Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• OIF / OND / OEF / OIR / OFS Casualty Update 17 Jul 2017[PDF]
• U.S., Coalition Continue Strikes to Defeat ISIS in Syria, Iraq AFPS 17 Jul 2017 -- U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 31 strikes consisting of 51 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
• Update: air strikes against Daesh UK MOD 17 Jul 2017 -- The RAF are continuing to take the fight to Daesh in Iraq and Syria.
• Terrorist Leader's Death Disrupts Group's Expansion Efforts, DoD Spokesman Says AFPS 17 Jul 2017 -- The recent death of a terrorist leader in Afghanistan will further disrupt his group's plans to expand its operations in Afghanistan, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters today.
• Civilians continue to bear the brunt of Afghanistan's 'ugly war' - UN report UN News 17 Jul 2017 -- Civilians lives – including those of women and children – continue to be lost at record high levels amid a worsening toll of suicide attacks, the United Nations mission in Afghanistan said today, calling on anti-government forces to stop indiscriminate attacks against civilians as well as on the Government to stop using mortars and rockets in populated areas.
• Afghan Forces Retake Key Southern District From Taliban VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- Afghan security forces, backed by U.S. military advisers and air power, have evicted insurgents from a strategically important southern district, nine months after the Taliban had overrun it.
• Afghan forces push Taliban out of southern area in Helmand province Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Afghan security forces have recaptured a southern district in the restive province of Helmand from the Taliban, as part of Kabul's campaign to push the militant group from one of the key heartlands of insurgency and narcotics production.
• UN Report: Civilian Casualties Still High In Afghanistan's 'Ugly War' RFE/RL 17 Jul 2017 -- The number of civilians killed and wounded in conflict in Afghanistan in the first half of 2017 remains at the same record high level as last year, the United Nations mission in the country says.
• Wisconsin National Guard ends flood-relief mission Army News 17 Jul 2017 -- Wisconsin National Guard Soldiers and Airmen serving on state active duty in the wake of extreme flooding have concluded their mission to support civil authorities in Burlington, Wisconsin.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Innovation challenge brings possible advancement in F-22 test capabilities AFNS 17 Jul 2017 -- The 412th Test Wing's Experimentation Center for Ideas/Technology Exploration team, known as XCITE, hosted a one-day innovation challenge July 10, 2017.
• A-10 pilot spits fire in fight against ISIS AFNS 17 Jul 2017 -- The darkness of a desert night surrounds his aircraft. The wind rushes past his cockpit.
• USS John Finn Commissioned in Pearl Harbor NNS 17 Jul 2017 -- The Navy's newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS John Finn (DDG 113), was brought to life and into the fleet July 15 at Hawaii's Pearl Harbor - a fitting commissioning venue, as the namesake's Dec. 7, 1941, heroic actions 30 miles away at Kaneohe Bay are the stuff of Navy legend.
• US, coalition partners demonstrate global defense capabilities AFNS 17 Jul 2017 -- Four U.S. Air Force and one Royal Australian Air Force C-17 Globemaster IIIs loaded with more than 300 American and Canadian paratroopers took off from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, to Shoalwater Bay, Australia, for biennial training exercise, Talisman Saber July 13, 2017.
• U.S. Forces Work With Partners in Numerous Military Exercises AFPS 17 Jul 2017 -- Military exercises are underway between U.S. military forces and those of many other nations, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, told reporters today.
• 'No Slack' battalion stays true to its name in preparations for U.S. Africa-led exercise Army News 17 Jul 2017 -- Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division -- also known as the "No Slack" battalion -- are finally witnessing the fruition of their hard work over the past seven months in preparing for Shared Accord 17, a U.S. Army Africa-led joint training exercise in South Africa.
• Playing 'the long game': US, partner nations build global readiness through excess equipment sales Army News 17 Jul 2017 -- The U.S. Army continues to build on its core themes of readiness and global engagement through U.S. foreign military sales, or FMS, according to Maj. Gen. Stephen Farmen, commander, U.S. Army Security Assistance Command.
• 1st Battalion, 204th Air Defense Artillery Regiment Qualifies with M3P Army News 17 Jul 2017 -- Soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 204th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Mississippi Army National Guard, conducted M3P .50-caliber machine gun qualifications July 11, 2017, at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, during their annual training.
