Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) Casualty Update 09 Dec 2015 [PDF]
• Strikes Continue to Hit ISIL in Syria, Iraq AFPS 09 Dec 2015 -- U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
• Carter Says ISIL Must Be Defeated in its 'Parent Tumor' AFPS 09 Dec 2015 -- Defeating the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant globally and at home requires leveraging the militant organization in its "parent tumor" of Syria and Iraq, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
• Carter calls on US allies to step up fight against Daesh Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter says more needs to be done as the United States has been unable to contain Daesh (ISIL) terrorists in Iraq and Syria.
• Anti-IS Ground Forces Debated on Capitol Hill VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- The Obama administration said it is boosting military pressure on Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq, but remains opposed to deploying any substantial U.S. combat forces in either country despite IS' demonstrated ability to inspire terrorism on American soil. Defense Secretary Ash Carter also called for stepped up international help in the fight.
• Update: air strikes in Iraq and Syria UK MOD 09 Dec 2015-- British forces have continued to conduct air operations in the fight against Daesh
• Pakistani Officials: Afghan Peace Talks Expected Next Week VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban are likely to resume as early as next week, Pakistani officials said Wednesday.
• 37 Dead as Clashes Continue at Kandahar Airport VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- An overnight Taliban assault on a key airport in southern Afghanistan killed 37 people and wounded 35 others as clashes continued into Wednesday, Afghan and insurgent officials said.
• 'Afghanistan, Pakistan to end blame game' over Taliban: Kabul Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Afghanistan and Pakistan agree to stop accusing each other for the Taliban-led violence that has been plaguing both countries, the Afghan foreign minister says.
• 37 people killed in clashes between Taliban, Afghan forces in Kandahar Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- At least 37 people have been killed in a gunfight between Afghan police forces and Taliban militants who had stormed an airport in Afghanistan's southern city of Kandahar.
• At Least 37 Civilians, Nine Taliban Killed In Taliban Attack On Kandahar Airfield RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- Afghanistan's Defense Ministry says 37 civilians have been killed and another 35 people injured at the main military base in southern Afghanistan since Taliban militants stormed the sprawling facility shortly after sundown on December 8.
• Afghan, Pakistani Leaders Hold Firm At Heart Of Asia Conference RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif have held firm to their positions over their tense relations at a regional conference in Islamabad, while India has called for better ties between Pakistan and New Delhi.
• Iran warns of growing Daesh presence in Afghanistan Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has expressed concern over the presence of Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in war-torn Afghanistan.

