combat patrol Friday near Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan, the Defense Department announced.  He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Ft. Bragg, N.C.

IRAQ: 10 American casualties identified

The Defense Department has identified seven soldiers and three Marines who were killed in Iraq, where at least 4,113 American service members have lost their lives.

Pfc. Bryan M. Thomas, 22, of Lake Charles, La., died June 23 in Baghdad of gunshot wounds suffered during combat operations in Salman Pak, Iraq. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Baumholder, Germany.
   
Spc. Joshua L. Plocica, 20, of Clarksville, Tenn., was killed by a roadside bomb Wednesday in Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Ft. Hood, Texas.

Sgt. Alejandro A. Dominguez, 24, of San Diego;   Spc. Joel A. Taylor, 20, of Pinetown, N.C.; and       Pfc. James M. Yohn, 25, of Highspire, Pa., died Wednesday in Mosul, Iraq of wounds caused by a roadside bomb Tuesday. They were assigned to the 1st Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Ft. Hood, Texas.

Chief Warrant Officer Robert C. Hammett, 39, of Tucson, Ariz., who was assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Ft. Carson, Colo., and Maj. Dwayne M. Kelley, 48, of Willingboro, N.J., who was assigned to the 432nd Civil Affairs Battalion, Green Bay, Wis., were killed by a bomb Tuesday in Baghdad.

Three Marines — Lt. Col. Max A. Galeai, 42, of Pago Pago, American Samoa;  Capt. Philip J. Dykeman, 38, of Brockport, N.Y.; and Cpl. Marcus W. Preudhomme, 23, of North Miami Beach, Fla. — died Thursday while supporting combat operations in Anbar province, Iraq. They were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines, 3rd Marine Division, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay.

         

LEBANON: Burger, fries and grenades on the side

With sounds of helicopters hovering overhead, Samir hunched over behind a pile of sandbags and sank his teeth into a hamburger.

The thirtysomething Beirut resident was not a warrior taking a moment of rest in the battlefield. He was a regular customer dining with his black-veiled wife and little son at Buns and Guns, a new war-themed restaurant where every detail, from the menu and decor to the names of sandwiches, is inspired by the military world.

The eatery, which looks like a military outpost, was designed to be an unconventional hangout but it also resonates because of recent armed clashes in Beirut and the many tanks and military troops deployed here in the capital. The restaurant is located in a crowded street of Dahiyeh, Beirut’s southern suburb and a Hezbollah stronghold that was the scene of heavy airstrikes during the militant group’s 2006 war with Israel.

“We wanted to create a new attractive idea inspired from the events that our country went through,” said Yussef Ibrahim, the restaurant’s general manager. “People from all backgrounds come here and find the place amusing.”

IRAN: Report says U.S. waging secret war

An explosive article by veteran New Yorker investigative reporter Seymour Hersh alleges that the U.S. has secretly allocated up to $400 million to run covert operations against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Hersh alleges that the Bush administration is funding Iranian Arab and Baluchi militant groups as well other groups including possible Kurdish rebels and the Mujahedin Khalq, or MKO, a cult-like militant group with offices in Paris and fighters in Iraq that opposes the Islamic Republic. The money was also to be used to dig up intel on Iran's nuclear program, a source of major friction between Tehran and the West.

The report alleges that the Bush administration briefed Congressional leaders about the stepped up activity late last year.

"Clandestine operations against Iran are not new," Hersh writes, in a report that will appear in the July 7 and 14 issue of the New Yorker. "But the scale and the scope of the operations ... have now been significantly expanded."

MIDDLE EAST: More tolerance of abortion in Arab world

By Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

I knew it wouldn't be an easy story to pursue, writing an article about a subjective as sensitive as abortion in the Muslim Middle East.

But over the course of weeks of reporting, as I asked around among friends and acquaintances, I was shocked at how commonplace abortions were in the Middle East. Everyone, it seemed, knew someone who had had an abortion, and knew of doctors and midwives to contact in case someone needed one.

And though it's a topic that is strictly taboo, I was surprised at how many women were willing to speak discreetly about their experiences, even to a male reporter. One even considered allowing the use of her name, before realizing it might put her in trouble with the law.

Beneath the Muslim world's conservative veneer, attitudes are a lot more liberal. Abortions except in rare cases are illegal outside of Tunisia. But according to a survey published this month by WorldPublicOpinion.org, 53% of Egyptians, 66% of Iranians, 68% of Turks and 70% of Palestinians oppose criminalizing abortion.

Click here to read the whole story.

Photo: Kuwaiti women listen to political candidates at a forum in April. Credit: RAED QUTENA/EPA

AFGHANISTAN: Baseball team tribute to SEALs and soldiers

In a moving pregame ceremony Saturday night at Petco Park, the San Diego Padres paid tribute to the 11 Navy SEALs and 8 Army commandos killed on June 28, 2005, in Afghanistan.

The SEALs and commandos were killed when a SEAL team on a high-risk mission was ambushed by the Taliban and then a helicopter full of troops sent to rescue them crashed.

The tribute included a demonstration by the Navy Leap Frog parachute team, a flyby by Navy jets and a standing ovation by the crowd for two-dozen family members of the SEALs and commandos. Marcus Luttrell, the sole SEAL survivor, threw out the first pitch.

For the SEALs, Operation Red Wing was the largest single-day loss of life since World War II. Two of the 11 received the Navy Cross, one received the Medal of Honor. Luttrell has written a book, "Lone Survivor."

The tribute was arranged by First American Military Inc., a nonprofit support group.

One discordant note: Several members of the Seattle Mariners continued to do their stretching exercises just a few yards from where the family members were standing along the third-base line while the crowd gave them the standing ovation. By comparison, Padres players were standing and clapping along with the fans.

-- Tony Perry, in San Diego

Photo: Navy SEALs in Afghanistan. Only Marcus Luttrell, fourth from left, survived. Credit. U.S. Navy