• US, Romanian forces build bridge at Bordusani Army News 17 Jul 2017 -- Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 2nd Cavalry Regiment successfully completed a crossing of the Danube River with Romanian Allies at Bordusani, Romania on July 16, 2017.
• Department of Defense Awards Grants in Joint US-Korea Research Collaboration on Disaster Relief Robots DoD 17 Jul 2017 -- The Department of Defense (DoD) announced today that it will award approximately $3.5 million to six U.S. university teams for research into robotics for disaster relief.
• USS Pearl Harbor Arrives In Pearl Harbor NNS 17 Jul 2017 -- The crew of the amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) arrived in Pearl Harbor for their first scheduled port visit of their 2017 deployment, July 14.
• NATO's secretary general calls on Germany, Turkey to end airbase dispute Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- NATO's secretary general has called on Turkey and Germany to put an end to their dispute over MPs visiting Turkish air bases.
• Australia to boost army powers in response to potential terror attacks Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The Australian prime minister says Canberra is set to extend the powers of the military to take action in response to potential terrorist attacks in the country.
• Qinghai-Tibet Plateau site of PLA war games People's Daily 17 Jul 2017 -- The People's Liberation Army recently carried out a live-fire assault exercise on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, intending to improve its troops' combat capability on such locations, according to the military.
• China Holds Live Fire Drills in Tibet to Practice Invading India Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- The Chinese People's Liberation Army simulated battle conditions with live rounds in Tibet over the weekend, as Indian and Chinese forces remain at a standoff over the disputed area of Sikkim.
• US House Approves Bill Proposing Stronger Defense Ties With India Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- Passed by voice vote, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2018 directs the administration of US President Donald Trump to develop ways to advance defense ties with India.
• As Tension Heightens On China Border, IAF Seeks To Hasten Rafale Jet Delivery Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- India's conflict with China and Pakistan has reached a tipping point, pressing the need for astute military strategies. In consonance with this situation, the Indian Air Force is looking to expedite the delivery of Rafale jets from France.
• Missile capability non-negotiable: Iran Army IRNA 17 Jul 2017 -- Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces warned on Monday against designating Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps a terrorist organization, saying the country's missile power is nonnegotiable.
• Sanctions can not affect Iran defensive system: MP IRNA 17 Jul 2017 -- Foreign sanctions cannot affect Iran's defensive system, Chairman of Iran's Majlis (parliament) National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Hossein naqavi Hosseini said on Monday.
• Iraq test-fires indigenous short-range Yaqeen-1 rocket Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Iraq has successfully test-fired a locally designed and manufactured rocket as part of efforts to revive its defense industries and use indigenous military hardware in the fight against Daesh Takfiri terrorist group and potential foreign threats.
• China lodges representations to US over defense act concerning Taiwan People's Daily 17 Jul 2017 -- China has lodged solemn representations to the United States over a defense act that suggests re-establishing ports of call between the United States and Taiwan.
• Beijing calls on Washington to avoid damaging Sino-US ties over Taiwan Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Beijing has lodged an official complaint with Washington over the passage of a bill that would expand military ties between the United States and Taiwan.
• Britain spends billions on flawed fighter jets: media People's Daily 17 Jul 2017 -- Local media on Monday accused Britain of paying hundreds of millions of pounds in hidden costs for a next-generation warplane which will be unable to work properly due to defense cuts.
• UK losing millions on flawed F-35 fighter jets: Report Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The British Royal Air Force (RAF) is spending millions of pounds on flawed F-35 Lightning II jets that it might never be able to fly properly, a new report has revealed.
• UK Readies to Pay Millions of Dollars for 'Hidden Costs' of US F-35 Fighter Jets Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- The US F-35 military aircraft purchased by the United Kingdom will cost London extra millions of dollars due to the "hidden costs" forming a large part of each aircraft's total price, the UK media reported Monday.
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Sean Spicer, 7/17/2017, #58 The White House 17 Jul 2017

Defense Industry

• DoD News: Contracts for July 17, 2017

Other Conflicts

• 17 July 2017 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 17 Jul 2017
• Syrian forces continue their gains against Daesh in Raqqah Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The Syrian army has regained control of an oilfield in Raqqah after killing all of its occupying Daesh terrorists as part of their operations to fully liberate the country from extremism.
• Kurdish independence plan will weaken Iraq: Iranian official Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- A senior Iranian official has warned that a plan by Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region to hold an independence referendum will weaken the entire Arab country.
