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"Acting U.S. defense chief Patrick Shanahan on Friday called on allies to expand efforts against the Islamic State globally, even as the U.S. plans to withdraw its troops from Syria."

"Senators from both political parties on Thursday praised the military’s cyber force for helping secure last year’s midterm elections, with one suggesting it was largely due to U.S. Cyber Command that the Russians failed to affect the 2018 vote."

"The militias have transformed themselves into a potent government institution, political entity and economic player whose strong ties to Iran are likely to complicate U.S. foreign policy in the region."

The Islamic State’s physical territory has dwindled to a ramshackle camp only a few square kilometers wide in eastern Syria’s Deir Ez Zor province. But as the so-called caliphate’s end nears, questions remain about what will become of the roughly 1,000 ISIS fighters who have been detained by U.S. troops and local allies.

Tensions appear to be surfacing between Russia and Turkey just hours into a three-way summit on the Syrian conflict being hosted in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. According to Kremlin spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Russia has told Turkey it lacked authorization to create a "safe zone" inside Syria without the express consent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

"President Trump plans to sign the spending bill that Congress was set to pass later Thursday and will then declare a national emergency to get more funding for border barriers, the White House said."

"A massive bomb exploded on a highway in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Thursday, killing more than 30 Indian security personnel, according to police. The death toll makes it the worst militant attack in the restive region since the conflict began in 1989."

"Hundreds of people have trudged out of the Islamic State’s last stronghold since Tuesday, surrendering to U.S.-backed forces before their final assault to capture the only village still in the militants’ hands.

"House lawmakers approved a measure to block all U.S. forces and equipment from involvement in the ongoing civil war in Yemen, in an effort to stop American forces from assisting Saudi Arabia in the hostilities there."

"With Iran continuing to entrench itself throughout the Middle East, Israel might have to consider expanding it’s covert war against the Islamic republic over the next year in order to prevent harm to the Jewish State."

"Government-sanctioned torture isn’t unusual in conflict-scarred countries where authoritarian regimes fear popular uprisings and armed rebels. What makes Mamadou’s case unique is the group he says tortured him: Russian soldiers. The U.N. is now investigating allegations of torture at the hands of Russians in the CAR based on Manadou’s account, AFP reported."

"The House on Wednesday passed a resolution to end U.S. military support for the Saudi-led coalition operating in Yemen, a repudiation of President Trump’s continued cooperation with and defense of the kingdom and its crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman."

“It’s really a misleading narrative to say that optimization is causing us to walk away from Africa,” Gen. Waldhauser said in an interview.

"Al Qaeda, the Islamic State, Boko Haram, the Taliban, and many similar groups define success as being accepted or at least tolerated by Sunni populations. These groups are part of the global Salafi-jihadist movement and believe they must impose a form of Islam, Salafism, upon the Muslim world, and eventually the entire world, through jihad. The number of Sunni under their governance has always been their principal metric of success."

"U.S.-backed forces are closing in on Islamic State fighters in their last stronghold in eastern Syria. Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led anti-IS coalition, said Monday they have recaptured more territory around the town of Baghuz in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour."

"Acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan highlighted the U.S. commitment to Iraqi autonomy during talks in Baghdad on Tuesday, in the wake of comments from President Trump that have jeopardized plans for an ongoing counterterrorism presence there."

"An investigation by the independent Government Accountability Project exposes accusations that a hidden network of corruption cost U.S. taxpayers billions."

"The trial of Joaquín Guzmán Loera, and his conviction Tuesday on drug-smuggling charges, brought to an end the decadeslong career of the notorious “El Chapo.” It also revealed in remarkable detail the inner workings of the criminal empire he built, one that rivaled governments and multinational companies in its power and sophistication."

"In an interview, Afghanistan’s first female ambassador to Washington sets a hard line for Taliban peace talks."

Important work remains to be done in Afghanistan, Acting Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan told reporters traveling with him while en route on his first trip to the country Feb. 10. “I have not been directed to step down our forces in Afghanistan,” Shanahan said.

Ellis Domenech at The Federalist - "American men and women are still being sent to far-off lands, under-trained and under-equipped, to fight in conflicts that have little congressional oversight and little payoff for U.S. strategy."

"Details about the U.S. withdrawal from Syria remain sketchy. But whatever Washington ultimately decides to do, Trump’s announcement marked a cruel turn for Kurds across the Middle East."

"The Pentagon’s top official assured Afghanistan’s government on Monday that the U.S. wouldn’t desert the country’s security forces, the Afghan Defense Ministry said, signaling American support for the jittery government while the U.S. holds talks with the Taliban to end the country’s 17-year war."

"Key lawmakers said late Monday they had reached a tentative agreement over immigration rules and funding for border barriers, a deal that if signed by President Trump would avert another government shutdown set to start at week’s end."

"Winning in Afghanistan may not be an available option, but losing certainly is, and a precipitous departure, no matter how rationalized, would mean choosing to lose."