Isaiah Burkhart

As many soldiers have experienced, a trip to Iraq or Afghanistan can seem quite exhausting. In Ranger Battalion, we at least had the benefit of flying in a C-17, and could sleep on the floor once we hit cruising altitude. I felt sorry for the rest of the military that had to fly in commercial jets – confined to […]

The strategies and tactics of the al-Nusra Front (ANF) are working due to the nature of the organization, lessons learned from past AQ mistakes, and the writings and teachings of Abu Musab al-Suri. In 2005 al-Suri was arrested in Pakistan, but for some reason was released and handed over to Syria when the rebel uprising began. […]

There have been reports from multiple news agencies that chemical weapons have been used during the fighting in Syria. The allegations are coming from both sides–al Assad’s regime and the rebel forces. As of now there has been no confirmation that chemical weapons were actually used during the morning of the March 19th attack. According […]

On March 11th, two U.S. SOF soldiers were killed and several more were wounded when an Afghan policeman fired a vehicle mounted machine gun at a group of SOF soldiers operating in the Jalrayz district of Maidan Wardak. The SOF unit returned fire and killed three Afghan police as well as the man who fired […]

In a recent meeting with the House Armed Services Committee, the commander of US Central Command General Mattis stated his intention to hand over drone capabilities to the Afghanistan Government. “The Afghans do not have that capability yet. It’s one of the enablers that we are trying to build into them before we leave.” From […]

al-Qaeda (AQ) has links to various jihadist groups throughout the world and is considered the world’s foremost terrorist organization. In a multi-part series I will be covering a new and highly coordinated group called the al-Nusra Front, which translates as: The Support Front for the People of Syria. The al-Nusra Front is an offshoot of […]

The U.S. policy on aid to Syria is tilting dangerously in the direction of military support. There are many who believe that the situation in Syria should be treated similar to the regime overthrow in Libya. It has become increasingly normal to see media outlets using the ‘cookie cutter’ method in their analysis of countries […]

It goes without saying, as a whole, the Night Stalkers are the best helicopter pilots that the world has to offer.  Most Army pilots aspire to make it into the unit, but few will ever attain their goal. These pilots fly the world’s élite (Delta, SEALs, and Rangers) from target to target, as well as […]

The allegations of beheadings and kidnappings by US Forces has caused Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, to order a withdrawal of US special operations forces from the “key” Afghani province of Maidan Wardak. These allegations bring up a myriad of questions about the future of SOF in Wardak. What is the potential blowback of losing SOF […]

On February 11th 1943, Darby’s 1st Battalion Rangers conducted their first night raid of WWII on a rail town in Southern Tunisia called Sened Station. They did not have the technology or weapons that modern-day Rangers are blessed with, but their willingness, tactical knowledge, and mastery of the night was very similar to the Rangers […]

We have the will to fight. We learn from our predecessors how to ply our trade. The experiences that we collect start to define who we are, what we stand for and how we value our lives. Most men have the sense and reality of death at some point during service to our nation. After […]

There is a certain location in Iraq that many in the SOF community know. This particular place has a pool in every backyard and marble floors. The three story complex that housed up to 50 Rangers also had other amenities, such as a sand volleyball court, horseshoes, diving board, and yes, a zip-line that went from […]