Tiny Estonia seeks strong support from Obama

September 02, 2014

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Spooked by Russia's intervention in Ukraine, Estonia is hoping for a strong signal of support from President Barack Obama when he arrives Wednesday in a country that two decades ago had Russian troops on its soil.

That Obama picked Estonia as his only stop before a NATO summit in Wales is reassuring to Estonia and Baltic neighbors Latvia and Lithuania, which, like Ukraine, were ruled by Moscow until the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

"I always knew that America is our key and trusted ally," said Juozas Kairutis, a 69-year-old retired teacher in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius. "Western Europe is too pragmatic. They do not understand what all this means and probably would turn away from Baltic states just like they did in 1940."

During World War II, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany invaded Baltic countries over the years. The U.S. and many other Western countries never recognized the nearly five-decade Soviet occupation, during which tens of thousands of Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians were deported to Siberia.

After the Soviet Union crumbled, the Baltic countries turned to the West and joined the European Union and NATO in 2004, irritating Russia. To Baltic leaders, the Ukraine crisis has underscored why they joined the alliance in the first place. They're now calling on NATO to take a more high-profile role in their defense — something they hope Obama's visit will reinforce.

"It is a very strong message to the region that the United States is taking the security of its eastern European NATO allies seriously," Estonia armed forces commander Maj. Gen. Riho Terras told The Associated Press.

Baltic leaders want NATO to establish permanent bases in the region, but some allies have been wary of doing anything that might endanger a 1997 agreement with Moscow under which NATO pledged not to permanently station substantial numbers of soldiers in Eastern Europe.

The issue is likely to come up as Obama meets the Baltic presidents Wednesday in a 18th-century palace in Tallinn. "The current situation shows that the principle of collective territorial defense hasn't gone away — on the contrary," Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves said Sunday, marking the 20th anniversary of the exit of the last Russian troops from Estonian territory.

The relations between the Baltic countries and Russia were chilly even before the Ukraine crisis. Moscow routinely accuses them of discriminating against their Russian-speaking minorities. About one-third of Estonia's 1.3 million residents have Russian as their mother tongue. Many of them feel detached from Estonian society and get their news from Kremlin-controlled Russian TV stations.

Ruben Airapetyan, a 19-year-old student at a vocational school in Tallinn, said he only speaks Russian and English — not Estonian. He didn't share the enthusiasm that many ethnic Estonians feel over Obama's visit.

"This visit seems a bit strange to me. Such a powerful man arriving in this small country," he said. "I don't have any hatred for Americans. The problem is I don't know what news to believe in."

Liudas Dapkus reported from Vilnius, Lithuania.

Muslim conference coming to Detroit this weekend stirs controversy

August 29, 2014

By Niraj Warikoo and Paul Egan
Detroit Free Press Staff Writers

Thousands of Muslims from across the U.S. are headed to Detroit this weekend for one of the biggest Islamic conventions in North America, a four-day event at which they will discuss the future of their community and faith in America.

Kicking off Friday, the annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) has already stoked controversy, drawing attacks from some conservatives who say the event is organized by an extremist group with ties to terror organizations — a claim strongly rejected by ISNA.

Former President Jimmy Carter and Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder are among the speakers, both of whom have drawn criticism for agreeing to appear at the convention, being held at Cobo Center.

ISNA officials have said their group is not tied to any extremist organizations and are focused on creating a welcoming place for Muslims from across the U.S.

At the convention, Muslim leaders are to talk on a wide range of topics, including Islamic law, politics, family life, business and foreign policy. One special guest this year is Nigeria’s top Muslim leader.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to show not only American Muslims around the nation, but also our fellow Michiganians, that we’re a very diverse community,” said Imam Aly Lela, religious leader at the Islamic Association of Greater Detroit in Rochester Hills and one of the convention speakers. “We are contributing to the economy and to the well-being of our cities and our states.”

Founded in 1982, ISNA came out of the Muslim Students Association, which will be holding its convention at the same time in conjunction with ISNA.

This is the first time ISNA is holding its annual gathering in Detroit, which is known nationally as a center for Muslim life in the U.S.

