Weapons

AFSOC Commando Awarded Silver Star For Danger Close Air Support Mission

An AFSOC combat controller was awarded the Silver Star Medal for his bravery during a raid with the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in Afghanistan in 2018. Tech Sgt Cam Kelsch, of the 17th Special Tactics Squadron, Hunter Army Airfield, was honored on Tuesday during a ceremony at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum in Pooler, GA.

Kelsch, according to the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) was awarded the Silver Star and also received a Bronze Star with “V” device for valor for separate action. During that action according to the Air Force, he “willingly stepped between the enemy and his ground force commander, who was injured during an ambush,” and then “eliminated the threat.”

His award ceremony was attended by more than 250 family, friends and U.S. service members which was officiated by Maj. Gen. Vincent Becklund, deputy commander of AFSOC.

During an interview with media held by teleconference last week, Kelsch recounted the story of April 25, 2018, when he accompanied a combined SOF team of Rangers, and Afghan Special Forces into Taliban territory, searching for a high-value target.

During that deployment, the Rangers and their Afghan Special Forces counterparts were very active … and deadly. The Rangers conducted 198 missions on that deployment and killed or captured over 1900 insurgents according to SOCOM.

During this particular mission, the team approached their designated target when a small firefight erupted that was quickly carried by the Rangers and Afghan SF. They found their high-value target, (HVT) but it was then that aircraft overhead gathered intelligence to believe a second HVT was close by.

As they approached the second target moving up a narrow creek bed, the team was in a bad position with steep walls on each side of the creek bed. That is when all hell broke loose. The enemy insurgents were waiting and sprung an ambush using rifles, machine guns, and hand grenades.

One American was hit in the chest and went down right in front of Kelsch as the Air Force commando and the ground force commander were trying to find cover behind some rocks. “It was like a bomb went off,” Kelsch said. “It was so bright and looked like fireballs going off all around me.”

“The fire was so overwhelming, I couldn’t stick my head out,” Kelsch recalled. “Bullets were ricocheting, dirt was being kicked up. I had to get eyes on the target.”

Kelsch left his position of cover and exposed himself to get the circling AC-130 overhead firing on the insurgents. With the enemy only 35 meters away, Kelsch called in 40mm rounds nearly on top of their position. Kelsch in his interview stated that aircrew in the gunship were extremely accurate with their fire, or he and the Rangers wouldn’t have survived.

His Silver Star citation reads: “Minutes later and without regard for personal safety, Sergeant Kelsch willingly exposed himself to effective enemy fire again, by closing with the enemy in order to adjust fire and save the life of a wounded American team-mate by dragging him to safety under fire.”

He and MSG Phillip Paquette, the ground force commander with the Rangers, dragged their wounded comrade back to a safer location. Paquette, who was also awarded a Silver Star was directing the Rangers and Afghans. Kelsch was shot center mass but the round hit one of his magazines in his body armor plate carrier which protected him.

“When you see one of your teammates go down, you do everything to go get them,” Kelsch said. “We looked at each other and saw the opportunity,” he added.

One of the Afghan SF troops was hit and the team was able to extract him from the danger and pull back 100 meters for an extraction. That’s when Kelsch turned the AC-130’s 105mm howitzer on the enemy. Firing danger close, the gunship was pounding the insurgents with precision artillery fire.

Then Kelsch whistled up two F-16s to drop precision-guided 500lb bombs on the insurgents in the target compound until the exfiltration aircraft arrived to whisk the team away.

Kelsch, in a true “quiet professional” manner, said that “I did not think that a fight that big would ensue when we were going after that target,” he said. “It was just another day, another mission.” He added that he was accepting the award for all of his teammates as they were all in that situation.

MG Becklund in his comments said, “What Cam did was nothing short of heroic… the embodiment of an American airman, a true warrior, and a leader.”

Kelsch is the epitome of a professional,” Paquette said, adding “one of his greatest attributes is his dedication to the mission and fellow Rangers.” Paquette and 13 other Rangers were also awarded decorations for that deployment including three with Purple Hearts.

Kelsch in his interview was quick to point out the bravery and patriotism of their Afghan Special Forces counterparts.

“The Afghan partner forces are true patriots for their country,” Kelsch said. “They want their country to be rid of terrorists. They want peace. They’re professional, they’re lethal, they’re highly trained. It was an honor to work with them.”

Photos/Video: US Air Force

Three U.S. Marines Killed in IED Suicide Bombing Identified

On Monday, a suicide bomber set off an IED that killed three U.S. Marines and wounded several others. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Those Marines killed in the attack have now been identified.

The Taliban suicide bombing of the U.S. convoy just outside of Bagram airbase killed Staff Sgt. Christopher Slutman, 43, of Newark, Delaware, Cpl. Robert A. Hendriks, 25, of Locust Valley, NY Sgt. Benjamin S. Hines, 31, of York Pennsylvania. These were the first Marine Corps deaths in the theater since 2016 when a Marine SSG was killed in a rocket attack by the Islamic State in Iraq.

The three men were from the 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division (Reserve) from Ft. Devens, MA. There was also an Afghan contractor with the Marines who was initially reported as being killed but he was later found wounded and was taken to the hospital and is expected to recover. Bagram airbase is part of the Bagram district is located in northern Parwan province and serves as the main U.S. air base in the country.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and that one of their suicide bombers detonated his explosives-laden vehicle near the NATO base. Five Afghan civilians were also wounded in the attack.

Slutman was a 15-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department as well as a member of the Kentland Volunteer Fire Department in Maryland. He leaves behind a wife and three daughters.

“Through this trying time, we will remember Chris for the father, husband, brother, son, and friend that he was, the moral character he displayed daily, and the courage and conviction to serve his fellow Americans, both at home and abroad,” the Kentland Volunteer Fire Department wrote on Facebook said on Facebook.