Defense Policy / Programs

• SASC Chairman McCain Sends Letter On Russian Rocket Engines And U.S. National Security Space Launch Program Sen. McCain 09 Dec 2015 -- U.S. Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Ash Carter on the Department of Defense’s national security space launch program and its continued reliance on Russian-made rocket engines.
• Department of Defense Press Briefing by General Hodges on Operation Atlantic Resolve in the Pentagon Briefing Room DoD 09 Dec 2015 -- Presenter: Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, commander, U.S. Army Europe
• Battaglia: Fitness, Resiliency 'All Connected" AFPS 09 Dec 2015 -- Resiliency has been a central theme of Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bryan B. Battaglia's time as senior enlisted advisor to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
• Readout of Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work's meeting with the Slovakian Defense Minister Martin Glvac DoD 09 Dec 2015
• U.S. Marines strengthen Uganda capabilities for AMISOM USMC News 09 Dec 2015 -- The Uganda People's Defense Force and the U.S. military will recognize Ugandan soldiers at Camp Singo, Uganda, Dec. 18 during a training graduation ceremony.
• New Chart the Course Training for 2016 NNS 09 Dec 2015 -- The Chief of Naval Personnel announced Dec. 9 new training for 2016 that expands on existing efforts made through Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) and fleet-wide training.
• China slams US aircraft deployment in Singapore People's Daily 09 Dec 2015 -- China said on Tuesday that US military deployment and regional militarization goes against the common and long-term interests of countries in the region, after the Pentagon said they would base a naval patrol aircraft in Singapore starting this week.
• 'Zumwalt Sails for the First Time': Monster US Destroyer Heads Out to Sea Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- The USS Zumwalt, the US Navy's largest and most expensive destroyer ever built, began sea trials Monday in the Atlantic Ocean.
• AMC C-17 facilitates airdrop for Missile Defense Agency test AFNS 09 Dec 2015 -- Over the summer, the Air Force Test Center sent a C-17 Globemaster III with air and maintenance crews from Edwards Air Force Base to Hawaii, but it was no vacation. The crews worked 24-hour shifts for several months to support a Missile Defense Agency test of the Ballistic Missile Defense System over the western Pacific Ocean.
• NAWCWD hosts MDA, Japanese for live-fire test of SM-3 Block IIA missile NNS 09 Dec 2015 -- Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, California hosted a live-fire test of the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA missile, a 21-inch diameter Standard Missile variant cooperatively developed by the United States and Japan for use with the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense program, on Dec. 8.
• United Nations Adopts Russia's Move to Restrict Space Weapons Sputnik 10 Dec 2015 -- The United Nations adopted a Russian-led resolution calling for a restriction against placing the first weapons in outer space, thereby preventing an arms race that could have catastrophic consequences.
• Russian Missile Defense Unit Armed With S-300 System Activated in Arctic Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- A unit armed with S-300 missile defense systems has started operating in the Russian Arctic, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
• Estonian Parliament Passes Budget for 2016, Increases Defense Spending Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- Estonian Parliament passed on Wednesday the budget for the next year, increasing defense spending by nearly 9 percent, press service of the parliament said in a statement.
• U.S. Ready To Supply Attack Helicopters To Iraq Amid 'Slow' Progress Against IS RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter says military progress against Islamic State (IS) fighters in Iraq remains slow, and that Washington will send attack helicopters and more advisers to help retake the strategic city of Ramadi.
• China eyeing air supremacy with Su-35 deal: military expert CNA 09 Dec 2015 -- China's purchase of 24 Su-35s is aimed at securing air supremacy in the region and countering the F-22 fighters deployed by the United States in Okinawa, according to a Taiwanese expert on Russian weapons.
• December 9, 2015 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 09 Dec 2015

