Last Convoy of American Troops Leaves Iraq

An American soldier walked last week through Contingency Operating Base Adder, where the last convoy of the military withdrawal left early Sunday under cover of darkness.

U.S. threatened to take military action against China over arms race in space

* WikiLeaks documents reveal battle for supremacy above the Earth in 2007
* Both superpowers destroyed their own satellites with missile strikes in show of strength

The U.S. warned China it could take military action in response to Beijing’s use of space missiles, it has emerged.

Leaked diplomatic documents reveal that the U.S. shot down one of its own satellites to demonstrate its ballistic power after China had destroyed its own weather satellite.

And despite being threatened with military action in 2007 by then U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, China carried out another missile test only last year.

The military standoff has been likened to the ‘star wars’ strategic missile plan conceived by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s.

According to diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks and published by the Daily Telegraph, China and the U.S. jostled for position behind closed doors over the issue of missile defence.

China shot down a weather satellite stationed 530 miles above the earth in January 2007, sending over 2,000 pieces of space debris into orbit.

The strike was the first anti-satellite test since 1985 but despite widespread international criticism of China’s actions, then-Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jinchao stressed: ‘There’s no need to feel threatened by this.’

Cause for conflict: China and the U.S. engaged in a military standoff over space missile tests

The field of conflict: An artist's impression of a weather satellite, similar to that shot out of the sky by China with a missile




The U.S. state department appeared to not agree, with Clark Randt, the American Ambassador in Beijing complaining about the test to Chinese assistant foreign minister He Yefei.

Officials working for Ms Rice later told China: ‘A Chinese attack on a satellite using a weapon launched by a ballistic missile threatens to destroy space systems that the United States and other nations use for commerce and national security. Destroying satellites endangers people.’

Officials warned: ’Any purposeful interference with US space systems will be interpreted by the United States as an infringement of its rights and considered an escalation in a crisis or conflict.

‘The United States reserves the right, consistent with the UN Charter and international law, to defend and protect its space systems with a wide range of options, from diplomatic to military.'

While the U.S. said China’s testing of an anti-satellite missile contravened ‘the spirit of cooperation’ of international space operations in the 21st century, just over a year later Washington launched its own test strike.

A malfunctioning U.S. satellite was shot down in February 2008, with the public explanation that its fuel tank was defective and would be hazardous if the satellite retuned to earth.

However, diplomatic missives at the time indicate the strike was militarily-sanctioned, with the American Embassy in China receiving ‘direct confirmation of the results of the anti-satellite test’ from U.S. military commanders in the Pacific.

Leaked embassy cables reveal the shooting of satellite USA 193 angered Beijing.

A memo sent from the Beijing embassy in Februarty 2008 said the Chinese 'repeatedly emphasised that the United States should provide information on the planned satellite interception prior to releasing the information to CNN'.

Tensions were evident in June 2008 with Chinese delegates at a defence summit claiming the superpowers were ‘neither allies nor adversaries’.

However, China carried out a fresh test last year, according to documents sent from the office of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in January 2010.

A diplomatic cable said the Chinese destruction of a CSS-X-11 missile about 150 miles above the earth could be judged to have ‘furthered both Chinese ASAT [anti-satellite] and ballistic missile defense technologies’.

The cable also outlined the concern of the ‘Obama administration’ over China’s stance on space weaponry.

Warning: China's president Hu Jintao (left) angered the U.S. by testing an anti-satellite missile, with officials working for then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice threatening Beijing with military action

Jovial crowd cheers the signing of 'don't ask, don't tell' repeal - Gay soldiers allowed

Myanmar bars foreign monitors, reporters from poll

Myanmar, Oct 18 — International poll monitors and foreign journalists will be barred from Myanmar’s first election in 20 years, its military rulers said on Monday, deepening concern that next month’s poll will be a sham.

The United States, Britain and Myanmar’s Southeast Asian neighbours had urged the junta to allow independent election monitors at the Nov. 7 election, which critics say will cement the military’s grip on power under the guise of civilian rule.