“We ask for your thoughts and prayers for his firehouse brothers, his fellow Marines, his friends – but most of all, his family.”

“Firefighter Slutman bravely wore two uniforms and committed his life to public service both as a New York City Firefighter and as a member of the United States Marine Corps,” said New York Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro. “The hearts and prayers of the entire Department are with his loved ones and with the families of his fellow service members who lost their lives in service to our nation.”

“We feel and mourn the loss of these Americans with their families and loved ones. They volunteered to protect their country. We will continue our mission,” said Gen. Scott Miller, Commanding General of Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan.

There are about 14,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan, supporting Afghan forces as they struggle on two fronts — facing a resurgent Taliban who now controls over almost half the country as well as the Islamic State affiliate, which has been trying to expand its influence in Afghanistan, most especially since its self-proclaimed “caliphate” has crumbled in Syria and Iraq.

Prior to Monday’s IED attack, four U.S. troops have been killed in Afghanistan in 2019. Last year, 13 U.S. troops were killed.

The Taliban and US-led coalition have continued to try to get the upper hand in the fighting which has last for over 17 years. This is despite holding several rounds of peace talks with the United States U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Amb. Zalmay Khalilzad in recent months. The Taliban, however, has refused to meet with representatives of the Afghan government, who they view as a U.S. puppet.

The Taliban has stated that they will take part in an all-Afghan meeting in Qatar, where they have a political office. However, the Taliban have stated that any government official attending will not be recognized as a legitimate government official but only as an Afghan participant.

Photo: Facebook

“I Can Put That Range Fire Out…” Tales of the Green Beret

It is amazing sometimes to think back on some of the good funny, ridiculous, and at times unbelievable stories from your time under a Green Beret. And as always, SF stories like fishing tales, as you grow older, get better with age.

Now I am not saying that any of these stories are BS, but let’s just say, that time is a wonderful thing. The passage of time makes the fish bigger, the girls prettier, and the stories so much better. ‘Nuff’ said.

So, just a few months ago, I was on the phone with Danny C. my old A-Team leader from way, way back in the day. When I say way back, that isn’t an exaggeration. Danny was an outstanding officer, a great Team Leader, and an even better man. During a deployment to Honduras during the 80s….(I told you it was way back), Danny was injured during our deployment and would be forced to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.

But that has never stopped him from living a very active lifestyle, Danny’s gone skiing at Aspen, skydiving and 100 other things that I never find the time to do anymore. We were talking on the phone that night, Danny had just sent me a gift in the mail and he was making sure I got it.

We began to talk about that last deployment before he got hurt and some of the stuff that went down and some of the fun we had training with the Honduran Infantry guys and then later the Airborne Battalion located at Tamara, in the mountains.

The drop zone was right next to the highway and due to the prevailing winds, our Chinooks would drop us on the other side of the highway and you’d drift perfectly right over the DZ. Which always made drivers on the highway nervous to see paratroopers drifting across the road before hitting the hard ground of the DZ.

We spoke about the classified but very low-tech project we were working on with Pack Animals and other interesting tidbits that made us fondly remember the days of yore. But that got my own mind going and after I hung up I remembered another funny story from that deployment.

We had moved further up in the mountains with 6th Infantry Battalion (Centaurs) at Ojo de Agua. They were located in the mountains and had a large base for the Contras at the time. There were enough GP Medium tents where a battalion could refit and rest there.

They also had a large shooting range built on several of the rolling hills on the base. We were doing a range day with our Honduran counterparts using M-60 and M249 (SAW) machineguns. When we had first arrived the weather had been cold, raw and rainy. But about a week later, it had dried out and was hot and sticky. And a stiff wind had dried everything out to where it was like tinder.

We were high up on a hill shooting at targets located about 300-400 meters away. The Honduran kids, not used to having this much ammo were having a ball, blazing away at the silhouettes with reckless abandon. Those “6-to-9” round bursts we discussed in training were quickly forgotten.

Giving the pack animals a drink while crossing a river, Central America in the mid-1980s.

One of the tracer rounds from the SAW started a range fire on top of the hill. Our Hondo allies had a pickup truck, an old beat-up piece of junk that looked like it would fall apart at any minute, loaded with soldiers who raced down there and quickly put the fire out.

After lunch, we had a second group of guys firing, their mortar section, who were beginning to get the U.S. 60mm mortars. We did some crew training with them and their crew drills were pretty good. They had a few old Soviet 82mm mortars, from god knows where. They looked like antiques. Firing those looked like an iffy proposition. They used US 81mm mortar rounds, which we didn’t have any.

I never fired a US round thru that Soviet system (I started as a heavy weapons guy), but one of our other guys had. He said it was a weird sound when dropping the round. Instead of that metallic sliding, sucking sound, it was a click, clickety-click, sound as the slightly smaller American round would ever so slightly bounce down the tube. Although you could fire those, Luis A. said, they weren’t the most accurate…no kidding.

So, after doing some crew drill on the 60mm M224 mortar, the mortar guys got their turn on the machine guns. After a few moments, one tracer round hit in front of one target and bounced backward about 10-20 meters and started a small fire in the grass. It was burning in a small neat circle.

Danny was reaching for the radio to tell the Hondos in the beat-up truck to put out the fire when one of the other guys spoke up. “I can put that range fire out, sir,” Bruce P. said. Bruce was a big, huge guy who was loaned to us from the 2nd Ranger Bn. for this deployment. He was also the Weapons Plt. Sgt. in the Batt.

