Sydney J. Freedberg Jr., National Journal
© National Journal Group Inc.
Friday, Oct. 12, 2007

At the age of 21, Robert Pennington was already on his third tour in Iraq. He had seen his best friend killed in house-to-house fighting in Falluja in 2004. He had fired on a car that failed to stop at a checkpoint and killed an Iraqi child — an act that his superiors called unfortunate but in accord with the rules of engagement. But on April 26, 2006, in the town of Hamdaniya, the young Marine lance corporal and the seven other members of his squad stepped over the line. Frustrated by the Iraqi police’s revolving-door releases of a suspected insurgent that U.S. forces had arrested three times, the squad decided to execute the man. A barking guard dog at the home of their intended target, a suspected cell leader known as Gowad, thwarted the marines, who instead broke into the house of Gowad’s lieutenant, Hashim Ibrahim Awad, and shot him. Then they planted an AK-47 rifle on the body, along with a shovel, to make it seem as if he had been digging a hole to hide a roadside bomb.

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(Reuters.com, Oct. 29, 2007)
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates favors slowing down the planned reduction of U.S. forces in Europe, but many practical details have yet to be resolved, the Pentagon said. U.S. commanders cite the need to work with and train the forces of European allies as well as concern about a more assertive Russia as reasons for delaying the redeployment of two combat brigades. An Army brigade typically has between 3,000 and 5,000 soldiers.

(USA Today, Oct. 30, 2007, Pg. 1)
The Pentagon has asked Congress for $1.4 billion in emergency spending to combat a growing threat of sniper attacks in Iraq based on an overstated assessment of the extent of the attacks, its records show. In last week’s spending request, the Pentagon said sniper attacks have quadrupled in the past year and, if unchecked, they could eclipse roadside bombs as the top killer of U.S. troops. However, the rate of sniper attacks actually dropped slightly in 2007 and has fallen dramatically in the past four months, according to military records provided to USA Today. Pentagon officials acknowledged the mistake after questions about the data were raised. (continue reading…)

The United Nations Security Council is an incredibly important tool for protecting both global security and U.S. national security. And it is a crucial forum for advancing U.S. foreign policy.

Unfortunately, the U.N. Security Council is broken. It needs immediate attention, and this has serious implications for the United States.

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On Monday Lt. Michael Murphy was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. Meet the man who told his story.

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