As the last Americans leave Afghanistan, U.S. Central Command will look to space to support its continued counterterrorism mission against al-Qaida and Islamic State group remnants, U.S. Space Command confirmed to Air Force Magazine. America’s eyes in the sky will form the only intelligence picture ...
The proliferation of small unmanned aerial systems, usually commercially available drones that can be outfitted to drop weapons, is the most “persistent and dangerous” threat to troops in the Middle East in decades. “These small- and medium-sized UAS proliferating across the [area of operations] present ...
U.S. and Iraqi officials, during a joint strategic discussion April 7, agreed to start talks on the eventual removal of American combat troops from Iraq as Iraqi Security Forces grow in capacity. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs Fuad ...
A U.S.-led coalition airstrike killed the leader of the Islamic State group in Iraq on Jan. 27, a blow to the group’s effort to grow and continue operating. The coalition aircraft were supporting an Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service raid near Kirkuk, which killed the leader ...
As the coalition's footprint in Iraq and Syria “diminishes,” international support for institutional changes, such as building a local judiciary and a military that can sustain itself, is necessary to ensure the Islamic State group does not return, the No. 2 commander of Combined Joint ...
The Pentagon on Nov. 17 formally announced the plan to withdraw thousands of forces from Afghanistan and Iraq, just two months before President Donald J. Trump is expected to leave office. The drawdown is set to be complete by Jan. 15, 2021, but some leaders ...
F-15Es and Airmen from RAF Lakenheath, U.K., returned home after a six-month deployment to the Middle East where the “Bolars” flew more than 8,500 hours supporting combat operations in the region. The 492nd Fighter Squadron, supported by the 492nd Aircraft Maintenance Unit and the 48th ...
The U.S. military plans to withdraw more than 2,000 troops from Iraq this month, leaving about 3,200 troops in the country to continue advising Iraqi forces and targeting the remnants of the Islamic State group. U.S. Central Command boss Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., speaking ...
U.S. forces in the Middle East are not prepared enough to defend against swarms of small drones, and the Pentagon needs to work harder to get ahead of the enduring threat, the head of U.S. Central Command warned. Small unmanned aerial systems, which can be ...
Despite a framework for peace in one theater and declarations of upcoming troop withdrawals in another, the head of U.S. Central Command said June 10 that there’s no finish line or concrete withdrawal in sight in either Afghanistan or Syria. CENTCOM boss Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, ...
U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan continued at a steady rate in February, despite progress toward a peace deal with the Taliban, as counter-terror operations targeted the Islamic State group’s Khorasan offshoot and al-Qaeda. In February, U.S. manned and unmanned aircraft dropped 360 weapons—the lowest monthly total ...
Airmen and F-35s deployed to the Middle East from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, increased the jet’s mission-capable rate during combat operations while helping guide the future of the jet’s complex maintenance logistics system. F-35s from Hill’s 4th Fighter Squadron deployed to Al Dhafra Air Base, ...