The Hondurans were in awe of his size, he was easily double their diminutive height and scared shitless of him. Bruce had a very typical Ranger haircut, where he was buzzed on the sides. In the Honduran army, they only did that to the criminals, “ Los Castigados” in their terminology.

He grabbed the smaller M8 baseplate for the 60mm mortar, he put a round in the tube and lined up his range estimation. Giving himself a bit of windage, he pulled the trigger and we all waited a few seconds for the round to go down range. Bruce grabbed another round and was preparing to fire again when the mortar landed with that flat sounding explosion. It landed squarely on the fire, which was no more than 3-4 meters wide at that point.

The results were electric. The Americans whooped, “Good shot bro,” while the Honduran mortar section sat there dumbstruck with their mouth’s literally wide open. It was a shot in a million. “Holy shit,” Bruce said to Danny. “I’ve never hit one on the first shot before.” Castillo laughed.

Look at them,” he said. “They are going to kneel and ask you to bring to bring back the sun any minute.” We all cracked up. The Hondos sat there mesmerized for a few more seconds. “Hijo de puta! Their Lieutenant yelled. He turned with a big grin and began to bark at his troops. We all cracked up. Bruce who at that time, had a very limited Spanish vocabulary, asked Danny what they said.

“Basically, he is telling them that until they can learn to shoot like that, he’s going to shave all their heads.”

Bruce again tried to tell us that he’d never hit anything like that on the first shot. Danny told him to act as he did it all the time. Bruce played along and set down the tube and told the Hondos, “Eso fue fácil” (that was easy), after asking Danny how to say it. Again, they stopped to gawk at the blown out fire down below.

After that, every time Bruce walked thru the compound, the Honduran kids would salute him like he was a field grade officer. Not long after we returned from that deployment, Bruce joined SF and went thru the SFQC as an 18E and later became an officer…and a very good one.

Just another great day in the 7th SFG.

Photos of Honduran Anti-Tank Company and Pack Animal training: Author,

Remembering Simo Häyhä, The Deadliest Sniper in History

Today marks the 17th anniversary of the passing of the deadliest sniper in history. During the Ruso-Finnish Winter War of 1939-40, Simo Häyhä, a Finnish sniper and competitive shooter, racked up 505 confirmed kills, some put the number as high as 542 in just 100 days of combat.

The Finnish soldiers called him “The Magical Shooter”, the Soviet soldiers had a more apt nickname for him. They called him the “White Death”.

After being seriously wounded in the war, Häyhä would live quietly as a farmer until he passed away in 2002 at the age of 96.

Early Life:

Häyhä was born on December 17, 1905, in Rautjärvi, Viipuri Province, Finland, in a Lutheran heritage family of farmers as the second youngest among eight children.

Prior to joining the military, he was an accomplished hunter, shooter, and skier although he made his living as a farmer. He first joined the Finnish military in 1925 at age 17 as a member of the Finnish voluntary militia White Guard (Suojeluskunta), similar to the U.S. National Guard.

After his service, he returned to farming but he purchased his issued rifle, as Finnish soldiers were given the option to, an early series SAKO M/28-30 (Sn.35281/Civil Guard district number S60974). The rifle was a Finnish variant of the Mosin–Nagant rifle, known as “Pystykorva”, the Spitz, chambered in the Finnish Mosin–Nagant cartridge 7.62×53R. The Finns nicknamed it “The Spitz” since the front sight resembled a Spitz dog breed.

Häyhä lived near the Finnish base and was a frequent competitor in the shooting sports that the Finns would conduct there. And reportedly, his house was full of competitive shooting trophies. He was able to shoot and hit 16 targets at about 150 meters in a minute using a bolt-action rifle.

War With the Soviet Union:

The Russians wanted a war with Finland and tried to provoke the Finns in late November 1939 with a massive artillery bombardment of the border. Josef Stalin tried to blame the Finns for some untold “aggression” which fooled no one in the rest of the world.

On November 30, the Soviets invaded Finland with over 160,000 troops. Although severely outnumbered, the Finns were well led and prepared. Stalin had purged his officer corps in 1937 and executed thousands of his officers. The result was he had politically loyal but tactically inept leaders. And they would pay the price in Finland.

Another factor was the Russians weren’t prepared for the winter war. Their troops wore the green greatcoat of the military. This made them stand out perfectly, silhouetted against the white snow. It made snipers like Häyhä pick them off with ridiculous ease.

With the cold, ranging from -20C to -40C, the Finns would allow the Soviets to attack on the roads and then envelop them and attack from the rear, causing huge casualties. Häyhä was called back into service, serving under the 6th Company of JR 34 on the Kollaa River.

At one point Häyhä and his fellow troops, just 32 in all were facing 4000 Soviet troops. And amazingly enough, they held their ground. In the early days of the fighting, a Soviet sniper had killed three junior platoon leaders and an NCO. Häyhä’s platoon leader told him to take out the sniper.

As the sun was setting, the Soviet sniper considered the day’s fighting done and carelessly abandoned his position. As he did so, the fading sunlight glinted off his sniper scope. Häyhä put a round right thru his face. Later another Soviet sniper kept his unit pinned down, once again, Häyhä was summoned for and began to search out his quarry. Using another Finnish lieutenant as a spotter, Häyhä took him out with a single shot from 400 meters.

Soviet commanders then sent a countersniper out to get him but he too was dispatched with a single shot. The Soviets answered with a mortar barrage down on Häyhä’s position. When he began to take out the Soviet artillery spotters with ease, they unleashed a massive artillery barrage on the Finnish positions.

Unlike most snipers, Häyhä didn’t fire from the prone position, he preferred sitting up. He was a diminutive 5’3, so still didn’t offer a big target. But he’d pile up the snow in front of him and then pack down or pour water on the snow in front of his muzzle. That way, the enemy couldn’t see the telltale disturbance and blasting of the snow.

