National Alliance of Families Newsletter
E-mail Distribution List
If you would like to receive our newsletter, Bits 'N' Pieces by e-mail, let us know. E-mail us, at lynn@nationalalliance.org and ask to be added to the distribution list. Remember: if you have blocks on your email you MUST UNBLOCK the email address lynn@nationalalliance.org in order to receive the newsletter.
January 7, 2012
As of December 1, 2011, Sgt. Altaie and his recovery are now the responsibility of the Defense POW/MIA Office (DPMO.)
In a written statement published in an Army Times article by John Ryan, dated December 27th 2011, DPMO spokeswoman Maj. Carie Parker stated; "The U.S. government is actively seeking information on his whereabouts and will do so until he is accounted for, even after U.S. forces withdraw from Iraq." The article went on to say; "DPMO recovery efforts will now be led by the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad…"
"The Personnel Recovery Division that worked "cold cases" under U.S. Forces-Iraq during the war handed DPMO the case Dec. 1. Col. Raymond Steeley directed the division in Iraq from March 4 to Nov. 15 and expounded on possible future operations."
"DPMO must "operate in a permissible environment," he said. That means "if intelligence comes in that is collected from the personnel that are currently in Iraq … sensitive site exploitation will be done," Steeley said. Until Steeley left, Altaie's case was an "active file" that included "several different sources that at different times were giving us potential locations," he said…."
"In 2009, an enemy group told the Personnel Recovery Division that it knew of Altaie's location, so the division coordinated an exchange, Steeley recounted. A body was handed over, but results from a DNA test of the remains didn't match Altaie's. They matched another U.S. soldier…"
Matched Another U.S. Soldier - Who? Who was missing and recovered in 2009?
Let's Remind the White House We Left A Man Behind and We Won't Forget Him - We urge all reading this to call the White House on Thursday January 12th to remind the President all the troops are not out of Iraq. Leaving a man behind is unacceptable. Call 202-456-1414 and remind the White House Ahmed Altaie is waiting. Don't forget to mention Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, as he will be the next serviceman left behind when U.S. troops pull out of Afghanistan.
Will the U.S. Negotiate for POW Bowe Bergdahl - recent news reports indicate the Taliban plans to open an office in Qatar for the purpose of negotiating with the U.S. On January 4th 2012 the Associated Press reported;
"In recent months, the idea of a Taliban political office in the Qatari capital of Doha has become a central element in U.S. efforts to draw the insurgents into such talks. The idea is to give the Taliban more legitimacy to negotiate in a location that presumably would at least partly shield them from Pakistani pressure."
"Asked about the Taliban announcement, White House spokesman Jay Carney welcomed "any step ... of the Afghan-led process toward reconciliation." He noted that "peace cannot come to Afghanistan without a political settlement."
"But negotiations could falter if they do not sufficiently involve President Hamid Karzai's government, which the Taliban have dismissed as a puppet regime. Karzai's inner circle derailed last year's behind-the-scenes talks, and the Afghan leader only grudgingly agreed to the idea of the Taliban's setting up a liaison office in Qatar."
"…. It was unclear why the Taliban agreed publicly to hold talks. Previously, the official Taliban position was no talks until the U.S.-led coalition leaves Afghanistan. By their own admission, the Taliban hope to win the release of about five prisoners from the U.S. lockup at Guantanamo Bay."
Any negotiation of a prisoner release or exchange must include American POW Bowe Bergdhal, held by the Taliban since June 30th, 2009.
What Is John McCain's Problem - Long an obstructionist on the POW/MIA issue McCain has reached a new low. He actively blocked an amendment calling for the repatriation of remain of 13 Navy commandos lost 207 year ago. Descendents of some of the sailors lobbied for a proper burial in American soil and were one step closer to their goal when Senator McCain, no doubt at the request of the Navy who opposes the effort, stepped in blocking their efforts.
As Stephen Dinan reported in the Washington Times, on December 1, 2011;
"Sen. Dean Heller, Nevada Republican, had offered an amendment to the defense policy bill to have the Navy repatriate the remains, at the urging of some of the commandos' descendants. But the Navy objected, arguing Tripoli is a fitting resting place, and Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican, blocked the amendment's consideration. "Senator McCain is still reviewing the issue, and has asked the Navy, the Defense POW/MIA Office and the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command for their views on it," said his spokesman, Brian Rogers.
