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Colonel Martha McSally was a pilot in the United States Air Force. She was the first American woman to fly in combat since the 1991 lifting of the prohibition of women in combat. McSally is also the first woman to command a USAF fighter squadron, the 354th Fighter Squadron (354 FS) based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. in 2001 Martha McSally successfully challenged the military policy that required US and UK servicewomen stationed in Saudi Arabia to wear the body-covering abaya when traveling off base in the country. .....

Washington— The U.S. commander in Afghanistan has prepared a request for more troops to serve as advisors for Afghan military units, a sign that Washington and its allies are trying to speed up the hand-over of combat operations to the Afghans as they prepare to withdraw, U.S. and NATO officials said. The stronger emphasis on training may keep more U.S. troops on bases next year and help reduce U.S. military casualties before presidential elections next November. President Obama's Afghan policy is already an issue. Marine Gen. John R. Allen, who took command in Afghanistan last summer, wants 1,700

The Navy has fired another commanding officer, the 18th this year, surpassing last year’s mark of 17 with slightly less than four months left to go. Cmdr. Mark Olson of USS The Sullivans was relieved of his command due to a loss of confidence in his abilities following an Admiral’s Mast on Wednesday, according to a Navy news release. Vice Adm. Daniel Holloway, commander of U.S. 2nd Fleet, made the decision after close examination of an incident that occurred Aug. 17 during a gunnery exercise in the Cherry Point Operating Area range, the release said. Navy officials said inert rounds...

US President Barack Obama warned the US east coast was in for a "long 72 hours" as he led his government's response to Hurricane Irene at a disaster command center in Washington. Obama on Saturday chaired a meeting at the National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) set up at the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) headquarters in Washington, which is marshaling federal and local hurricane-relief efforts. "This is going to be a tough slog getting through this thing," Obama said during a video teleconference including senior federal officials and local government agencies in the east coast path of Irene. "It's going...

CBS News has learned that a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan in June killed senior al Qaeda commander Ilyas Kashmiri. Kashmiri was believed to be a key planner of the Mumbai Terror attacks in 2008 and, according to sources, was involved in planning terror strikes in Europe last fall, which led to alerts across the continent. Most recently, Kashmiri was al Qaeda's military operations chief in Pakistan, and was suspected of plotting attacks against U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The U.S. had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to Kashmiri.

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) — The Defense Department is grooming a new type of commander to coordinate the military response to domestic disasters, hoping to save lives by avoiding some of the chaos that plagued the Hurricane Katrina rescue effort. The officers, called dual-status commanders, would be able to lead both active-duty and National Guard troops — a power that requires special training and authority because of legal restrictions on the use of the armed forces on U.S. soil. No one commander had that authority in the aftermath of Katrina, and military and civilian experts say the lack...

Adm. Eliezer Marom says only purpose of Gaza flotilla is to clash with IDF soldiers, create media provocation, and delegitimize Israel. Published 21:00 19.06.11 Latest update 21:00 19.06.11 Israel Navy commander: 'Hate flotilla' to Gaza must be stopped Adm. Eliezer Marom says only purpose of Gaza flotilla is to clash with IDF soldiers, create media provocation, and delegitimize Israel. By Anshel Pfeffer Tags: Gaza flotilla Israel Navy commander Adm. Eliezer Marom issued a stark warning on Sunday for the organizers of the Gaza flotilla intended to set sail at the end of the month. "The Navy has prevented and will...

Commander Etta Jones, officer in charge of the Norfolk, Virginia-based Ponce, was sacked for not properly investigating sailors involved in the humiliating rituals, the Navy said. Commander Jones also failed to properly handle a 9mm handgun during a security alert, which endangered some of her crew, the Navy said. Lieutenant Commander Kurt Boenisch, the ship's executive officer, was also sacked, after he failed to provide support to the command and commanding officer, according to the Navy. The sackings come as the the amphibious transport dock Ponce - pronounced 'ponsay' - is deployed in the Mediterranean, after recently taking part in...

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/143396 and http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/143381

Friends of the colonel, who cannot be named for security reasons, said he had grown increasingly despondent with service life following the cuts imposed on the military by the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR). It is understood that two highly respected Brigadiers, one of whom also served with the Special Forces, are considering their positions. Senior officers have warned that many more high calibre officers are expected to resign in the coming months especially if the Continuity of Education Allowance--which pays for a proportion of boarding school fees for service families--is cut.

Col. Williams earns place among worst criminalsBy Maria Babbage, The Canadian Press 1 hour, 49 minutes ago BELLEVILLE, Ont. - The unprecedented, sadistic crimes of convicted sex killer Col. Russell Williams have earned him a place among the worst criminals Canada has ever seen, court heard Thursday as the final chapter in the shocking case drew to a close. "The depths of the depravity demonstrated by Russell Williams had no equal," Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Scott said as he sentenced the once decorated officer to two concurrent life sentences with no possibility of parole for 25 years. "One suspects...

For the second time in less than a month, security forces hunting for Taliban commanders found one hiding inside an oven, officials said Thursday. In the latest incident Tuesday, a sub-commander allegedly responsible for attacks in three districts was found hiding in a floor oven of a compound when Afghan and coalition forces raided the location in Logar province in eastern Afghanistan. On August 31, NATO-led troops found another sub-commander hiding in an oven, breathing through a tube,(Snip) The militant had allegedly returned from Pakistan recently where he trained new recruits to make bombs.

"President Barack Obama passed a sad milestone early this week as the military announced the death of the 750th solider to die since he took over as Commander in Chief. Army First Lt. Robert Bennedsen, 25, of Vashon Island, Wash. became the 750th soldier to die since Obama took office. Bennedsen died July 18th at Qalat, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany...." Video and more info at link

We didn’t need this. By “we,” I mean the large majority of citizens who want America to succeed in Afghanistan. By “this,” I mean the Rolling Stone article that quoted Gen. Stanley McChrystal and his aides saying uncomplimentary things about Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and other civilian officials. It’s true that most of the negative remarks were attributed to staffers rather than to McChrystal himself. And it’s true that none of them amounts to insubordination or refusal to carry out orders, the offense for which Gens. George McClellan and Douglas MacArthur were appropriately fired. But a commander has the responsibility...

FORT HOOD, Texas, April 1, 2010 – After four years of preparing thousands of Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers for deployment at the Division West mobilization training center here, Army Capt. Brent Middleton soon will be preparing for his own deployment at the Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., center. Army Capt. Brent Middleton, left accepts his unit's flag from his battalion commander in a change-of-command ceremony at Camp Mabry, Texas, March 20, 2010. U.S. Army photo by Capt. Marvin J. Baker  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Middleton, a member of the Texas National Guard’s 36th Infantry Division who...

KABUL – A heavily armed Taliban commander was killed during an pre-dawn shootout at a mosque in eastern Afghanistan, NATO said as it reported an American service member died in a separate attack.

KABUL, Dec. 15, 2009 – A combined Afghan-international security force detained a Taliban commander and other militants in Afghanistan today, and militants caught planting a roadside bomb were killed yesterday, military officials reported. The Taliban commander is linked to a bombing network in Zabul province and is believed to be responsible for several attacks in the area. The combined force searched a compound in the provincial capital of Qalat where intelligence sources reported the commander to be located and detained a few militants, one of whom identified himself as the man targeted in the operation. No shots were fired, and...

DA NANG, Vietnam, Nov. 17, 2009 – Nearly 35 years ago, Navy Cmdr. H.B. Le left Vietnam aboard a fishing trawler. He returned at the helm of a U.S. Navy warship when the guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen arrived here Nov. 7 for a scheduled port visit. Navy Cmdr. H.B. Le, commanding officer of the guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen, speaks to reporters in front of the U.S. 7th Fleet command ship USS Blue Ridge in Da Nang, Vietnam, Nov. 7, 2009. It was Le's first visit to Vietnam after leaving the country with his family in 1975. U.S. Navy photo by...

General George Casey Jr., the Army chief of staff, said on Sunday that he was concerned that speculation about the religious beliefs of Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, accused of killing 12 fellow soldiers and one civilian and wounding dozens of others in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, could “cause a backlash against some of our Muslim soldiers.” “I’ve asked our Army leaders to be on the lookout for that,” General Casey said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union. “It would be a shame — as great a tragedy as this was — it would be a...

President Obama does not have the one-on-one relationship with Gen. McChrystal that President Bush did with Gen. Petraeus, but rather a more traditional one along the chain of command. Reporting from Washington - President Obama and his predecessor differ significantly in their approach to America's wars. They differ at least as much in their relationship with their top battlefield commander. During the Bush administration, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the then-ground commander in Iraq, assumed the role of a trusted advisor who frequently visited the White House or talked to the president by phone.

GENEVA, October 16, 2009 -- Today's emergency UN Human Rights Council debate on the Goldstone Report predictably saw a line-up of the world's worst abusers condemn democratic Israel for human rights violations. In a heated lynch mob atmosphere, Kuwait slammed Israel for “intentional killing, intentional destruction of civilian objects, intentional scorched-earth policy,” saying Israel “embodied the Agatha Christie novel, 'Escaped with Murder'.” Pakistan said the “horrors of Israeli occupation continue to haunt the international community’s conscience.” The Arab League said, “We must condemn Israel and force Israel to accept international legitimacy." Ahmadinejad’s Iran said “the atrocities committed against Palestinians during...

The top US military commander in Afghanistan has denied that there is a rift with the White House over sending more troops to Afghanistan. Gen Stanley McChrystal recently submitted a bleak assessment of the war in which he warned of the danger of failure without adequate resources.

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan warned President Barack Obama in a confidential report that the war against the Taliban could be lost within a year without more troops. In a grim assessment of the eight-year conflict leaked to the Washington Post and published Monday, General Stanley McChrystal said a new strategy was needed and warned that "inadequate resources will likely result in failure. "Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the near-term (next 12 months) -- while Afghan security capacity matures -- risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no...

A German commander who ordered an air strike on fuel tankers that killed dozens of Afghans used intelligence from a single observer in a possible breach of tactical rules. An American warplane dropped 500lb bombs on the tankers after they were hijacked by Taliban militants and then became stuck in a river. Reports suggested dozens of civilians could have been burned alive alongside the militants as villagers crowded round the lorries to collect fuel before the bombs struck in northern Kunduz province. The Washington Post reported grainy live video footage seen by the officer from the F15 jet had not...

(CNSNews.com) - A terror suspect charged with the attempted murder of two U.S. soldiers -- before a judge ruled that his confession was coerced and inadmissible -- returned home to Afghanistan on Monday, the same day news broke of a policy change in interrogations. After many Democrats and some Republican lawmakers called the Central Intelligence Agency’s interrogation techniques such as playing loud music and waterboarding “torture,” President Barack Obama reassigned interrogation responsibilities from the CIA to the National Security Council – which is run out of the White House, the Washington Post first reported.

FORT JACKSON, S.C., Aug. 4, 2009 – Army Command Sgt. Maj. Teresa King of the 369th Adjutant General Battalion has been selected the next commandant of the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant School. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Teresa King will become the first female commandant of the Army’s Drill Sergeant School in September. U.S. Army photo by Crystal Lewis Brown  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. When she assumes responsibility in September, the ceremony not only will be commemorating a new school leader, but also the school’s first female commandant. King, who learned of the selection in June, will replace Army...

When asked how they feel about President-elect Barack Obama as commander in chief, six out of 10 active-duty service members say they are uncertain or pessimistic, according to a Military Times survey. In follow-up interviews, respondents expressed concerns about Obama's lack of military service and experience leading men and women in uniform. ''Being that the Marine Corps can be sent anywhere in the world with the snap of his fingers, nobody has confidence in this guy as commander in chief," said one lance corporal who asked not to be identified. Underlying much of the uncertainty is Obama's stated 16-month timetable...

KAILUA, Hawaii – He’s not the commander in chief yet, but was President-elect Barack Obama briefly practicing his salute on Sunday? On the first morning of his vacation here, Mr. Obama arrived at the Marine Corps Base Hawaii for his daily workout. As he walked out of the Semper Fit Center, his gray T-shirt soaked in sweat, he lifted his right hand and gave a quick salute to two Marines in fatigues who were standing in the distance. The brief moment was not captured by cameras. Photographs and video were not permitted to be taken on the military base, according...

That is why I am thankful above all that the next U.S. commander in chief is a constitutional lawyer. Nothing has been more damaging to the United States than the violation of the legal principles at the heart of the American idea.

ABC News’ Matthew Jaffe Reports: Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., blew into the Buckeye State Friday afternoon, four days before Election Day, blasting Republican attacks against Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and declaring that come Tuesday, Obama's critics will be calling him the next commander-in-chief. "Ladies and gentlemen, we need to move past the politics of division and attack," the Democratic vice-presidential nominee told a crowd of 2000 in Kettering. "Over the past week, Republicans have gone way over the top in my view, calling Barack Obama every name in the book, and it probably will get worse in the next three...

<p>SAN DIEGO - The commander of a Navy air reconnaissance squadron that provides the president and the defense secretary the airborne ability to command the nation's nuclear weapons has been relieved of duty, the Navy said Tuesday.</p> <p>Cmdr. Shawn Bentley was relieved of duty Monday by the Navy for loss of confidence in his ability to command, only three months after taking the job.</p>

Security progress in Basra is “overwhelming” and Iraq’s second-largest city could be “another Dubai in the coming decade,” the commander of Multi-National Division - Southeast said July 14, referring to the bustling international business hub. British Army Maj. Gen. Barney White-Spunner told Pentagon reporters via teleconference from Baghdad that Operation Charge of the Knights - ordered by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in March - has “well and truly” turned the tide in the city. Before the operation, militias controlled large parts of the city. Militia leaders, many under control of Iran, intimidated the populace and turned the city into...

MADRID (AFP) - Spanish police said Saturday they had arrested a 57-year-old Spanish woman they claim is the leader of the Spanish cell of Colombian Marxist rebel group FARC. Maria Remedios Garcia Albert was arrested at her home in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, northeast of Madrid, they said. The interior ministry said Garcia Albert had provided logistical support for FARC and had direct contacts with Raul Reyes, the FARC number two who was killed by Colombian troops inside Ecuador earlier this year. Analysis of Reyes' computer passed on to Spanish investigators by Colombian authorities had led...

Stone took over a military detention system in April 2007 that was known mainly by the legacy of abuse at Abu Ghraib, the notorious prison west of Baghdad that was given back to the Iraqis in 2006. The detention facilities had become a breeding ground for extremism, hardening the radical beliefs of those held, U.S. officials have acknowledged. But under Stone, the military’s new focus on counter-insurgency operations was brought to the detention system, said Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq. "[Stone] revolutionized the way we perform detainee operations in Iraq,""Petraeus said. Calling Stone a man of...

BOGOTA, Colombia - Colombia's defense minister said security forces killed a leading commander of the FARC rebel group on Saturday. The commander known as "Raul Reyes" was also the leftist rebels' official spokesman, Juan Manuel Santos said a news conference. He was killed in the southern province of Putumayo, a long-time guerrilla stronghold near the border with Ecuador. It was by far the most severe blow to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia since hardline President Alvaro Uribe took office in 2002. A total of 17 rebels and one soldier were killed in the fighting. As well as writing the...

HABBANIYAH, IRAQ (Feb. 12, 2008) -- If there is one unit in 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, that observes their unit’s 200 square kilometer area of operation (AO) on a daily basis, it is the battalion commander’s personal security detachment (PSD). PSD provides transportation and security for the commander as he travels throughout the AO and to other key areas in the battle space, said Sgt. Jason S. Hubbard, PSD platoon commander. “Basically, we take the commander wherever he needs to go and provide security to make sure he is safe at all times,” said the...

CAIRO, Egypt - One al-Qaida's top commanders in Afghanistan, Abu Laith al-Libi was killed in Afghanistan, a Web site used by militant groups said Thursday. Al-Libi was a key link between the Taliban and al-Qaida. He led and al-Qaida training camp and appeared in a number of Internet videos. The U.S. says he was likely behind the February 2007 bombing at the U.S. base at Bagram in Afghanistan during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney. The attack killed 23 people. While the claim could not be verified independently, the announcement of his death appeared as a banner in a...

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A key Taliban commander in southern Afghanistan has been dismissed for disobeying the militant group's rules, a Taliban spokesman said Saturday. Mansoor Dadullah was "disobeying orders" and conducting activities "against the Taliban's rules and regulations," said Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. He did not provide any details. "For this reason Mullah Mansoor Dadullah is no longer in the Taliban and no longer a Taliban commander," Mujahid said in a statement he attributed to Taliban leader Mullah Omar. Dadullah rose in the militia's ranks as a key commander in southern Afghanistan after his brother, Mullah Dadullah, was killed during...

WASHINGTON – President Bush's top Iraq war commander said Sunday that as far as he knows, his command performances now and in the future will be strictly military, not political. In fact, Army Gen. David Petraeus cited the words of Civil War-era Gen. William T. Sherman in declaring he has no interest in shedding his uniform and running for the White House, as Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower did 55 years ago. “None,” Petraeus replied, when asked on “Fox News Sunday” if he had an interest in running. “I have great respect for those who do choose to serve our country...

BAGHDAD - The top U.S. commander in northern Iraq warned Wednesday that al-Qaida in Iraq was still capable of staging spectacular attacks despite a 50 percent drop in bombings and other violence in his region. Army Maj. Gen. Mark P. Hertling said that al-Qaida in Iraq was being pushed north by the increased numbers of U.S. troops that surged into Baghdad over the summer and fall, and from Anbar province by "awakening councils" — the groups of Iraqi Sunni tribesmen that the U.S. military has backed to help fight al-Qaida in Iraq and its allies. "Many of them have transited...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2007 – Though the rapid growth of Iraq’s Interior Ministry has posed challenges, the Iraqis are forging ahead with the process, the commander of the coalition police assistance training team in Iraq said yesterday. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Jones spoke to Web journalists and “bloggers” via telephone from his headquarters in Baghdad. The Interior Ministry has grown 450 percent since 2003, he said. “As I thought about it, I tried to imagine if this was the U.S. Army,” he said. If the Army grew at the same rate, there would be an active force of more than...

WASHINGTON -- A Marine company involved in the shooting of civilians in Afghanistan last March responded appropriately to an ambush against them, and should not have been pulled out of the country, the commander of Marine Corps special forces said Thursday. Marine Maj. Gen. Dennis J. Hejlik, head of Marine Corps Special Operations Command, also told reporters that a legal tribunal investigating the incident has been postponed until mid-January at the request of one of the officers involved. "Obviously it was not my decision to bring the company out of theater," Hejlik said. "It was the theater commander's decision. I...

COMBAT OUTPOST CLEARY — “My brigade must fight the enemy, communicate with the people of Salman Pak, and bring back public service all at once,” Col. A’amer Khamees Hameed, commander of the 1st Brigade, 1st National Police (NP) Division, said at a meeting with leaders from the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, Nov. 13. “This meeting is the first step in all three directions,” Hameed said through a translator. The leaders met at the 1st NP brigade headquarters in Salman Pak, to welcome the new commander. Hameed took command of the unit in early November, assuming command from Brig. Gen....