He’d place his gloves on the snow and place his rifle on top of them to lessen the recoil. But perhaps the most amazing thing about his exploits is that Häyhä eschewed the use of telescopic sights, doing all of his shooting with just the iron sight of the rifle. He also would fill his mouth with snow, so enemy snipers couldn’t see his breath. In one day he once killed 25 Soviet soldiers.

Häyhä with his precision rifle given to him after his exploits.

A Finnish Army document detailed how deadly Häyhä’s sniping was on the Soviets during the Winter War. On December 22, 1939, he was given credit for 138 kills in 22 days; on January 26, 1940, it mentions the total count as 199 with another 61 kills in 35 days; on February 17, 1940, his total had risen to 219 with another 20 kills in 22 days; and finally on March 7, 1940, on the day after he was severely wounded, the Finns listed the total number of kills as 259 with another 40 kills in 18 days. He was credited with almost the same number of kills with a submachine gun.

Häyhä had developed his knack for competitive shooting with his days as an accomplished hunter to hone his craft in the most deadly fashion. And he had learned to be spot-on with his range estimation, something he’d practiced hard at. With his rifle zeroed at 150 meters, he could estimate and make the changes needed faster and more accurately than his enemy could.

He was a hero in the Finnish army and was presented a special rifle, a custom-built precision weapon gifted by a Swedish businessman and friend of Finland, Eugen Johannson.

The Russians finally got to Häyhä when a Soviet sniper sent an explosive bullet into the cheek of Häyhä on March 6, 1940. It tore off his jaw and most of his left cheek. Amazingly enough, he survived and regained consciousness on the day the war ended. He had to endure 26 surgeries on his face, which took several years. He never fully recovered his speech. Finnish Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim elevated Häyhä from the rank of alikersantti (Corporal) to vänrikki (Second lieutenant).

After the war, he returned to farming, becoming a very successful dog breeder and moose hunter, and lived to the ripe old age of 96, passing away on April 1, 2002. He was asked a few years before his death how he became such an expert sniper…he replied, “practice.”

Photos: Wikipedia, Video: Weird History/YouTube.com

Tunnel-mapping tech may be the most important special operations gear of the 21st century

Recently, NEWSREP Editor-in-chief Jack Murphy reported on the U.S. military’s standing plan to infiltrate Iranian underground bunkers housing integral elements of the nation’s nuclear apparatus. If war between the United States and Iran were ever to come to fruition, these facilities (commonly referred to as hardened and deeply buried targets, or HDBTs) would be among America’s top priorities. But taking them out of commission would require a more dramatic approach than America’s preferred method of warfare by ballistic missile.

Many of these HDBTs are constructed deep underground, often by tunneling into mountains. The natural barrier provided by 2,000 feet of rock would, in some cases, render even America’s bunker-busting munitions useless. Instead, infiltrating and destroying these facilities would fall to America’s elite counterterrorism unit, the 1^st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, or Delta Force.

Although Delta has been training for these potential underground combat operations in Iran for years, the risks associated with such an operation have grown in tandem with the increasing number of potential enemy states—including North Korea, China, and Russia—all of which maintain (or are rumored to maintain) sizable underground facilities meant to shield against weapons of mass destruction and potentially afford protection to command and control elements from surveillance or engagement.

Soldiers of 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, prepare to clear a corridor during subterranean operations training. (U.S. Army)

As Jack Murphy pointed out in his NITRO ZEUS piece, “Numerous countries have sought to conceal and protect vulnerable military resources underground inside facilities hardened with reinforced concrete, vault doors, internal environmental systems, and more, such as the United States has done at the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.”

Put simply, fighting in enclosed spaces deep underground, where communications are limited and the stakes are at their highest, isn’t just a tactical nightmare, it may also become a pervasive part of what nation-level warfare looks like in the 21st century.

It’s likely with this concern in mind that America’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, has issued a request for information regarding advanced technologies and methodologies that can be employed for the “3D mapping and surveying of underground environments.”

“What makes subterranean areas challenging for precision mapping and surveying, such as lack of GPS, constrained passages, dark or dust-filled air, is similar to what inhibits safe and speedy underground operations for our warfighters,” said DARPA Tactical Technology Office (TTO) Program Manager Timothy Chung. “Building an accurate three-dimensional picture is a key enabler to rapidly and remotely exploring and searching subterranean spaces.”

If you’ve seen the film “Prometheus,” this effort may seem familiar. In the movie, crew members deploy floating drones that use lasers to quickly map out the subterranean cave complex they’re exploring.

It doesn’t seem likely that DARPA’s cave-mapping drones will defy gravity like those depicted in “Prometheus,” but with small drone technology rapidly advancing, a “floating” mapping device doesn’t seem entirely out of the question. Of course, propulsion is far from the only technical hurdle faced in this initiative. Maintaining connectivity to the operator, processing the data captured and rendering it in a usable manner, and even concerns about battery life versus added weight are among the litany of hurdles developers will need to either mitigate or eliminate in order to make such a device a reality.

A soldier assigned to 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, provides security during subterranean operations training. (U.S. Army)

In many ways, special operations war-fighters operating in these tunnels will be doing so without any access to external digital or communications infrastructure, meaning the mapping system will need to be entirely self-contained between the probe and the operator’s gear. Cloud computing or outsourcing any of the computational work via any sort of network simply won’t work beneath 2,000 feet of rock

The challenges DARPA faces in this endeavor are not insignificant by any stretch of the imagination, but a breakthrough in this sort of technology could provide American and allied forces with a much-needed advantage in what would be sure to be brutal fighting inside confined spaces. America’s special operations troops may be the best trained in the world, but training doesn’t stop bullets. In tunnel warfare, a defender’s familiarity with the space, the terrain, and any potential hazards can offset a significant training advantage had by the attackers.

