WAR DEVELOPMENTS

> More than 100 retired generals and admirals called Monday for repeal of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays so they can serve openly. “As is the case with Great Britain, Israel and other nations that allow gays and lesbians to serve openly, our service members are professionals who are able to work together effectively despite differences in race, gender, religion and sexuality,” the officers said.

> Soldiers should get more time at home as long as overall demand for troops overseas holds steady, Army Chief of Staff George Casey said Monday. With the size of the Army growing and demand holding steady, soldiers should get nearly 18 months at home starting next year. By 2011, they should get two years at home to receive training and spend time with their families, Casey said.

> A congressionally mandated scientific panel has concluded that Gulf War syndrome is real and still afflicts nearly one-quarter of the 700,000 U.S. troops who served in the 1991 conflict. A 450-page report presented to U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake on Monday concluded that two chemical exposures were direct causes of the disorder: the drug pyridostigmine bromide, given to troops to protect against nerve gas, and pesticides that were used —- and often overused —- to protect against sand flies and other pests.

IRAQ

> The U.S.-Iraqi security pact, overwhelmingly approved by the country’s Cabinet on Sunday, was signed by U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Monday and read to lawmakers in the first stage of parliament’s approval process. A vote on the pact, which would allow U.S. forces to remain in Iraq through 2011, is scheduled for Nov. 24.

> Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Pentagon news conference Monday that he feels comfortable with the terms of the security agreement and that it probably would take two to three years for the U.S. to move all of its forces and military equipment out of Iraq.

> Iran took a surprisingly positive stance on the pact after months of denouncing it. Comments in state media and from one of the clerical state’s most powerful figures signaled Tehran may be taking the view that no matter what it dislikes about the deal, it eventually would mean the departure of U.S. troops.

> Iraq plans to build a subway in Baghdad to help cut pollution and ease traffic on the city’s chronically clogged streets. Baghdad Mayor Sabir al-Issawi said Iraq’s Cabinet has earmarked $3 billion for the project, which will have two lines and 20 stations.

PAKISTAN

> Pakistan sent troops armed with rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns to escort trucks Monday along a major Khyber Pass supply route for U.S. and NATO forces into Afghanistan. Pakistan had stopped container trucks and oil tankers from using the pass last week after dozens of suspected Taliban militants hijacked trucks carrying Humvees bound for the U.S.-led coalition.

> A suicide car bomber attacked an army post in the Swat Valley in northwest Pakistan on Monday, killing four security personnel. Separately, security forces used artillery fire to kill at least five suspected insurgents in the Bajur tribal region bordering Afghanistan.

AFGHANISTAN

> Taliban militants rejected an offer of peace talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday, saying there would be no negotiations until foreign troops leave Afghanistan. Karzai on Sunday had offered to provide security for reclusive Taliban leader Mullah Omar if he entered negotiations, despite opposition from the U.S. and other Western nations.