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for December 09, 2015

Other Conflicts

• 9 December 2015 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 09 Dec 2015
• UN Security Council adopts first-ever resolution on youth, peace and security UN News 09 Dec 2015 -- The United Nations Security Council today adopted a historic resolution on youth, peace and security that urges greater representation by young men and women in the prevention and resolution of conflict amid "the rise of radicalization to violence and violent extremism amongst youth, which can be conducive to terrorism."
• Beijing Urges Seoul to Explain Firing of Shots at Chinese Boat Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- China has called on Seoul to clarify reports that the South Korean navy fired shots at a Chinese vessel, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Wednesday.
• Over 170,000 have fled conflict in Yemen, UN says Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- The United Nations says over the past few months 170,000 people have fled the conflict in Yemen for the Horn of Africa and the Persian Gulf countries.
• Moscow denies US allegations on Russian Planes over Deir Ezzur IRNA 09 Dec 2015 -- Spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry Igor Konashenkov denied the US allegations on the Russian planes' flight over Deir Ezzur on December 6 during an airstrike on a Syrian army camp.
• Russian jets help Assad offensive on central Syria IRNA 09 Dec 2015 -- Several strategic grain silos have reportedly been recaptured by the Syrian Army in the country's central province of Hama.
• Russia fires missiles at IS positions from submarine deployed in Mediterranean People's Daily 09 Dec 2015 -- Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday that Russia attacked the Islamic State (IS) positions in Syria with Kalibr missiles fired by the submarine deployed in the Mediterranean Sea.
• Russian air campaign in Syria not as effective as America's: US Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Russia's military campaign in Syria is not effective as only a small portion of their strikes have targeted the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group's positions, according to a top US official.
• 'Syria opposition' groups begin talks in Riyadh Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- The so-called Syria opposition groups have begun talks in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, in an effort to reach a common ground before potential negotiations with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
• Turkey's Open Border With Syria Provides 'Sustenance' to Daesh - US DOS Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- The open Turkish border with Syria needs to be sealed off because it enables the Islamic State, or Daesh, to thrive on the illicit trade of oil, foreign fighters and other supplies, US Department of State spokesperson John Kirby said on Wednesday.
• Lavrov Asks Why Turkey is Bombing US-Allied Kurds in Syria Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- It is necessary to understand why Turkey, being a member of the US-led coalition, is bombing Kurds in Syria, while the US sees them (Kurds) as potential allies, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Italian journalists in an interview.
• Syrian PM: Syria remains the defender of the Arab cause IRNA 09 Dec 2015 -- Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halaqi said on Wednesday that despite what Syria is facing, it will never give up its national principles and Palestine remains its central cause and will always remain the real defendant of the Arab cause.
• Syrian Army Liberates More of Latakia After Fierce Clashes With Terrorists Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- Syrian government forces have taken back key areas in the coastal province of Lattakia, reported Fars on Wednesday.
• Syria retakes new posts in Aleppo countryside Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- The Syrian army and the allied fighters of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah have made fresh gains against militants in the northern province of Aleppo, as the battle continues to purge the strategic area from elements of the Daesh Takfiri group and other terrorists.
• Syrian Rebels Exit Homs City Under Agreement With Damascus Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- Armed Syrian rebels on Wednesday started to leave the strategic city of Homs under an agreement reached between the government in Damascus and the opposition, Homs Governor Talal Barazi said.
• On a Winning Streak: Syrian Army Destroys More Daesh Jihadists in Aleppo Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- Scores of Daesh militants have reportedly been killed in southern areas of Aleppo province in northern Syria, where the Syrian army and the National Defense Forces continued their offensive.
• UN Takes No Action On Russian Call To Curb 'Reckless' Turkish Moves RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- Russia denounced as 'reckless' Turkey's deployment of troops to northern Iraq, but the United Nations Security Council declined to take a stand on the dispute.
• Russia censures Turkey's troop deployment to Iraq as 'reckless' Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Russia's ambassador to the United Nations (UN) has slammed Turkey's controversial troop deployment to Iraq as 'reckless and inexplicable.'
• Beijing Calls on Ankara to Respect Iraqi Sovereignity Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- China urged Iraq and Turkey to further increase communication and coordination in order to resolve the conflict.
• US State Dept. Does Not Support Turkey's Incursion Into Iraq Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- Baghdad and Ankara should find a proper resolution to the ongoing crisis with the deployment of Turkish troops in Iraq, a State Department official told Sputnik on Wednesday.
• NATO Chief Takes Note of Iraqi Concerns Over Turkish Troops Violation Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- NATO official said that Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg held a telephone conversation with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi in regard to Iraq's concerns over Turkish troops deployed on its soil.
• Civilians Trapped as Iraqi Forces Fight ISIS for Control of Ramadi VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Hundreds of civilians are trapped in central Ramadi, squeezed between Islamic State extremists who have booby-trapped the building around them and Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) fighting to retake control of the western city.
• Hezbollah fighters kill 9 al-Nusra militants in Arsal Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Lebanon's resistance movement, Hezbollah, says its fighters have killed nine Takfiri terrorists including a militant commander in an attack near the border town of Arsal.
• Over 9,000 killed in Ukraine conflict: UN Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- The United Nations says more than 9,000 people have been killed since the start of the conflict in eastern Ukraine in April 2014.
• Despite less fighting, eastern Ukraine still 'highly flammable,' UN reports, as death toll tops 9,000 UN News 09 Dec 2015 -- Despite a significant reduction in hostilities in eastern Ukraine in the last few months in a conflict that has already left over 9,000 people dead and nearly 21,000 injured, serious human rights concerns persist, including killings, torture and impunity, the United Nations reported today.
• UN: As Ukraine Fighting Dwindles, Rights Abuses Rise VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- While the United Nations has found a marked decrease in fighting between Ukraine's forces and Russian-backed rebels in the country's east, it also reports an increase in abuses of civilians in the insurgent-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk.
• Boko Haram Still a Threat as Deadline Nears VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Earlier this year, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari gave his country's military a deadline of December to defeat the six-year-old Boko Haram insurgency.
• COP21: Climate change and conflict meet in Cameroon IRIN 09 Dec 2015 -- Nadine Wondje, a native of Manoka, an island off the coast of Cameroon's economic capital, Douala, fears the sea will soon "swallow" her village.