Despite not quite garnering the same sort of attention as programs like the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter or new hypersonic missiles, tunnel-mapping technology may prove to be the most valuable tech in America’s war-fighting arsenal. After all, fast-moving missiles may help win a conventional war, but the only way to win a nuclear one is to prevent it from starting in the first place.

Feature image courtesy of the U.S. Army

Israelis Blast Hamas Targets in Gaza After Latest Rocket Attacks

The Israeli Defense Forces launched a series of airstrikes in Gaza after the latest round of rocket attacks launched by militants in Gaza streamed toward Israel. Tensions are rising in the area as Israel called up some of their reserve Air Force, Intelligence and Special Forces units.

Things began badly on Monday when Hamas launched rockets at Tel Aviv, several Israelis were injured when a rocket hit their house. Israel responded with air attacks on several Hamas military targets.

Then on Tuesday night, around 9 p.m. Israel’s air raid sirens sounded in the southern half of the country when Hamas militants launched a rocket supposedly at the Eshkol Regional Council. Israel quickly responded with a series of blistering air attacks.

Hamas then countered with a barrage of rockets launched toward the southern city of Ashkelon. However, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad denied responsibility for the rocket barrage and blamed it on “rogue elements” in the Gaza strip.

Meanwhile, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov urged the United Nations Security Council in a rare move on Wednesday to condemn Hamas’ provocations in Gaza.

“A new conflict will be devastating for the Palestinian people, it will have consequences for Israelis, who live in the vicinity of the Gaza perimeter, and it is likely to have regional repercussions. This is why I ask you all today to join the United Nations in condemning the continued indiscriminate firing of rockets by Hamas towards Israel. Such acts of provocation only dramatically increase the risk of escalation and ultimately damage our collective efforts to support the people of Gaza and intra-Palestinian reconciliation. We must also call on all sides to exercise maximum restraint as the situation remains extremely tense.”

The IDF was having any of the talk about “rogue elements” and put the blame squarely on Hamas and held them solely responsible.

“The Hamas terror organization bears responsibility for everything in and around the Gaza Strip,” the army said in a statement. “The IDF is determined to continue protecting the Israeli citizens and is prepared for a variety of scenarios.”

The Israeli Air Force blasted sites of Gaza’s Hamas rulers and the smaller Islamic Jihad group. The targets included a multistory building in Gaza City that reportedly had served as a Hamas military intelligence headquarters and the office of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Hamas reported seven casualties in the strikes, all civilians.

This is a dangerous time in the region. We’re approaching the one-year anniversary of the March of Return protests, which began March 30, 2018. During these protests along the border between Gaza and Israel, 190 of the Palestinians were killed and even more wounded in the past year. Now, the terror group hopes to draw hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the border to riot and try to breach the security fence with their most hated enemy. The goal is to ease the blockade but it has thus far been unsuccessful.

But Hamas didn’t plan on what unfolded just a week ago. Palestinians protested in the streets against Hamas, blaming the terror group for the dire plight the people are in right now. And they were cracked down on badly, Hamas men fired into the crowds, and beat up and arrested countless others.

As Hamas is encountering its worst problem in the 12 years that they’ve been in power, the blockade by Israel and Egypt, sanctions by the Palestinian Authority, and terrible governmental mismanagement by the Hamas leadership have left the region in tatters. Unemployment is running north of about 50 percent.

Also happening in Israel is the upcoming election where Benjamin Netanyahu is locked in a very tight race for re-election. With the election right around the corner on April 9, a new war in Gaza with Hamas could prove to be devastating for his reelection bid. He’s is getting criticism from both supporters and opponents for failing to contain Hamas.

But the savvy Netanyahu also knows that he can’t back down either. He raced home from the United States after the initial rocket attack and has made it clear that Israel will not stand for more.

“Hamas needs to know that we will not hesitate to go in and take all necessary steps, regardless of anything, any date, other than Israel’s security needs,” he said.

He later added, “I can tell you, we are prepared to do a lot more,” he said. “We will do what is necessary to defend our people and to defend our state.”

Palestinians weren’t taking any unnecessary risks after the air strikes, staying at home and indoors. Businesses and shops were closed, schools didn’t open. And if they needed a reminder, it was reported that despite the calm, Israeli drones stayed overhead, waiting for the next rocket launch and ready to pounce.

So with the Egyptian delegation in Gaza in long sessions with Hamas, they’ll try to hammer out something longer than just a ceasefire, but in reality, the peace will only be temporary here for quite some time.

As Israeli troops mass on the border, neither side wants another large scale protracted war, but it seems that their both being thrust into one anyway.

File Photo of Israeli tanks on the Golan Heights: IDF

USASOC Takes Top Honors in 2019 Sniper Competition

Two sniper teams from the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) took home the top honors in the 10th Annual USASOC International Sniper Competition.

This year’s event had 21 teams from allied countries around the world, shooting, moving and communicating thru a series of intense events that were intended to simulate combat as closely as possible and push the competitors’ tactical sniper skills to the max.

The two USASOC teams won the top two honors while a Marine Corps team finished in third place.

Every year the Sniper Competition changes slightly as instructors from the US Army JFK Special Warfare Center Sniper Committee designs the events to challenge the two-man sniper teams in their ability to work together as a team and test their speed and accuracy in various types of environments, with the stresses of combat added in.

.“This year we wanted to focus on bringing guys in who may shoot competitively on the side but the core tasks would revolve around a real-world application,” said Master Sgt. Josh, a Special Forces Sniper Course instructor identified only by his first name and rank for security reasons.

