Won't see this on the national news.

[MonsterMark]

Army recruiting tops new goals
By Rowan Scarborough
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
December 13, 2005


The Army has exceeded recruiting goals in the first two months of this fiscal year, reversing a trend that had some Iraq critics saying the armed services branch was "broken."
The Pentagon yesterday said the Army signed up 5,856 recruits in November, 5 percent above its goal. It previously announced the Army also exceeded its target in October, the first month of the 2006 fiscal year.
The Army has that hit its recruiting mark for six straight months, a promising development for the Bush administration. President Bush's critics had cited the Army's failure to achieve its recruiting goals in fiscal 2005 as proof that the war in Iraq is breaking the force. [snip]

Full story here

 

[FreeFaller]

or this

Iraqi Government Assumes Control of Borders
The ceremony in the Iraqi-Syrian border town of Husaybah symbolized the securing of the borders.
By Multinational Force-Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 1, 2005 — A ceremony was held Nov. 30 in western Iraq symbolizing the securing of the borders through cooperation of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Interior and Multinational Force-Iraq.

The ceremony in the Iraqi-Syrian border town of Husaybah was attended by Iraqi Minister of Defense Saadoun al-Dulaimi, Brig. Gen. Ahmed Ali Muhsin al-Khafahgi, Deputy Minister of the Interior for Support Forces and U.S. Army Gen. George Casey, Multinational Force-Iraq commander.

"This is a historic day for Iraq," said al-Dulaimi. "I won't forget this day. The insurgents are no longer controlling the border. Our friends have helped us. We are now a country of freedom, of human rights and of peace."

Controlling the borders is the key to Iraqi sovereignty and necessary to defeat the terrorists and foreign fighters who attempt to harm Iraqis and wish to disrupt Iraq's path to democracy.

Developing capable border forces will significantly disrupt entry for terrorists and foreign fighters and integrate with provincial counterinsurgency efforts. This began with Iraqi forces reestablishing initial control of Iraq's borders Nov. 30 with limited coalition forces support and continues until Iraqi forces control all ports of entry and provide their own security support.