It will include a 5K run along the Detroit River, a tour of metro Detroit’s mosques and several speakers from metro Detroit’s Muslim communities, including local imams, Wayne County Circuit Judge Charlene Elder and Haaris Ahmad, Counsel for Economic Development and Real Estate for Wayne County who is president of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Snyder will be “highlighting the city’s resurgence and state’s comeback and recognizing Muslim-American contributions to the city, state and country and the opportunities that exist for everyone to work together to achieve prosperity and understanding” when he speaks Friday, said spokeswoman Sara Wurfel.

Some military veterans and tea party leaders are criticizing the governor for speaking at an ISNA convention.

Gerald Bloomfield of Ypsilanti — whose son, 38-year-old Maj. Gerald Bloomfield II was a Marine helicopter pilot killed in Iraq in 2005 — said he called the governor’s office Wednesday to object to Snyder appearing at the event.

“I don’t think the governor should disrespect my family and thousands of other people who have had family die,” Bloomfield said.

“I am very surprised that he accepted” the invitation to speak, he said. “I don’t know why he would.”

In 2009, a federal judge in Texas, Jorge Antonio Solis, ruled in a case involving a Muslim charity, Holy Land for Relief and Development, that “the government has produced ample evidence to establish the associations of” ISNA and other groups with Hamas. The Justice Department had labeled ISNA as an unindicted co-conspirator in the case against the charity, which was linked to Hamas. The judge’s ruling also cited a 1991 memo that listed ISNA as a Muslim Brotherhood organization.

ISNA officials did not respond this week to Free Press inquiries for comment, but have previously denied any links to terrorist groups. “ISNA is not now nor has it ever been subject to the control of any other domestic or international organizations including the Muslim Brotherhood,” according to a statement on ISNA’s website. It said it was disturbed when it was placed on the list and that “ISNA is not a target in this prosecution or any pending investigation.”

“ISNA rejects all acts of terrorism, including those perpetrated by Hamas, Hizbullah and any other group that claims Islam as their inspiration.”

Carter, who earlier this month called for the U.S. to recognize Hamas as a legitimate political group, came under fire on Thursday from the Thomas More Law Center, a conservative Christian legal center in Ann Arbor, for agreeing to speak at the convention. The center said the former president is giving “the cover of respectability” to ISNA.

A panel discussion on Turkey set for Saturday features three speakers who favor Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan, aligned with Islamist movements. Some Turkish journalists have slammed ISNA for the panel. In response, ISNA released a statement on Tuesday saying “this will not be a partisan panel, and various perspectives will be offered.”

The convention also features a panel discussion on Kashmir with Ghulam Nabi Fai, a Virginia man who was arrested by the FBI in 2011 and then pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy and violating tax laws. He was sentenced in March 2012 to two years in federal prison after admitting he got millions of dollars from Pakistan’s intelligence services.

The ISNA and students' conventions are to include seven talks by Yasir Qadhi, a Muslim leader from Tennessee who has said that Muslim women generally should not work outside the home, and has expressed anti-gay and anti-Shia views. Over the past year, Qadhi has said he has changed his views toward Shias and no longer identifies with Salafis, a group some criticize as being extreme.

ISNA, which has been seen as being anti-Shia in the past, has worked over the past year to include Shias at the convention in Detroit, which has a sizable Shia community in the area.

“There has been a tremendous effort in ISNA to welcome ... diversity and the path of pluralism in recent years,” said Imam Mohammed Elahi, a Shia leader who heads the Islamic House of Wisdom in Dearborn Heights and is one of the convention speakers. Two leaders with ISNA visited his mosque over the past year.

“I may disagree with some of ISNA positions,” Elahi said, but added the convention is a “blessing ... spiritually and educationally.”

“ISNA convention is an opportunity for all of us to celebrate our similarities and appreciate our differences.”

Source: Detroit Free Press.
Link: http://www.freep.com/article/20140829/NEWS05/308290043.

US military to send tanks to E. Europe for drills

Washington (AFP)
Aug 28, 2014

US Army troops equipped with tanks will head to Eastern Europe soon to reassure NATO allies anxious over Russia's intervention in Ukraine, Pentagon officials said Thursday.

About 600 troops from the 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division are due to deploy in October to Poland and the Baltic states for training exercises with alliance members, replacing paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, said spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Vanessa Hillman.

"It's a three month rotation," Hillman said. The drills are "focused on small unit and leader training."

Unlike the outgoing unit, the troops from the "Iron Horse brigade," based in Fort Hood, Texas, will deploy with M-1 Abrams tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, she said.