Snipers engage targets while wearing night vision.

“We used sounds, artillery simulators, and bunkers to induce chaos and make them think through things.”

Teams competed with sniper systems of 7.62 and 5.56mm, carbines and pistols of various calibers. Several of the sniper rifle systems used in the competition are owned by the soldiers.

The competition was held at Ft. Bragg, NC where it was started back in 2009 by the JFK Special Warfare Center and School’s Sniper Committee, which hosted the competition. The school’s sniper course is used by all of Army Special Operations, including Special Forces and Rangers.

Teams were representing the following units:

USASOC

1st, 3rd, 7th, 10th, 19th, and 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne)

2nd Marine Raider Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps

Marine Corps Special Operations Forces Advanced Sniper Course

Marine Corps Scout Sniper

Naval Special Warfare

Unites States Coast Guard

1st Premier Regiment de Parachutistes d’Infanterie de Marine, France

Kommando Spezialkräfte, Germany

Army Ranger Wing, Ireland

9th Paratroopers Assault Regiment, Italy

International Special Training Center

The winners:

1st place: USASOC

2nd place: USASOC

3rd place: Marine Corps Scout Sniper

The competition was more than just accuracy and distance shooting, but being able to conduct a series of timed challenges that were constructed to mirror real-world missions as well as stress the relationships and communication skills of competitors. One event had the shooter encounter targets with one hand, cuffed behind his back.

A sniper engages targets with a hand, cuffed to his kit

“When guys get put on the clock they go faster. There’s more pressure,” said a Special Forces Sniper Course instructor with the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School in an interview with the Fayetteville Observer last year. “You have plenty of time to build a durable and steady position. But they rush it and then they start missing.”

“Guys do better when they’re laughing and joking,” the instructor said.

At last year’s event, sniper teams had to move from one firing location to another, engaging targets 12×16 inches in size, 600 meters away while being timed. They had six minutes to engage as many targets as possible.

As the spotter picked out targets, he also relayed to the shooter how to adjust his shots. The shooter would have to pick up the targets while in the prone position while peering thru the reticle of his rifle.

The teams would be taken to a range that required that they navigate around or over numerous obstacles, buildings, and mock vehicles. Each of the targets was marked by a symbol and a color denoting the type of weapon that should be used — pistol, carbine or sniper rifle.

In another event to test the communication and teamwork of the sniper team, the troops would be placed on a raised platform with several different levels that recreate the top of a building. There, the shooter nor the spotter could not see every target from a single position. So, they had to split up to guide each other to a position where they could engage their targets. Added into the equation was that before the event, an instructor would be shown a card by the instructors. They then had to find that symbol in the target area and engage it with the appropriate weapon. That event was designed to get the teams to hurry and distracted, moving faster than they needed to. If a team engaged the wrong target, points were deducted from their overall score.

The old saying “slow is smooth and smooth is fast” was apt at that event. The teams that slowed down and identified the targets were the ones who fared the best.

There was also a physical challenge event. Designed to test the team while carrying a typical combat load, moving and shooting. The team had to run uphill with a 90-pound kettlebell. They would then take turns firing at targets before moving on with their kettlebell a to the next position.

The competition included day and night shooting and would change from open areas to an urban environment. All of which special operators will encounter in any operation in today’s mission environment.

Congratulations to the USASOC teams and all of those who participated.

Photos: DVIDS

Particle Ray Missile Defense? DOD Plans on Fielding Weapon by 2023

While a lot of the futuristic weapons talk seems like pie in the sky stuff from Marvel Comics, it seems that there is an increasing chance for many of these types of weapons to be actually fielded in the very near future.

NEWSREP’s Alex Hollings penned in an intriguing piece on what the Defense Department hopes to field in as little as three years. Unlike the old SDI initiative of the Reagan era, this is a missile defense system that may actually work.

Missile defense has been a priority in the United States for decades, in no small part because the threat posed by long-range, nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles remains as one of the few direct threats to the American mainland that could arise with little to no warning. In today’s world, it would be all but impossible to sneak up to American shores with a sizable military contingent. Still, for the most part, the only thing stopping a nation from flinging nukes at the U.S. from across the sea is the assurance America will retaliate in kind.
Now, with hypersonic missile platforms nearing service in both Chinese and Russian militaries and both nations fielding new nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles designed specifically to circumvent America’s layered approach to missile defense, Uncle Sam is on the hunt for new ways to counter the threats posed by advanced missile platforms. Some believe it’s been found in a rather science fiction-sounding endeavor: deploying directed-energy weapons to engage and destroy missiles.
Particle beam weapons work, to a certain extent, like lasers and are often referred to as “heat rays.” However, unlike lasers, particle beams work by accelerating particles (usually neutrons) without an electric charge to near-light speed velocities. When that beam of accelerated particles hits an intended target, the neutrons fired knock protons out of the nucleus of particles they encounter, creating heat.
That means particle beams don’t just interact with the surface of a target the way lasers do, but instead, they can penetrate the surface and affect a missile’s internal systems as well. While reflective surfaces can be used as an occasional means to redirect lasers, particles beams have no such issue, penetrating directly though the mirrored surface and wreaking havoc on the intended target.
Deploying such a weapon in space would be no small task. In order to function, a neutral particle beam weapon would require far more than an extremely capable targeting system (to hit missiles traveling at thousands of miles per hour). It would also need a particle accelerator, a power supply capable of sustaining such a weapon, a means of power storage (batteries), and an extremely hardened communications system.
“It’s a very short timeline, first to even know where it (the missile) is coming from,” an unnamed official told Defense One about the project. “It’s less than a couple minutes before it leaves the atmosphere. So you have to have a weapon that’s on station, that’s not going to be taken out by air batteries and so we have been looking at directed-energy applications for that. But you have to scale up power to that megawatt class. You’ve got to reduce the weight. You’ve got to have a power source. It’s a challenge, technically.”
Despite these hurdles, the Pentagon seems confident it can have a weapon of this sort in orbit as soon as 2023.
“We’ve come a long way in terms of the technology we use today to where a full, all-up system wouldn’t be the size of three of these conference rooms, right? We now believe we can get it down to a package that we can put on as part of a payload to be placed on orbit,” the official said.
“Power generation, beam formation, the accelerometer that’s required to get there and what it takes to neutralize that beam, that capability has been matured and there are technologies that we can use today to miniaturize.”

