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"A federal judge on Thursday greatly reduced the sentences of three former Blackwater security contractors, in the latest development from a complex case dating back to the 2007 shootings of unarmed civilians in Baghdad."

"U.S. flags fluttered on the back of coalition armored vehicles as they whizzed past tiny hamlets in northeastern Syria. Once part of the sprawling territories controlled by the Islamic State group, the areas are now under threat of an attack from Turkey, which considers these villages’ liberators, the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish-led forces, to be terrorists."

"President Trump’s decision to break off peace talks with the Taliban, at least for now, left Afghanistan bracing for a bloody prelude to national elections this month, while the administration declined on Sunday to rule out a withdrawal of American troops without a peace accord."

"The move stemmed from opposing views within his administration and bipartisan criticism of an emerging deal to withdraw U.S. troops."

"Even as President Trump blamed a recent Taliban attack for his decision to call off nearly yearlong negotiations with the insurgents, officials suggested on Sunday it had more to do with the Taliban’s resistance to the American terms for a peace deal, and a rushed plan for a Camp David summit meeting."

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that President Donald Trump "made the right decision" to call off peace talks with Taliban leaders at his presidential retreat because of the terrorist group's on-going attacks in Afghanistan.

"Days after Sudanese soldiers massacred pro-democracy demonstrators in Khartoum in June, an obscure digital marketing company in Cairo began deploying keyboard warriors to a second front: a covert operation to praise Sudan’s military on social media."

"President Trump said Saturday he called off a planned Camp David summit with Taliban leaders and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani after a Taliban bomb attack in Kabul killed an American soldier."

Officials in Afghanistan Saturday announced that security forces have recaptured a key northeastern district from the Taliban after five years, as heavy clashes raged in provinces elsewhere in Afghanistan.

"Prospective trip by President Ghani represents government’s latest effort to shape the draft withdrawal agreement."

"The announcement in late August that three important former leaders of the demobilized FARC were returning to war did not only threaten the fragile Colombian peace agreement but raised questions about the power the ex-FARC Mafia have in neighboring Venezuela."

"Relentless, deadly attacks by the Taliban, including a car bombing Thursday that killed a U.S. service member, are testing President Donald Trump’s resolve to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and end what he has called America’s 'endless' war."

"The Afghan government is pushing back against American diplomats on the eve of a troop withdrawal deal with the Taliban, concerned that the proposed agreement lacks assurances that the insurgents will honor their promises once American troops leave."

NATO-led military alliance says an American soldier and a Romanian soldier were killed “in action” Thursday in Kabul, Afghanistan, raising the number of U.S. military fatalities to 16 this year.

"The United States came up with 'maximum pressure'—but the Israeli government is the only one carrying it out."

"The U.S. is closing in on a deal with the Taliban that is designed to wind down America’s 18-year war in Afghanistan, but the best indication of how risky the pact may be is this: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is declining to sign it, according to senior U.S., Afghan and European officials."

"Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is not talking about President Donald Trump in his new memoir "Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead," written with military author Bing West and released Monday."

"The creation of a so-called “safe zone” in northeastern Syria has gotten off to good start, with U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces pulling back from a small, initial area along the Turkish border, a Syrian Kurdish official said — but calm can only prevail if Turkey also removes its troops."

Since the beginning of 2018, more than 5,000 bodies have been uncovered in and around Raqqa, all believed to be dumped in mass graves by Islamic State militants. But without the resources for DNA or forensic testing, most remains have not yet been identified.

"U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday he’s not ready to publicly discuss how a U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan would begin under a peace deal with the Taliban."

Pakistan warned Wednesday that India was "sowing the seeds" of another war in the region through its controversial actions in Kashmir, a disputed territory that has long been a flashpoint between the nuclear-armed rivals.

A U.S. citizen who allegedly joined the Islamic State terror group as a sniper and eventually rose to the rank of emir is facing new charges and the possibility of life behind bars.

"The more personal data people voluntarily broadcast on the internet, the easier it becomes to track and analyze it. That’s the premise behind a line of research of interest to U.S. Special Operations Command."

"The Afghan government has concerns about the draft peace agreement reached between U.S. and Taliban negotiators and wants further clarification, President Ashraf Ghani’s main spokesman said on Wednesday."

"Former Defense Secretary James Mattis, in stark terms, lambasts Barack Obama and Joe Biden for faulty leadership in his new book, and suggests their naivete and ignorance of reality contributed to the rise of ISIS in Iraq, according to excerpts reviewed by The Washington Examiner."