US commanders have organized an array of exercises and training efforts on NATO's eastern border to reassure allies dismayed over Russia's support of separatists in Ukraine. Washington also has sent F-16 fighter jets to Poland and joined air policing missions over the Baltic states.

Kiev and Western countries on Thursday accused Russia of directly entering the fighting in eastern Ukraine, saying Moscow had sent combat units into the former Soviet state.

As the UN Security Council prepared to hold an emergency meeting on the crisis, NATO said at least 1,000 Russian troops were on the ground backing pro-Moscow separatists who are fighting Kiev government forces.

NATO leaders have said the alliance must reevaluate its strategy and its troop deployments in light of the conflict in Ukraine...

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/US_military_to_send_tanks_to_E_Europe_for_drills_999.html.

Brazil taking sharp look at Russia's Pantsir-S1 air defense system

by Richard Tomkins
Brasilia, Brazil (UPI)
Aug 28, 2014

A Brazilian military delegation has been sent to Russia to further assess the Pantsir-S1 medium-range air defense system for possible purchase.

Brazil and Russia initiated the procurement process for the system and it is now in the "contractual stage," the Defense Ministry said.

Demonstration of the Pantsir-S1 is being conducted in scenarios specifically requested by Brazil. A total of nine tests of the system will be conducted.

"We have to do the verification of operational requirements on a proving ground, where all procedures are controlled and can be analyzed accurately," said Lt Gen Gershon Machado, the ministry's head logistics officer said. "We will have access to data, including telemetry."

The Pantsir-S1, which is called the SA-22 Greyhound by NATO, is a combination surface-to-air missile system and an anti-aircraft artillery weapon.

Brazil is eyeing the purchase of three of the Russian systems, one for each of its military services.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Brazil_taking_sharp_look_at_Russias_Pantsir-S1_air_defense_system_999.html.

Philippine Muslim rebels oppose Islamic State 'virus'

Manila (AFP)
Aug 28, 2014

The Philippines' largest Muslim rebel group has condemned extremist jihadists in Iraq and Syria, and vowed to stop the spread of their "virus" into the Southeast Asian nation.

After decades of armed rebellion that claimed tens of thousands of lives, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed a peace agreement in March that commits it and the national government to share power in the area.

The MILF portrayed its moderate leadership as vital to stopping the savage ideology of Islamic State (IS) infecting the southern Muslim regions of the mainly Catholic Philippines.

"The MILF condemns barbarism and savagery whether done by other groups including the ISIS or even by its (MILF's) own members," the MILF said in an editorial posted on its www.luwaran.com website this week.

"Frankly, it is the power, moderating line, and influence of the MILF that hinders the birth of a truly strong radical group."

The MILF also said a planned Muslim autonomous region that is the centerpiece of the peace deal would be a bulwark against the ideology of the Islamic State, which is also known as ISIS.

The MILF urged President Benigno Aquino to approve a draft bill to create the autonomous region, which was submitted to him last week by a joint committee of rebel and government negotiators.

The peace agreement had called for Aquino to submit the bill to Congress earlier this year, so the autonomous region would be in place by the time he leaves office in mid-2016.

But he rejected an earlier draft and had the joint committee prepare a revised version.

"It is this... fear (of) not being able to realize it (passage of the Muslim autonomous law) for whatever reason that the ISIS' virus is much to be feared," the MILF warned.

Two other Filipino Muslim armed groups, the Abu Sayyaf and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), have recently vowed allegiance to the IS in video clips uploaded on the Internet.

Some politicians have expressed concern both groups may be sending recruits abroad to fight alongside the IS, though the Philippine military said there was no evidence of this.

The Abu Sayyaf is a loosely organized Al-Qaeda-linked group of several hundred militants blamed for the Philippines' deadliest terrorists attacks.

The BIFF, which has about 200 fighters, split from the MILF after rejecting peace talks and has vowed to continue pursuing an independent Islamic state.

"For us, the threat is not in the two groups' joining the ISIS. Their number(s) (are) too tiny to be felt and make a difference," the MILF said.

"The threat really comes from the extremism espouse(d) by the ISIS. Ideas are contagious and infectious."

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Philippine_Muslim_rebels_oppose_Islamic_State_virus_999.html.

