The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Wednesday, June 11, 2014

War News for Wednesday, June 11, 2014

The DoD is reporting the death of Spc. Terry J. Hurne who was previously unreported by the military. He died from a non-combat related incident in Logar province, Afghanistan on Monday, June 9th.


Ohio, Illinois Soldiers Killed In Airstrike  -- Aaron Toppen, Justin Helton

Pasadena soldier among 5 killed in Afghanistan -- Army Staff Sgt. Scott

Pike County soldier killed by apparent friendly fire in Afghanistan -- Justin Helton

Sunni militants drive Iraqi army out of Mosul -- Sunni militants spilling over the border from Syria on Tuesday seized control of the northern city of Mosul

500,000 Iraqi civilians flee Mosul fighting, migration group says

Five U.S. troops killed in friendly fire airstrike in Afghanistan --  Ammunition dropped from a B-1B bomber appears to have killed the Americans, according to an official briefed on the preliminary investigation who was not allowed to speak on the record


Reported security incidents
#1-3: At least five security personnel were killed and two others injured today in separate attacks by militants in northwest Pakistan.

#1: The first incident took place at Sakhatkot Malakand district in Khyber Pakthunkhwa province where levy men (tribal police) Arshad Khan and Imran Khan were killed by unidentified gunmen at check post, police said.

#2: In second attack, three special police force constable were shot dead and two others injured when local leader Naimatullah Khan's car was ambushed by unknown gunmen in Swat district.

#3: Meanwhile, in Tank district, two suspected militants were killed when supporters of peace committee repulsed attack on the house of pro-government elder here this morning. A group of armed militants equipped with automatic weapons and hand grenades attacked the house of peace committee member, Ataullah Khan at Kot Azam that was repulsed by his supporters.

#4-6: Seven Afghan civilians were killed in separate bomb attacks on Wednesday morning, authorities said.

#4: In one attack two young women were killed and one woman wounded in a bomb attack carried out by the Taliban insurgents in the southern Helmand province early morning. "On Tuesday, the Taliban killed a policeman. Two sisters and the wife of the victim visited the graveyard for a special praying in Naw Zad district. The militants detonated a bomb, killing the two sisters and seriously wounding the wife of the victim," provincial police spokesman Abdul Ahad Chopan told Xinhua.

#5: In Dawlat Abad district of the northern Faryab province, four civilians were killed and two others wounded when an improvised bomb went off near a security checkpoint at around dawn, district governor Abdul Salam told Xinhua.

#6: Elsewhere, a male driver was killed and three women injured following a roadside bombing in Khas Uruzgan district of southern Uruzgan province.

#7: Eight Afghan deminers were killed and three others injured as they were attacked by Taliban in eastern province of Logar on Tuesday, the presidential palace said in a statement.

#8: Five Afghan army soldiers and 77 Taliban militants have been killed during a military operation in the country's southern province of Uruzgan, sources said on Wednesday.


DoD: Spc. Terry J. Hurne

2 comments:

Cervantes said...

ISIS goes on to take Baiji and Tikrit, advances south to Samarra but so far government forces have held on there. I haven't seen anybody mention that Mosul is the site of a major hydroelectric dam, which has been seen as unsafe by some and is in need of constant maintenance. If the dam were to fail, Baghdad would be inundated. Just sayin'.

rob said...

Not visited this site in a long while.
Great to see its still going.
Its all going to shit in Iraq big time.And things ain't so good in Ukraine either.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WY3eDlbvcMs