Military

The Insider reports: The US is sending 3,500 Army paratroopers to the Middle East on a snap deployment as tensions with Iran soar, and they have been told to leave their cellphones and other personal electronic devices behind. “This is not a standard deployment,” Lt. Col. Mike Burns, a spokesman for the 82nd Airborne Division, said, telling Insider that the …

CNN reports: “We are not looking to start a war with Iran, but we are prepared to finish one,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour Tuesday.  He also insisted the US had evidence to justify the attack that killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in Iraq last week. “I can assure you it’s more than razor thin, it’s persuasive. …

CNN reports: US forces and air-defense missile batteries across the Middle East were placed on high alert overnight Monday to possibly shoot down Iranian drones as intelligence mounted about a threat of an imminent attack against US targets, two US officials tell CNN. The alert reflects the heightened tensions between the US and Iran in the wake of last week’s …

Politico reports: Eric Chewning, chief of staff to Defense Secretary Mark Esper, is stepping down at the end of the month, the latest in a series of high-profile civilians to leave the Pentagon. He’ll be replaced by Jen Stewart, the top Republican staffer on the House Armed Services Committee and a former top adviser to the chairman of the Joint …

The Hill reports: Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer said on ABC’s “This Week” that he was concerned Trump’s decision will “get us into another ‘endless war’ in the Middle East,” adding the U.S. is “closer to that” because of his actions. “I am really worried, and that is why Congress must assert itself,” the Senate minority leader said, saying the …

CNN reports: The Trump administration has warned members of Congress that Iran is expected to retaliate against the US “within weeks” for the strike that killed Qasem Soleimani even as they failed to convince some that the operation was merited due to an imminent threat against American lives. There are also intense discussions taking place inside US military and intelligence …

Mother Jones reports: As concerns about violent reprisals or a Middle East war unfolded following reports that President Donald Trump had ordered the killing of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on Thursday, some Americans were also worried about more personal implications of the event. So many Americans Googled “draft requirements“ and “military exemptions“ that the United States Selective Service website …

CBS News reports: The targeted killing of Qassem Soleimani, one of Iran’s top military leaders, has escalated tensions between the U.S. and Iran, with Iran vowing revenge. CBS News senior national security contributor, and former acting and deputy CIA director Michael Morell told “CBS This Morning” the drone strike on Soleimani will lead to “dead civilian Americans.” “Soleimani was an …

The Associated Press reports: The United States is sending nearly 3,000 more Army troops to the Mideast as reinforcements in the volatile aftermath of the killing of an Iranian general in a strike ordered by President Donald Trump, defense officials said Friday. The dispatching of extra troops reflects concern about potential Iranian retaliatory action for the killing Thursday of Gen. …

The Independent reports: Donald Trump says that Iran general Qassem Soleimani was “caught” as he was “plotting to kill” many Americans, after years of anti-US military actions that have left thousands “killed or badly wounded.” The president ordered the air strike on Soleimani, the leader of the elite Quds Force, on Friday morning, raising concerns of unrest and destabilisation in …

The Associated Press reports: Global powers warned Friday that the world has become a more dangerous place and urged restraint after the U.S. assassinated Iran’s top general, although Britain and Germany also suggested that Iran shared blame for provoking the targeted killing that dramatically ratcheted up tensions in the Mideast. China, Russia and France, all permanent members of the U.N. …

Via press release from the Department of Defense: At the direction of the President, the U.S. military has taken decisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. General Soleimani was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq …

CNN reports: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the airstrike ordered to kill top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani “saved American lives,” after Pompeo said on Twitter Friday morning that the decision to eliminate Soleimani was in response to “imminent threats to American lives.” “I can’t talk too much about the nature of the threats. But the American people …

The Washington Post reports: Iran on Friday vowed “severe revenge” in response to a U.S. airstrike that killed Tehran’s most powerful military commander, Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, and dramatically sharpened tensions across the Middle East. Soleimani was a towering figure in Iran’s power projection across the region, with close links to a network of paramilitary groups that stretches from Syria …

Agence France-Press reports: The Pentagon warned Thursday that the Iran-backed Kataeb Hezbollah group that stormed the US embassy in Baghdad would would carry out more attacks on US facilities – and would regret it. “The provocative behavior has been out there for months… So do I think they may do something? Yes. And they will likely regret it,” Esper told …

The New York Times reports: A year ago, Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher was wearing drab prison scrubs at a brig near San Diego, facing murder charges that could have sent him to prison for the rest of his life. Now he is modeling his own lifestyle clothing brand, endorsing nutrition supplements and positioning himself as a conservative …

The New York Times today published a gripping account of how a group of Navy SEALs decided to break their code of silence and report the war crimes of fellow SEAL Eddie Gallagher, who has since become a folk hero in Trump World. Here’s the opening paragraphs: The Navy SEALs showed up one by one, wearing hoodies and T-shirts instead …

Agence France-Presse reports:  China, Iran and Russia will hold joint naval drills starting on Friday in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Oman, China’s defense ministry said on Thursday amid heightened tension in the region between Iran and the US. China will send the Xining, a guided missile destroyer, to the drills, ministry spokesman Wu Qian told a monthly news …

Yahoo News reports: The Pentagon is advising members of the military not to use consumer DNA kits, saying the information collected by private companies could pose a security risk, according to a memo co-signed by the Defense Department’s top intelligence official. The memo provides little details on how genetic profiles could endanger security, other than noting that potential “inaccuracies” in …

Law & Crime reports: Former Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher met with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump at their Mar-a-Lago resort over the weekend. Gallagher and his wife Andrea posted pictures of the meeting on Instagram, saying they gave the first couple a present and thanked POTUS for defending Gallagher throughout his war crimes trial. Gallagher was acquitted …