More U.S. troops will deploy to Afghanistan “within days or weeks” in the effort to defeat the Taliban under a revised strategy authorized by President Donald Trump, Army Gen. Joseph Votel said Tuesday. The first contingents of the additional forces, expected to number in the range of about 3,900 once they are fully deployed, will begin arriving “pretty quickly” and could be on ... Read More »
Iraqi forces have fought their way into the outskirts of the city of Tal Afar, one of so-called Islamic State’s last remaining strongholds in the country. Counter-terrorism units entered the south-western Kifah district on Tuesday, the military said. IS militants responded by firing rockets and deploying suicide car bombs, according to one commander. Iraq’s prime minister launched the assault on ... Read More »
When it comes to elite military teams, the Navy SEALs often come first to mind. For the Army, though, that’s okay — Special Forces Soldiers prefer to be under the radar as the Army’s “quiet professionals.” Recruiters visit Fort Sill and other installations regularly to find male and female officers and enlisted personnel who think they have the right combination ... Read More »
Col. Avi Blot took command of the IDF’s Oz Brigade, also known as the Commando Brigade, on Thursday, replacing Col. David Zini, who held the position since the unit was formed in December 2015. The brigade brought four of the army’s elite units — Egoz, Rimon, Maglan and Duvdevan — under one roof, with the goal of cutting away inefficiencies ... Read More »
The Defense Department on Thursday night released the name of the soldier who was killed this week in Afghanistan. Staff Sgt. Aaron Butler, 27, died Wednesday in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, from wounds he suffered when an improvised explosive device exploded during combat operations. The incident is under investigation. Butler, of Monticello, Utah, was a Special Forces soldier assigned to the ... Read More »
A member of the Utah National Guard was killed and at least 11 others were injured Wednesday during a mission battling Islamic State loyalists in eastern Afghanistan. An unspecified number of Utah Guard members were working alongside members of the Afghan army on a ground mission fighting the Islamic State affiliate in the region, officials said. The wounded personnel were ... Read More »
Nigeria deployed 2,000 special forces troops against Boko Haram Islamist militants in the country’s northeast, the army said. “These specially selected forces with mixed equipment platforms are to achieve the conduct of long-range patrols and ambushes,” Ibrahim Attahiru, the army commander leading counter-insurgency operations, said Tuesday in the northeastern city of Maiduguri. Boko Haram’s insurgency, aimed at imposing its version ... Read More »
This month, three industry teams will hand over four different light attack aircraft to Air Force pilots for a series of flight demonstrations to test just how well the aircraft can prosecute targets on the ground while operating in austere desert environments. Those that prove their mettle will move on until the next phase of the experiment: a combat demonstration ... Read More »
Two U.S. service members were killed and five others were injured Sunday while conducting combat operations in northern Iraq, officials with Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve said in a statement. Initial reports indicate the incident was not due to enemy contact, officials said. But no additional information was publicly released Sunday morning. The incident is under investigation. “The entire ... Read More »
The first American service member to die while fighting ISIS “fearlessly exposed himself” to heavy small arms fire during a raid on a militant prison complex in October 2015, according to the citation for his Silver Star award. The award for Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler, a team leader with the Army’s elite Delta Force, was released in response to a Freedom ... Read More »
SOFX The Crossroads of Special Operations