Stories

As the Des Moines Register reported yesterday, anti-war activists in Iowa City were spied on by at least two law enforcement sources in the lead-up to the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn.: a female undercover officer from the Ramsey County (Minn.) Sheriff’s Department, and a confidential FBI informant.
The Register could not confirm [...]

U.S. Rep. Tom Latham (R-Iowa) was in Iraq with a congressional delegation over the weekend, and the statement he issued after his meetings wrapped up may reveal what he thinks about President Barack Obama’s promise to withdraw U.S. troops from the country quickly.
Latham seems to imply that the goal of federal policy should be to [...]

Approximately 130 soldiers from the 186th Military Police Company will return today from its recent deployment to Ira. A homecoming ceremony for the returning soldiers is scheduled for tonight at 7 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Des Moines.

Not all eyes are on Tuesday’s upcoming election, in particular those of the approximately 310 Iowa National Guard soldiers and their families and friends, who said their goodbyes at sendoff ceremonies across the state Thursday.

Growing up in a military and evangelical Christian family in Cedar Rapids, little did Joshua Casteel know that two powerful forces would be battling for his soul in a notorious Iraqi prison known as Abu Ghraib.

About 500 people gathered to say goodbye to 65 Iowa National Guard members during a send-off ceremony at the Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo Tuesday.
“We’ve known this day has been coming for a long time. Today’s the day. T minus zero,” Scott Blakesley, who has been in the National Guard for 16 years, told KCRG [...]

Three years ago Ben Hayden of Coralville participated in the initial siege of Fallujah, Iraq, with his Marine unit — the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion. This week Hayden returns to Fallujah as a civilian, representing the organization Vets for Freedom, for which he serves as the Iowa Captain.

Since March 2003, 67 soldiers with Iowa ties have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. And now, thanks to the recent dedication of the Iowa Veterans Cemetery (IVC) in Van Meter, Iowa’s latest fallen soldiers will have a final resting place in Iowa, where family and friends can pay their respects.

“This cemetery will be a [...]

As media coverage of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continues to decline, Brave New Films has stepped up its online efforts to help bring the war home.

In a span of three days, Iowans said goodbye to 160 of the state’s National Guard soldiers as they deployed to Iraq, while simultaneously preparing for the homecoming of 120 guardsmen.