Blog post

IAVA Daily Brief 9.8.10
Posted by Isabel Black on September 8 2010

Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking?  Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom or subscribe at www.IAVA.org/DailyNewsBrief

IN THE NEWS

1) Video: Despite formal combat end, US troops join in battle
 
Although President Obama last week declared an official end to combat in Iraq, just fewer than 50,000 troops remain in the country and are still regularly being put in harm's way.  This AP video shows US involvement following an attack on an Iraqi military headquarters, and explains the agreement the US has with the Iraqi security forces.
 
2) US targets illiteracy rate among Afghan forces
 
The US military is mounting a massive effort to help teach Afghan soldiers and police to read after concluding that literacy is "the essential enabler" to the local security forces' success.  The literacy rate for incoming Afghan army and police recruits is about 14 to 18 percent.
 
3) Vets using watchdogs against PTSD
 
Historically, service dogs are trained to perform tasks such as helping the blind cross the street or getting things for a wheelchair-bound owner.  For the estimated 175 psychiatric service dogs being used by veterans around the country, their job is to respond to symptoms associated with the handlers mental health problems, like PTSD and TBI.
 
AFGHANISTAN

• Campaigning for public office in Afghanistan has become increasingly more dangerous; at least three Afghan candidates running in the upcoming parliamentary polls have been killed in recent weeks, along with more than a dozen campaign workers.
• The United States does not plan to contribute to a NATO request for 2,000 troops for the Afghan war, the Pentagon said, even as the head of the alliance held out the possibility of US participation.

IRAQ

• Six months after Iraq's parliamentary elections, a government minister has warned that the political deadlock is damaging the security situation.
• Two American soldiers were killed and nine were wounded on Tuesday when a firefight erupted outside an Iraqi Army base north of Baghdad.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

• The US military's new armored trucks in Afghanistan are significantly reducing troop deaths in roadside attacks at a time when insurgent bombings are at record levels.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

• Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will give a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations about the Obama administration's diplomatic engagements and international leadership, including progress in the Middle East.

A wide-range of views, positions, and publications are represented in these articles. These views, positions and publications are not endorsed by nor do they necessarily represent the views of IAVA.

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