Special Operations Forces

Al-Shabab Getting “Lucky” Not Stronger in Somalia, Says US

Al-Shabab, Somalia’s most dangerous terror group is likely not getting any stronger according to U.S. officials. The U.S. contends that despite a series of deadly attacks, including one that claimed the life of a U.S. special operations soldier earlier this month, it was more lucky than good during that attack.
The assessment, by U.S. military and counterintelligence officials, runs contrary to the conclusions of some analysts and comes as al-Shabab has been flexing its military might in recent weeks, highlighting attacks on both Somali and African Union forces.
One of the most publicized of these was a brazen June 8 attack on an outpost under construction two kilometers north of the town of Sanguni, in the Lower Jubba region of Somalia.
The al-Qaida-linked militants skirmished with a force of 800 Somali and Kenyan forces accompanied by U.S. special operations soldiers, one of whom was killed by mortar fire.
U.S. officials are still trying to determine the size of the al-Shabab force at the time of the attack but say there is no indication of any increased capability.
“It was a lucky shot,” a U.S. military official told VOA on condition of anonymity. “I wouldn’t consider this a well-executed attack.”
Another military official said, in many ways, the deadly attack was typical of al-Shabab operations.
“Historically, al-Shabab has been willing to engage large forces, often using surprise and asymmetric tactics to improve their chances for success,” said Lt. Cmdr. Desiree Frame, a spokesperson for U.S. Africa Command. “We expect to see more conflict in southern Somalia as Somali Government Forces, AMISOM, and their partners make in-roads into al-Shabab-held territory.”
Still, some analysts warn it is wrong to downplay the strides al-Shabab has made since being kicked out of its last urban stronghold, the port city of Kismayo, in 2012.
“It’s clear that we’re not just seeing a spike in attacks related to the Ramadan campaign,” said Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior analyst at the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “It’s clear that the organization has gotten stronger.”

Regardless of the differing opinions on their capability, al-Shabab will probably be seeing plenty of focus from the US-led coalition in Somalia in the coming days.

To read the entire article from Voice of America News, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 13, Day 5

Back to the gym this Thursday morning for a Chest (Flat, incline bench, Flies, pushups) and Triceps (Cable pushdowns, dips) workout today at the gym before heading out for a 4-mile run.

Remember to stretch well before and after and to stay hydrated. Mark your progress down in your workout log book.

Training:

More Preparation for the UBRR:

3 x 12 Bench Press

3 x 10 Dumbbell Flies

3 x 10 Dumbbell Incline press

3 x 20 Pushups (alternate sets with wide, narrow and shoulder width)

3 x 10 ‘V’ Ups

3 x 20 Sit-ups

3 x 20 Cable Push Downs (rope)

3 x 20 Dips or until muscle failure

4-mile run (32 minutes maximum)

Stretch well after completion

Vague Trump Directive Creates “Space Force” or Did It?

The President, love him or hate him certainly knows how to make a splash. And he definitely did just that on Monday afternoon when he signed an executive order directing the Pentagon to create a new ”Space Force,” which will certainly anger the Air Force.

The President’s purposely vague directive, if followed thru will radically change the way the military services operate by putting all of the functions in space that many of services operate on their own, under one headquarters.

“I am hereby directing the Department of Defense and Pentagon to immediately begin the process necessary to establish a Space Force as the sixth branch of the armed forces,” Trump said while at a meeting of the National Space Council.

“That’s a big statement. We are going to have the Air Force and we are going to have the Space Force. Separate but equal. It is going to be something. So important,” Trump added, (Yes, he really did say separate but equal).

The President reportedly signed the order at 12:36 p.m. on June 18, 2018. So, does that mean we now have a Space Force? Not yet. The President can direct the Pentagon to go ahead with the planning for a new Space Force but only Congress can authorize a new branch of the military.

“Establishing a service branch requires congressional action.” House Armed Services Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee chair Mike Turner, R-Ohio said.

While the President can authorize the Pentagon to conduct working or study groups to lay out the groundwork for a future military branch, only Congress has the power to establish a new branch of the military and to establish the positions of senior officials to lead a new branch.

Which was why Trump’s directive was so vague.

However, a statement from one DOD official read, “The Joint Staff will work closely with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, other DoD stakeholders, and the Congress to implement the President’s guidance.”

The Pentagon will work on the basics of the Space Force and would have to brief Congress and have plans as to if creating a Space Force is even feasible, what the Space Force would do, who is going to be in it, and most importantly, how much is this going to cost.

