Agence France-Presse Libya’s United Nations-backed prime minister, Fayez al-Sarraj, has appealed to Italy to send ships into Libyan territorial waters to combat human trafficking. Sarraj sent a letter requesting that “the Italian government provide the technical support of Italian naval units in the joint struggle in Libyan waters against human traffickers.” Then-Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said the Ministry of Defense was considering the request, and “the options will be discussed with the Libyan authorities and the Italian Parliament.” Should Italy respond positively, “as I believe is necessary, it could be a very important development in the fight against people…
The Watch
Nepalese, U.S. partners share cold facts about high-altitude operations THE WATCH Staff When the doors finally opened after a 2½-hour air mission, 128 paratroopers braced for the jump of their lives.They were jumping from an altitude of about 400 meters into an Arctic no man’s land — a place called Deadhorse, Alaska — wearing more than 90 kilograms of kit that included snowshoes, weapons and supplies. “As the paratroopers exit, it’s [minus 76 Celsius] for 2 1/2 seconds until their chute opens,” said Maj. Gen. Bryan Owens, then commanding general of U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK). “Once their chute opens, it’s…
Joint forces view multi-domain battle as key to future success THE WATCH Staff Global proliferation of advanced military technology has eroded to some degree the advantage the U.S. and its military partners have held for decades, allowing adversaries to threaten use of the air, sea, land, space and cyberspace domains. U.S. commanders and their allies and partners, however, envision a different battlefield. It’s a battlefield where navies protect land forces and armies sink ships. It’s a battlefield concept that invokes every operating domain potentially all at once. The name for this technological and philosophical leap into 21st century warfighting is…
CBRN Response Force is always ready THE WATCH Staff It’s a nightmare scenario: A 10-kiloton nuclear device is detonated at the entrance to New York City’s Lincoln Tunnel. It could kill thousands, cause widespread panic and cut off much of the city from outside help. The attack is almost unimaginable, but the job of the Defense CBRN Response Force (DCRF) is to imagine it and figure out how to save the most people and minimize the damage. Created in 1999, the DCRF is a national joint task force designed to respond to a catastrophic attack involving chemical, biological, radioactive or…
A regional conference and friendly Pentagon cyber sleuths help bolster security THE WATCH Staff Safeguarding against cyber attacks is critical to the defense of any nation. Innovation is key as enemy tactics evolve and technological advances reveal new vulnerabilities. That’s why the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) launched the “Hack the Pentagon” program, a bold initiative to shore up cyber defenses. Launched in 2016, the program was the first of its kind for the federal government. It empowers individuals to hunt for bugs and vulnerabilities in DOD websites available to the public. “We know that state-sponsored actors and black-hat hackers…
Brian D. Laslie, Ph.D. It is always treacherous to ask a historian when an event began or ended. “It depends” will likely be the answer. Take, for example, the beginning of World War II. Americans might use the date December 7, 1941. Many in Europe would say September 1, 1939, or even January 30, 1933, when Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany. Again, “it depends” largely on where and when an event began for “us.” The same is true for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). NORAD’s official birthday is May 12, 1958, the date the United States…