US military

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He Voted for Iraq War, Has Now Written 11K Fallen Troops' Families

'It's a sacred responsibility that I have to communicate my condolences to a family'

(Newser) - On a Sunday morning more than two weeks after four US soldiers were ambushed and killed in Niger, Rep. Walter Jones sat at the desk in his North Carolina office, doing what he's done more than 11,000 times in 14 years: signing letters to families of the dead...

Official: US Believes Villager Set Niger Ambush in Motion

Slain soldiers had little to no combat experience

(Newser) - The US military believes someone in a Niger village may have tipped off attackers to the presence of US commandos and Nigerien forces in the area, setting in motion the ambush that killed four Americans, a senior defense official said Tuesday. The official says the Army Green Berets and about...

US Troops in Niger Fought 2 Hours Before Help Arrived

Pentagon has new timeline of 'complex' firefight

(Newser) - American troops and the Nigerien soldiers they were patrolling with fought ISIS-allied militants for two hours before help arrived, the Pentagon says. Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, gave a new timeline Monday of the deadly ambush , the Wall Street Journal reports. "This is a...

Trump Order Lifts Limits on Military 'Unretirements'

Move addresses serious Air Force pilot shortage

(Newser) - A lot of retired Air Force pilots are likely to find themselves called back to service under an executive order signed by President Trump Friday. The order lifts limits on calling retired military officers back to service under the terms of the state of national emergency that has been in...

Father of Slain Soldier: Trump Didn't Send Promised $25K

Check was only sent after man went public

(Newser) - The father of a soldier killed in Afghanistan in June says he was "floored" when President Trump promised to write him a check for $25,000—but it never arrived. Chris Baldridge tells the Washington Post that when Trump called a few weeks after his son, Army Sgt. Dillon...

Lawmaker: Trump Told Widow Fallen Soldier &#39;Knew What He Signed Up For&#39;
Trump Gets Entangled in
New Gold-Star Family Feud
the rundown
Oct 18, 2017 12:00 PM CDT

Trump Gets Entangled in New Gold-Star Family Feud

Rep. Frederica Wilson pushes back after Trump says she's lying about convo on fallen soldier

(Newser) - Trump the candidate had a very public feud with a Gold Star family; Trump the president appears to be embroiled in one, too. The dust-up began with a Democratic Florida congresswoman, who says President Trump told the widow of a slain soldier that her husband "knew what he signed...

Fallen Soldier's Mom: Trump Never Called

She says she never heard from him even after writing letter

(Newser) - President Trump's claim Tuesday that he has called the family of every American soldier to die during his presidency was simply untrue, reports the AP , which found three families that never got the call. Two of them didn't receive a letter. Sheila Murphy, whose Army son died in...

Trump: Other Presidents Didn't Call Families of Fallen Soldiers

He says most of his predecessors 'didn't make calls'

(Newser) - President Trump seemed to politicize the calling of the families of fallen soldiers Monday when he was asked about four US servicemen killed in an ambush in Niger last week. Trump, speaking at a White House press conference, said he plans to call their families as he has done "...

What Are US Special Forces Doing in Niger?

Green Beret deaths bring attention to support mission in African country

(Newser) - The deaths of three Green Berets in Niger on Wednesday—along with those of several Nigerien soldiers—is raising questions about the US mission in the African country, reports the Washington Post . The incident, involving what are believed to be the first hostile-fire casualties in the country for US troops,...

Trump: I Want 'Really Great' Parade on July 4

Bigger than the one he saw in France on Bastille Day, he says

(Newser) - Who doesn't love a parade? To a city that already offers many, President Trump wants to add one that showcases US military might. It would take place on July 4 in Washington with, as Trump envisions it, tanks and planes rolling down and streaking above Pennsylvania Avenue. Trump talked...