Support for another service in Congress is mixed but right now it is probably safe to say, there will not be enough support in Congress to carry the necessary votes.

Trump’s directive goes counter what Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has stated publicly. In a letter Mattis wrote last year to Congress “At a time when we are trying to integrate the Department’s joint warfighting functions, I do not wish to add a separate service that would likely present a narrower and even parochial approach to space operations vice an integrated one we’re constructing under our current approach.”

The existing service chiefs are likely to be all against this move, specifically the Air Force. The decision is political rather than pragmatic as the chiefs don’t want to compete with another service for personnel, and for budgets. It is all about protecting their empires within. Currently, the Air Force considers space part of its domain.

And they have approximately 36,000 troops assigned to 134 world-wide bases to their Space Command, headquartered at Peterson AFB in Colorado. Their budget for their unclassified projects is expected to top $44.3 billion dollars.

The Air Force has the most to lose by creating a new sixth military service and would be forced to compete for pieces of space domain that it already enjoys. What of the bases and personnel that the Air Force is already using under Space Command? Do these get turned over to the new service or will the Pentagon build new facilities and start from scratch?

Each of the branches has their own space-based initiatives, albeit to differing degrees and they’ll be reluctant to give them up. Among them are the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC), Naval Network and Space Operations Command (NNSOC), Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), and U.S. Marine Corps Forces Strategic Command (MARFORSTRAT). The U.S. Missile Defense Agency would also likely be tied into a new service arrangement.

In a sign that the Air Force could have seen this scenario arising, the Air Force Space Command was stripped of its role overseeing the service’s computer warfare efforts. Those personnel were transferred from Colorado Springs to Virginia and was seen as a move to allow the Air Force to focus more on their space warfare roles.

So, while they lost 72 airmen and civilians, they are expected to get an additional 150 personnel to boost their ability to plan and conduct warfare in orbit.

This current program that is under consideration and one that the Chinese and Russians are supposedly heavily invested in is the militarization of space, specifically the weaponization of satellites. It is believed that the Russians and Chinese are developing lasers which can knock out satellites in space which can throw our entire economy into a sudden stop and destroy our ability to spy on our adversaries.

It wouldn’t necessarily be a very expensive move in creating a new service per se. Most of the programs that are already existing could be just transferred from the service where it now resides to the new Space Force. It would then have to be reorganized under a new Chain of Command. That’s where it will get expensive. A new command requires the level of bureaucracy to the nth degree. This would require a new service secretary and a new member of the Joint Chiefs. Included in that would be a new headquarters and all the bells and whistles where staff personnel shuffle paper and “coordinate” but offer little to the overall mission.

A new service academy will probably not be needed, the new service can draw from the existing service academies, which would be a cost-saving measure.

But Congress may come back to the President and simply say that they won’t fund it and want to keep the command under the Secretary of the Air Force under the auspices of the Department of the Air Force.

And what, pray tell will they be called. OSF? (Outer Space Forces), one thing they won’t be called, at least officially are “Space Cadets.”

So while the internet is awash with futuristic Star Wars, Star Trek et .al, type of uniforms that the new Space Force may be wearing, we’ll take a break on that and just wait and see if the new command actually comes to fruition.

However, if they do opt for a Star Trek inspired duty uniform, a word of warning. Don’t be that obscure guy from the engineering section (red uniform shirt), who beams down to Rigel 7 for a scouting party….

Photo: Star Trek

Afghan Taliban Resumes Fighting After 3-Day Cease-Fire Ends

The Taliban in Afghanistan wasted little time in their threat to resume fighting after a three-day cease-fire, attacking in nine provinces on Monday against government security forces. Despite the government’s overture to extend a unilateral cease-fire for 10 days.

