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Nominee for Top US General: Afghan Withdrawal Would Be 'Strategic Mistake' July 11, 2019 President Donald Trump's nominee for the top military officer of the United States says leaving Afghanistan prematurely would be a "strategic mistake," as the U.S. and the Taliban are negotiating a potential peace settlement to end nearly two decades of war. "I think it is slow, it's painful, it's hard. I spent a lot of my life in Afghanistan, but I also think it's necessary," Army Gen. Mark Milley, the current Army Chief of Staff and nominee for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told...

When I served as a Navy prosecutor in the early 1990s, the military justice system served America well. We stood alongside warfighting commanders to instill good order and discipline, with a goal of victory in combat. If a Marine did not report for duty, we prosecuted him. If a sailor disobeyed a lawful order, a court-martial followed. If a Bo Bergdahl deserted the Army and conspired with the enemy while Americans died looking for him, we would prosecute the hell out of him and then throw away the key. All of this supported a sharp, buffed-up, well-oiled military without extra...

DISGRACEFUL! U.S. Army War College caves to designated terrorist group CAIR’s demand to cancel a speaking engagement at the College by the highly-respected Islamic scholar and author, Raymond Ibrahim, by slandering him as an “Islamophobe” JUNE 12, 2019 BY BARENAKEDISLAM If you have not seen the original demand letter from CAIR to the U.S. Army War College, and Raymond Ibrahim’s response to it, you’ll find it at the below link. Designated terrorist group CAIR “demands” cancellation of speaking engagement by renowned Islamic scholar and author, Raymond Ibrahim, at the US Army War College It’s beyond shocking to see US Army...

[The V280 'Valor' is a replacement for the Blackhawk Helicopter]. The V280 is derived from having a max speed of 280 mph. Article says it attained 230 knots...] - Topher intro On Jul. 31, 2018 the first prototype of the Bell V-280 Valor, registration N280BH, performed a flight demo for invited media and dignitaries at Bell Helicopter Amarillo Assembly Center. The V-280 Valor is Bell’s submission for the U.S. Army’s Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD) phase, the technology demonstration precursor to Future Vertical Lift (FVL), a replacement for the service’s Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk (that have just celebrated its 40th...

President Trump on Monday signed an executive clemency granting a full pardon to a former Army first lieutenant convicted of murdering an Iraqi prisoner. The White House released a statement announcing Trump's decision to pardon Michael Behenna, who was sentenced in 2009 to 15 years for shooting and killing Ali Mansur Mohamed. The move comes after repeated requests from Oklahoma's attorney general for Trump to pardon Behenna. "Mr. Behenna’s case has attracted broad support from the military, Oklahoma elected officials, and the public," the White House said, noting that more than two-dozen generals and admirals, as well as numerous Oklahoma...

The Department of Justice announced Monday the arrest of a former U.S. Army infantryman who is accused of plotting a "mass casualty" terrorist attack at a white nationalist rally in Long Beach, California over the weekend. Agents arrested the suspect, Mark Steven Domingo of Reseda, California, on Friday evening after an undercover source for the FBI sent the suspect what he believed was a live bomb that he could use to carry out his attack. "This investigation successfully disrupted a very real threat posed by a trained combat soldier who repeatedly stated he wanted to cause the maximum number of...

The United States Army was the villain in the “Black Hawk Down” incident in Somalia, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., wrote in a 2017 Twitter post. Omar, a Somali native elected to Congress last fall, was responding to a tweet that falsely described the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu as the worst terrorist attack in Somali history. The original tweet noted that 19 American soldiers were killed and 73 American soldiers were wounded. “In his selective memory, [the writer] forgets to also mention the thousands of Somalis killed by the American forces that day! #NotTodaySatan,” Omar wrote while still a Minnesota...

For several years The Gateway Pundit has reported on the plight of Sgt. Derrick Miller who sits in prison for life in Leavenworth, Kansas. Today we are pleased to announce that Sgt. Miller will soon be released from prison! U.S. Army National Guardsman Sgt. Derrick Miller... from Hagerstown, Maryland, was convicted in July of 2011 for the pre-meditated murder of an Afghan man in 2010. Sgt. Miller shot and killed an Afghan civilian following the civilian attempting to grab Sgt. Miller’s weapon during a period of intense questioning. The Afghan civilian was a suspected insurgent that was walking through Sgt....

Trevor Atkins was 11 when his father, Army Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, was killed while serving in Iraq a dozen years ago. On Wednesday President Trump will present the Medal of Honor to the Atkins family to recognize Travis for his heroism in saving fellow soldiers while losing his own life. “My true treasure is what people say about him,” Trevor tells an interviewer for an Army video tribute to Travis Atkins. “That’s what makes me the most proud.” Trevor has plenty of reason to feel proud lately. Earlier this month the White House announced that his father would...