To read the entire article, click here:

Photo: DOD

On This Day in 1942, Gen. Douglas MacArthur Gives the “I Shall Return” Speech

In the early, dark days of World War II, the United States military in the Pacific theater was reeling. After the disastrous sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, the Japanese forces began a series of invasions across the Pacific and extended their empire nearly to the edges of Hawaii.

American and Filipino forces were under siege in the Philippines. The Japanese invaded soon after the Pearl Harbor attack. By early March 1942, they had bottled up the U.S. and Filipinos on the Bataan Peninsula and Corregidor.

President Roosevelt, fearful of one of America’s most successful and well-known generals being taken captive by the Japanese if Corregidor fell was too bitter a conclusion to contemplate. He ordered MacArthur to escape to Australia to take charge of Allied forces there. He left the Philippines on March 11.

However, contrary to public belief, MacArthur’s statement, “I Shall Return” was not given on the shores of the Philippines, but at an Australian train station, 10 days later.

Early Career:

MacArthur came from a military family, his father Arthur, was a Lieutenant General and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his service in the Civil War. The younger MacArthur graduated the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1903 at the top of his class.

During his early military career, he served as an aide to his father and to President Theodore Roosevelt. During World War I, he commanded the 84th Brigade of the famous 42nd (Rainbow) Division. He also was the Commandant of Cadets at West Point as well as the Army’s Chief of Staff.

MacArthur retired from active duty in 1937 and was given a commission as a Field Marshall in the Philippine Army, raising the level of training for the Filipino conscripts so that when the U.S. granted them independence, (slated for 1946), they’d be capable of defending their home islands.

He was recalled from retirement in July 1941 to become commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) at 61 and united the Philippine and United States forces under one command.

World War II Starts for the U.S.:

After the Japanese invaded, MacArthur, per pre-planning, declared Manila an open city and moved his forces to the Bataan Peninsula and to the island of Corregidor. His wife Jean and son Arthur IV remained with him on Corregidor.

Most of the surviving navy moved south, MacArthur had at his disposal on a submarine tender and sub rescue ship, three small gunboats, three minesweepers, five tugs and the PT boats of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three under the command of LTJG John D. Bulkeley. With the swift Japanese victories rolling into one another, the men of Bataan and MacArthur resonated with the American public, looking for heroes in those dark days of defeat after defeat for the Allies.

On February 23, Secretary of War Harry Stimson and Chief of Staff George Marshall sent MacArthur a message ordering him to leave the Philippines for Australia.

The President directs that you make arrangements to leave and proceed to Mindanao. You are directed to make this change as quickly as possible … From Mindanao you will proceed to Australia where you will assume command of all United States troops … Instructions will be given from here at your request for the movement of submarine or plane or both to enable you to carry out the foregoing instructions. You are authorized to take your chief of staff General Sutherland.

The original plan was for MacArthur to depart Corregidor by submarine, but he ended up changing his mind and going by surface ships in PT boats. The small PT boats were in need of an overhaul as they’d been in constant combat operations since the war began, Bulkeley did the best he could with spare parts at a premium since the loss of the Subic Bay naval base. Each PT boat would carry twenty 55-gallon drums of additional fuel on the deck. This would reduce the top speed of the boats to about 30 knots (56 kilometers per hour; 35 miles per hour).

And to make room for MacArthur’s family and staff that he was bringing with him, the so-called “Bataan Gang”, Bulkeley had to leave 32 of his sailors behind. They were turned into infantry troops on Bataan.

There would be four PT boats assigned to get MacArthur, his staff and his family out of Corregidor. PT-41 commanded by Bulkeley, would have MacArthur, Jean MacArthur, Arthur MacArthur IV, Ah Cheu, Major General Richard K. Sutherland, Captain Herbert J. Ray, Lieutenant Colonel Sidney L. Huff, Major Charles H. Morhouse on board.

PT-32 commanded by LT JG Vince Schumacher had Brigadier General Spencer B. Akin, Brigadier General Hugh J. Casey, Brigadier General William F. Marquat, Brigadier General Harold H. George, Lieutenant Colonel Joe R. Sherr, Major Curtis L. Lambert on his boat.

PT-34 commanded by LT Robert B. Kelly, carried Rear Admiral Francis W. Rockwell, Brigadier General Richard J. Marshall, Colonel Charles P. Stivers, Captain Joseph McMicking on board.

PT-35 commanded by Ensign Anthony Akers had Colonel Charles A. Willoughby, Lieutenant Colonel LeGrande A. Diller, Lieutenant Colonel Francis H. Wilson, Master Sergeant Paul P. Rogers on his boat. Rogers was the only enlisted man taken from MacArthur’s command because he was the command’s stenographer. Many of the enlisted men gave Rogers letters to mail for them.

MacArthur left Corregidor on March 11 at 19:45 and rendezvoused with the other three boats which left from Bataan 15 minutes later. During the night, the seas got rough and the four PT boats were separated.

