ON THE FIGHT
If you have the leader of Africa Command tell it, the Pentagon did a disservice by training them only halfway. Allegedly, Malian troops were not given training in "values, ethics and a military ethos".
The Aviationist has a handy run-down of the materiel in use in Mali to oust a resurgent Islamic militant presence, while the Atlantic has a smattering of photos of French troops in both France and Mali.
Canada’s Special Operations Regiment is still hard at work in Afghanistan.
ON THE FORCE
Major General Kenneth Tovo has been nominated for lieutenant general and assignment as commander, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan/commander, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Training Mission-Afghanistan, Afghanistan.
The Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Greenert, has gone on record with a rather bold claim: if sequester goes into effect, carrier strikes groups will "stay home".
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
According to an report set to be released next week by the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General, the Secret Service handled the investigation into allegations of solicitation of prostitutes properly.
The director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has been been cleared of allegations that arose over the ethics of her past employment with the Agency.
ON TECH
The Los Angeles Police Department has been utilizing the Stingray technical exploitation tool, allowing the elite police force to spy on and track citizens via their mobile devices.
ON SECRECY – OR LACK THEREOF
Apparently, Catalina Island was the epicenter of training for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II.
The National Security Archive has a helpful overview of what happened with John Kirakou and how that lead to his 30-month prison sentence announced earlier today.
Robert Caruso is a veteran of the United States Navy, and has worked for the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Business Transformation Agency and the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
