Free Republic

Justin went to Ukraine to fight shortly after the war started. He served with the infamous Azov battalion. (3 hour video interview)

The cave entrance. (Chris Grooms) You may not give a pile of bat poop gathered over 4,300 years a second look – but to a group of scientists, it's provided an intriguing insight into how bat diets and therefore climate conditions have shifted over thousands of years. Taller than the average man (2 meters or 6-and-a-half feet), the pile of poop (also known as guano) records history in clear layers, much like sediments under a lake. By analyzing the layers back through time, the scientists have been able to figure out changes in the diets of the bats that have...

FORT HUACHUCA — Sounds of gunfire, explosives and soldiers yelling filled the brisk morning air Saturday as Company C of the 40th Expeditionary Signal Battalion held defensive live firing training. The training was held on range 1B — a fairly new addition to Fort Huachuca. This exercise was only the second live firing done on the range. Before it opened, the option the teams had for a similar experience involved traveling to Fort Bliss in Texas. “We don’t do live fire on other ranges (on the fort),” Tanja Linton, a spokeswoman for Fort Huachuca, said. First Lieutenant and 40th Expeditionary...

There was no doubt that Private Blake W. Mariano of the 191st Tank Battalion was a brave man. As part of the American Army's 45th Infantry Division, he had killed many Germans as he fought through Africa, Italy and southern France, before finally, in March 1945, he and his Sherman tank had crossed the Rhine into Germany. By April 15, 1945, Mariano had been away from his home in New Mexico for nearly three years. A father of three, the 29-year-old was divorced, although he did have a girlfriend in England.

Col. Daren Margolin has been relieved as head of Security Battalion at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va. (Marine Corps) The two-star head of Marine Corps Installations Command has relieved the commanding officer of Quantico’s Security Battalion following an incident involving a personal weapon, Marine Corps officials said. Col. Daren Margolin, a 24-year officer was removed from his post Oct. 18 by Maj. Gen. Juan Ayala due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command, said Capt. Maureen Krebs, a Marine Corps spokeswoman. Krebs said the decision stemmed from a single incident last week involving one of Margolin’s personal...

Israeli soldiers of the Ultra-Orthodox battalion Netzah Yehuda of the army's Kfir Brigade brigade take part in a swearing-in ceremony. While military service is compulsory in Israel tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox are currently exempted from servicePicture: EPA

Updated at 7:38 p.m. ET: A soldier is dead and two others injured following a shooting Thursday afternoon at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, according to a statement released by the post. A senior U.S. defense official told NBC News that the deceased victim was a battalion commander.

ARLINGTON, Va., July 29, 2010 – The Utah National Guard's 141st Military Intelligence Battalion will deploy to Iraq in a few weeks with 83 soldiers who have earned Eagle Scout badges from the Boy Scouts of America. These 83 soldiers with the Utah National Guard's 141st Military Intelligence Battalion have earned the rank of Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America. The battalion will deploy to Iraq later this year. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. First Class Scott Faddis  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “It’s easy being a battalion commander of Eagle Scouts, because you don't have to...

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2009 – Sixty-five years ago, he was a young black soldier whose role in the allied landing at Normandy would go largely ignored. But now William Dabney returns to France with due honors. William Dabney, a veteran of the D-Day invasion, poses with son Vinny Dabney at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., on June 4, 2009, ahead of their trip to France where the elder Dabney is to receive the Legion of Honor, the French government's highest award for his actions in WWII. DoD by John J. Kruzel   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available....

WASHINGTON, May 4, 2009 – Wounded warriors will get a chance to compete in sports while working toward their rehabilitation this week when the Warrior Transition Battalion on Fort Lewis, Wash., hosts a Paralympics Military Regional Sports Camp. More than 30 WTB soldiers and veterans are scheduled to participate in the battalion’s first-ever Paralympics sports camp May 5-8. The camp will expose them to adaptive sports as part of their recovery and continued transition in life. "We are thrilled to host the Paralympics Military Regional Sports Camp here, enabling our warriors and other veterans to improve their physical and...

DOUGLAS — Faint wagon routes and stories of a battle with bulls at the San Pedro River may be the only traces left of the Mormon Battalion’s trek through Cochise County, but Kevin and Denny Henson are reliving that history as best as they can. In 1846 about 500 Mormon men from Iowa Territory joined what became known as the Mormon Battalion for the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War. The battalion’s primary mission was to build a wagon road to San Diego. On Sunday at the Twin Buttes RV Park near Douglas, Kevin Henson gave a presentation about the...

