Kurdistan Bloggers Union

Iraq's new defense minister, Sadoon al-Dulaimi, said he intended to continue military policies set by the outgoing administration of Ayad Allawi, who aggressively pursued operations against insurgents. Also he stated that the Peshmerga would not be integrated into the Iraqi army.

Dulaimi made what appeared to be a concession to the principal partners in the new government, the Shiites and Kurds, stating in an interview on the Arab news channel Al Arabiya that he would not seek to integrate politically controlled militias into the military. This appeared to be a move away from the American insistence during the early stages of the occupation that independent militias such as the Kurdish peshmerga and the Shiite Badr Brigade would have to be absorbed in the new Iraqi army.

In other news a Marine taskforce killed 100 terrorists. The Kurdish intelligence already said there were a lot of insurgents near and behind the Syrian border.
The marine finally took action and killed 100 insurgents and raided desert outposts and city safe houses belonging to insurgents who have used the area to import cars, money, weapons and foreigners to fight U.S. and Iraqi forces in Baghdad, Mosul and other cities, American military officials said Monday