Trump and Putin discuss cease-fire in Syria in first conversation since U.S. airstrikes

MOSCOW — In their first publicly announced conversation since the United States launched a Tomahawk cruise-missile strike in Syria last month, President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the humanitarian crisis in Syria in a phone call Tuesday, with both countries expressing interest in working toward a cease-fire in the region. The two men […]

USSOCOM Wants Performance-enhancing Products for its Operator Dogs

“Cry Havoc and let slip the dogs of war.” USSOCOM is trying to upgrade the performance of its working dog component and they’re looking at pharmaceutical companies to help them do so. The value of working dog teams with the Special Operations teams with whom they operate can’t be understated. Perhaps no dog is more well-known […]

The Golden Age of Special Operations, But is the OpTempo Too High?

The United States’ Special Operations Forces are seemingly everywhere and that perception is not far off. In 2016, they were deployed to 138 countries around the globe or about 70 percent of the world. From battlefields in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, to Somalia and West Africa, to advising counter-narcotics units in the Andean Ridge, working […]

Special Operations is About People Not the Equipment They Use

It is well-known fact inside our Special Operations Forces that being in one of the many units in the United States SOF has more to do with the operators being ‘special’ and not just the gear that they use to get the job done. But frequently the public gets wrapped around the ax handle with […]

U.S.-led fight on ISIS has killed 352 civilians: Pentagon

At least 352 civilians have been killed in U.S.-led strikes against Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria since the operation began in 2014, the U.S. military said in a statement on Sunday. The Combined Joint Task Force, in its monthly assessment of civilian casualties from the U.S. coalition’s operations against the militant group, said […]

Drone manufacturer quietly releases software update to ground ISIS drones

Drones have changed the face of warfare in many combat zones around the world.  American Predators, along with a number of others, have provided U.S. forces with increased surveillance capabilities and can even conduct offensive operations without risking any American lives. However, as military drone technology has improved, commercial drones available for purchase in the […]

Among Trump aides, Mattis emerges as a key voice on national security issues

When Defense Secretary Jim Mattis sat down with leaders in Saudi Arabia last week, a top White House official traveling with him offered up a new label for the Pentagon chief, who is well known as a combat-hardened former general: “favorite of the president.” The depiction from deputy national security adviser Dina Powell, however lighthearted, […]

British, Swiss Doctors testing Doxycycline in treating PTSD

PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome) is an acronym everyone is familiar with these days. As troops subjected to prolonged combat in multiple locations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and elsewhere show the world the grim reminders the toll it takes on the human psyche. It isn’t anything new, just the name has changed. In World War […]

Israel launches airstrike against Hezbollah targets near Damascus International Airport

Israel launched a pre-dawn airstrike on a military arms depot near the Damascus International Airport in Syria, the Voice of America reports. The weapons supply belonged to Hezbollah, which has received stockpiles of missiles and munitions from Iran over the last several years, spiking recently as Hezbollah has been an active participant in the Syrian […]

Under Trump, use of contractors in war zone diminishing

Despite the wars in the Middle East showing no signs of slowing down, what is beginning to wane is the US government’s reliance on contractors to help. The Defense Department is using thousands of fewer military contractors in the early days of the Trump administration than at the end of the Obama presidency. With the […]