15 Marines Hospitalized After Vehicle Ignites

3 are in critical condition at burn center

(Newser) - Eight Marines were rushed to a San Diego burn center and seven others were also hospitalized after their amphibious vehicle caught fire during a training exercise at a military base. Three of the Marines were listed in critical condition Wednesday afternoon at the Burn Center at University of California San...

North Korea Could Respond 'With Fury' to Latest US Move

US flies bombers, fighters in show of force

(Newser) - The United States flew some of its most advanced warplanes in bombing drills with ally South Korea on Thursday, a clear warning after North Korea l aunched a midrange ballistic missile designed to carry nuclear bombs over Japan earlier this week, South Korea's military said. North Korea hates such...

Pentagon Admits True Number of Troops in Afghanistan

Troop total had been understated by thousands

(Newser) - Pentagon officials have finally acknowledged the actual number of American forces in Afghanistan after long camouflaging the total in misleading accounting measures and red tape. Senior Defense Department officials said Wednesday there are about 11,000 US forces currently deployed to Afghanistan—thousands more than the 8,400 that were...

Divers Find Remains of All 10 Missing Sailors

They searched flooded compartments of USS John S. McCain

(Newser) - Divers have recovered the remains of all 10 sailors who went missing after the USS John S. McCain and an oil tanker collided near Singapore last week, the US Navy said Monday. Navy and Marine Corps divers had been searching in flooded compartments of the destroyer for days after the...

Mattis' Off-the-Cuff Talk to Troops Caught on Video

He asks them to 'hold the line' until US gets back to 'respecting each other'

(Newser) - A video of defense chief James Mattis giving an off-the-cuff pep talk to US troops is gaining traction online. In the clip—see it here —Mattis asks the troops to "hold the line until our country gets back to understanding and respecting each other and showing it,"...

Trump Gives Mattis Leeway on Current Transgender Troops

President extends enlistment ban, but leaves wiggle room for those now serving

(Newser) - President Trump on Friday directed the Pentagon to extend indefinitely a ban on transgender individuals joining the military, but he appeared to leave open the possibility of allowing some already in uniform to remain. Trump gave Defense Secretary Jim Mattis authority to decide the matter of openly transgender individuals already...

One Factor in Afghan Decision: Mining Riches
One Factor in Trump's
Afghan Decision:
Mining Riches
the rundown
Aug 21, 2017 9:27 AM CDT

One Factor in Trump's Afghan Decision: Mining Riches

Trump expected to announce increase in troops, also eyes Afghanistan minerals

(Newser) - President Trump formally goes before the nation at 9pm EDT Monday—his first such forum since addressing a joint session of Congress in February—to lay out his strategy for the war in Afghanistan. The big expected takeaway: an announcement of an increase in troops with the goal of reversing...

10 Sailors Missing After US Warship Hits Tanker

At least 5 others injured in accident east of Singapore

(Newser) - At least 10 US sailors are missing after the USS John S. McCain collided with a tanker early Monday east of Singapore and the Strait of Malacca in the second collision involving a ship from the Navy's 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two months. The Navy says five...

US Hasn&#39;t Shown Military Bands Are Worth the Bill
US Hasn't Shown
Military Bands Are
Worth the Bill
GAO REPORT
Aug 17, 2017 1:14 PM CDT

US Hasn't Shown Military Bands Are Worth the Bill

GAO demands performance measures, Pentagon to oblige

(Newser) - A $437 million annual budget is allotted for US military bands. While that's less than 0.1% of the Department of Defense's total budget, it's also about as much as Latvia's entire defense budget, reports Fox News . The funds pay for instruments—the Air Force requested...

Colonel Accused of Rape Wins $8.4M Lawsuit Against Accuser

Jury sides with man who lost out on promotion, orders woman to pay

(Newser) - A woman who accused a former Army colonel of raping her when they were both cadets at West Point in 1986 has been ordered to pay him $8.4 million. A jury in Virginia sided with Col. David "Wil" Riggins against blogger Susan Shannon in Riggins' defamation lawsuit, the...

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