Lawrence Freedman went to Somalia in 1992 as part of the U.S.-led relief effort Rep. Ilhan Omar, a freshman Democrat from Minnesota, has become widely known for her attacks on supporters of Israel. Ms. Omar is a naturalized citizen whose Somali refugee family settled in the U.S. when she was a teenager. Tens of thousands of Somali refugees relocated to the U.S.—some 25,000 in the Minneapolis area—to escape the starvation, famine and civil war that turned Somalia into a lawless, failed state in the early 1990s. Another name is worth recognition and remembrance, especially among Somali refugees: Lawrence Freedman. In...

Soldiers Complete Army's Toughest Schools after 40 A weapons expert with 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Master Sgt. Jole Alvarez had completed some of the most challenging courses the Army has to offer, but Ranger School eluded him for two decades. He'd been slated to attend in 1999, but instead was sent to Combat Diver Qualification Course first. Then the 9/11 attacks kicked off years of high operations tempo that kept him posted overseas or deployed much of the time since. But, late last year, he got his chance. "They called me 'Old Man Jole' or 'The Old Man,'" Alvarez...

The Pentagon inspector general is investigating allegations that a two-star Army general is retaliating against active-duty Green Beret instructors under his command who have voiced concerns over his lowering of standards for Green Beret candidates, three sources familiar with the matter told Breitbart News. The allegations involve Army Maj. Gen. Kurt Sonntag, who is commanding general of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School and Center (SWCS) where Green Berets are selected, trained, and graduated. Breitbart News spoke with more than a half dozen current and former Green Beret instructors and several others in the Green Beret community,...

Chelsea Manning has been subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury in the investigation of Julian Assange, officials said, one of several indicators that prosecutors remain interested in WikiLeaks’ publication of diplomatic cables and military war logs in 2010. …(snip) …Manning’s attorneys have filed a motion to quash the subpoena. “I object strenuously to this subpoena, and to the grand jury process in general,” Manning said in a statement. “We’ve seen this power abused countless times to target political speech. I have nothing to contribute to this case and I resent being forced to endanger myself by participating in this...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Army estimates the Russian army’s military capabilities will peak in 2028, closely followed by the Chinese around 2030, giving the United States almost a decade to prepare for those threats, a senior Pentagon official said in an interview on Monday. The top civilian at the U.S. Army, Secretary Mark Esper, said the Army will reduce, eliminate or delay nearly 200 weapons programs and refocus the funds on investing in capabilities to beat emergent Russian and Chinese militaries.

Two U.S. Army soldiers are facing charges for selling weapons headed to Mexico, BuzzFeed reported Thursday. According to a filing in Texas federal court, Tyler Sumlin and Jason Jarvis are reportedly charged with eight counts including conspiracy to smuggle goods from the US, transferring firearms to an out-of-state resident and transporting explosive materials without a license. The indictment was filed in December but not reported on until Thursday. Newsweek reported that the Army was attempting to keep the case quiet, when another solider found the charge sheet and indictments in the Public Access to Court Electronic Records database. Sumlin and...

A group of Microsoft workers is demanding the company cancel a contract supplying the U.S. Army with HoloLens headsets that they say would turn real-world battlefields into a video game. Microsoft's head-mounted HoloLens displays use augmented reality, which means viewers can see virtual imagery superimposed over the scenery in front of them. A letter signed by more than 50 Microsoft employees Friday and circulated on an internal messaging board said the technology could help soldiers spot — and kill — adversaries on the battlefield....

The US Army will acquire two Iron Dome batteries by 2020 as well as consider the full adoption of the Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2-Intercept, both systems developed by Israel, Inside Defense reported Wednesday. The Iron Dome batteries will provide US ground forces an interim capability against unmanned air vehicles, mortars, rockets, artillery and cruise missiles. The US Army has been working to transform the Israeli interceptor into an American system to defend forward-deployed US forces since 2017. The US Army has performed tests to evaluate which missile system would best serve this purpose. Rafael Advanced Defense System's Iron...

The U.S. Army is developing a more intensive fitness test tailored to combat situations following complaints from commanders of insufficient troop readiness. Top members of Army brass told The Associated Press that the existing physical fitness tests employed by the Army during basic training do not adequately prepare soldiers for the physical challenges of the battlefield. A new test that is described by the military as far more physically intensive “may be harder, but it is necessary,” Gen. Stephen Townsend, head of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, told the AP. “We needed to change the culture of fitness in...

After more than a year of discussion, the U.S. Army announced Sunday that it has adopted a version of the World War II pinks and greens uniform as the service's new everyday dress uniform. By 2028, the "Army Greens" will become the "everyday business-wear uniform for all soldiers," according to a Veterans Day Army news release. "This is the uniform worn by America's 'Greatest Generation' in World War II," the release states. Sergeant Major of the Army Daniel Dailey unveiled the first prototypes of the two-tone uniform in October 2017 at the Association of the United States Army's annual meeting....

The first remains of soldiers killed in the Korean War and sent from North Korea have been identified as belonging to Army Master Sgt. Charles H. McDaniel of Indiana and Army Pfc. William H. Jones of North Carolina, President Trump shared through Twitter on Thursday.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~SNIP~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Army Pfc. William H. Jones, killed during the Korean War, was identified in September 2018. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSEArmy Master Sgt. Charles H. McDaniel, killed during the Korean War. He was identified in September 2018. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE