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News Reports

Current Operations

• Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) Casualty Update 27 Jan 2016 [PDF]
• Carter Encourages Cyber Command to Intensify Fight Against ISIL AFPS 27 Jan 2016 -- Defense Secretary Ash Carter today encouraged U.S. Cyber Command to 'intensify the fight' against the Islamic State of Iraq the Levant, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said.
• Military Strikes Target ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq AFPS 27 Jan 2016 -- 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.
• Update: air strikes in Iraq and Syria UK MOD 27 Jan 2016 -- Daesh terrorists in both Syria and Iraq have been repeatedly struck by numerous Royal Air Force attacks over recent days.
• US Defense Secretary Prepared to Request More Troops in Iraq if Needed Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter is prepared to ask for additional troops in Iraq, the Pentagon announced.
• Statement by Secretary of Defense Ash Carter on Change of Command in Afghanistan DoD 27 Jan 2016
• IS Radio Expands Reach in Afghanistan VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- The Islamic State group in Afghanistan has added new programming to its radio broadcasts that the Afghan government has failed to take off the air.
• Five killed in fresh US drone strike in eastern Afghanistan Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- At least five people have lost their lives when US military forces launched a fresh drone strike in Afghanistan's troubled eastern province of Nangarhar.
• UN Seeks $393 Million for Afghan Humanitarian Aid VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- The United Nations on Wednesday launched an appeal for $393 million in humanitarian assistance to conflict-torn Afghanistan this year to meet "the acute life-saving" needs of millions of vulnerable people across the country.
• Pentagon: US Forces in Libya; Looking for 'Worthy' Partners VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- U.S. military forces are on the ground in Libya looking for potential partners in what could soon be an expanded campaign against the Islamic State (IS) terror group.
• National Guard forces continue post-storm assistance AFNS 27 Jan 2016 -- Virginia National Guard Soldiers on state active duty have been using Humvees and medium tactical trucks to provide mobility support to help Virginia State Police and local first responders reach residents requiring assistance after a historic snowfall blanketed the state.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Department of Defense Press Briefing by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook in the Pentagon Briefing Room DoD 27 Jan 2016 -- Presenter: Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook
• SPAWAR Commander Releases 2016 Strategic Plan NNS 27 Jan 2016 -- In support of his seven year vision launched last year, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) Commander Rear Adm. David Lewis released his strategic execution plan 2016, Jan. 22.
• SecAF testifies on military space launch AFNS 27 Jan 2016 -- Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee, along with Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall, on military space launch and the use of Russian-made rocket engines Jan. 27.
• Kendall Describes Novel Way of Contracting for Space-Launch Services AFPS 27 Jan 2016 -- The undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics described a novel concept to acquire access to space during his testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
• James Describes Way Forward to U.S-Built Complete Space-Launch System AFPS 27 Jan 2016 -- Everyone agrees the United States depends on space-based assets as part of the defense of the homeland and the ability to command and control forces worldwide, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James told the Senate Armed Services Committee this morning.
• Fresh F-35 Fumbles: New Weaknesses in Most Expensive US Weapons Program Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The digital maintenance and logistics system of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter could be vulnerable to cyberattacks, the Pentagon's operational test chief warned last month.
• US to Deploy Newest Missile Attack Drones in South Korea Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The United States intends to deploy in South Korea the newest MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones, that can not only conduct reconnaissance flights, but also missile attacks, a South Korean news outlet reported Wednesday.
• NATO and OSCE discuss modernising tools of military transparency NATO 27 Jan 2016 -- Measures to enhance transparency on military activities, the conflict in Ukraine and closer institutional links topped the agenda in talks between NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Gernot Erler, the Special Representative of Germany for the OSCE Chairmanship at NATO headquarters on Wednesday (27 January 2015).
• Anti-Taliban Turboprops: Kabul Adds A-29s to Air Force Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The A-29 turboprop attack aircraft may play an important role in helping the Afghan Army destroy the Taliban, according to the military news website warisboring.com.
• 3 Chinese naval ships arrive in Bangladesh for goodwill visit People's Daily 27 Jan 2016 -- Three Chinese naval ships, comprising the guided-missile frigates Liuzhou, Sanya and the comprehensive supply ship Qinghaihu Wednesday arrived at Bangladesh's southeastern seaport city Chittagong, some 242 km southeast of capital Dhaka, for a five-day goodwill visit.
• Military maneuver 'Velayat-94' commences IRNA 27 Jan 2016 -- Tactical phase of big 'Velayat-94' maneuver commenced here on Wednesday in the presence of the Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari in this southeastern Iranian province.
• Iran Navy drills go into main phase ISNA 27 Jan 2016 -- Ongoing military maneuvers by Iran's Navy have entered their main stage, during which the naval forces practice countering an enemy invasion.
• US warship leaves Iran's drill area after warning Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- A US warship was forced to leave the area used by Iranian forces for military exercise in the Persian Gulf waters after the vessel reportedly approached the area to "know of the Iranian military tactics," Iran's Navy commander said Wednesday.
• IRGC Navy commander gives fresh account of capturing US marines IRNA 27 Jan 2016 -- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy Commander Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi on Wednesday gave fresh account of capturing US marines.
• Showcasing New Weapons, Taiwan Launches Military Exercises Aimed at Beijing Sputnik 28 Jan 2016 -- Amid Chinese demonstrations of its growing influence in the South China Sea, Taiwan is staging a massive military exercise.
• Ukraine Leader Advocates Domestic Missile, Munition Production Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on Wednesday the country needs its own rocket and ammunition manufacturing capabilities.
• Ukraine Adopts New Military Administrative Territorial Division Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council approved new military and administrative territorial division.
• Press Availability With Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi US Dept. of State 27 Jan 2016 -- Press Availability by John Kerry, Secretary of State
• Remarks With Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi US Dept. of State 27 Jan 2016 -- Remarks by John Kerry, Secretary of State
• January 27, 2016 - U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing US Dept. of State 27 Jan 2016
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Josh Earnest, 1/27/2016 The White House 27 Jan 2016

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for January 27, 2016

Other Conflicts

• 27 January 2016 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 27 Jan 2016
• US slams Taiwanese president for S China Sea trip Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- The US has sharply criticized Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou's planned trip to the Taiwanese-held island of Itu Aba in the disputed South China Sea, saying it is "extremely unhelpful" and won't do anything to resolve disputes over the waterway.
• Yemen retaliatory shelling attack kills Saudi trooper Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- At least one Saudi trooper has been killed in a retaliatory shelling attack by Yemeni army soldiers and allied forces against a border guard station in the kingdom's southwestern border region of Jizan.
• No non-Syrians invited to peace negotiations, says UN Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- The United Nations says no non-Syrians have been invited to upcoming peace negotiations aimed at finding a solution to the deadly conflict in the Arab country.
• Syrian Opposition to Meet in Riyadh Ahead of Geneva Talks - Reports Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Members of the Syrian opposition will continue talks on participation in the upcoming Geneva intra-Syrian negotiations, in the Saudi capital of Riyadh on Thursday, local media reported.
• Syrian Kurds Not to Recognize Outcome of Geneva Talks Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Abd Salam Ali, the Kurdish Democratic Union Party's representative to Russia, said that Syrian Kurds did not receive an invitation to take part in the negotiations, while terrorists did.
• Key Syrian Opposition Groups to Decide on Attending Peace Talks VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- A committee of key Syrian opposition groups is expected to decide Wednesday whether to participate in U.N.-brokered peace talks in Geneva.
• Syrian Army Liberates 18 Towns, Villages in Northeast Latakia Province Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The Syrian Army and the country's National Defense Forces have reportedly liberated more than 18 towns and villages in the northern countryside of Latakia Province in western Syria.
• Besieged Syrians 'believe the world has forgotten them,' UN relief chief says, urging political solution to end conflict UN News 27 Jan 2016 -- With United Nations-backed political talks on Syria set to begin later this week, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O'Brien, today urged the entire international community to get behind the process which seeks to ease the suffering for millions of desperate people and end "one of the most savage and brutal conflicts of the 21st century."
• Should airdrops be tried to save starving Syrians? IRIN 27 Jan 2016 -- Between 400,000 and two million Syrians (depending on who's counting) are living under siege. Madaya forced their plight onto the international stage. Since then, voices calling for airdrops to save starving civilians have only become louder.
• Iraqi forces gain more ground in Anbar Province Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- Iraqi forces carried out successful offensives against Daesh Takfiri terrorists on Wednesday, liberating more strategic areas in the western province of Anbar.
• Daesh Takfiris kill fellow commanders in northern Iraq Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- The Daesh Takfiri militant group has executed four of its own commanders in Iraq's oil-rich northern province of Kirkuk on charges of fleeing the battlefield.
• Libyan Official: De-link Humanitarian Aid From Libyan Politics VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- A senior Libyan official is appealing to the international community not to tie humanitarian aid to his country's political process. He warns the health needs of the Libyan people cannot wait until a government of national unity is formed.
• U.S. Secretary of State reaffirms one-China policy People's Daily 27 Jan 2016 -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry reaffirmed the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques and one-China policy during his talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Wednesday in Beijing.
• Separatist Leader Admits To Razing Ukrainian Village, Hails 'Good' Soviet Ideology RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- A separatist leader in eastern Ukraine has admitted to burning down a village at the height of fighting more than a year ago, while praising a proposal for restoring the place.
• Donetsk Proposes Compromise on Ukrainian Constitution Amendment Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Donetsk People's Republic proposed to the Contact Group to review a compromise to the amendment in the Ukrainian Constitution that provides actual guarantees for Donbass's special status, according to DPR delegation head of the Contact Group Denis Pushilin.
• Darfur: UN expresses grave concern over new hostilities and impact on thousands of civilians UN News 27 Jan 2016 -- The United Nations today expressed grave concern over the impact of the ongoing hostilities in Darfur on thousands of civilians who have been forced to flee their homes amid the conflict that began two weeks ago.
• S. Sudan Rebel Leader To Raise Peace Plan Issues at AU Summit VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- South Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar is taking his campaign against President Salva Kiir's plan to create 28 states to the African Union Thursday.
• Some 34,000 flee clashes in Sudan's Darfur: UN Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- A series of violent clashes in Sudan's western region of Darfur has forced thousands of people to flee their homes, the United Nations says.
• Five Egyptian forces killed in Sinai bombing Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- Five members of Egypt's security forces were killed when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off remotely in the violence-plagued Sinai Peninsula.
• 13 killed, 30 hurt as three bomb blasts hit northeast Nigeria Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- Triple bomb explosions have rocked Nigeria's northeastern town of Chibok, leaving at least 13people dead and more than 30 others wounded.
• Cameroon Closes Border Markets After Boko Haram Attack VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- Cameroon has closed most of its northern markets on the border with Nigeria after a series of bomb attacks Monday left at least 35 people dead and 70 wounded in the town of Bodo. The country's government spokesperson, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, said it was the 30th attack by suspected Boko Haram fighters on Cameroon since the start of the new year.
• International Court To Probe 2008 Georgia-Russia Conflict For Alleged War Crimes RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- International Criminal Court (ICC) judges have authorized prosecutors to open an investigation into alleged war crimes committed "in and around South Ossetia" during 2008 when Russia fought a brief war against Georgia over the breakaway region.
• ICC Authorizes Investigation Into 2008 Russia-Georgia Conflict VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- International Criminal Court (ICC) judges have authorized an investigation into allegations that war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed during the 2008 Russia-Georgia conflict.
• Army-PKK clashes leave 4 troopers dead in SE Turkey Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- Fresh clashes between the Turkish army and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants have left four Turkish soldiers dead in the country's restive southeastern province of Diyarbakir.
• Japan Considers Lavrov's Remarks on Southern Kurils 'Unacceptable' Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The Japanese government considers remarks made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the territorial issue between the two countries "unacceptable," Japan's Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda said Wednesday.
• Central African Republic: Security Council renews sanctions, stresses urgent need to end impunity UN News 27 Jan 2016 -- Stressing the urgent need to end impunity in the Central African Republic (CAR) and bring to justice those who violate humanitarian law, the United Nations Security Council today renewed its sanctions against individuals or groups implicated in the country's ongoing sectarian tensions.
• Palestinians losing hope under 'stifling' Israeli occupation - UN chief UN News 27 Jan 2016 -- Amid ongoing violence in the Middle East, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reiterated today that he can understand why Palestinians are losing hope in the face of nearly 50 years of Israeli occupation, a statement that has provoked criticism that he was "giving terror a tailwind."

News Reports

• HRW: Security Fears Increasingly Trumping Human Rights Protections RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- Growing state and public fear in an age of terrorism, conflicts, and mass migration is producing an increasingly bleak human rights picture in many parts of the world, international watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) has warned.
• Watchdog Says Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan Among World's Most Corrupt RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- An international monitoring group says people around the world demonstrated to governments in 2015 that they must become more transparent and tackle the large-scale corruption that continues to plague so many countries and hinder their development.
• Kerry to China: US 'Will Protect Allies' in Face of North Korean Threat VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- The United States and China agreed Wednesday to work together to ensure that North Korea ends its nuclear-weapons program, but high-level talks in Beijing indicated the two sides disagree on whether and what sort of sanctions to use against Pyongyang following its underground nuclear test three weeks ago.
• North Korea Sanctions Expected to Clear US Senate Panel VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- U.S. lawmakers are expected Thursday to take another step toward boosting sanctions on North Korea when a Senate panel votes on a package of punitive measures weeks after Pyongyang claimed to have tested a hydrogen nuclear bomb.
• Iran's Rohani In France To Finalize Business Deals, Meet Hollande RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- Iranian President Hassan Rohani has arrived in France for an official visit in which he is expected to finalize a series of commercial deals - including the purchase of 114 passenger planes from Airbus and a partnership with French carmaker Peugeot.
• State Dept Disagrees With Claims of Turkey's Role in Daesh Oil Smuggling Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- The United States disagrees with the accusations by Greece and Israel of Turkey's involvement in the Islamic State (ISIL or Daesh) oil smuggling, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner told reporters on Wednesday.
• Too Corrupt Not to Fail: Ukrainian Economy Won't Recover Soon Sputnik 27 Jan 2016 -- Despite its free trade agreement with the EU, the Ukrainian economy remains in a dire state, mostly due to rampant corruption and widespread tax evasion.
• Qatar's emir shakes up cabinet Press TV 27 Jan 2016 -- The Qatari emir has changed as many as seven ministers in the country's 20-member cabinet and merged some ministries.
• Talk Of Russia Cooperation With OPEC Lifts Markets RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- Rumors that oil giants Saudi Arabia and Russia might work together to curb their booming output spurred a spike in oil prices and lifted global stock markets on January 26.
• Tajik President Appoints Daughter Chief Of Staff, Seen As Move To Consolidate Power RFE/RL 27 Jan 2016 -- Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has appointed his daughter as his chief of staff, the latest in a series of moves that appear aimed at consolidating power in his family for years to come.
• Candidates Complain About C.A.R. Poll Cancellation VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- In the Central African Republic, the results of the parliamentary elections held on December 30 have been annulled and candidates will have to run again. The constitutional court Monday upheld the results of the first round of the presidential elections, but ruled there were too many irregularities in the parliamentary poll.
• Hungary's Orbán: Autocrat or Misunderstood Provocateur? VOA 27 Jan 2016 -- They endured snow and cold. A few hundred protesters turned out here in Hungary's capital in a show of opposition to a proposed constitutional amendment by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his governing Fidesz party.