Category Archives: Department of Defense

The FBI’s Minority Report

Posted on September 30, 2011 by

On Wednesday, the FBI arrested Rezwan Ferdaus, a 26-year-old U.S. citizen from Ashland, west of Boston, on terrorism charges. The arrest came as a result of an undercover operation conducted by FBI agents posing as al-Qaeida terrorists. They provided Ferdaus … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Department of Defense, FBI, George W. Bush, Individual Freedom, Moroccan Initiative, Terrorism, United States, USA PATRIOT Act | Tagged | 2 Comments

Deciphering Morocco’s Military Procurement Strategy

Posted on May 31, 2011 by

On May 17, 2011, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) advised congress on a possible foreign military sale (FMS) estimated at about 50 million U.S. dollars to Morocco. In a continuous effort to revamp its air force inventory, Morocco … Continue reading →

Posted in Algeria, Department of Defense, Military, MOROCCO, Terrorism, United States | Tagged , | Leave a comment

AFRICOM: Gen. Ham Assumes Command

Posted on March 10, 2011 by

Gen. Carter F. Ham assumed command of U.S. Africa Command Wednesday in Stuttgart, Germany, during a ceremony attended by Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Ham takes over from Gen. William “Kip” Ward who has been at the helm of AFRICOM since … Continue reading →

Posted in AFRICOM, Department of Defense, Gen Carter F. Ham, Terrorism, United States | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Morocco’s Military: Too Conventional For Today’s Asymmetric Threat

Posted on November 21, 2009 by

To enhance its air combat and air defense capabilities, the Moroccan Royal Air Force (RAF) had requested from and was approved by the United States Congress to purchase AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air missiles (AMRAAM) from Raytheon, a U.S. company … Continue reading →

Posted in AFRICOM, Department of Defense, Lockheed Martin, Military, MOROCCO, Terrorism, United States | Tagged | 7 Comments

Are Morocco And Algeria Gearing Up For Arms Race?

Posted on September 17, 2009 by

On March 2008, I reported on Morocco’s purchase of 24 F-16 Block 52+ fighter jets from Lockheed Martin at a cost of $2.4 billion dollars (read it here). The purchase was in response to Algeria’s March 2006 $8 billion military … Continue reading →

Posted in Algeria, Department of Defense, Maghreb, Military, MOROCCO | Tagged | 5 Comments

RAF Delegation At Luke

Posted on March 24, 2009 by

Furthering U.S. – Moroccan military cooperation, a delegation from the Royal Moroccan Air Force is touring Luke Air Force Base, the U.S. Air Force’s only active-duty F-16 Fighting Falcon training wing. Located west of Phoenix, Arizona, the base is home to … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of Defense, Lockheed Martin, Military, MOROCCO | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

AFRICOM: Plowing Ahead

Posted on March 20, 2009 by

Gen. William E. “Kip” Ward appeared before the Armed Services Committee March 18, 2009 to discuss AFRICOM’s challenges in promoting stability and security in Africa. AFRICOM’s efforts are driven by national level requirements with an endstate to degrade and eliminate … Continue reading →

Posted in AFRICOM, Democracy, Department of Defense, MOROCCO, Terrorism, United States | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Bring Them Home, But Not For War

Posted on December 23, 2008 by

Three to four million people are estimated to converge in Washington, D.C. on January 20th, 2009 to witness the momentous inauguration of Barak Hussein Obama as the 44th US president. Inauguration tickets, which are provided to members of the Senate … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Department of Defense, George W. Bush, HUMAN RIGHTS, NorthCom, Terrorism, United States | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

AFRICOM Base In Tan Tan Confirmed

Posted on October 5, 2008 by

  (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Sergeant Justin Park) AFRICOM has officially assumed all the duties and responsibilities of a full-fledged geographic unified command by taking over from EUCOM and CENTCOM all DoD operations pertaining to 53 African nations except for … Continue reading →

Posted in AFRICOM, Algeria, Department of Defense, Maghreb, Military, MOROCCO, North Africa, Terrorism, Uncategorized, United States | Tagged , | 8 Comments

AFRICOM’s Challenges

Posted on July 10, 2008 by

  AFRICOM, tasked to consolidate U.S. military responsibilities for all of Africa, excluding Egypt, which will remain a CENTCOM area of operation (AO), and with a 2009 budget in excess of $400 million dollars, is due to be operational October … Continue reading →

Posted in AFRICOM, Department of Defense, George W. Bush, Terrorism, United States | 3 Comments

AN ARMY OF NONE

Posted on April 20, 2008 by

  Maliki’s crackdown on the Mehdi army to retake Basra has put to the test the Iraqi troops – more than 15,000 of them – British and U.S. military advisors qualified as battle ready. They were not. They were incompetent … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of Defense, George W. Bush, Iraq, Military, United States | Leave a comment

IRAQ WAR A “MAJOR DEBACLE”

Posted on April 18, 2008 by

A highly critical report written by Joseph Collins, a former senior Pentagon official, and published by the National Institute for Strategic studies, a Department of Defense research center, casts doubt on Bush’s prevision of a U.S. victory in Iraq calling … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of Defense, George W. Bush, Iraq, Military, United States | Leave a comment

LIVE FROM BAGHDAD

Posted on March 21, 2008 by

I remember a time in Baghdad when the pungent smell of decomposing bodies was pervasive. Dead bodies littered the streets for days, even weeks before Iraqis dared to bury them. “We couldn’t come out, but we had to,” says Ja’ffar, … Continue reading →

Posted in Arab World, Children, Democracy, Department of Defense, ECONOMY, George W. Bush, Iraq, Military, POVERTY, Terrorism, Torture, United States | 1 Comment

DRAWING EVIL

Posted on March 18, 2008 by

I concede that there are a handful of detainees in Gitmo that are die-hard and unrepentant terrorists who deserve the unmitigated impact of the law. As I have indicated in a previous article, the majority of the detainees are innocent … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Department of Defense, Fernando Bottero, George W. Bush, Guantanamo, Military, Sami Al-Haj, Terrorism, Torture, United States | Leave a comment

THE GET “MO” POLICY

Posted on March 13, 2008 by

The royal palm fronds, slowly swayed by the northeastern trade winds against the cloudless blue sky, seem to be untiringly dancing to the vibrant rhythms of the syncopated beat of the rumba. The vast turquoise sea, like a mulata drunk … Continue reading →

Posted in Department of Defense, George W. Bush, Guantanamo, Military, Terrorism, Torture, United States | 1 Comment