“The cease-fire was violated in some parts of the country, during which 12 of our soldiers were martyred by Taliban,” Gen. Mohammad Radmanish, spokesperson for the Afghan defense minister, told VOA. “At least 30 Taliban insurgents were either killed or wounded during the skirmishes,” he said.
The Taliban had warned in a statement that the initial three-day cease-fire would end Sunday.
“The three days of cease-fire made it clear that the Afghan people are supporting the armistice and the peace process that is also backed internationally … We are looking forward to Taliban’s responding to it positively and ending the violence,” Shah Hussain Murtazawi, spokesperson for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, told VOA.
The NATO-led Resolute Support Mission and U.S. Forces-Afghanistan supported Ghani’s extension of the cease-fire with the Taliban and offer to begin peace talks.
While the Afghan government is still trying to bring the Taliban to the negotiation table, the insurgent group has once again called for direct talks with the United States.
“If the American officials believe in a peaceful end to the Afghan conflict, then they should present themselves at the table of direct talks so that the illusion of aggression be ended, which harms the Afghan and American people,” Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada said in a statement issued on June 12.
U.S. officials have always denied engaging in any talks with the Taliban; however, former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan James Cunningham said he believes the U.S. should talk with the Taliban but not exclude the Afghan government.
“I personally think we should talk to them. We have an obvious role to play in Afghanistan. We need to make clear to the Taliban what that role is, what our vision to the future is, but not at all to the exclusion of or instead of the Afghan government. They must talk to the Afghan government.” Cunningham told VOA.

The prospects for peace in Afghanistan remain slim, the Taliban have no real interest in sitting at the peace table because they feel they can win over the government. And without massive US-led coalition support, the government, they feel would collapse.

To read the entire article from Voice of America News, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 13, Day 4

Shoulders and back day in the gym before heading off to do the SOF (Special Operations Forces) Triathlon. A run, a rucksack march, and a swim with fatigues and boots. If you can do all three of these things well, you will have the inside track for most of the selection courses.

Training:

More Preparation for the UBRR:

3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, behind the neck (go as heavy as possible)

3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, front

3 x 10 Dumbbell Side Raises

3 x 10 Dumbbell Front Raises

3 x 10 Dumbbell Arnold Press

3 x 8 Shoulder Shrugs

3-mile Run (24 minutes maximum)

3-mile Rucksack march (45lb minimum, 45 minutes Maximum)

300-meter swim in fatigues and boots (no time limit)

Stretch well after completion

US Denies Responsibility For Airstrike on Iraqi/Syrian Border Units

Syrian state media said on Monday that an airstrike that targeted Syrian army positions along the Iraqi border was carried out by U.S.-led coalition aircraft causing deaths and injuries, but the U.S. military denied responsibility.

The attack took place in al-Harra, southeast of the town of Albu Kamal, state news agency SANA said, citing a military source. SANA said the attack caused an unspecified number of deaths and injuries.
A commander in the alliance fighting alongside Damascus told Reuters that drones that were “probably American” had bombed the positions of Iraqi factions between Albu Kamal and Tanf, as well as Syrian military positions.
The commander, who is not Syrian and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the strike had killed and injured some Iraqi fighters but he did not give any numbers.
Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces, a grouping of mostly Iran-backed Shi’ite paramilitaries, said a U.S. air strike on the Iraqi border with Syria killed 22 of its members and wounded 12 others.
“At 22:00 last night a U.S. plane hit a fixed headquarters of the Popular Mobilization Forces’ 45th and 46th brigades defending the border strip with Syria, using two guided missiles which led to the martyrdom of 22 fighters,” it said in a statement.
It demanded an explanation from the United States.
An Iraqi military statement later said no Popular Mobilization Forces or other Iraqi troops tasked with securing the Iraqi-Syrian border had been hit by the air strike, and it had taken place inside Syria.

The United States has about 5200 troops in Iraq including Special Operations troops and air assets that are battling Islamic State (ISIS) militants and have Special Operations troops in Syria supporting Syrian Arab and Kurdish militia fighting Islamic State militants there as well.

“No member of the U.S.-led coalition carried out strikes near Albu Kamal,” Major Josh Jacques, spokesman for the U.S. Central Command said.

To read the entire article from Reuters, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

US Cancels August Military Drill With South Korea, Kim Visits China

The United States has canceled a major joint exercise with South Korea as a sign of good faith with the summit meeting with North Korea. Meanwhile, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Beijing on Tuesday, where he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“Consistent with President Trump’s commitment and in concert with our Republic of Korea ally, the United States military has suspended all planning for this August’s defensive ‘wargame’,” Pentagon spokesperson Dana White, said in a statement.

“The South Korean and U.S. military authorities have been having close consultations over the combined exercises that U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will stop,” South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported.

The suspension of the military exercises reportedly will include a clause to resume the exercises if North Korea stops bargaining in good faith.