US Space Debris Tracking Site To Be Build In Western Australia

Canberra, Australia (SPX)
Aug 28, 2014

Under a new strategic cooperation agreement, Lockheed Martin and Electro Optic Systems Pty Ltd are developing a new space object tracking site in Western Australia that will paint a more detailed picture of space debris for both government and commercial customers.

The site will use a combination of lasers and sensitive optical systems like those found in telescopes to detect, track and characterize man-made debris objects. Electro-optical technologies that can zoom in on specific objects form a strong complement to radar-based systems like the U.S. Air Force's Space Fence, which will sweep the sky and track 200,000 objects.

Drawing on advanced sensors and software, the new site will focus on specific objects and determine how fast they're moving, what direction they're spinning, and what they're made of.

"Ground-based space situational awareness is a growing priority for government and commercial organizations around the world that need to protect their investments in space," said Rick Ambrose, executive vice president, Lockheed Martin Space Systems.

"Through this agreement with Electro Optic Systems, we'll offer customers a clearer picture of the objects that could endanger their satellites, and do so with great precision and cost-effectiveness."

"The partnership with Lockheed Martin will help both organizations establish a global network of space sensors, while simultaneously increasing the market reach of the partners' data and services," said Electro Optic Systems Chief Executive Officer Ben Greene.

"We consider the strategic partnership with Lockheed Martin a major step towards the achievement of critical mass of sensors, data and services, all of which are critical in providing detailed yet easily usable information on space debris."

Electro Optic Systems develops and produces a wide range of space-related technologies including telescopes and beam directors. They are among the largest producers of major optical telescopes in the world, and currently operate the Space Research Center, a satellite laser ranging and debris tracking facility, at Mt. Stromlo in the Australian Capital Territory.

Source: Space Mart.
Link: http://www.spacemart.com/reports/US_Space_Debris_Tracking_Site_To_Be_Build_In_Western_Australia_999.html.

Families of Russian troops in Ukraine want answers

August 29, 2014

MOSCOW (AP) — The last time Valeria Sokolova saw her husband, the 25-year-old paratrooper told her that he and his fellow soldiers were heading for military exercises in southern Russia, near the Ukrainian border.

"He was vague in a way that was very unusual, and it was hard for all of them to say goodbye," Sokolova told The Associated Press, recounting their conversation from earlier this month. On Monday, 10 men from his division were captured in eastern Ukraine amid fighting between pro-Moscow separatists and Ukrainian troops. At least two others from the division were killed and an unspecified number were wounded.

Sokolova, the mother of a 6-year-old boy, does not know the fate of her husband, and she said Russian military officials have released no information about the servicemen. She fears for his safety. Similar questions are being raised by families of other Russian servicemen about unexplained deaths and missing or captured soldiers who are said to be on military exercises. The answers could undermine public support for President Vladimir Putin and his policies in Ukraine.

The government has released little information about those killed while fighting with the rebels — a policy that some have compared to one used during the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in the 1980s. This secrecy may become more difficult to maintain if the death toll grows.

Sokolova, who declined to identify her husband further because she worries it could have consequences for him, said she and other army wives converged on the local garrison to demand answers. "Only through each other did we find out the number of killed, wounded," she told the AP by telephone from Kostroma, a city 350 kilometers (210 miles) north of Moscow.

Russian officials, including Putin, have said the captured paratroopers had gotten lost and wandered over the border by mistake. The news added to the growing evidence that Russia — despite its denials — is sending troops and weapons to fight alongside the separatists.

On Thursday, Ukraine accused Russia of sending tanks, armored vehicles and troops onto its soil. NATO said at least 1,000 Russian troops are in Ukraine and released what it said were satellite photos of Russian artillery units moving in last week.

Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko said up to 4,000 Russians have fought on the separatist side since the conflict began in April, including soldiers, but he said they were on leave and fighting voluntarily.

Two other cases involving the deaths of Russian troops have recently come to light. This week, the presidential human rights commission published an open letter online demanding an investigation into the deaths this month of nine members of a motorized infantry brigade also sent to the southern Rostov region for military exercises.

The request to look into the deaths came from the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers, a highly respected non-governmental organization with a long history of working to defend the rights of soldiers. Within days, however, the commission's letter appeared to have been removed from its website.