"The Navy told The Washington Times earlier this week that the crew has been honored by a ceremony and procession in 1949 along the length of Tripoli's waterfront. And the chief of naval operations said in a memo that leaving the bodies there respects the service's policy of honoring the final resting place of those lost in downed ships or aircraft."
"But those pushing for repatriation say the grave sites are in disrepair, and say there's precedent for bringing bodies home from foreign shores. The descendants had thought they had cleared the path for Mr. Heller's repatriation amendment, including the consent of Mr. McCain, but said that was withdrawn at the end.
"We came real close. McCain told us time and time again he had no problem with the amendment, and then, at the last second, in the 11th hour, he pulled it," said Michael Caputo, who is coordinating the Intrepid Project which pushes for repatriation. Such heavyweight national groups as Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion both support repatriation."
"Mr. Caputo said the Senate stalemate doesn't end the matter. The House already passed its version of the defense policy bill and it included repatriation language. Now the House and Senate versions will have to be squared with each other, and Mr. Caputo said the families will ask the negotiators to keep the language in the final bill." [end excerpt]
DoD's Go To Guy in the Senate - Clearly, John Mc Cain is the go to guy in the Senate for the Department of Defense. If DoD opposes a piece of legislation, they go to John McCain to block it, gut it and amend it into uselessness. We saw it with the updated Missing Service Personnel Act passed in the mid-1990's. DoD hated that law, and pushed to amend it. Who did they go to? John McCain. As a result of McCain's efforts the law was amended into uselessness.
Going back even further, we can look at the "Truth Bill" requiring the declassification and release of all POW/MIA documents. DoD hated that bill also. Who led the opposition in the Senate? John McCain. The "Truth Bill" morphed into the "McCain Bill" and, in some cases, made it more difficult to obtain documents.
If DoD wants to stop the return of remain, no matter how old, John McCain is their man. How low can you go? Ask John McCain.
H.Res 111 - Currently we have 147 co-sponsors for this resolution calling for the formation of a POW/MIA Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs in the House of Representatives. Please contact your congressional representative and as that they support H. Res 111. For a list of congressional representatives visit www.nationalalliance.org/legis/index.htm Those highlighted in red are already cosponsors.
H.Res 485 - Congressman Walter Jones introduced H.Res 485, "Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the declassification of information related to missing and unaccounted-for members of the Armed Forces."
Similar to the old "truth bill" but without the weight of law, H. Res 485 states;
In a Press Release issued December 12th, Congressman Jones stated: "These families have a right to know what happened to their loved ones. It is important to give families all the information they need to get the answers they deserve."
We couldn't agree more. H. Res 485 has the full support of the National Alliance of Families.
Please contact your congressional representative asking they support H. Res 485.
Why We're Not Jumping for Joy Over the Passage of H. Res 376 - In July of 2011, we were thrilled when Congressman Charles Rangel (D-NY) introduced "H. Res 376 -- Calling for the repatriation of POW/MIAs and abductees from the Korean War." Written in the strongest wording we've seen in a very long time H.Res 376 stated:
"Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes there are American and South Korean prisoners of war and civilian abductees from the Korean War who are still alive in North Korea and who want to be repatriated;"
We couldn't believe our eyes! If passed the United States House of Representatives would officially acknowledge live American POWs in North Korea. We kept a low profile hoping the Resolution would pass unnoticed, along with the many other resolutions passed in the House of Representatives on any given day. Once passed it would give us additional ammunition to fight for the passage of H. Res 111.
We watched and waited patiently as H. Res 376 moved slowly through the process. Finally, on October 25th it was referred to the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific. The subcommittee held a Mark-up Session on November 30 and approved an amended version by voice vote. The House passed the amended version on December 13, 2011.
So why aren't we jumping for joy. The amended version is far weaker than the original text introduced by Congressman Rangel.
Item 1 of the amended resolution, passed in the House of Representatives reads;
Resolved, That the House of Representatives-
(1) recognizes that there are South Korean prisoners of war (POWs) and civilian abductees from the Korean War who are still alive in North Korea and want to be repatriated;
While the House continued to acknowledge live South Korean POWs and abductees in North Korea, gone is any reference to live American POWs in North Korea.
