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Maggie Ybarra

Maggie Ybarra

mybarra@washingtontimes.com

Maggie Ybarra is a former military affairs and Pentagon correspondent for The Washington Times.

Articles by Maggie Ybarra

Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., addresses the Republican Leadership Conference at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Mich.  (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, FILE)

Expansion of visa waiver program raises security fears

Congress is considering the expansion of a visa waiver program that would let people from more countries travel to the U.S. freely, despite security concerns and proposals that those countries include nations that support the U.S.-led war against the Islamic State.

March 17, 2015
Iraqi security forces clashes with Islamic State extremists at the front line in Qadisiyah neighborhood in Tikrit, 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, March 12, 2015. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed) ** FILE **

U.S. soldier gets wounded at Iraqi training site

A U.S. soldier has been wounded at a training site in Iraq after an unknown individual fired upon him with a small arms weapon — marking the first time a member of the U.S. military has been injured in a multinational war against the Islamic State.

March 13, 2015
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh III testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015, before the Senate Armed Services Committee. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf) ** FILE **

Drone pilot pool grows after Air Force sounds alarm

The pool of drone pilots who have been spying on Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East and keeping tabs on Boko Haram militants who have been kidnapping schoolgirls and killing Christians in northern Africa is starting to expand.

March 11, 2015
Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey arrive on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2015, to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing to review the defense authorization request for fiscal 2016 and the future years defense program.   (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Pentagon starts inquiry into Iraq war-plan briefing

The Pentagon has launched an internal inquiry into a military official who briefed reporters in detail on the strategy that Iraqi forces planned to use to free Mosul, Iraq, from the grip of Islamic State militants.

March 3, 2015
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper prepares to testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015, before the Senate Armed Services Committee to deliver the annual assessment by intelligence agencies of the top dangers facing the country.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Egypt gearing up for major attack on militants in Libya

The Egyptian military is preparing to attack Islamic State militants operating in Libya for a second time just as U.S. military leaders are seeking an expanded mandate to stamp out the extremist group in any country where its members reside.

March 2, 2015
Afghan National Police officers march during a graduation ceremony at a training center in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. (Associated Press)

U.S. military helps Afghan National Police recruit, train women

Saying the effort plays a key role in the battle against Taliban insurgents, U.S. military and Afghan officials are moving ahead with the latest phase of a cash and training plan to recruit more women to serve in Afghanistan's national police force.

March 1, 2015
Reinforcement Afghan police officers pose together as they are expected to go for recapturing the village of Wanat in Nuristan province, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday July 17, 2008. U.S. and Afghan troops have abandoned a remote outpost in eastern Afghanistan where militants killed nine American soldiers earlier this week, officials said Wednesday. (AP Photo)

U.S. ramps up program women cops in Afghanistan

U.S. military and Afghan officials are moving ahead with the next phase of a cash-and-training plan to recruit more women to serve in Afghanistan’s national police force.

March 1, 2015
James R. Clapper (Associated Press/File)

James Clapper: Libya a ‘magnet’ for terrorism

The U.S. spy chief says the intelligence community has cast a wary eye on "troublesome" Libya and may work hand-in-hand with France to track terrorists who are strengthening their grip in the region.

February 26, 2015