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US Navy destroyer fires on cargo vessel attempting to sail to Iranian port
The USS Spruance "disabled Touska’s propulsion by firing several rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch MK 45 Gun into Touska’s engine room," CENTCOM stated.
US Marine Corps releases video showcasing new Medium Landing Ship design
The service's new Medium Landing Ship is designed to move troops, equipment and supplies to shorelines without relying on established ports.
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Defense News is covering the evolving military, strategic, and regional implications of tensions and operations involving Iran.
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Read up on tips and tricks in Military Times’ 2025 Permanent Change of Station Guide.
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Learn how your military benefits — including health care, retirement pay and more — have changed in 2025.
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Military History
This WWI soldier saved two men from a burning tank with his bare hands
With his green unit "loaned" to the Australians, Reidar Waaler proved that bravery made up for lack of battle experience.
Trump clears path for expanded psychedelic research to treat veterans’ PTSD
The order commits at least $50 million in federal funds to boost research on ibogaine, a powerful hallucinogen.
After watchdog slams understaffing, AI to vet Pentagon-backed professors’ China ties
AI’s confusion over the nature of DOD research partnerships may mask real espionage if humans are not the final judge of foreign influence, experts warn.
Unregulated prediction market may endanger US national security, experts and lawmakers warn
With how futures markets are structured, officials could place bets anonymously and influence combat operations to ensure they get a payout, experts say.
In other news
Opinion
How chest-thumping rhetoric erodes service member safety
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's brash rhetoric is profoundly destabilizing for actively-serving military families, this military spouse argues.
Sailor reportedly finds dead rat in finished energy drink
The sailor said medical personnel informed him, “with the chemicals that are in Monster, that it should be OK.”
That time the Air Force proposed making a ‘gay bomb’
The Air Force once explored the idea of a chemical weapon that would make enemy soldiers sexually irresistible to one another — striking a blow to morale.
Master Chief actor condemns use of character in White House’s Iran war hype video
“I demand that the producers of this disgusting and juvenile war porn remove my voice immediately,” Steve Downes wrote in a post on X.
‘War Machine’ review: Finally, a training scenario with aliens
The sci-fi flick raises the premise: What if the final phase of U.S. Army Ranger selection suddenly involved fighting a giant alien robot?
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Beating UAV threats starts with time—and better radar
Leonardo DRS explains how radar range and speed are critical to countering UAV threats.
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Suicide rates among military families continue to climb
The total overall number decreased, a drop that coincides with smaller overall force numbers.
By Patricia Kime
Amid focus on Strait of Hormuz, experts sound warning on Yemen’s Houthis and Red Sea
Foreign policy experts warn that the strait is not the only potential choke point that Iran and its proxies could leverage amid the war.
By Tanya Noury
Bill from vets in Congress would keep military roles open to women
The bill, which lacks Republican sponsors, is explicitly described as a response to the Pentagon review of women in ground combat roles.
By Hope Hodge Seck
100-year-old B-17 turret gunner knighted by France
Phillip “Bruce” Cook flew 35 missions as a ball turret gunner in a B-17 Flying Fortress, tasked with fighting for air supremacy over occupied Europe.
Pentagon’s women-in-combat review reassigned; deadline extended
A Pentagon-ordered review on the effectiveness of women in combat is now under new management, Military Times has learned.
Marines win top sniper competition
Two Marine snipers brought home the top prize at this year’s International Sniper Competition in a rare win for the Corps.
By Eve Sampson
Vietnam veteran’s gravestone somber reminder of war’s toll
The gravestone is evidence that Vietnam veteran Eugene “Gene” Marion Simmers carried the burden of decades-long grief and trauma.
US blockade of Iran will be major military endeavor, experts say
The U.S. military has not offered basic details yet about the blockade, including how many U.S. warships will enforce it.
By Phil Stewart
US Navy to blockade Strait of Hormuz ‘effective immediately,’ Trump says
“Any Iranian who fires at us, or at peaceful vessels, will be BLOWN TO HELL!” the president wrote on Sunday.
By Saad Sayeed, Asif Shahzad and Mubasher Bukhari, Reuters
US military begins clearing Strait of Hormuz, Trump says
Reports emerged Saturday about the presence of U.S. Navy ships in the strait.
By Reuters
The only Navy Seabee awarded the nation’s highest award for valor
The early, brutal battle to protect a Special Forces camp near Dong Xoai changed the course of the Vietnam War. Marvin Shields gave his all in its defense.
By Jon Guttman
Pentagon, FAA sign agreement on deploying anti-drone laser system near Mexico
The agreement came after the FAA conducted testing in New Mexico on the laser system used by the Pentagon and Homeland Security Department.
By David Shepardson, Reuters
‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ finds a new voice
Despite its nearly century of resonance with readers, “All Quiet on the Western Front” has only been translated twice — until now.
Sailor reportedly finds dead rat in finished energy drink
The sailor said medical personnel informed him, “with the chemicals that are in Monster, that it should be OK.”
By J.D. Simkins
That time the Air Force proposed making a ‘gay bomb’
The Air Force once explored the idea of a chemical weapon that would make enemy soldiers sexually irresistible to one another — striking a blow to morale.
Trump weighs pulling some US troops from Europe amid NATO strains, official says
U.S. President Donald Trump has discussed with advisers the option of removing some U.S. troops from Europe, a senior White House official told Reuters.
By Gram Slattery and Steve Holland, Reuters