Curated news, analysis, and commentary on special operations, intelligence, irregular warfare, national defense, and global conflicts.

Photo / Image: U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the U.S. Army Special Warfare Center and School take part in a stress event during the Maritime Assessment Course at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, April 9, 2026. The course prepares candidates for the Special Forces Combat Diver Qualification Course by building water confidence, endurance, and proficiency under sustained physical and psychological stress. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Landon Carter)

Executive Summary

This weekly briefing summarizes developments in special operations forces (SOF), global conflicts, intelligence, and national security from the past week. The Iran situation has reached a stalemate – no talks, Iran imposes their blockade, the U.S. imposes its blockade, the economic fallout is hitting Iran hard and affecting the global economy as well. The attritional war in Ukraine continues, with Russia sustaining heavy casualties for marginal territorial gains. Ukraine continues to rapidly develop new technologies for drone warfare and Russia is quick to copy. The A-10 lives for a while longer, the DoD FY27 Defense budget (huge!) has been submitted, Navy Secretary fired, the Global Terrorism Index is out (PDF and map), and some interesting videos.

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Key Outlooks

• A-10 “Warthog” Extended to 2030
• Two CIA Personnel Killed in Mexico
• Ukraine Conflict remains Highly Attritional
• Russian SOF Units Sustain Heavy Losses in Ukraine
• Eric Wendt to be Ambassador
• Rangers win Best Sapper competition
• Iran–U.S. conflict remains in a Sustained S
• Iran-U.S. Talks Off in Islamabad
• Tragedy for our Afghan allies