AFP - US and Iraqi officials are "very close" to an agreement on a controversial security pact that would decide the future of US forces in Iraq, US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said here on Saturday.

AFP - A Tanzanian held at Guantanamo Bay over the August 7, 1998 bombing of the US embassy in Dar es Salaam was referred Friday to trial before a special US military tribunal, the US defense department said.

AP - As of Friday, Oct. 3, 2008, at least 539 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to the Defense Department. The department last updated its figures Friday at 10 a.m. EDT.

AFP - A US soldier was sentenced to eight months in prison Thursday for his role in the killings of four blindfolded Iraqi detainees last year, an army spokeswoman said.

AP - As of Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008, at least 536 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to the Defense Department. The department last updated its figures Wednesday at 10 a.m. EDT.

Reuters - North and South Korea will hold military talks on Thursday in the first official meeting between the two states since South Korean President Lee Myung-bak took office in February, an official said on Wednesday.

AFP - A draft report recommends that the United States build new missile, sea-based and space-based defenses to deal with China's growing nuclear and conventional forces, a newspaper said Tuesday.

AFP - Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Monday warned rising officers of the limits of US military power and encouraged them to be skeptical of technological solutions to complex wars.

Reuters - Defense Secretary Robert Gates predicted on Monday that growth in U.S. military spending would level off in the coming years but not face severe cutbacks, despite the current economic crisis.

AP - As of Monday, Sept. 29, 2008, at least 535 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to the Defense Department. The department last updated its figures Monday at 10 a.m. EDT.

Reuters - Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged the U.S. military on Monday not to believe that technology can solve every problem and suggested quick-fix, low-tech solutions can sometimes be more valuable.

AFP - Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Monday warned rising officers of the limits of US military power and encouraged them to be skeptical of technological solutions to complex wars.

AFP - Iraq's President Jalal Talabani returned home Monday after heart surgery and warned that a delay in an agreement on the presence of US troops in the country beyond 2008 could undermine sovereignty.