#us military
Pres. Donald J. Trump announces U.S. military has launched ‘targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched.’ “No child of God should ever suffer such horror.” http://abcn.ws/2niLN5T
Taliban members escorted Americans to gates at Kabul airport in secret arrangement with US
By Barbara Starr and Brianna Keilar, CNN
Updated 9:13 PM EDT, Tue August 31, 2021
(CNN)The US military negotiated a secret arrangement with the Taliban that resulted in members of the militant group escorting clusters of Americans to the gates of the Kabul airport as they sought to escape Afghanistan, two defense officials told CNN.
One of the officials also revealed that US special operations forces set up a “secret gate” at the airport and established “call centers” to guide Americans through the evacuation process.
While one of the military officials said the arrangement with the Taliban “worked beautifully,” Americans involved in an unofficial network dedicated to helping Americans and vulnerable Afghans said there were problems – particularly in the beginning – as the Taliban turned away US citizens and legal permanent residents the militant group was supposed to allow through.
The two US defense officials said Americans were notified to gather at pre-set “muster points” close to the airport where the Taliban would check their credentials and take them a short distance to a gate manned by American forces who were standing by to let them inside amid huge crowds of Afghans seeking to flee.
The US troops were able to see the Americans approach with their Taliban escorts as they progressed through the crowds, presumably ready to intervene in case anything happened.
Multiple sources in the US who were in contact with people trying to escape reported that American citizens and passport holders in Kabul were in disbelief that they were being told they would receive safe passage from the Taliban. Many thought they were misunderstanding the directions and sought clarification.
A Marine’s Marine
On September 3, Marines and Sailors with 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) held a memorial service to honor Sgt. Nicole Gee at Ahmad Al-Jaber Air Base, Kuwait. Sgt. Gee, a member of Combat Logistics Battalion 24, was one of 13 service members who were killed in action during non-combatant evacuation operations at Hamid Karzai International Airport, Afghanistan on August 26, 2021.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Nicholas Guevara)
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The US has been expanding its military presence in Africa at a breakneck pace over the last 10-15 years and it’s shocking how little attention it’s gotten. I mean US press doesn’t cover much US military activity and they certainly never cover Africa, so it’s not too surprising, but comparing the scale of the trend to the scale of the reporting is breathtaking. You’ll hear plenty about China’s Belt and Road initiative engaging in some seedy financing plans in African nations, and virtually nothing about the US being the largest and most active operator of drones on the entire continent
the US’s command in africa is AFRICOM, it was founded in 2007 and exists to maintain US influence over african countries governments and maintain access to african resources. africom was involved in the 2012 coup against gaddafi among other things, and is now further expanding under the pretext of fighting the war on terror. i rarely see this ever discussed despite the fact that the US is actively bombing multiple african nations. if youve never heard of it you should look at the resources black alliance for peaceandhood communist blog have about it, or some other articles too
AFRICOM military’s exercise: The art of creating new pretexts for propagating U.S. interests
President Obama’s announcement that the United States has deployed 80 troops to Chad came as a surprise to many. But the United States already has boots on the ground in a surprising number of African countries.
This map shows what sub-Saharan nations currently have a U.S. military presence engaged in actual military operations.
It should be noted that in most of these countries, there is a pretty small number of troops. But it is a clear sign of the U.S. Africa Command’s increasingly broad position on the continent in what could be described as a growing shadow war against al-Qaeda affiliates and other militant groups. It also shows an increasingly blurred line between U.S. military operations and the CIA in Africa.
More details of the troops deployed are below.
Burkina Faso
The United States has a base in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, since 2007. The base acts as a hub of a U.S spying network in the region, with spy planes departing form the base to fly over Mali, Mauritania and the Sahara, where they search for fighters from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
DRC
The United States has troops in Congo assisting the nation in the search for Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army.
Central African Republic
In April 2013, the United States had around 40 troops in Central African Republic assisting the search for the LRA.
Chad
On Wednesday, Washington announced that it would be sending 80 troops to Chad to help with the search for Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by militant Islamist group Boko Haram.
