Iraq

The 116th Congress is scheduled to be sworn in and assume its duties early next year. For the first time ever, it will be comprised of a record number of veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars. More specifically, eight Democrats and 19 Republicans, for a total of 27, will be legislating in the House […]

To many, modern warfare, and particularly drone warfare, can seem like a video game. Successive waves of war movies and video games have managed to replicate the images of the modern battlefield. Images, however, are just that: visual interpretations of events. They don’t show the impact, physical or mental, that the participants experience. Dr Peter […]

On December 13, 2003, at 2030 hours local time, HVT #1, Saddam Hussein, was found and captured in the town of ad-Dawr, Iraq, by a joint service and combined arms force of nearly 600 soldiers, sailors, and airmen from various conventional and special operations elements.  Operation Red Dawn, one of the largest man hunts in […]

For years now, the U.S. military has been pondering how to replace its mainstay M16/M4 rifles. The rifles can trace their development history to the years before the Vietnam War. However, the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, where engagement distances have been exceeding the effective range of the M16/M4, have brought a renewed purpose […]

In retrospect, one of the big take-aways from the fight against ISIS is the need to keep up some kind of continuous engagement with indigenous forces, rather than just wash our hands and walk away from the situation.  The Obama administration, having seen the invasion of Iraq as a profound mistake, made a campaign promise to […]

To many, modern warfare, and particularly drone warfare, can seem like a video game. Successive waves of war movies and video games have managed to replicate the images of the modern battlefield. Images, however, are just that: visual interpretations of events. They don’t show the impact, physical or mental, that the participants experience. Dr Peter […]

The U.S. Navy has decided to postpone the Article 32 hearing of the two Navy SEALs and two Marine Raiders suspected of killing a Special Forces Staff Sergeant in Bamako, Mali, in 2017. The hearings were scheduled to take place on December 10. Navy officials didn’t provide a reason for the postponement. Instead, they indicated […]

A U.S. soldier has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for swearing allegiance to the Islamic State and plotting a terrorist attack in Honolulu, Hawaii. Sergeant First Class Ikaika Erik Kang began his ISIS indoctrination in the early months of 2016. The process included repetitive watching of ISIS propaganda videos. He also watched multiple videos with […]

The Australian government will be authorising new criteria for the use of lethal force by the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS). Under the Intelligence Services Amendment Bill, ASIS officers will be able to use reasonable force when necessary in overseas operations to protect themselves and friendly parties. Hitherto, ASIS officers could only use their weapons for self-protection […]

The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is beginning to field the new Mk13 Mod 7 sniper rifle to all its units. The new sniper rifle has a bolt action, stainless steel match grade barrel, dual locking lugs, an extended free float rail system — which can receive numerous enhancing gadgets — and a folding stock. […]

Recently, the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has been enmeshed in a series of scandals and bad publicity. In Iraq, a decorated Navy SEAL has been charged with war crimes and his platoon leader with covering him. In Mali, two Marine Special Operations Command (MARSOC) Raiders and two SEAL Team Six operators have been […]

Have you ever wondered what motivates ordinary people to commit acts of unthinkable violence? The last decades have been dominated by images of destruction: New York, London, Madrid, Nice, Baghdad, Kabul, and countless other cities. Now, a British filmmaker is endeavouring to describe the incentives behind these attacks in a new documentary called Path of […]