Maggie Ybarra

Benghazi suspect will face civilian court

The Obama administration is looking at expediting the movement of Ahmed Abu Khatallah, the suspected ringleader of the 2012 Benghazi attacks, onto U.S. soil from the Navy ship where he is currently being held in the Mediterranean Sea, Defense Department officials said Thursday.

Obama to send 300 special ops forces to Iraq

President Obama said Thursday that he is sending up to 300 military advisers to Iraq to aid in the urgent fight against advancing Sunni militants, ramping up U.S. involvement in the country less than three years after he withdrew all American troops.

Fellow soldiers testify Bowe Bergdahl endangered lives

The Obama administration mishandled the process of retrieving Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was captured by the Taliban after allegedly deserting his comrades at an outpost in Afghanistan, according to a former member of the captured soldier's unit and the father of a soldier who died during initial searches for the sergeant in 2009.

Two Iraqi divisions dissolved, Gen. Dempsey tells Senate panel

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told lawmakers Wednesday that two entire Iraqi military divisions — roughly 60,000 troops — once trained by U.S. soldiers, simply dissolved in northern Iraq last week and in some cases even joined forces with advancing Sunni extremists militants in the nation.

Pentagon: Benghazi suspect in U.S. custody

U.S. Special Forces captured one of the suspected ringleaders of the deadly terrorist attacks in Benghazi in a secret raid in Libya, Obama administration officials said Tuesday, prompting praise for the military operation and fueling a debate over the prisoner's legal status.

Pentagon, State Dept. at odds over coordinating with Iran on Iraq crisis

The Pentagon is pushing back against a State Department assertion that there is the potential for a military coordination with Iran to help Iraq combat violent al Qaeda-inspired Sunni extremists.

U.S. upping drone missions in Iraq to combat insurgency

The Pentagon is increasing the number of missions U.S. drones are flying over Iraq to at least once a day in response to this week's surge in the nation by al Qaeda-inspired Sunni extremists, a senior Defense Department official said Friday.

Bowe Bergdahl returns to U.S. Friday

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was imprisoned by the Taliban and Haqqani network in Afghanistan and Pakistan five years and has been at a hospital in Germany for the past two weeks, will return to the United States on Friday, a senior Pentagon official said.

Bergdahl discharged from Coast Guard before joining Army: memo

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was discharged from the U.S. Coast Guard prior to joining the Army, according to a Coast Guard memo to Congress that sheds new light on the career back story of the soldier at the center of the controversial five-for-one U.S.-Taliban prisoner swap.

Air Force misses crucial deadline in base consolidation plan

A fast-tracked plan to consolidate Air Force base support functions has hit a significant bump, with planners missing a crucial deadline to rollout the cost-cutting proposal to members of Congress amid heated opposition from the service's top generals.

Portsmouth Navy base on lockdown after stabbing

A naval hospital in Portsmouth, Virginia, is on lockdown while security forces search for a man who is suspected of stabbing a military member on base.

Taiwanese resist U.S. system to detect Chinese missiles, officials say

A delegation of high-level Taiwanese diplomats said Thursday that many of their own people oppose a major trade deal with mainland China, and also made a rare public acknowledgment of rising domestic resistance to U.S. pressure to expand a radar system for detecting long-range missile threats from Beijing.

Chinese military growing in size and reach, Pentagon report shows

Away from the Chinese military's expanding capabilities in cyberspace and electronic warfare, Beijing is growing the size and reach of its naval fleet, advancing its air force and testing a host of new missiles, the Pentagon said Thursday.

VA suspected of punishing whistleblowers

The U.S. Office of Special Counsel is investigating allegations of whistleblower reprisal from more than 30 Department of Veterans Affairs employees.

Hagel to testify on Hill on Bergdahl deal

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has been called to testify at a House hearing next week on the controversial swap of five leading Taliban fighters for captured U.S. Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl last week.

Bowe Bergdahl back on U.S. soil as soon as Thursday

Pentagon officials said Tuesday that Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl could be transferred from a hospital in Germany to San Antonio, Texas, as early as Thursday.

Pentagon lets first contract for space debris ‘fence’

Air Force wants funding for Afghan drone, jet program

The Pentagon is seeking permanent funding for a fleet of communications drone and modified business jets to aid U.S. troops operating in the mountains of Afghanistan in the coming years.

Plans unveiled for new ‘space taxi’ to transport U.S. astronauts

A fledgling space company has announced its plan for using a "space taxi" to shuttle NASA astronauts back and forth to the International Space Station.

Pentagon to use drones to speed response times

Pentagon officials monitoring combat zones and sensitive hot spots like Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya will soon have access to a breakthrough technology that will enable them to quickly decide how to react to an unexpected uprising or a dangerous embassy breach.