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Archive: 2016

Retired Hall of Fame football coach Lou Holtz gives a motivational speech to service members assigned to U.S. Central Command. Holtz, 79, achieved notoriety for his time coaching at the University of Notre Dame and the University of South Carolina. (CENTCOM photo by Sgt. Jordan Belser)

June 21, 2016

Hall of Fame coach visits CENTCOM

Former University of Notre Dame and University of South Carolina head coach Lou Holtz spoke to service members and government civilians at U.S. Central Command headquarters yesterday.

A New Zealand soldier with Task Group Taji, confirms a serial number on an M16 rifle during the distribution of equipment purchased through the Iraqi Train and Equip Fund at Camp Taji, Iraq, earlier this year. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Kalie Jones)

June 21, 2016

Carter praises New Zealand, Poland for anti-ISIL efforts

Defense Secretary Ash Carter released statements last night welcoming decisions by two coalition nations that he said would accelerate the effort to bring about a lasting defeat to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

A 40th Combat Aviation Brigade Apache sits on the flightline at Forward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan. (Army photo by Staff Sgt. Ian M. Kummer)

June 16, 2016

Carter announces more U.S. support for Afghan forces

U.S. forces in Afghanistan now will be able to boost support for Afghan conventional forces with more firepower and by accompanying and advising them on the ground and in the air, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said this morning in Brussels.

An Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crewed by Soldiers from Arkansas and West Virginia’s 1st Battalion, 104th Aviation Regiment, 40th Combat Aviation Brigade, lands at Forward Operating Base Dahlke, Afghanistan, May 19, 2016. (Army photo by Staff Sgt. Ian Kummer)

June 14, 2016

40th CAB joins the fight in Afghanistan

Soldiers from the 40th Combat Aviation Brigade re-deployed from Camp Buehring, Kuwait to Forward Operating Base Dahlke, Afghanistan in May, 2016.

Female Zeravani soldiers, who are a branch of the Peshmerga, attend a three-week basic infantry skills course intended to improve their tactical knowledge to aid in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jessica Hurst)

June 9, 2016

Local forces restricting ISIL movement in Iraq, Syria

Local forces in Iraq and Syria are pressuring the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant at multiple points on the battlefield, restricting the terrorist army’s mobility and options, the Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman said Wednesday.

A Peshmerga soldier practices aiming down his sights while wearing a chemical protective mask during a chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear class at a base near Erbil, Iraq, May 25, 2016. As part of a 10-week basic infantry course, CBRN training is provided to Peshmerga soldiers to aid in the fight against ISIL. (Army Photo by Spc. Jaquan P. Turnbow)

June 7, 2016

Carter seeks harder push against ISIL

Though significant progress that is being achieved, Defense Secretary Ash Carter wants to push harder in the campaign to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook told reporters Monday.

An Afghan Air Force pilot powers down an Mi-17 helicopter as a Train Advise Assist Command-Air Mi-17 Air Advisor looks out a cockpit window after a training mission at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, earlier this ye. Members of the 441st Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron at KAF worked with AAF pilots on take-off, landing and emergency procedures. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys)

June 1, 2016

Afghan forces make slow, steady gains, Resolute Support official says

The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces are making slow and steady progress, giving them momentum for an expected tough fight ahead, Army Brig. Gen. Charles H. Cleveland said Wednesday in Kabul.

U.S. Army Gen. Joseph L. Votel, Commander, United States Central Command speaks with a A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey during a visit on May 23, 2016.

May 27, 2016

U.S. A-10s, tankers fly Syria missions 24/7 from Incirlik

In a hangar off the flightline at Incirlik Air Base in southeastern Turkey, Army Gen. Joseph L. Votel -- accompanied by 447th Air Expeditionary Group Commander Air Force Col. Sean McCarthy -- greeted representatives from a Marine Corps EA-6 Prowler Squadron, a KC-135 tanker crew and several aircraft maintainers.

U.S. Army Gen. Joseph Votel Commander of U.S. Central Command, meets with U.S. Marine Sgt. Maj. Clifford Wiggins, 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, and members of the Jordanian Armed Forces during Exercise Eager Lion 16 near Amman, Jordan on May 22, 2016.

May 23, 2016

Votel: Eager Lion 16 highlights U.S.-Jordan force integration

The most critical element of Eager Lion, U.S. Central Command’s largest military exercise in its area of responsibility, is the great integration between Jordanian and U.S. forces, Army Gen. Joseph L. Votel said here Sunday.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter meets with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, second from right, in Davos, Switzerland, earlier this year. (DoD photo by Army Sgt. 1st Class Clydell Kinchen)

May 23, 2016

President, Defense Secretary comment on death of Taliban leader

President Barack Obama Monday confirmed the death of Taliban leader Akhtar Mohammad Mansur, who was targeted May 21 by a U.S. airstrike near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.