Djibouti
The U.S. military has a major base in Djibouti, Camp Lemonnier. There are around 4,000 troops there, including lots of aircraft and drones.
Ethiopia
The United States has had a military drone base at Arba Minch since 2011. The base is used to fly Reaper drones over East Africa.
Kenya
Camp Simba, near the border with Somalia, had around 60 military personnel stationed as of November 2013.
Mali
In April 2013, 10 U.S. troops were deployed to war-torn Mali to provide “liaison support” to French and African troops. The Pentagon insisted they would not be engaging in combat.
Niger
The U.S. Air Force set up a drone base in Niamey, Niger, in 2013. The White House says it has around 100 military personnel in the country on an “intelligence collection” mission.
Nigeria
At the beginning of May, a small team of U.S. troops and civilian advisers was deployed to Nigeria to join the search for the abducted schoolgirls. According to the Associated Press, these troops joined around 70 military personnel in Nigeria, with 50 regularly assigned to the U.S. Embassy, and 20 Marines there for training.
Somalia
In early 2014, the United States deployed fewer than two dozen regular troops to Somalia for training and advising purposes.
South Sudan
In December 2013, the United States deployed 45 military personnel to South Sudan to protect U.S. citizens and property in the country.
Uganda
The United States has a base in Entebbe that it uses to fly PC-12 surveillance aircraft in search of Kony’s LRA. The total number of U.S. troops in Uganda is said to be around 300, and they are officially in the country to “provide information, advice and assistance” to an African Union force searching for Kony.
By Adam Taylor for the Washington Post
“bitch you lyinnn”
Injured U.S. army veteran saved by tri-pawed kitten
Karolyn went to the shelter thinking of saving a kitten but it turned out that she’s going to be rescued by two kittens’ love.
Story and video via Kitty Army
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1977 Advertisement Marines United States US A Few Good Musicians Recruitment Band Military Marches Music Studio Practice Room Wall Art Decor
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Captain Kristen Griest (left) and First Lieutenant Shaye Haver (right) have become the first women to graduate from the the US Army Ranger SchoolinFort Benning, Georgia.
Griest, a military police officer, and Haver, an Apache helicopter pilot, made history on 21st August 2015 by graduating from the Ranger School having completed an intensive 62-day course which included parachute jumps, helicopter assaults, a 5-mile run in 40 minutes and a 12-mile foot march in 3 hours. They were also trained in specialist skills such as small unit leadership and swamp survival.
This was the first time female soldiers were allowed to take part in the US Army’s toughest training as part of an ongoing effort to open up combat roles for women. The commander of the school, Major General Scott Miller, hit back against accusations on the internet that standards were lowered for the female soldiers, pointing out that the physical tests were exactly the same for all candidates and that “The 5-mile run is still 5 miles, the times do not adjust.”
Both women described how they received some skepticism from their male colleagues but this quickly evaporated as they proved themselves in the physical challenges, including their completion of a 3-day mountain march carrying 50 pounds of gear, which many of the male candidates failed to complete. Moving forward Griest has expressed an interest in joining a special forces unit, although such roles are currently unavailable to women in the US Army. Haver stated that she will be returning to her role as a helicopter pilot.
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Newspaper sources:
- http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/20/us-usa-military-women-idUSKCN0QP0CE20150820
- http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/aug/21/women-graduate-us-army-ranger-school
- http://news.yahoo.com/army-pilot-military-cop-1st-women-pass-ranger-090909029.html
- http://ktla.com/2015/08/20/2-women-set-to-be-first-ever-female-graduates-of-grueling-us-army-ranger-school/
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emiratizayn-deactivated20150816:
and the Iraqi people welcomed the Americans with flowers. I wanted to set a historical event to teach Bush a lesson from the Iraqis, telling him you lied, we did not welcome you with flowers, and instead we are saying goodbye with our shoes.“
Muntaza Al Zaidi, the Iraqi reporter who became known as the guy who threw a shoe at Bush and later ended up in jail for three years because of it.
happy 12 years to bush shoeing incident
Not all heroes wear capes, sometimes they throw shoes.
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