Summary: The search continues for U.S. Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Ahmed Kousay al-Taie, missing in Iraq since Oct. 23, 2006, Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 24, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that President Barack Obama recalled his former campaign manager, David Plouffe, and was reconstituting the team that helped him win the White House in 2008 to counter Republican challenges in the 2010 midterm elections and recalibrate after political setbacks that have narrowed his legislative ambitions. He also reported on the political psychology of Barack Obama, including Obama’s personality profile, leadership style, and decision-making style.

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Summary: As Anbar province became a stronghold for al-Qaida and other Sunni extremist groups after the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, Christians and Shiites, feeling singled out, fled the area, until the town of Habbaniya Cece (population 10,150) had only one Christian family, down from about 70 families before the American invasion. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 20, 2010, Aubrey Immelman provided his weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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Summary: A suicide bomber blew himself up in a crowd of police recruits in Tikrit, killing at least 60 people and wounding more than 120 as Iraq struggles to protect itself without foreign help. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 18, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that Baitullah Mehsud, commander of the Pakistani Taliban until he was killed in a U.S. missile strike in August 2009, had said in March 2009 that his group was planning an attack on the White House that would “amaze” the world. In that regard, it’s notable that Osama bin Laden reportedly told planner Ramzi Binalshibh that he preferred the White House over the Capitol as a target in the attacks of 9/11. Hence, it must be assumed that the White House remains at the top of al-Qaida’s high-value target list.

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Summary: Two U.S. troops were killed by an Iraqi soldier who apparently smuggled live ammunition into a training exercise and opened fire, raising fresh concerns about insurgent infiltration in Iraq’s security forces as the Americans prepare to leave by the end of 2011. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 15, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that the Obama administration would allow Haitians who were in the United States illegally prior to the January 12, 2010 Haiti earthquake to remain in the country for 18 months under temporary protected status (TPS). Some critics cautioned, however, that TPS has a track record of devolving into de facto “backdoor amnesty” for illegal aliens.

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Summary: Addressing an adoring and frenzied crowd of thousands in his first speech after his triumphant return to Iraq after four years of self-imposed exile in Iran, radical Shi’ite fundamentalist Muqtada al-Sadr called the U.S., Israel, and Britain Iraq’s “common enemies,” saying “our aim is to expel the occupier by any means.” … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 8, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani falsely claimed that there were no terrorist attacks on U.S. soil under President George W. Bush.

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Summary: In an intensifying wave of sectarian violence against Christians in Iraq, militants attacked at least four Christian homes with a combination of grenades and bombs, killing two people and sending fear into the already terrified Christian community. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 30, 2009, Aubrey Immelman provided his weekly report of U.S. military deaths in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

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Summary: Iraq Body Count, a British group monitoring Iraqi civilian deaths, said in its 2010 annual report that the number of fatalities has dropped slightly since 2009 but warned of lingering, low-intensity conflict in the years ahead. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 29, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that an Afghan soldier killed a U.S. service member and wounded two Italian soldiers in western Afghanistan, while Pakistani authorities appealed for calm after a bombing against a Shiite Muslim procession marking the holy day of Ashoura killed 43 in Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi.

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Summary: Iraq at long last seated a government after nine months of haggling, bringing together the main ethnic and religious groups in a fragile balance that could make it difficult to rebuild a nation devastated by war as American troops prepare for their final withdrawal in December 2011. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 21, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported on the 2009 Jacob’s Freedom Walk for Missing and Abducted Children, a three-day, 60-mile walk from Anoka to St. Joseph, Minn., marking the 20th anniversary of the disappearance of Jacob Wetterling and raising awareness for all missing and abducted children.

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Summary: Iraqi Christians are approaching their grimmest Christmas since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003 and wondering if they have any future in their native land. They have suffered repeated violence and harassment since 2003, when the interreligious peace rigidly enforced by Saddam Hussein fell apart. Now the Christian community of Iraq, almost as old as the religion itself, is sensing a clear message: It is time to leave. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 19, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that U.S. Navy warships fired missiles at suspected al-Qaida training camps in Yemen, with that government’s support, according to Pentagon sources. One U.S. official said President Barack Obama personally ordered the missile strikes in northern Yemen.

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Summary: A car explosion and apparent suicide attack reportedly linked to Sweden’s presence in Afghanistan injured two people, killed the bomber, and caused panic among Christmas shoppers in Stockholm. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 11, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported the closure of what may be China’s first megachurch — the most visible sign that the communist government is determined to rein in the rapid spread of Christianity, including a September 2009 crackdown in which hundreds of police and hired thugs descended on the Golden Lamp Church in Linfen, Shanxi province, smashing doors and windows, seizing Bibles, and sending dozens of worshippers to hospitals with serious injuries.

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