Helene Cooper
Thursday, September 17, 2015 - 06:02
Only four or five Syrian individuals trained by the United States military to confront the Islamic State remain in the fight.
Friday, September 4, 2015 - 06:19
In a move meant to reassure a vital Persian Gulf ally about the Iran nuclear deal, the Pentagon is finalizing a $1 billion arms agreement with Saudi Arabia that will provide weapons for the Saudi war effort against the Islamic State and Yemen, senior administration officials said Thursday.
Monday, April 20, 2015 - 06:57
As the Middle East descends into proxy wars, sectarian conflicts and battles against terrorist networks, countries in the region that have stockpiled American military hardware are now actually using it and wanting more. The result is a boom for American defense contractorsbut also the prospect of a dangerous new arms race in a region where the map of alliances has been sharply redrawn.
Friday, March 27, 2015 - 07:09
By Day 2 of the American airstrike campaign against militants holed up in Tikrit, the mission appeared beleaguered on several fronts on Thursday: Thousands of Shiite militiamen boycotted the fight, others threatened to attack any Americans they found, and Iraqi officials said nine of their fighters had been accidentally killed in an airstrike.
Monday, January 26, 2015 - 06:19
Relations between American military trainers and specialists advising the Nigerian military in the fight against Boko Haram are so strained that the Pentagon often bypasses the Nigerians altogether, choosing to work instead with security officials in the neighboring countries of Chad, Cameroon and Niger, according to defense officials and diplomats.
Tuesday, December 9, 2014 - 06:44
American allies in the campaign against the Sunni extremist group that calls itself the Islamic State have agreed to send 1,500 troops to join American soldiers and military personnel who are advising and training Iraqi and Kurdish troops, American military officials said on Monday.
When combined with the 3,000 troops the United States has committed to send to Iraq so far, that would bring the number of military advisers helping Iraq's beleaguered armed forces to 4,500.
Tuesday, December 2, 2014 - 06:59
Turkey is continuing to push the Obama administration to impose a no-fly zone or safe area along the Turkish-Syrian border, administration officials said Monday, but obstacles remain to the United States’ committing to what would be a significant increase in American military engagement in the area.
Monday, November 24, 2014 - 06:42
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is stepping down under pressure, the first cabinet-level casualty of the collapse of President Obama’s Democratic majority in the Senate and the struggles of his national security team amid an onslaught of global crises.
Friday, November 14, 2014 - 06:40
President Obama’s top military adviser said Thursday that he would consider deploying a limited number of United States forces to accompany Iraqi troops on complex offensive operations to retake Mosul and other areas under control of Sunni militants.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014 - 06:10
President Obama has authorized surveillance flights over Syria, a precursor to potential airstrikes there, but a mounting concern for the White House is how to target the Sunni extremists without helping President Bashar al-Assad.