Combined Forces Command-Afghanistan has confirmed that a coalition air strike on Dec. 19 killed senior Taliban leader, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Osmani. The strike utilized intelligence that placed him in a deserted area near the Pakistan border, targeting his vehicle and killing Osmani and two unidentified associates. According to a coalition spokesman, Osmani was a close associate of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban’s chief of military operations in key Afghanistan provinces.
Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost—a trailblazer and one of the first 10 women to reach a four-star rank across the U.S. military—retired and passed control of U.S. Transportation Command to Air Force Gen. Randall Reed on Oct. 4, finishing an eventful tenure at TRANSCOM.