Today, Al-Qaeda confirmed on an Islamic militant website that Abu Khabab al-Masri, was indeed killed in the missile strike of July 28th. Al-Masri was known as Al Qaeda's top bomb maker and he actively sought to gain a WMD capability for the group as well. There is still a question about the fate of Al Qaeda #2. […]
Last week, the Polish government raised the ante to allow the US to place its missile defense shield in their country. Why all of a sudden would Poland renege on hosting the shield at the last minute when talks have been going on for years? Were they successfully pressured by Russia? And is the same […]
It's gotten to the point that Afghanistan is no longer "the other war," but is starting to claim more of the spotlight from Iraq with each day. Consider these developments: In the months of May and June, more Americans died in Afghanistan than died in Iraq. On June 13th, the Taliban successfully staged a well-planned out […]
Although in regards to Iran, Bush used his favorite phrase, "all options are on the table," he did say, military action would not be his first choice. More importantly, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mullen admitted "opening up a third front right now would be extremely stressful on us — that doesn't mean […]
Yesterday evening the Foreign Policy Association hosted a lecture by Ambassador Ronald Neumann (retired), current President of the American Academy of Diplomacy. As the former US Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2004 , 2007, Mr. Neumann has intimate knowledge of what happened there and also with the current situation. Streaming video of his lecture can be seen […]
On Thursday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates forced Air Force Chief of Staff General Michael Moseley and Secretary of the Air Force Michael Wynne to resign and appointed a former secretary of defense to devise new ways to better guard nuclear weapons. To justify this extraordinary move, Gates has pointed to a Pentagon report chronicling […]
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are largely being fought by conventional military forces. However, America is also engaged in low intensity conflicts in other countries, mostly using US Army Special Forces (SF). One conflict we have been heavily engaged in over the years is the 40 year long people's war in Colombia. The FARC […]
General Ricardo Sanchez, the former commander of coalition forces in Iraq, has belittled the service of Bernard Kerik for failing to produce results while Kerik was the interim minister of interior of Iraq in 2003. In that position, Kerik was supposed to oversee the rebuilding of the National Police, the Intelligence Service and the […]
General Petraeus has been tapped to be the new commander of Central Command and his current deputy, Lt-Gen Ray Odierno will succeed him as Commanding General, Multi-National Force – Iraq. It's interesting to note that like most generals in the army, both men do not have combat experience as infantrymen. When I was a soldier […]
In addition to the physical casualties US ground troops are incurring, there are the just as debilitating psychological casualties as well. The US Army is alarmed about the growing number of active and veteran soldiers who have PTSD or will be possible future victims of it. The New York Times reports that a recent study by the US […]
From March 13-16, former soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan are giving eyewitness testimony to what they did in that country. Unlike filtered news from the military, or the biased news from the media, this is the visceral truth, straight from the frontlines. Whether you are against the occupation or for it, finding out what is […]
In this month's Esquire magazine, Thomas Barnett fawns over Admiral Fallon, Commander of Central Command (CENTCOM). He laughably calls Fallon "The Man Between War and Peace." Fallon is not between anything. As commander of CENTCOM he is currently waging two wars and will unhesitatingly start another one if he feels it is necessary. It's ironic […]
Apparently, the senior brass of the US military are unsure of Obama's "leadership" qualities to be commander in chief. However, what is their definition of leadership? What qualities make a good commander in chief? Does previous military experience matter for this position? Personal military experience doesn't help unless the person was of flag rank and […]