• After Mosul victory, senior UN officials detail Iraq's political and humanitarian needs UN News 17 Jul 2017 -- Senior United Nations officials today called for regional and international support to stabilize newly liberated Mosul and to create conditions for peace and development throughout Iraq.
• UN Envoy for Iraq Warns Against 'Collective Punishment' for IS Families VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- The United Nations envoy for Iraq says he is concerned about the rise of revenge attacks in Mosul against civilians believed to be linked to Islamic State militants following the liberation of the city.
• Libya's Sarraj Warns Against 'Liberation of Tripoli', Wants Dialogue With Rivals Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- The prime minister of the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez Sarraj, has outlined his views on the situation in the war-torn country and the ways to resolve the crisis in an interview with Sputnik.
• Over 80,000 Rohingya kids 'wasting' from hunger in Myanmar: UN Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The United Nations has warned that tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslim children under the age of five are in dire need of treatment for "acute malnutrition" in Myanmar's western state of Rakhine.
• Pakistan army launches major operation to stop Daesh penetration IRNA 17 Jul 2017 -- Pakistan army says a new major operation called 'Khyber-4' has been launched to stop militant group Daesh from entering into country's north western tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.
• PKK bombing leaves 17 soldiers injured in southeastern Turkey Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- More than a dozen Turkish soldiers have sustained injuries in a roadside bomb explosion that targeted their military vehicle in Turkey's southeastern and Kurdish-populated province of Hakkari.
• MH17 Victims Remembered Three Years After Jet's Downing RFE/RL 17 Jul 2017 -- More than 2,000 relatives gathered in the Netherlands to unveil a memorial to family members who were killed when a passenger jet was shot down by a missile over conflict-torn eastern Ukraine.
• India, Pakistan Trade Accusations as Cross Border Firing Claims Seven Lives Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- Pakistan has called upon the Indian Army for peace amid heavy cross firing at the border since a week. India has retorted by claiming that firing was only retaliatory. Both countries have accused each other of violating ceasefire.
• Renewed fighting in Kashmir kills 6 as Pakistan, India exchange fire Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Indian and Pakistani forces have again exchanged fire along Kashmir's Line of Control (LoC), with reports saying six people have been killed on the two sides of the border.
• Boko Haram bomber kills eight in fresh attack in Nigeria's Maiduguri Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- A bomb attack has claimed the lives of at least eight people and wounded several others in Nigeria's troubled northeast, officials say.
• Militants' shooting, blasts kill 5 Egyptian policemen in northern Sinai Peninsula Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- At least five Egyptian security forces have been killed and several others wounded in northern Sinai Peninsula after militants, suspected to be with the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, launched ambush attacks against army's military vehicles, using gunfire and bombs.
• UN rights group concludes evaluation of Palestinians living under occupation UN News 17 Jul 2017 -- A committee of United Nations experts has completed its annual evaluation of the situation of people in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, hearing serious concerns about Israel's human rights record, including the deteriorating situation in Gaza, inadequate protection for detained children and increasing obstacles being faced by human rights defenders and journalists.

News Reports

• Trump Again Defends Son's Meeting with Russian Lawyer VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- President Donald Trump is continuing to defend his eldest son's meeting last year with a Russian lawyer he expected was going to hand him incriminating material about Trump's election challenger, Democrat Hillary Clinton.
• Doha says US media report showed UAE attack on Qatar's news agency Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Doha says it regards as true an American media report that points the finger of blame at the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the alleged hacking of Qatar's state news agency in late May.
• GCC may be about to eject member Qatar Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The regional grouping of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) may well be on its way to excommunicating member state Qatar, as political tectonic plates seem to be widening a bitter divide.
• UAE hacked Qatari websites, US intelligence sources confirm Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- The United Arab Emirates was behind an effort to hack Qatari government news and social media websites, sparking a diplomatic dispute among Arab states, US intelligence officials say.
• UAE Behind Hacking Attacks on Qatar's Media Aimed at Provoking Diplomatic Row Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- The hacking attacks on the Qatari news agency that later sparked the diplomatic row between Doha and several Arab states were masterminded by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Washington Post reported, citing US intelligence officials.
• 'Purely Not True': UAE FM Denies Responsibility for Qatar News Agency Hack Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- United Arab Emirates' (UAE) Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash denied on Monday US media reports that it was behind the hacking of the Qatari news agency that led to a diplomatic crisis.