In the northwestern region of Pskov, home of a major airborne division, the deaths of two paratroopers appear to have been suppressed. The names of the dead have been removed from fresh graves in a cemetery visited by local journalists, who were threatened or chased away by thugs. Relatives of dead or missing paratroopers reportedly have been warned not to talk to the media.

"This is the same old Soviet behavior," said Valentina Melnikova, the Moscow-based director of the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers. "It reminds me of the secret burials of soldiers during the first half of the Afghan war," she said, referring to 1979-89 Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. "When they sent bodies back, they didn't give any information about where he had died and didn't allow people to write on his tombstone that he was a soldier."

Melnikova also said that in previous conflicts, such as the early stages of the war against separatists in Chechnya in the 1990s, many soldiers who were killed or captured on Chechen soil were listed on army rosters as having been on leave.

In recent days, Melnikova said she has received multiple reports from divisions where soldiers have been intimidated into signing up as contract troops and then whisked across the border. "According to our military laws, they are supposed to be given a month's leave before their contract work starts," she said. "But they aren't given the leave; they're sent straight across the border."

Sokolova, the wife of the missing Kostroma paratrooper, was at home Tuesday when another soldier's wife called with the news that the 10 men in their husbands' division had been captured by Ukrainian troops.

Ukraine's security services posted video of the Russians online. One soldier, who holds up his dog tag for the camera, says their commander sent them on a 70-kilometer (40-mile) march without warning them that they would be entering Ukraine.

The soldiers were brought to Kiev and jailed on charges of participating in terrorist activity and crossing the border illegally. Sokolova and other military wives gathered at the local garrison Wednesday morning to demand information about their husbands' whereabouts.

"They only came out to us at 2 p.m., and they didn't tell us anything," she said. The wives and other relatives turned for help to the local branch of the Committee of Soldier's Mothers. Lyudmila Khokhlova, the group's Kostroma representative, said in a telephone interview that she was told by an official at the base that two men in the division had been killed and others wounded. She said she was denied further information, including the number of wounded and how many soldiers from the base had been sent into Ukraine.

Gathered in Khokhlova's office, some distraught relatives made a video in which they asked Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to bring home their husbands and sons. "I beg you in the name of Christ," said Olga Pochtoyeva, whose son was among the captives. "Give me back my child. Give him back alive, and all of the other boys who are being held prisoner with him."

Putin has tacitly acknowledged the Russian soldiers were in Ukraine, but suggested they simply got lost. "The first thing I heard is that they were patrolling the border and may have found themselves on Ukrainian territory," he said Tuesday after meeting the Ukrainian president in Belarus.

Sokolova does not buy that explanation. She said her husband "was forced to sign an agreement to secrecy," and that he had told her several men resigned from the division just before the trip. Despite the outcry among the wives and mothers of the Kostroma soldiers, there has been no response from the Defense Ministry, and the case has been all but ignored on state television, where most Russians get their news.

"This is one of those very numerous episodes in which there are two different truths: one in Russia, and one in Ukraine and the West," said Maria Lipman, an independent Moscow-based analyst. "I don't think in the broad public realm this will become a reported fact. But it is becoming a problem for Putin, because not every widow will agree to keep secret her loved one's death, no matter how lavish the compensation."

An ancient city waits for tourists in Iran

Madi Jahangir
August 27, 2014

TEPPE HASANLU, Iran — There are graves everywhere at Teppe Hasanlu. "Probably, there are ancient graves here, layer by layer," says Meisam, an archaeology teacher. He tells us stories of life and death as we walk up the hills surrounded by cemeteries. In the hot summer days of August, wild flowers, insects and the breeze blowing in between the ruins are the only sentient beings here, besides me and my friends, a group of young tour-guide trainees. However, not even our presence disturbs the absolute solitude of this ancient site in northwest Iran.

Most of my classmates share similar dreams and hopes: love of travel and an opportunity to make extra money.? After decades of isolation, Iran is experiencing a sudden boom in tourism. This new market has encouraged many young Iranians to try and make a profit from it — in this case, as tour guides.

“Salam!” yells Behdad, a fellow tour-guide trainee. He is performing the role of tour guide for the group, and his voice echoes off the clay walls. “If you do not greet me, then at least say a proper 'salam' to your country’s magnificent heritage,” he says.