Members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party wait for guests in front of posters of national hero Burmese general Aung San, father of Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, at the party headquarters May 27, 2009, before a ceremony to mark the 19th anniversary of the 1990 general election where the NLD won 392 of 485 parliamentary seats.




“We don’t need foreign observers. We have abundant experience in holding elections,” Thein Soe, chairman of the Union Election Commission, told a news conference in the capital Naypyitaw.

“Besides, the election laws enacted are very balanced and easy to understand.”

The election is the first since 1990, when Nobel Peace Prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition party won in a landslide result that was ignored by the military.

Critics say the ruling generals are tightly controlling campaign activities this time to ensure their proxies win most votes and the assemblies will be dominated by their allies.

The 10-state Association of South East Asian Nations offered in July to send monitors to help ensure the elections would be internationally recognised as free and fair.

“We don’t need to clarify the credibility of these elections to other people,” said Thein Soe.

Foreign journalists are routinely denied official visas to report inside Myanmar, but many news organisations had hoped to send media to cover next month’s poll, which will usher in the first civilian government in 48 years.

“Concerning the journalists, there are resident representatives of the international news agencies in our country, and press statements will be released in a timely manner about the elections. So there is no need to allow foreign reporters to cover the elections,” Thein Soe added.

Thomson Reuters, The Association Press, Agence France-Presse, Deutsche Presse-Agentur, European Pressphoto Agency (EPA) and several Japanese news outlets are allowed to operate with accredited local journalists. Only China’s Xinhua News Agency has permission to employ foreign nationals in the country.

Court considers anti-gay protests at funerals

The Supreme Court on Wednesday considered whether a church has the legal right to stage anti-gay protests at U.S. military funerals to promote its claim that God is angry at America for tolerance toward homosexuals.



In an important test of free-speech versus privacy rights, the court heard arguments on whether a protest message and picketing at the private funeral, although considered offensive by many, were protected by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

Albert Snyder, the father of a Marine killed in Iraq in 2006, appealed to the Supreme Court after the family's funeral service at a Roman Catholic church in Westminster, Maryland, drew unwanted protests by members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas.

The protesters carried signs that stated, "God Hates You," and "You Are Going To Hell."

Jocob Phelps holds up a placard as he protests for his side of the Snyder V. Phelps case outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington October 6, 2010

Fred Phelps Jr. protests his side of the Snyder V. Phelps case outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington October 6, 2010.






Westboro Pastor Fred Phelps and other church members have protested at hundreds of funerals of military members killed in Iraq or Afghanistan as part of their religious view that God is punishing America for its tolerance of gays and lesbians.

The U.S. military has a "don't ask, don't tell" policy, under which gays and lesbians can serve as long as they do not make their sexuality known. Snyder's 20-year-old son, Matthew, was not gay.

EXPLOITING GRIEF

"This is a case about exploiting a private family's grief," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said to Margie Phelps, the pastor's daughter and the lawyer who argued the case.

"Why should the First Amendment tolerate exploiting this Marine's family when you have so many other forums for getting across your message?" Ginsburg asked.

Civil liberties experts said important free-speech issues were at stake, protecting even outrageous, offensive conduct.

Steven Shapiro of the American Civil Liberties Union, which supports the church, said, "The First Amendment was designed to protect unpopular speech." Veterans groups, meanwhile, support Snyder.

Phelps said the church members showed "great circumspection" during the protest and they had been engaged in a matter of robust public debate "about dying soldiers and the morals of the nation."

Phelps's church, founded in 1955, has about 70 members consisting mostly of his children, grandchildren or in-laws. Phelps, 80, and his followers have protested at more than 200 military funerals, according to court documents.

Sean Summers, the attorney representing Snyder, said the father had the right to bury his son in a private, dignified manner, free from unwanted disruption or harassment.

A lower court had awarded Snyder $5 million in damages for invasion of privacy and inflicting emotional distress, but that ruling was appealed by the church and the case went to the Supreme Court.

Summers said the father became upset after the protest had been broadcast on local television and the church group posted an item about it on its website.