• UAE Rejects Reports That it Hacked Qatar VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- The United Arab Emirates on Monday denied hacking Qatar's state news agency. Officials in Doha, however, say they believe a report implicating Abu Dhabi in the incident, which sparked a diplomatic crisis in the Gulf this May.
• Over 7 million vote in anti-Maduro referendum: Venezuela opposition Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Venezuela's opposition says more than seven million people have voted in an unofficial referendum that was held to increase pressure on the government of embattled President Nicolas Maduro.
• Venezuelans Vote Against Maduro's Constituent Assembly at 'Popular Referendum' Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- Most of the Venezuelans, who participated in the opposition's so-called popular referendum on Sunday, voted against the decision of President Nicolas Maduro to call for the Constituent Assembly without gaining the support of the nation.
• S Korea offers rare talks with North on tensions, family reunions Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- South Korea has proposed to hold military talks with the North this week in an effort to end animosities along their tense border, in what could mark the first official inter-Korean negotiations since late 2015.
• South Korea Proposes Military Talks With North For First Time Since 2015 RFE/RL 17 Jul 2017 -- South Korea on July 17 proposed holding military talks with rival North Korea and a halt to hostile activities near their tense border.
• Seoul Ready for Dialogue With Pyongyang Depending on N Korea's Denuclearization Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- Seoul is ready to fully launch the dialogue with Pyongyang, but depending on what position North Korea would have on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said Monday.
• South Korea Proposes Military Talks with North Korea This Month Sputnik 17 Jul 2017 -- South Korea has proposed holding military talks with its northern neighbor, the first such talks since 2014.
• South Korea Proposes Military Talks With North VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- South Korea proposed military talks and family reunions with North Korea on Monday to reduce the increasing potential for conflict over Pyongyang's continued development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.
• Two Iranian Nationals Charged in Hacking of Vermont Software Company US Dept. of Justice 17 Jul 2017-- An indictment was unsealed today charging Mohammed Reza Rezakhah, 39 and Mohammed Saeed Ajily, 35, both Iranian nationals, with a criminal conspiracy relating to computer fraud and abuse, unauthorized access to, and theft of information from, computers, wire fraud, exporting a defense article without a license, and violating sanctions against Iran.
• Zarif: Iran may withdraw from nuclear deal in case of major violations by US Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Iran has warned that any major JCPOA violation on behalf of the US may result in Tehran's withdrawal from the nuclear deal.
• Zarif to CNN: US is violating JCPOA IRNA 17 Jul 2017 -- Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Sunday that Iran has implemented the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) faithfully, fully and completely but 'the US failed to implement its part of the bargain.'
• Iran warns US of 'big risk' if it blacklists IRGC Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Iran's top military official has warned the US of the repercussions which Washington's possible branding of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization would have.
• Pakistan's Supreme Court starts hearings on PM's graft charges Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Pakistan's Supreme Court has resumed hearings over corruption charges against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family, in a process that will decide the premier's political future.
• US conditions for returning Russia's seized property 'daylight robbery': Russian FM Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says any US attempts to set preconditions for returning Russia's diplomatic property in New York and Maryland are "daylight robbery," as Moscow presses for access to the seized compounds.
• Ahead Of Meeting, Russia Presses For Access To Diplomatic Compounds RFE/RL 17 Jul 2017 -- Russia is again calling on the United States to restore its access to two diplomatic compounds that were seized in December by then-President Barack Obama's administration.
• Russia Demands Return of 2 Shuttered Compounds in US VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- Russia demanded Monday that the United States return two compounds that were ordered closed last year after the U.S. intelligence community concluded that Moscow had interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
• Indonesian Attempts to Curb Hardliners, Terrorists Worry Activists VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- A raft of recent moves by the Indonesian government to curb the presence of hardliners and terrorists has human rights activists worried.
• 100-plus caught up in Turkey post-coup dragnet Press TV 17 Jul 2017 -- One year after undergoing a bloody coup attempt, Turkey continues with its arrest campaign against suspected accomplices to the failed putsch. In the most recent crackdown, authorities have ordered the detention of 127 more people in this connection.
• Turkey Says It Is Dealing Blows to IS Cells VOA 17 Jul 2017 -- Turkish security and intelligence organizations are dealing blows to Islamic State cells and networks in the country, a high-level Turkish official told VOA, speaking on condition of anonymity.