He describes our surroundings at Teppe Hasanlu, and how Apadana Palace in Persepolis was inspired by these forgotten clay columns. Teppe Hasanlu, literally, the “hills of Hasanlu,” is located on the southern shore of Lake Urmia, about 7 kilometers (4 miles) northeast of the city of Naqadeh in Iran's West Azerbaijan province. Here, life stopped centuries ago and left most people unaware of its dramatic past.

A British archaeologist first investigated Teppe Hasanlu? in 1934. Later, the hammers of American archaeologists broke thousands of years of silence in this ancient city. Americans launched the Hasanlu Project to investigate the ancient site and the area's history and politics. The Hasanlu Project shifted its focus to the Iron Age when archaeologist Robert Dyson unexpectedly found a gold bowl in the arms of a soldier who had died in the fire that destroyed the city.

They learned that Hasanlu was continuously inhabited from the 6th century B.C. to the 3rd century, before it was destroyed by fire. The brick walls are evidence of a nation that built some of the era's greatest castles, long before the founding of Persepolis. In addition, the spinning wheel of Mithra that was carved on the golden bowl proved the existence of a great civilization able to mold metal. The Americans also found a pair of entwined skeletons buried in a grave, appearing to have died in an embrace.

“We did not discover all these,” Meisam said. “Foreigners showed Hasanlu to the world, besides the fact that this archaeological site has many more layers to be investigated. We cannot currently do anything because we do not have the funding and means to protect them. However, I believe this might be better for our historical sites to remain untouched for now. The ground best preserves a country’s heritage.”

Meisam has worked on many archaeological sites throughout the country. He believes Iranians should be at the forefront of showing their culture to the world: “I hope you, as tour guides, talk over and over about our history and culture for the foreign visitors and keep that rich heritage alive, to [let people] get to know all this, so that the future generations will be enthusiastic and proud in preserving their identity and historical background.”

CNN reported in July of this year that a "tsunami of tourists" is headed for Iran. However, Teppe Hasanlu has remained unaffected by the invasion. Tourists visit the major historical sites in Esfahan and Shiraz rather than some of the more obscure sites in other Iranian provinces.

“This place looks like it is not being taken care of. I would like to see some [recreated] photos of how it looked when it was inhabited; where the soldier hugging the gold bowl was found; or where the lovers’ skeletons were discovered," says Mohadeseh, another tour-guide trainee. She dreams of perfecting her French to guide French-speaking visitors.

"I think there is no problem in [having] a global corporation preserve an important historic site like Hasanlu. If they have the means and knowledge, why not? Such places of outstanding cultural, historical and natural significance are not only owned by one country or nation. They belong to humanity. If something causes damage, the responsibility is with all of us," she says.

Mohadeseh and I are the last to leave the hills. I would love to return to the ancient city soon, since an hour is not enough to explore and document the place. Yet, there is perhaps more to Teppe Hasanlu, which is surrounded by cemeteries. Leaving the hills is to leave all the layers of graves, houses and temples behind — all the layers of life, love and death. When we get on the bus, many untold stories, unanswered questions and mysteries are left behind.

As Iraq's historic sites are reduced to rubble, the ground of Iran’s Hasanlu preserves its buried history for the future — for the day when it will be discovered, cherished and appreciated by the generations to come. On the hills of Hasanlu, where wars wiped out civilizations, love is stronger than death.

Source: al-Monitor.
Link: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/08/tappe-hassanlu-iran-tourism-history-azarbaijan.html.

New helmets, body armor, other gear for Australian troops

by Richard Tomkins
Canberra, Australia (UPI)
Aug 28, 2014

Australian Defense Force personnel on military deployment are to be issued with improved personal protection gear, the government announced Wednesday.

The new kit consists of new-generation body armor, combat helmets, hearing protection, ballistic glasses and goggles, ballistic plate carriers, packs, basic pouches and equipment bags.

"Known as Land 125 Phase 3B, the defense project to improve a soldier's individual load carriage equipment draws on the direct experience and feedback derived from 15 years of ADF combat operations," said Minister for Defense David Johnston.

"This (program) will increase soldier mobility and endurance through the acquisition of lighter and better integrated components and materiel."

The new gear is being produced by Australian Defense Apparel under a five-year contract worth about $158.5 million.

The first 1,000 sets of load carriage equipment will be delivered by Australian Defense Apparel in May of next year.

Johnston made the announcement during a visit to the Australian Defense Force Academy.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/New_helmets_body_armor_other_gear_for_Australian_troops_999.html.