Military
821 Articles
A Wider Talent Pool Means a Stronger Marine Corps: A Response to Rep. Hunter
In a January 8 interview with Politico, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) asserted that Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus’s support for opening all combat roles in the Marine Corps…
Let’s Start Calling Combat Combat
On Tuesday, a Special Forces soldier died and two others were injured in a skirmish with Taliban fighters near Marjah in the Helmand province of southern Afghanistan. Al Asad air…
“Expansion” or contraction?: The case of Special Operations forces in the Middle East
In today’s New York Times, Mark Mazzetti and Eric Schmitt have a very interesting and informative story about President Obama’s use of Special Operations Forces in the U.S.…
Serial Angst
I’m one of the many who loved the first season of Serial — the Peabody Award-winning podcast spun off from NPR’s This American Life. It wasn’t just that the case of Adnan…
Add Women and Stir? Women in the Military
At a midday Press Conference in the Pentagon Briefing Room, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter unexpectedly announced that that the Pentagon will open all combat jobs to women. He…
Abstention and the “Other” D.C. Circuit Military Commission Appeal
Lots of attention has been focused both here and elsewhere in recent days on tomorrow’s en banc oral argument before the D.C. Circuit in “Al Bahlul IV,” which makes a lot…
Foreign Fighters, Mercenaries, and Private Military Companies Under International Law
Editor’s Note: This is the third post in a miniseries about the International Committee of the Red Cross’s newly released Report on International Humanitarian Law and the Challenges…
The Mavi Marmara Appeal: The ICC Prosecutor Wins by Losing
This post is the latest installment of our “Monday Reflections” feature, in which a different Just Security editor examines the big stories from the previous week or looks…
McCain’s Hearing Threat and the Bergdahl Court-Martial
Last month, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, stated his opinion that Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who is currently facing charges before a…
Congress: Troops to Syria Means It’s Time (Finally) to Act
News that the United States has sent its first — albeit “fewer than 50” — troops to fight ISIS in Syria highlights once again the need for a new authorization to use military…
Too Much Posturing and Not Enough Substance on Encryption
Obama administration officials revealed late last week that will not force technology firms to weaken digital encryption to give government greater access to user data. This is…
Public Access to Military Trials: The Increasingly Strange Case of Sergeant Bergdahl
I still don’t know what to make of the government’s case against Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl (of Taliban detainee transfer fame) for charges of desertion and misbehavior before…