Iran captures American unmanned drone

Dec. 9, 2011   7 Comments  

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On Sunday, Iranian news network Fars News Agency announced that an Iranian electronic warfare unit had downed and captured a American RQ-170 Sentinel, an unmanned aerial drone manufactured by American defense and aeronautics company Lockheed Martin. According to a statement from the Iranian government, the drone was in violation of Iran airspace and was brought [...]

Darkest Day of the War: 22 members of SEAL Team 6 killed

Aug. 8, 2011   Leave a Comment  

A helicopter transporting 30 American servicemen, including Navy Seals, was shot down by insurgents over Afghanistan on Saturday, marking the single deadliest day for American forces in the war in Afghanistan. American and Afghan officials confirmed that 30 Americans and 8 Afghans were killed in the attack, according to the New York Times. The 22 [...]

The Embassy Cables: Military partnership with India

Dec. 11, 2010   Leave a Comment  

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In a June 2009 cable posted online by Wikileaks, a meeting is detailed between National Security Adviser James Jones and Indian Defense Minister A.K. Antony, who stressed the importance of a close military relationship between India and the United States. The cable shows that both men were acting under the direction of the leaders of [...]

VA reaches out to families of vets with mental illness

Nov. 11, 2010   Leave a Comment  

Veteran advocate Tammy Duckworth served in Iraq as an Army helicopter pilot and received combat injuries that cost her both legs. She ran for an Illinois congressional seat in 2006, spoke at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, and was appointed last year as Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs in the Department [...]

Ten facts about Veterans Day

Nov. 11, 2010   1 Comment  

Number one: Thank a vet for their service

Afghans will go to the polls tomorrow

Sept. 17, 2010   Leave a Comment  

Parliamentary elections in Afghanistan will go ahead tomorrow, marred by allegations of fraud and tampering against election candidates, and, most recently, by the kidnapping of a candidate and 18 election workers by Taliban members. Earlier this week printers in Peshawar claimed they were told by Afghan election candidates to produce and laminate fake voter cards [...]

Wikileaks ‘whistleblower’ transferred to Virginia

July 31, 2010   1 Comment  

Solider accused of leaking classified documents to Wikileaks in custody at Virginia Marine Corps base.

Brown supports troop increase in Afghanistan

Dec. 1, 2009   Leave a Comment  

State Senator Scott Brown (R-Wrentham) issued a statement tonight supporting President Barack Obama’s decision to send more troops to Afghanistan. "I support President Obama’s decision to add more troops in Afghanistan. Winning the war on terror and defeating the Taliban is essential in preventing another 9/11-style attack. I am disappointed but not surprised to see [...]

Coakley against sending more troops to Afghanistan

Nov. 29, 2009   Leave a Comment  

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, the front runner to replace the late Senator Edward Kennedy, said today she was against President Barack Obama’s decision to raise troop levels in Afghanistan. "Based on what I know now about the President’s planned troop increase, I do not believe that we should send additional troops into Afghanistan. I [...]

MIA Aussie special forces dog found alive

Nov. 14, 2009   Leave a Comment  

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BRISBANE, Australia — An Australian Special Forces Explosives Detection Dog named Sabi has been found alive and well almost 14 months after being declared missing in action in Afghanistan. The black Labrador retriever, who was trained to detect improvised explosive devices in the Oruzgan province, was recovered by a US soldier at an isolated patrol [...]

Abdullah demands Karzai sack electoral officer over corruption

Oct. 26, 2009   Leave a Comment  

If your country went through an outrageously corrupt election that was exposed by an “impartial” governing body, you’d think as president you’d have the balls to sack the chief of your electoral commission, especially after agreeing to a run-off election with your main opponent.

Introducing the “Your World in Focus” podcast

Oct. 20, 2009   Leave a Comment  

Hear the podcast here or on iTunes! Blast’s news department is starting up a weekly world news podcast to augment our Terra blog. Our own Sachin Seth will be narrating the episodes, so don’t miss out!

Dozens killed on voting day in Afghanistan

Aug. 20, 2009   1 Comment  

As ballots are counted in Afghanistan, reports have surfaced, despite the media blackout, that at least 27 people, including nine civilians, have been killed across the country in a slew of attacks on voting day, according to Global Post.

Afghan election will bring victory for Karzai

Aug. 18, 2009   Leave a Comment  

A few weeks ago it seemed like Afghanistan’s main candidates for president, the incumbent Hamid Karzai and his former foreign minister Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, were locked in a dead heat, running side by side toward that coveted post; to govern a country rocked by economic troubles and war.

A children’s treasury of my recent reviews

June 23, 2009   Leave a Comment  

Internet! Here are my most recent book reviews (in most to least recent): 1) “Horse Soldiers” by Doug Stanton sucked. 2) “Hey! Nietzsche! Leave them kids alone!” by Craig Schuftan was amazing. 3) “The Chris Farley Show” by Tanner Colby and Tom Farley, Jr. surprisingly stuck with me (and still does). More stuff right here.

‘Horse Soldiers’ frustrated me, a lot more than it should

June 23, 2009   Leave a Comment  

When you’re writing a book about the military, this critic thinks, you’ve got to be a great writer. You have got to know what you’re doing, and you have got to understand the shark-infested waters you’re swimming in. A bad book about the military will do one or several of the following things: 1) reduce [...]

Horse Soldiers: I have seen this movie already, and liked it better when it was Lawrence of Arabia

June 23, 2009   2 Comments  

horse soldiers

Doug Stanton’s newest novel is waiting to be directed by Tony Scott.

Civilians attack Taliban to avenge mosque bombing

June 7, 2009   4 Comments  

An angry, armed mob attacked five villages and destroyed 20 houses suspected to belong to Taliban forces. Seven Taliban fighters were killed in the surge and the villagers now occupy three villages and are attempting to push the Taliban out of the other two.

Obama to speak tonight

Feb. 24, 2009   Leave a Comment  

The time has come. Obama’s first speech to a joint session of Congress takes place tonight at 9 p.m., broadcast on all major television stations. Will he extend a hand towards Iran, following up on his promise to engage in open discourse with President Ahmadinejad? What will he say about health care reform? The economy?

2/23: Deficit Reduction

Feb. 23, 2009   Leave a Comment  

President Obama launched a “fiscal responsibility summit” at the White House today by vowing to cut the federal deficit in half by the end of his first term in office, and he pledged to reinstate pay-as-you-go budgeting rules to prevent the government from spending money it does not have.

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration put the nation’s biggest banks on notice Monday that the government could become their biggest shareholder if regulators decide they are not strong enough to weather a deeper-than-expected downturn in the economy.

BARA, Pakistan — More than 70 United States military advisers and technical specialists are secretly working in Pakistan to help its armed forces battle Al Qaeda and the Taliban in the country’s lawless tribal areas, American military officials said.

The Americans are mostly Army Special Forces soldiers who are training Pakistani Army and paramilitary troops, providing them with intelligence and advising on combat tactics, the officials said. They do not conduct combat operations, the officials added.

So today was the day that Karl Rove was supposed to appear before the House Judiciary committee to testify about the US Attorney firings. And of course, Rove didn’t show.

That wasn’t a surprise. After getting the deadline pushed back, Rove had already publicly indicated he didn’t plan on being there, citing President Bush’s claim of executive privilege. Rove’s lawyer had then asked for a second postponement, a request that Judiciary chair John Conyers had declined to grant.