Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• 7 officers killed in attack on Afghan police checkpoint Press TV 13 Jun 2020 -- Seven police officers have been killed in an attack blamed on the Taliban militant group in Afghanistan's central province of Ghor, officials say.
• At Least 17 Killed In Attacks Across Afghanistan RFE/RL 13 Jun 2020 -- Afghan officials say at least 17 people have been killed in a string of attacks across the country.

Defense Policy / Programs

• US sanctions against ICC officials widely criticized Global Times 13 Jun 2020 -- The international community has bashed US sanctions against some International Criminal Court (ICC) officials investigating possible war crimes committed by US forces in Afghanistan.
• International Criminal Court oversight chief 'deeply regrets' US decision to target officials investigating Afghanistan war crimes UN News 13 Jun 2020 -- Responding to the decision of the United States Government to sanction International Criminal Court (ICC) officials and their family members, O-Gon Kwon, President of the Assembly of States Parties, the body that oversees the ICC, denounced the measures which, he said, undermine the "endeavour to fight impunity and to ensure accountability for mass atrocities".
• Remarks by President Trump at the 2020 United States Military Academy at West Point Graduation Ceremony The White House 13 Jun 2020
• Solving 'Ancient Conflicts in Faraway Lands' Not in US Military's Job Description, Trump Says Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- A US soldier should defend the United States "strongly" against foreign enemies, Trump declared.
• USS Fitzgerald En Route to San Diego NNS 13 Jun 2020 -- The guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) departed Huntington Ingalls Industries, Ingalls Shipbuilding division's Pascagoula shipyard June 13 to return to her homeport in San Diego
• Little Rock, Dyess AFB demonstrate agile combat airlift during JFE exercise US Air Force 13 Jun 2020 -- Little Rock Air Force Base and Dyess Air Force Base launched 19 C-130J Super Hercules aircraft in support of the U.S. Air Force Weapons School's Joint Forcible Entry exercise at the Nevada Test and Training Range, June 6.
• French nuclear submarine on fire as another sub test-fires ballistic M51 SLBM missile Press TV 13 Jun 2020 -- Fire has broken out and still raging onboard a French nuclear submarine docked at the Mediterranean port of Toulon, home to France's largest naval base, while another French submarine test-fired a strategic ballistic missile amid the new US-initiated nuclear arms race.
• Turkish Military Conducts Large-Scale Air, Naval Drills in Mediterranean Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- The Turkish navy and air forces have conducted large-scale military exercises in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the country's Defence Ministry said on Friday.

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• The Joint Forces Command of the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen: Interception and Destruction of A Ballistic Missile Launched by the Terrorist Iran-Backed Houthi Militia Toward the Kingdom SPA 13 Jun 2020 -- Statement by the Official Spokesman of the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen COL Turki Al-Malki
• Saudi-Led Coalition Claims to Have Downed Missile Fired at Saudi Arabian City of Najran Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- The air defences of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said that they had shot down a ballistic missile flying towards the Saudi Arabian border city of Najran.
• Syria's Leader Feels Pressure From US Sanctions Threat, Street Protests VOA 13 Jun 2020 -- Five days of protests have shaken Syria's usually peaceful Druze enclave of Suweida, as rising prices and a falling domestic currency have pushed ordinary Syrians hurt by the crisis to vent their anger.
• Two rockets hit US-occupied Taji base in Iraq Press TV 13 Jun 2020 -- The rockets were launched north of Baghdad and did not cause any damage to the Taji base, the Iraqi security forces said in a statement.
• Iraqi Base Hosting US Troops Comes Under Missile Attack, Report Says Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- In March, more than 15 medium-sized missiles hit the Taji base. Three soldiers died and 12 more were injured as a result of the attack.
• Haftar's Army Decides to Reorganize Command Staff Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- The Libyan National Army led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar has decided to reorganize its command structure amid the retreat of its forces from a number of positions in the course of the confrontation with the UN-backed Government of National Accord, the Army's spokesman Major General Ahmad al-Mismari said on Saturday.
• UN chief calls for Libya mass grave investigation UN News 13 Jun 2020 -- The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has expressed deep shock at the discovery of mass graves in Libya over recent days, in territory that was recently in the hands of the so-called opposition Libyan National Army (LNA) led by General Khalifa Haftar.
• UN Chief: 'Deeply Shocked' by Mass Graves in Libya VOA 13 Jun 2020 -- A spokesman for U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres says the secretary is "deeply shocked by the discovery of multiple mass graves in recent days, the majority of them in Tarhouna" in Libya.
• Lower House of Nepal's Legislature Passes Amendment Bill for New Map Including 'Indian' Territory Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- New Delhi and Kathmandu have been engaged in a tussle since May, when India launched a strategic road along the Lipulekh Pas leading to China border. Nepal had accused India of encroaching on its territory.
• 2,000 Ceasefire Violations in Six Months by Pakistan Astonishing: India's Defence Spokesperson Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- On Saturday, India alleged that Pakistan has violated the ceasefire violation for the second consecutive day along the Line of Control in the Kamalkot sector of Uri in Baramulla district. A woman was killed in an exchange of fire between the two countries on Friday.