News Reports

• Terrorist Designation of Emrah Erdogan US Dept. of State 09 Dec 2015 -- The Department of State has designated Emrah Erdogan a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under section 1(b) of Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which imposes sanctions on foreign persons that have committed, or pose a serious risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of U.S. nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States.
• US Attorney General: EU Privacy Laws Hinder Anti-Terror Efforts VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Following the Paris terror attacks and last week's shootings in San Bernardino, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch is criticizing European governments for limiting how intelligence agencies share counterterrorism information around the world.
• FBI Chief: California Shooters Radicalized Long Before Attack VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- The head of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation says the two shooters in last week's California massacre were radicalized before they met online and started discussing jihad and martyrdom about two years ago.
• IS Opens New Supply Route Between Syria and Iraq VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Islamic State (IS) militants have been using a new route between Syria and Iraq to ferry supplies since Iraqi Kurdish forces cut off one of IS' crucial links in northern Iraq last month.
• Russia long knew about Turkey's complicity with Daesh: Lavrov Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow has long known about Turkey's complicity with the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group, but did not raise the issue publicly.
• Lavrov: Turkey Has Long Supported Daesh Oil Trade, Terrorists' Efforts Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- While Russia only recently revealed evidence of Turkey's involvement in terrorist oil smuggling, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow has long known about the issue, but until recently did not want to believe that Ankara was as deeply involved as it seems to be.
• Turkish government files suit against Gulen Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- The Turkish government has lodged a civil suit with a US court against a US-based opponent of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, alleging human rights abuses.
• Iran's 'PMD' case closed at IAEA: Zarif Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the issue of the so-called possible military dimensions (PMD) of Tehran's nuclear program has effectively come to an end at the UN nuclear monitoring body.
• US Reviewing Iran's Alleged Missile Test Sputnik 09 Dec 2015 -- The United States looking into reports that Iran launched a ballistic missile last month, which would have been a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.
• Khodorkovsky Says New Russian Revolution 'Inevitable' RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- Exiled former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky has said that a new Russian revolution is 'inevitable and necessary,' and predicted President Vladimir Putin's government will be out of power within a few years.
• Dissident Russian Tycoon Calls Revolution 'Inevitable' VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Dissident Russian tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky said Wednesday that a revolution in his country is 'inevitable,' just days after Russian authorities summoned him for questioning as 'the accused' in a 17-year-old murder case.
• Retired Armenian Officer Arrested On Spy Charges RFE/RL 09 Dec 2015 -- Armenian authorities have detained a retired military officer on charges of spying for Azerbaijan.
• Maduro orders ministers to resign after election loss Press TV 09 Dec 2015 -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has ordered his ministers to resign so he can reshuffle the cabinet after his ruling party was trounced in parliamentary polls.
• UN agencies launch $1.98 billion humanitarian appeal for Africa's crises-hit Sahel region UN News 09 Dec 2015 -- Warning of dire effects of climate change, abject poverty, fast population growth and a tormenting rise in violence and insecurity in Africa's Sahel region, United Nations agencies and partners today launched the Sahel humanitarian appeal for 2016, which includes a regional plan that calls for $1.98 billion to provide vital assistance to millions of people in nine countries across the region.
• Taiwan committed to making friends with African nations: minister CNA 09 Dec 2015 -- Taiwan remains committed to making friends with African countries and will continue to inform them of the kind of assistance it can offer, Foreign Minister David Lin (林永樂) said Wednesday.
• A Long Road to Recovery in Myanmar's Remote Chin State; VOA 09 Dec 2015 -- Earlier this year in Hakha, the capital of Myanmar's mountainous and remote Chin state, days of heavy rain saturated the ground beneath the hilltop town.