They reached their first point, a cove on Tagauayan Island, the next morning. That night they made their way to Mindanao where MacArthur was hoping to catch air transport. Since PT-32 didn’t have the fuel to reach Mindanao, her passengers were then split on PT-41 and PT-34.

Due to the high seas, the PT boats didn’t make it to Mindanao until broad daylight where they would have been sitting ducks for Japanese aircraft that were known to overfly the area constantly.

The PT boats pulled up the wharf at Mindanao and MacArthur made clear his appreciation at the men who dared the mission to rescue him and his staff. He said to Bulkeley “I’m giving every officer and man here the Silver Star for gallantry. You’ve taken me out of the jaws of death, and I won’t forget it.”

Three hours later PT-35 arrived with her crew and passengers.

After a day on Mindanao while staying at the guest house, MacArthur sent off a message to Gen. Marshall in Washington as Admiral Herbert F. Leary had turned down their request for B-17s to fly them to Australia. Leary heard from Washington and the on March 17, they left in two B-17s at 01:30. Eight hours later they approached Darwin, Australia, but the Japanese were conducting an air raid so the planes were diverted to Batchelor Airfield arriving at 09:30.

There MacArthur boarded a DC-3 which finally took him to Alice Springs. He then boarded a special train. It was at Terowie Train Station where he uttered the famous phrase “I came through and I shall return“.

The reaction from the American and Filipino troops on Bataan was mixed. Some felt like MacArthur had betrayed them. He left LTG Jonathan Wainwright in command and even many officers in the remaining staff felt they’d been abandoned.

Bulkeley remained on Mindanao until he was flown out on April 13, as MacArthur put a high priority on getting the PT boat crews out. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Roosevelt in the White House on August 4, 1942. He retired as a Vice Admiral after 55 years of service. His story was made into a book and a film in 1945, “They Were Expendable” starring Robert Montgomery, John Wayne, and Donna Reed.

MacArthur’s “Bataan Gang” served as the staff of the GHQ of the Southwest Pacific Area. He and his staff would indeed return to the Philippines and would land on Corregidor three years later on four PT boats.

Photos: US Archives

Dr. Strangelove? Russians Claim to Have “Doomsday” Submarine Weapon

Alex Hollings, on the main NEWSREP site, penned a very intriguing piece about the latest Russian weapon, which they’re calling a “doomsday” submarine. If you’re having flashbacks to Stanley Kubrick’s dark comedy masterpiece, “Dr. Strangelove”, then you’re not alone. Read on…

Russia’s struggling economy may not make for a particularly effective military, but the Kremlin’s ability to mold public perceptions remains among the nation’s most comprehensive and powerful skill sets. While some within the United States are still content to dispute the idea that Moscow uses a combination of state-run media outlets and social media outreach campaigns to shape the way the world perceives Russia (and ourselves), there are few better examples of this state-sanctioned chicanery than recent reactions to the “Poseidon” or Status 6 unmanned, submersible nuclear weapon.

Let there be no mistake, Russia’s Poseidon is both well within the nation’s technological capabilities to develop and promises to offer a never-before-seen level of destruction if ever detonated inside an American port. Yet, beyond the headline-grabbing 100-megaton yield and the promise of irradiated tsunamis laying waste to coastal communities for hundreds of miles, the Poseidon offers Russia truly little in terms of strategic value.
That may seem counter-intuitive. After all, with the largest nuclear warhead ever put into service secured inside a stealthy platform that, in all likelihood, could reach American shores undetected, one could be inclined to think the Poseidon poses perhaps the most pressing threat to American security since the Soviet Union first developed the atomic bomb. However, the truth is, the same nuclear deterrence strategies that defanged Russia’s previous “doomsday” weapons remain in effect whether the nuclear threat comes from the sky or beneath the waves.

Russia, in fact, already boasts nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles that are massively more powerful than the platforms housed in America’s ICBM arsenal. Russia also holds the title for most nuclear weapons on hand, making it the clear winner in both categories for most and biggest nukes.
Even with Aegis-equipped destroyers, THAAD missile defense systems, America’s Ground-based Midcourse Defense system and a constellation of early warning satellites, there is no debating it: if Russia decided to throw every nuke it had at the U.S. (or even just a large chunk of them), America would have absolutely no chance of stopping them all.

It’s that understanding that led to the development of the nuclear triad: a system based on the ability to offer prompt nuclear retaliation no matter how overwhelming a nuclear attack may be. America’s nuclear triad relies on air-launched platforms (often carried by the B-52), ground-launched ICBMs, and submarine-launched weapons, making it all but impossible to neuter America’s nuclear response and guaranteeing Russia’s destruction in any nuclear exchange. America knows it can’t stop Russia from raining nuclear hellfire down on its people, so it’s settled for the next best thing: guaranteeing the U.S. would respond in kind.

That staring contest has been dubbed “mutually assured destruction,” and the concept is really about as simple as geopolitics can get: American and Russian leaders both know that launching even one nuke in the other nation’s direction will lead to a large-scale exchange that would likely end the world. If everyone is dead, it’s tough to pick a winner.
And that brings us back to Russia’s latest headline-grabbing Bond-villain-esque Poseidon. At 100 megatons (sometimes reported in Russian media as 200 megatons), the Poseidon carries a warhead that’s twice as large as the largest nuclear detonation ever recorded, making it a formidable weapon. Still, in terms of mutually assured destruction, it truly offers nothing of particular note. While a single Poseidon detonation could indeed cause an unprecedented level of destruction, headlines the following day (if there were any) would likely be focused on the hundreds of nuclear strikes that followed and the collapse of the modern world. Nothing would be different than if Russia had opted to launch an ICBM strike, rather than a sneaky, submersible one.

To read the entire article click here:

Photo; Russian Ministry of Defense