This is Kim’s third trip to China this year, coming a week after he met Trump in Singapore for historic talks.
Trump agreed to work with Kim toward complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, committed to provide the North’s regime with security guarantees and pledged to end “war games”, which Pyongyang and Beijing have long seen as provocative.
South Korea and the Pentagon announced they would halt the annual Freedom Guardian military drill scheduled for August.
In an unusual move, Chinese state media announced Kim’s visit and said he would stay for two days. Previously China would only confirm Kim had visited after he had left the country.

While critics of Trump are saying that he conceded these exercises with no assurances, they should recall that at the request of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis postponed the start of the Foal Eagle air, sea and land exercises prior to the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in South Korea.

To read the entire article from Reuters, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 13, Day 3

Tuesdays are always our Leg Day at the gym followed by a 5-mile run. Begin with pull-ups, then squats, lunges, and the sled or Fireman’s carry followed by a 5-mile run.

You must build up your legs to carry you thru the course and beyond. Those are the muscles that tote the rucksack to the nth degree both in the course and in the Regiment. Stay hydrated and log your time in your workout notebook.

Training:

Continue to prep for the UBRR

3 x Pullups 10 reps

3 x Towel pull-ups 10 reps if no climbing ropes are available

3 x Front Squat 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)

3 x Goblet Squats 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)

3 x 10 Deadlifts

4 x Sled push heavier weight (or Fireman’s Carry)

3 x 10 reps Dumbbell Lunges

3 x 20 Side Planks

5-Mile run (40-minute maximum)

Stretch well after completion

Assad Says He’s Open to Allowing Iranian Bases in Southern Syria

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has stated that he’s open to having an Iranian presence in the southern area of Syria and blamed the U.S. and Israel for supporting “terrorists”. The interview on Iranian-funded, Arabic news channel Al-Alam, also stated that Syria will make the final decision and not anyone else.

The interview started with questions about southern Syria, which has become contentious and a source of media speculation regarding stories about the possibility of Russia-Israel negotiations to block Iranians from having a presence anywhere in that area. Assad said the choice in the south has been the same as all over: Either make peace with the armed groups or “resort to force.” He blamed Israel and the United States for supporting what he called “terrorists” and for the lack of an agreement so far.
When asked specifically about any deal regarding Iran in southern Syria, Assad said relations between the two countries are “strategic and will not be influenced by issues relating to the north or the south.” He said Saudi Arabia has repeatedly conveyed to him that if he were to cut ties with Tehran, the situation in the country “would return back to normal,” but he said he is not going to “trade away” ties with Iran.
Assad also said the deal to have Iranians not be involved in operations in the south was an Israeli pitch. Assad said he viewed the possibility of a deal as part of an anti-Iranian propaganda, and that any deal regarding Iran would be made between the two countries and no one else.
Regarding Israeli strikes on Syria and the possibility of a Syrian response, Assad said Syria would always respond within the framework of its possibilities. However, he said the best response to Israeli strikes was to hit back at forces inside Syria who were receiving Israeli support and who he accused of “clearly taking actions in favor of Israeli interests.”
Regarding reports about differences within the coalition of Syria, Iran and Russia, Assad first said that relations between Iran and Syria have been stable for 40 years. He added that Syria has had relations of varying degrees with Russia for seven decades. On the issue of differences, Assad said it is natural to have differences on “daily tactical” issues, but these differences are resolved through negotiations between the sides involved.
Questioned as to why Iranian and Syrian officials typically refer to Iranians in Syria as “advisers” (media reports show that a large number of Iranians have been killed in battle), Assad said the term “adviser” is a general term. He said there are Iranian advisers and also Iranian volunteers. He said that when these “advisers” enter a battle, they become “fighters.” However, he indicated that what is meant by “advisers” is that there are no Iranian units fighting in Syria— meaning no battalions, brigades or divisions.

Assad mentioned that Iran has not requested a permanent base in Syria and that he hopes to visit Tehran soon.

To read the entire article from AI Monitor, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 13, Day 2

A quick workout to start the day and week off right. Start off with the basics of pushups, sit-ups, and crunches, then to the bar for V-ups, pull-ups, and dips before a 5-mile run (40 minutes or less) in a UBRR prep workout.

Remember to stay hydrated and mark your progress in your workout log book.

Training:

More preparation for the UBRR

2 x 20 Pushups

3 x 20 Sit-ups

3 x 20, Crunches

1 x 1-minute, V-ups

3 x 10 Dips (or to muscle failure)

3 x 10 Pullups as many as possible or to muscle failure (No time limit)

5-mile run (40 minutes maximum)

Stretch well after completion, mark your progress in your workout log book.