Justice Stephen Breyer said the Internet aspect of the case troubled him because the church made "very obnoxious" comments about private individuals.

"To what extent can they put that on the Internet?" Breyer asked. "I don't know what the rules ought to be."

Chief Justice John Roberts told Phelps that the Snyder funeral had been selected as a way to get maximum publicity for the church's message, not for any connection to a matter of public debate.

New Justice Elena Kagan, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, questioned how far the group could go.

Could it pick a wounded soldier and demonstrate at his home, workplace and church, saying offensive or outrageous things and following him around day-to-day? Kagan asked.

Phelps answered that non-speech activity like stalking would not be allowed.

The justices gave no clear indication of how they would rule. A decision is expected before the middle of next year.

U.S. airman awarded Medal of Honour - 42 years after he died in mission so secret his own sons did not know he was a hero

For more than four decades, airman Richard Etchberger’s heroic efforts to save three of his men were cloaked in secrecy.

His own three sons were even kept in the dark for much of that time over how their father died during the Vietnam War.

Finally this week, the Air Force NCO’s bravery was recognised at the White House, where he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honour by President Obama.

‘This medal reflects the gratitude of an entire nation,’ Mr Obama told Steve, Richard and Cory Etchberger.

'Hero': President Barack Obama presents the Medal of Honor to the sons of Sgt. Richard Etchberger. R-L Richard Etchberger Corey Etchberger, and Steve Wilson, at the White House on Tuesday

In memory: Left, Richard Etchberger looks down at the Medal of Honour awarded to his father. Right, Sgt Richard Etchberger, who died saving comrades in Laos

‘Today your nation finally acknowledges and fully honours your father’s bravery,’ he added.

The reason the 1968 mission – codenamed Heavy Green – never made the headlines was because it was a highly classified attempt to provide radar information for U.S. planes bombing targets in Hanoi, North Vietnam, and along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

Because the radar site was located on a hillside in Laos, it wasn’t officially acknowledged until 1986 because the country was considered neutral during the Vietnam War.

The NCO was a radar technician from Hamburg, Pa, one of 19 Americans hand-picked to work at the remote station atop one of the tallest mountains in Laos.

Of those 19 men, just seven survived, three of them as a result of Sgt. Etchberger’s brave actions.

When the North Vietnamese military discovered the secret U.S. position, they launched an unremitting bombardment.

‘The enemy lobbed down grenade after grenade, hour after hour,’ said Mr Obama.

Tuesday’s long-awaited ceremony in the East Room of the White House gave one of the survivors the opportunity to explain publicly for the first time how he owed his life to Chief Master Sgt. Etchberger.

Retired Technical Sgt John Daniel, now 71, said the airmen spent the night fending off the attack.

Despite having no combat training, Sgt Etchberger took charge during the attack and single-handedly defended the station while coordinating U.S. strikes and directing rescue helicopters to pick up the dead and injured.

When a helicopter arrived, he helped three comrades into slings dropped to take them from the danger zone before scrambling aboard himself.

But as the chopper began to climb, a Vietnamese soldier emptied his weapon into the underside of the craft, mortally wounding Sgt. Etchberger.

‘He was one hell of an NCO,’ said Mr Daniel. ‘You were eager to follow the man, to do what he wanted you to do.

He said it was ‘a burden’ knowing that fate spared him. ‘You say, ‘Why me? Why am I still alive? I know I would have gone if it hadn’t been for Dick getting me onto that chopper.’

Sgt Etchberger was also inducted into the Pentagon Hall of Heroes today.

‘Valour has no expiration date. Courage is timeless. And the discovery of truth, no matter how long it is delayed, sets the record straight,’ said Air Force Chief of Staff Norton Schwartz.

Mr Daniel said the airmen involved in the mission attended confidential briefings at the Pentagon in 1967.

‘It’s only fitting that we’re back in the Pentagon to finish it up and put an end to it, right where it started 43 years ago,’ he added.

Gratitude: Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama - bravely teaming a green dress with pink shoes - enter the East Room of the White House for the ceremony yesterday

Solemn: Mr Obama gave a moving speech before presenting the Medal