Item 2 of the amended resolution acknowledges the resumption of remains recovery operations. Then, using words like "possibility" and "could" directs the "U.S. Government to continue to explore the possibility that there could be American POW/MIAs still alive inside North Korea."
The amended version of H. Res 376 is better than nothing but it could have been so much more had it passed with the original wording. That's why we're not jumping for joy.
Don't Know What to Say About This - The article, written by Randy Hoeft will have to speak for itself. It appeared December 13th 2011 on the Yuma Sun website, under the title "Sad moment: POW-MIA flag baffles students."
In November, as some of you will recall, I sent my students to photograph the Veterans Day parade on 4th Avenue, and one of the students brought back a photo of three men, who I am assuming are veterans, each one carrying a flag, one of them the POW-MIA flag.
While critiquing the photo, it became clear that the student who took the photo had no clue what the flag meant. So, I stopped and asked those who knew the meaning of the POW-MIA flag to raise their hands. Only two, the U.S. Marine Corps veterans in the class, did so.
I was so surprised, that the only thing I could say was, "I'm so sorry." [End Article]
Show Your Support - John Pagel of Task Force Omega CA. has set up on online petition calling upon the U.S. Government to resolve the POW/MIA issue. Click the link and sign the petition to show your support. We did!
Jack and Wilma Laeufer of Lima Area MIA-POW (a 501(c)3 org. in 1984 (LIMA AREA MIA-POW EIN# 34-1408002) - Longtime supporters of the POW/MIA issue, Jack and Wilma contributed to many POW/MIA groups by raising funds through the sale of POW/MIA and military merchandise. They originally intended to cease sales at the end of 2011. They have reviewed that decision and decided they will continue to sell merchandise into 2012, to exhaust their inventory.
If you need flags, or POW/MIA items, please contact Jack and Wilma at:
6525 Mayberry Road (residence)
For a full revised list of their merchandise, visit http://www.nationalalliance.org/lima/order.htm . You can print a copy of their order form from the website.
Why does Johnie Webb still have a job?
Contributions - Like all other charitable organizations, the National Alliance of Families has suffered due the severe economic conditions plaguing our nation. If you can spare a small donation it would be greatly appreciated. We remind you the Alliance is an all volunteer organization and contributions are tax deductible.
Please mail contributions to:
Another Serviceman Left Behind - With the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq, once again, America has left a POW behind. Captured October 23rd 2006, Sgt. Ahmed Altaie remains in enemy hands. In addition to Altaie, the following military personnel remain unaccounted for in Iraq; Lt. Cmdr. Barry Cooke USN lost Feb. 2, 1991, and Lt. Robert Dwyer USN, lost Feb. 5, 1991. Three DoD contractors are also missing in Iraq, according to the DMPO website. They are Kirk Von Ackermannn, lost on Oct. 9, 2003, Timothy E. Bell, lost on April 9, 2004, and Mr. Adnan al-Hilawi, lost on March 3, 2007. The three civilians are now the responsibility of the State Department.
"Although U.S. and Taliban representatives have met secretly several times over the past year in Europe and the Persian Gulf, this is the first time the Islamist insurgent group has publicly expressed willingness for substantive negotiations."
[Begin excerpt] "… The 13 commandos from the U.S.S. Intrepid died in 1804 in a failed raid on a pirate fleet in Tripoli's harbor, and their bodies washed up on shore and were fed to dogs before being buried in two different locations."
"the Secretary of Defense should take immediate actions to ensure that all classified information (except for current, active intelligence information and sources and methods of collection) that pertains or may pertain to any member of the Armed Forces who is missing and unaccounted for from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, or the Cold War, regardless of whether such information was originated by the Federal Government, a foreign source, or other official or private source, that came into the possession of the Department of Defense be declassified and provided to the primary-next-of-kin or other designated next-of-kin and, in accordance with relevant privacy laws, made available to the National Archives and Records Administration for review by public and private researchers."
[Begin Article] Another semester of teaching Introduction to Photojournalism at Arizona Western College is over. And as usual, the instructor has come away with another lesson learned. This one, however, was a shocker.
Columbus Grove, Ohio 45830
Res 419-641-2340 Cell 419-792-9113
email: jwlaeufer@watchtv.net
Note: This is the last Bits N Pieces for 2011.
Contact us here!