REPORTS FROM THE FIELD

• Police found the bullet-riddled bodies of 23 men, who were among 35 returning on a bus from Baghdad to their homes in Samarra after failing to be accepted into a police recruit center. Militants stopped the bus and abducted the men, who were found with application letters to the academy.

• Police and rebels exchanged gunfire for over half an hour in Baghdad while in another part of the city at least 50 suspected insurgents were arrested in an Iraqi-US operation.

• USMC Lt. Col. Craig Covert offers his take on the composition of Iraq's Islamist death squads by percentage. He is currently in Iraq as a field historian with the Marine Corps. Read "The Iraqi Insurgent."

• The United States has cut its force in Iraq to 136,000, the lowest since last summer, as it draws down from about 160,000 troops in the country for last month’s elections.

• The U.S. Army has signed a $70 million emergency contract with a California company to rush ceramic body armor to the front lines.

RECONSTRUCTION & THE ECONOMY

• A draft of an official report into the American effort to rebuild Iraq after the war reveals it was hampered by serious understaffing, bureaucratic infighting and ever-rising security costs. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction also reported problems stemming from a lack of technical expertise, theft waste and abuse.

• Private U.S. contractors in Iraq plan to wind down their operations as Iraqi officials prepare to take charge of reconstruction and U.S. funding dwindles.

• Take a look at this week's reconstruction highlights:

The Izdihar program recently helped host a day-long exhibition for Iraqi women entrepreneurs. Sponsored in coordination with the Iraqi Women’s Business Association, the exhibition highlighted a three-day training program to help women entrepreneurs from throughout Iraq export their products.

Iraqi government implements the Financial Management Information System (IFMIS). The government of Iraq (GOI) notified USAID this week that two ministries — the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Ministry of Water Resources — are actively using the IFMIS. In addition, 52 sites are fully installed covering 85 percent of Iraq’s budget, and another 60 sites are partially installed, which will increase budget coverage to around 95 percent; the GOI must activate a total of 182 sites with the IFMIS to cover 100 percent of the budget.

Buffalo nutrition improvement program expands in Muthanna and Thi-Qar. The Agricultural Reconstruction and Development in Iraq (ARDI) program is reaching out to include 400 additional buffalo in Muthanna and Thi-Qar governorates, incorporating them into a project to improve buffalo reproduction through nutrition.

Family Drip Kit system training program has been successfully completed. Last year, ARDI initiated a program to encourage small-scale cultivation of high cash value crops in eight southern governorates of Iraq through the use of Family Drip Kit irrigation systems.

During a public town hall meeting, community members discussed and debated their needs and project details with members of the provincial and district councils and municipal engineers. The community identified program they felt would best assist the community, including small-scale, labor intensive neighborhood rehabilitation activities such as cleaning the neighborhood, filling in holes in the road, and small sanitation projects.

OFDA expands humanitarian assistance in south-central Iraq, reaching nearly 200,000 Iraqis in 2005. OFDA continues to prioritize humanitarian assistance for IDPs throughout Iraq, including delivering essential medicines to healthcare facilities, providing emergency health services, and rehabilitating water treatment and sewage plants, clinics, hospitals, and schools.

IRAQI POLITICS

• Iraq's political parties are to start a two-day appeal process following the release of final but uncertified results from the December 15 poll. Each party claims it should have won more seats.

• The latest Carnival of the Liberated is up at Dean's World.

THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE

• It has been reported that several thousand dollars of the ransom money paid by the German government to free Susanne Osthoff was found on her person after her release. Since her public discussions of ransom paid for her release, two more German citizens have been abducted in Iraq.

• The British Ministry of Defense admitted it issued misleading figures on the numbers of casualties suffered by British soldiers in Iraq.

ETCETERA

• A spokesman for the tribunal handling the trial of Saddam Hussein says judge Raouf Abdel Rahman will head the court. This follows vehement opposition to judge Sayeed al-Hamashi due to suspected ties with the former regime.

• Do you have your GI Bracelet? Many military families fall into financial hardship when the breadwinner is injured or killed. The entire purchase price of the GI Bracelet is donated to support our troops and their families! Please join us to give back to these brave people in their time of need.

• The troops are still there. So is the Winds of Change.NET consolidated directory of ways you can support the troops: American, Australian, British, Canadian & Polish. Anyone out there with more information, contact us!

• Don't forget Chief Wiggles' Toys for Iraq drive!

• Many American troops have taken it upon themselves to reconstruct schools and gather learning tools for the children of Iraq. Their efforts have been met with immense gratitude from the local Iraqis and their children. You can help too! Visit Operation Iraqi Children and get involved.

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