Tag: Special Operations

USS Mason Sailor Who Went Overboard in Red Sea Declared Lost by Navy

Ms. Cat

USS Mason Sailor Who Went Overboard in Red Sea Declared Lost by Navy

Aviation Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Oriola Michael Aregbesola, who was aboard the USS Mason, went overboard on March 20, according to the Navy.

Aregbesola was assigned to the “Swamp Foxes” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 74, which was embarked on the Mason. The ship has been operating in the Red Sea alongside the Dwight D. Eisenhower carrier strike group.

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Without witnesses, it may be difficult for the Navy to definitively determine what led to Aregbesola falling into the water.

The reasons behind most sailor overboard incidents, which unfortunately occur with some regularity, remain unknown.

Aregbesola is not the first sailor to go overboard in the past several months, either.

In January, two Navy SEALs went overboard and were later declared lost while attempting to board a ship that was discovered to be carrying Iranian missile components.

Previously:

US Military: Two US Navy SEALs Missing Off Coast of Somalia Are Dead

Lift off: Use of high-altitude platforms gain traction in US Army

Ms. Cat

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army has for years experimented with high-altitude balloons and long-endurance, fixed-wing, solar-powered platforms capable of operating in the stratosphere. Now the service is pursuing prototyping efforts that could lead to programs of record, including one able to deploy launched effects.

Lift off: Use of high-altitude platforms gain traction in US Army

Related:

What The U.S. Army Plans For High-Altitude Balloons, Solar Aircraft

SMDC’s Space and Missile Defense Center of Excellence actively works across the Pentagon to find high-altitude platforms, payloads and command-and-control capabilities for the service. This includes small, tactical balloons for payloads such as extended-range communications up to large, stratospheric balloons, according to a command fact sheet. In April 2022, for example, U.S. Army soldiers launched a Thunderhead High-Altitude Balloon System during exercise Balikatan 22 in the Philippines.*

*Flynn for balloons. Guess there is a different standard for the US gov?

France furious with US over Niger, as US Considers Ways to Keep Its Military Presence in Niger

Ms. Cat

Washington has chosen its own interests over its allies, a French diplomat has told the newspaper, following Victoria Nuland’s visit to Niger

France furious with US over Niger – Le Figaro

Related:

US Considers Ways to Keep Its Military Presence in Niger

Turse explained in a recent article that in 2002 and 2003, the first years of US counterterrorism assistance to Niger, the State Department counted just nine terrorist attacks in all of Africa.

“Last year, the number of violent events in Burkina Faso, Mali, and western Niger alone reached 2,737, according to a report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research institution. This represents a jump of more than 30,000 percent since the US began its counterterrorism efforts,” Turse wrote.

Niger Coup Leader Brig. Gen. Moussa Salaou Barmou Was Trained By The US Military

Ms. Cat

The Intercept has verified that Brig. Gen. Moussa Salaou Barmou, the head of Niger’s Special Operations Forces and a key figure in the unfolding coup in Niger, received training from the U.S. military. Since 2008, military officers trained by the United States have been involved in 11 coups in West Africa.

Niger Coup Leader Brig. Gen. Moussa Salaou Barmou Was Trained By The US Military

Related:

Army in Niger backs coup as U.S. forces in the country assess situation

Fort Moore (formerly Fort Benning) is home to the former School of the Americas.

Pentagon files reveal flaws in U.S. claims about Syrian casualties in Baghdadi raid

Ms. Cat

Editor’s note: This story contains graphic descriptions of violence.

Confidential documents obtained by NPR provide new details about one of the most celebrated U.S. military operations in recent history — and reveal flaws in the Pentagon’s claim that deadly airstrikes did not hit civilians.

Pentagon files reveal flaws in U.S. claims about Syrian casualties in Baghdadi raid

Video via Redacted

Guerrilla Warfare Exercise In West Virginia Looks Heavily Influenced By Ukraine War

Ms. Cat

The latest iteration of the U.S. military’s Ridge Runner drills include Russian SAMs and apparent enemy suicide drone launch teams.

Guerrilla Warfare Exercise In West Virginia Looks Heavily Influenced By Ukraine War

Related:

European partners, allies converge in West Virginia for Ridge Runner Irregular Warfare Exercise planning

In addition to allies and partners previously mentioned, Ridge Runner will host observers from Taiwan, Georgia, Moldova, Hungary, Qatar, Romanian, and Canada during the event.

Rules for Pentagon Use of Proxy Forces Shed Light on a Shadowy War Power

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U.S. Special Operations forces are not required to vet for past human rights violations by the foreign troops they arm and train as surrogates, newly disclosed documents show.

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The irregular warfare program has provided training to allied forces in countries that face a threat of invasion by larger neighbors, the senior Defense Department official said. The Washington Post has reported that an irregular warfare proxy program in Ukraine was terminated just before the Russian invasion, and that some officials want to restart it.

Rules for Pentagon Use of Proxy Forces Shed Light on a Shadowy War Power