HAWR RAJAB, Iraq, Nov. 9, 2007 – When Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, commander of 3rd Infantry Division, walked the streets of Hawr Rajab on Nov. 7, he saw real progress in the city's security climate. Maj. Gen. Rich Lynch, 3rd Infantry Division commander, (center) walks the streets of Hawr Rajab, Iraq, with Col. Terry Ferrell (far right), commander of the 3rd Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, Sheik Ali (to Lynch's left) and Sheik Mahir (to Lynch's right), Nov. 7, 2007. Photo by Sgt. Jason Stadel, USA   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Four months ago, any U.S....

Nuclear Submarine Commander Removed Friday October 26, 2007 3:16 AM By CHELSEA J. CARTER Associated Press Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) - The commanding officer of the nuclear-powered submarine USS Hampton was relieved of his duty Thursday because of a loss of confidence in his leadership, the Navy said. Cmdr. Michael B. Portland was relieved of duty after a U.S. Navy investigation found the ship failed to do daily safety checks on its nuclear reactor for a month and falsified records to cover up the omission. ``His oversight of the crew's performance did not identify these issues'' on his own, Navy...

We can attack Iran, says US commander By Alex Spillius in Washington Last Updated: 8:14pm BST 19/10/2007 America's top military officer said the country does have the resources to attack Iran, despite the strain of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Adm Michael Mullen, who took over as chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff three weeks ago, said diplomacy remained the priority in dealing with Iran's suspected plans to develop a nuclear weapon and its support for anti-US insurgents in Iraq. But at a press conference he said: "there is more than enough reserve to respond (militarily) if that,...

Ex-US commander at Iraq jail faces trialSat Oct 13, 2:25 PM ET BAGHDAD - A former U.S. commander at the jail that held Saddam Hussein will face trial next week on charges of aiding the enemy by providing a cell phone to detainees and acting inappropriately with an interpreter, the military said Saturday. Army Lt. Col. William H. Steele, a reservist from Prince George, Va., pleaded guilty on Oct. 7 to three of seven charges, which carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison, forfeiture of pay and dismissal from the Army, according to the military. He will be...

The following directive was issued by the commanding officer of all naval installations in the Middle East; includes Marines as well: To: All Commands Subj: Inappropriate T-Shirts Ref: ComMidEast For Inst 16134//24 K All commanders promulgate upon receipt. The following T-shirts are no longer to be worn on or off base by any military or civilian personnel serving in the Middle East: 1. a. "Shrine Busters" [Show burning minarets or bomb/artellery shells impacting Islamic shrines. Some with unit logos.] b. "Napalm - Sticks Like Crazy" [Both English & Arabic versions] c. "Goat - it isn't just for breakfast any more."...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10, 2007 – Afghan national police advised by coalition forces detained a Taliban district commander in an operation designed to disrupt insurgent activities in Ghazni province early this morning. Maulawi Ahmad Jan is known to be extensively involved in coordinating insurgent activities in the province. He has directed bombings and ambush attacks against Afghan and coalition forces throughout the region. During a search of the commander’s compound, Afghan police discovered a weapons and ammunition cache. “With Ahmad Jan now detained, Ghazni will be a less dangerous place,” said Army Maj. Chris Belcher, a Combined Joint Task Force 82...

Commander killed in Pakistan mosque siege By Isambard Wilkinson Last Updated: 7:33pm BST 08/07/2007 A Pakistani commander was killed today after troops came under heavy fire from students and suspected militants holed up in a besieged mosque in the capital, Islamabad. A lieutenant-colonel was killed as his troops attempted to blow holes in the walls of the mosque compound in the hope that hundreds of women and children could escape. Troops have surrounded the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, in Islamabad since Tuesday when clashes between armed students and security forces began after months of tension. The known death toll...