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas, May 23, 2008 – When Army Command Sgt. Maj. Mark Cornejo was wounded in Iraq, he had to return stateside for medical treatment, reluctantly leaving his comrades and mission behind. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Mark Cornejo, who was injured in Iraq in 2007, speaks at his change of responsibility ceremony May 13, 2008, at the 187th Medical Battalion headquarters at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Photo by Elaine Wilson, Fort Sam Houston Public Information Office  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. But one thing that never left him was his desire to serve. After three months...

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez is sending 10 battalions of troops to country's border with Colombia. He's also ordered the Venezuelan embassy in Bogota closed and say all embassy personnel will be withdrawn from Colombia. The announcements by Venezuela's leftist leader pushed relations with its neighbor to their tensest point of his 9-year presidency. Chavez is also warning that Colombia could spark a war in South America, calling its U.S.-allied government "a terrorist state" and labeling President Alvaro Uribe (oo-REE'-bay) "a criminal."

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., Feb. 20, 2008 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff stopped in here yesterday to see how the Marines Corps treats its wounded warriors. U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks with Marine Cpl. Giovanni Morales, a resident at the Wounded Warrior Battalion West at Camp Pendleton, Calif., Feb. 19, 2008. Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley, USN  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen visited the Wounded Warrior Battalion West facilities and spoke to wounded Marines in the program. The battalion...

After just three years in existence, the Anti-Terrorism Battalion was deactivated Friday morning to make way for growth in the Marine Corps

Battalion Doesn?t Lack Experienced Soldiers There are 10 Guardsmen deployed to Camp Al Asad with more than 25 years of service. By Sgt. 1st Class Clinton Wood 1/34 Brigade Combat Team, Public Affairs CAMP AL ASAD, Iraq, March 26, 2007 -- There is no lack of experience in the 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Iowa Army National Guard soldiers stationed here.There are 10 Guardsmen with more than 25 years of service. They include Chief Warrant Officer Stephen Swisher of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Staff Sgt. Stephen Johnson of Dubuque, Iowa, who have 30 and 29 years of service; and 1st...

Battalion Clears Routes, Saves Lives Engineers scan roadways for improvised explosive devices. By Staff Sgt. Gary A. Witte 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) Public Affairs LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, Iraq, March 22, 2007 -- You need stamina. You need patience. And most of all, you need a sharp eye to do this job. After two hours on the road, the slow-moving convoy stopped to examine something spotted by one of its vehicle commanders, Sgt. Patrick B. Geren of Fort Smith, Ark. The berm, covered in patches of grass, was about 30 feet from the road and appeared much the same...

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Dec. 11, 2006 — Soldiers of the 10th Sustainment Brigade’s 91st Military Police Battalion handed over responsibility to the 385th MP Battalion from Fort Stewart, Ga., during a transfer of authority here Dec. 6, as they prepare to head back home to Fort Drum. "To the troopers of Task Force Vigilant, let there be no doubt in your mind that you have made a difference in the country of Afghanistan and to the people of Afghanistan." Army Col. Larry D. Wyche Joint Logistics Command commander During the 91st MP Battalion’s year-long tour, the 500-plus soldier task force...

HADITHA, Iraq (Oct. 6, 2006) -- After almost seven months of combat operations in western Al Anbar province, the Marines of “America’s Battalion” returned to families and loved ones Oct. 5 in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. Just two weeks ago, the Hawaii-based battalion transferred authority of security operations of the Haditha Triad region in Al Anbar to another Hawaii-based unit - 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. The Haditha Triad Region consists of the three Euphrates River towns — Haditha, Barwanah and Haqlaniyah, and boasts a population of about 50,000. Throughout their deployment, 3rd Battalion’s forces trained Iraqi Security Forces, located 54...

TAL AFAR, Iraq, Sep. 4, 2006 – The 1st, Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Iraqi Army Division, became the third and final battalion to take the lead in assuming security operations for the city of Tal Afar during a ceremony held at Fort Tal Afar on Sept. 2, U.S. officials reported. On hand for the ceremony were Tal Afar Mayor Najim Abdullah al-Jubori; Maj. Gen. Khorsheed, commander of the 3rd Iraqi Army Division; Brig. Gen. Qais Hamza, commander of the division’s 2nd Brigade; U.S. Army Lt. Col. John Tien, commander of Task Force 2-37; and various dignitaries from the surrounding area....