CORUSCANT -- Presiding over a memorial service
commemorating the victims of the attack on the Death
Star, the Emperor declared that while recent victories
over the Rebel Alliance were "encouraging, the War on
Terror is not over yet."

 "We will continue to fight these terrorists, and the
rogue governments who harbor them, until the universe
is safe, once and for all, and the security of the
Neo-New Cosmic Order ensured."

 It was one year ago today that the Death Star,
perhaps the greatest symbol of the Empire's might, was
destroyed in an attack by fanatic Rebels, who used
small, single-person crafts to infiltrate seemingly
impenetrable defenses.  Thousands of mourners were on
hand to remember and pay tribute to the victims and
their families.

 "We lost our innocence that day," reflected one
mourner.  "I guess we thought we were immune from the
kind of violence that happens in other galaxies.  We
were wrong."

 "I lost hundreds of buddies that day," said one
teary-eyed Stormtrooper.  "Guys whose only crime was
trying make the Universe a safer place."

 Although the day was colored by sadness, the mourners
found some relief in the news of a decisive victory
over the Rebels.

 In an attack led by Darth Vader, Empire forces were
able to rout hundreds of Rebels from a network of
caves underneath the surface of the planet Hoth.
"We're not sure we got them all," says a Vader
spokesman.  "There are a lot of places to hide in
those caves.  But we've delivered powerful blow to the
terrorist's infrastructure, that's for sure.  Today,
the Empire has struck back."

 Initial reports are unclear as to the fate of Luke
Skywalker, a hero among the Rebels, who is rumored to
have delivered the fatal blow to the Death Star.
Skywalker, a former desert-dweller from the planet
Tattooine, became a part of the Rebellion after family
members were killed.

 Skywalker was trained by a militant wing of the
Rebels, known as "Jedi Knights."  Fanatical in their
religious beliefs, the Jedi Knights claim to derive
their power from the mystical "Force."  It's believed
that Skywalker was specifically trained by infamous
terrorist O-Bee-Wan Kanobi.  Kanobi, occasionally
called "Ben" and easily recognized by his bearded
visage and long, flowing robes, achieved near-martyr
status among the Rebels after his death last year
during a spy mission.  His more fervent followers
believe that Wankanobi lives on within them today,
some even claiming to hear his voice during times of
duress.

 The attack on the Death Star came shortly after the
Empire's destruction of Alderaan, a planet whose
government was known to harbor terrorists.  Responding
to criticism over the total annihilation of the
planet, Vader stated, "There is no middle ground in
the War on Terror.  Those who harbor terrorists are
terrorists themselves.  Alderaan was issued ample
warning.  The fight for continuing Freedom is often
burdened by terrible cost."

 The cost of this war can still be seen today in the
continuing efforts to build a coalition government on
Tattooine.  Longstanding animosities among the planets
various ethnic groups, including the Jawas, Tusken
Raiders and scattered human settlers, have been an
impediment to the peace process.  The Empire continues
to maintain a small peace keeping force until a
provisional government is finally in place.

 Much of the difficulty in fighting the Rebel forces
stems from their lack of a central organizing
structure.

 "They don't play by the traditional rules of war,"
complained one spokesman.  "They come in all shapes
and sizes, united only by their single-minded desire
to destroy the Empire before it destroys them."

 The Emperor closed his comments today by stating that
"the cowardly attack on the Death Star left a deep
scar on the Empire.  However, we will not stop
fighting until every last evildoer has been brought to
justice."  He paused for several moments, wiping away
a tear and then added with determination, "We will
never forget."

 "I wish we could all just get along," said one of the
mourners.  "But it's hard to offer an olive branch to
a cult of religious fanatics whose main tool is
violence and who insist on calling us the Dark Side."

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