A Taliban suicide bomber attempting to target Vice President Dick Cheney on a stopover at Bagram AB, Afghanistan, detonated his bomb on Feb. 27 outside Bagram’s outer-most entry gate, killing a US service member, a coalition member, a US government contractor. According to a Combined Joint Task Force-76 release, the bomber, who also died, wounded 27 people, including at least 20 Afghan nationals. The VP’s Secret Service detail moved Cheney, who told reporters he heard “a loud boom,” to a nearby bomb shelter.
Air Force Gen. Alexus G. Grynkewich assumed command of U.S. European Command on July 1, taking over the key assignment as the U.S. and its allies contend with a resurgent Russia and a grinding war in Ukraine.