News Reports

• Police arrest 43 persons for illegal acts in various districts in Hong Kong People's Daily 13 Jun 2020 -- The Hong Kong police said on Saturday they arrested 43 people involved in illegal assemblies and violent acts at various places in Hong Kong on Friday night.
• Commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry in HKSAR blasts Britain for interfering with HK affairs People's Daily 13 Jun 2020 -- The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese foreign ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Friday strongly condemned and opposed Britain's interference in China's internal affairs including Hong Kong affairs.
• Police make 35 arrests in illegal assemblies in Hong Kong People's Daily 13 Jun 2020 -- Police arrested 35 people involved in illegal assemblies and violent acts at various places in Hong Kong on Friday night.
• China rails against UK report on Hong Kong People's Daily 13 Jun 2020 -- China on Friday slammed the United Kingdom government's latest report on Hong Kong, urging it to cease any form of interference in Hong Kong affairs.
• North Korean Leader's Sister Threatens Military Action Against South Korea VOA 13 Jun 2020 -- The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has issued an ominous military threat toward South Korea, vowing unspecified retaliation over South Korean activists who have floated anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the North.
• Iran Slams US, Saudis for Using UN as 'Tool' to Claim Iranian Involvement in Houthi Drone Attacks Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- On September 14, 2019, a massed missile and drone strike on two Saudi oil refineries temporarily halved the kingdom's oil output. Yemen's Houthi militia claimed responsibility for these and other attacks, but Washington, Riyadh, and America's European allies blamed Iran. Tehran dismissed the allegations as "blind, incomprehensible and meaningless."
• FM Zarif dismisses claims about Iran's role in attack on Aramco IRNA 13 Jun 2020 -- Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif described claims that missiles used in attacks on Aramco were Iran-made as baseless, saying that unfortunately, the UN Secretariat is influenced by the US threats.
• Iran Reacts Angrily To UN Report On Origin Of Arms Used In Saudi Attacks Radio Farda 13 Jun 2020 -- Tehran has dismissed a United Nations report presented by the secretary general about the Iranian origin of missiles used in strikes against Saudi Aramco oil processing plants in May 2019.
• Man Sentenced To Death For Espionage Spied On Iranian Forces In Syria, Judiciary Says Radio Farda 13 Jun 2020 -- The Spokesman of Iran's Judiciary on Saturday said Mahmoud Mousavi-Majd who has been sentenced to death for "espionage on behalf of CIA and Mossad" had spied on Iranian forces in Syria.
• Cargo Ships Waiting To Get Paid By Iran Before Unloading Much Needed Fertilizers Radio Farda 13 Jun 2020 -- A member of Iran's parliament says five ships carrying phosphate and potash fertilizers "urgently needed" by farmers are waiting in the Persian Gulf to receive payment in hard currency before delivering their cargo.
• Iran Continues Harassing Minorities Says US Religious Freedom Report Radio Farda 13 Jun 2020 -- In its annual report on religious freedoms, the United States has once again accused Iran of widespread violations of the rights of religious minorities, including Baha'i and Sunni citizens.
• Iran Prosecutor Wanted For Corruption And Rights Violations Arrested By Interpol Radio Farda 13 Jun 2020 -- Iran's Judiciary Spokesman on Saturday confirmed that the Interpol has detained Gholamreza Mansouri in Romania. He is accused of human rights violations by rights defenders, but he is also one of the defendants in a recent sensational corruption case in Iran who fled to Europe.
• Lebanese Security, Anti-Government Protesters Clash in Beirut VOA 13 Jun 2020 -- Lebanese security forces clashed on the streets of Beirut with anti-government protesters for several hours on Friday.
• SpaceX Successfully Deploys 61 Satellites Into Low Earth Orbit Sputnik 13 Jun 2020 -- SpaceX has successfully deployed 58 additional Starlink satellites and three SkySats into low-earth orbit aboard a Falcon 9 booster which safely touched down after launch, the company said on Twitter.
• WHO Expects to Quickly Tackle DR Congo's New Ebola Outbreak VOA 13 Jun 2020 -- The World Health Organization says lessons learned from previous outbreaks of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and effective therapeutics will allow it to more quickly contain a new outbreak of the deadly disease in Equateur Province.