Military

Rolling Stone reports: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office requested “a passive approach to Juneteenth messaging” for the holiday on Thursday commemorating the end of slavery, according to an email obtained by Rolling Stone. The news was relayed by the Pentagon’s Office of the Chief of Public Affairs, which said it wasn’t planning to publish Juneteenth-related content online, per the email. …

The military blog Task & Purpose reports: Four senior executives of tech giants like Meta and Palantir are being sworn into the Army Reserve as direct-commissioned officers at the unusually high rank of lieutenant colonel as part of a new program to recruit private-sector experts to speed up tech adoption. The Army calls the program to recruit Silicon Valley executives …

The Guardian reports: Doctors at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals nationwide could refuse to treat unmarried veterans and Democrats under new hospital guidelines imposed following an executive order by Donald Trump. The new rules, obtained by the Guardian, also apply to psychologists, dentists and a host of other occupations. They have already gone into effect in at least some …

Reuters reports: Marines deployed to Los Angeles carried out the detention of a civilian on Friday, the U.S. military confirmed after being presented with Reuters images, in the first known detention by active-duty troops deployed there by President Donald Trump. The incident took place at the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles where Marines took charge of the mission to …

The Associated Press reports: The US military is helping intercept missiles that Iran fired in retaliation at Israel, a US official says. The U.S. official did not say how the U.S. provided assistance, however both U.S. Air Force fighter aircraft and destroyer-based missile defenses have intercepted missiles in previous attacks. The U.S. has been moving assets nearer to Israel to …

The Associated Press reports: Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, commander of Task Force 51 who is overseeing the 4,700 troops deployed in Los Angeles, said Friday that 200 Marines have finished training on civil disturbance. Sherman said the Marines will take over operations at noon local time in downtown Los Angeles. He says they will be protecting federal property and personnel. …

Axios reports: It might rain on President Trump’s military parade Saturday in D.C., so the Army is considering precautions in case there’s lightning. “Rain won’t stop us, the tanks don’t melt, but if there’s lightning then that puts the crowd at risk,” Army spokesperson Steve Warren told the English newspaper The Times. “If there’s lightning they will disperse the crowd …

The Guardian reports: California national guards troops and marines deployed to Los Angeles to help restore order after days of protest against the Trump administration have told friends and family members they are deeply unhappy about the assignment and worry their only meaningful role will be as pawns in a political battle they do not want to join. Three different …

404 Media reports: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) flew two high-powered Predator surveillance drones above the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles over the weekend, according to air traffic control (ATC) audio unearthed by an aviation tracking enthusiast then reviewed by 404 Media and cross-referenced with flight data. The use of Predator drones highlights the extraordinary resources government agencies are …

The Associated Press reports: The Pentagon was scrambling Monday to establish rules to guide U.S. Marines who could be faced with the rare and difficult prospect of using force against citizens on American soil, now that the Trump administration is deploying active duty troops to the immigration raid protests in Los Angeles. When troops are overseas, how they can respond …

CNN reports: Roughly 500 Marines based out of the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in California have been mobilized to respond to the protests in Los Angeles, according to three people familiar with the matter, and will join the National Guard troops that were activated by Trump over the weekend without the consent of California’s governor or the city’s …

The Washington Post reports: A video shared Saturday by the U.S. Army of tanks being transported to the nation’s capital for the Army’s upcoming 250th birthday parade showed one loaded on a flatcar with graffiti that appeared to read: “Hang Fauci & Bill Gates.” The graffiti appeared on screen for only a few seconds in the 58-second video, shared to …

CBC News reports: The U.S. Navy plans to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, a fleet replenishment oiler named after the slain gay rights leader and Navy veteran, and is considering renaming multiple naval ships named after civil rights leaders and prominent American voices, CBS News has learned. The documents obtained by CBS News also show other vessels named after prominent …

Politico reports: The Pentagon is poised to shift its oversight of Greenland by putting it under U.S. Northern Command, a symbolic gesture that would more closely align the island territory with the U.S. as President Donald Trump continues to show interest in taking control over the Arctic landmass. The shift in oversight, which could come as soon as this week, …

Just in via press release: June is Pride Month, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) stands with our fellow Americans honoring the invaluable contributions and sacrifices of all who have served our nation, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) veterans. VFW honors LGBTQ veteransIt is estimated that there are a little more than 1 million LGBTQ veterans …

CBS News reports: Transgender military service members must come forward and voluntarily leave active-duty service next week, by June 6, according to Defense Department guidance issued by Secretary Pete Hegseth. After that, the military is expected to begin involuntary separations for active-duty trans service members who remain. One of the service branches, the Army, on Wednesday issued more guidance about …

The Washington Post reports: A computer scientist at the Defense Intelligence Agency who monitored insider threats became one himself, prosecutors alleged, attempting to trade classified information for citizenship in a friendly country because of disagreements with the Trump administration. Nathan Vilas Laatsch, 28, was arrested Thursday and charged with gathering defense information to aid a foreign government, an Espionage Act …

The Guardian reports: The White House has lost confidence in a Pentagon leak investigation that Pete Hegseth used to justify firing three top aides last month, after advisers were told that the aides had supposedly been outed by an illegal warrantless National Security Agency (NSA) wiretap. The extraordinary explanation alarmed the advisers, who also raised it with people close to …

The Washington Post reports: An enduring rift among Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s cadre of senior advisers has divided the Pentagon’s front office and fueled internal speculation about his long-term viability in the Cabinet post after several episodes that attracted White House scrutiny, according to numerous people familiar with the matter. The conflict within Hegseth’s inner circle persists even after he …

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. military is backing off its usual talk of good governance and countering insurgencies’ underlying causes, instead leaning into a message that its fragile allies in Africa must be ready to stand more on their own. At African Lion, its largest joint training exercise on the continent, that shift was clear: “We need to be …