Top 5     US launches new wave of strikes against Iran as Tehran says diplomacy has proven ‘futile’ (The Guardian) American and Iranian forces exchange heavy missile and drone attacks over control of Strait of Hormuz, increasing pressure on truce.       US Sen. Lindsey Graham, an Air Force veteran, dies at 71 (Stars & Stripes) U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a retired Air Force colonel, has died at age 71 after a brief and unexpected illness, his office said in a post to social media.       B-21 Raider to fly with two-pilot configuration (Military Times) The U.S. Air Force’s B-21 Raider will operate with a two-pilot crew, the service announced.       Inside the Pentagon’s new handbook on countering drones (Military Times) This week, the Pentagon published a comprehensive yet practical guide to help non-experts understand the threat drones pose as well as ways to avoid and prevent attacks.       Pentagon seemly lifts suspension of low-flying South Carolina Apache pilots (Military Times) The Pentagon said the suspension of Apache pilots involved in a beach flyover last week has been lifted after videos of the helicopters flying low over a beach packed with onlookers circulated online and local news reported that the soldiers were subject to an investigation.   US Strikes in Caribbean and Eastern Pacific     A list of US military strikes against alleged drug-carrying vessels (Military Times) Since early September 2025, the U.S. military has conducted strikes against alleged drug-carrying vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean in support of what the Pentagon has called continued counternarcotics efforts.   Operation Timeline     The human impact of policy changes at the DOD and VA (The War Horse) An ongoing timeline of the Trump administration’s actions focusing on the military and veterans.   Your Military     Retired Army officer tapped to lead military commissary system (Military Times) A retired U.S. Army officer will take the helm of the Defense Commissary Agency and its 235 military discount grocery stores worldwide on Sept.18, defense officials announced.       He left Mongolia to pursue higher education. He returned as a US soldier. (Military Times) Fourteen years after leaving Mongolia on his own to pursue an education in the United States, Sgt. Munk Munkhzaya returned home in a U.S. Army uniform to support Exercise Khaan Quest 2026 as a translator and cultural liaison.   Navy     Navy carrier in Mideast at sea for more than 200 days, testing crew resilience (Stars and Stripes) The USS Abraham Lincoln has spent nearly seven months at sea, a grueling pace of operations that has kept the aircraft carrier and its crew on duty in the Middle East since January with no clear end in sight.   Marine Corps     US Marines successfully test-fire new medium-range air defense system (Military Times) U.S. Marines on Guam recently fired the service’s new Medium-Range Intercept Capability system, representing the validation of the Corps’ first medium-range air defense system since the divestment of the service’s legacy HAWK platform in the 1990s.   Space Force     Space Force officially has its own weapon for taking out satellites (Task & Purpose) Space Force has spent several months building out its idea of “orbital warfare ” and now it has one of its first weapons.   Veterans     How veterans groups came to clash over a sweeping VA benefits bill (Military Times) Veterans organizations are deeply divided over the Taking Care of America’s Veterans Act as Congress proposes paying for parts of the legislation with projected savings from a long-pending Department of Veterans Affairs disability ratings rule.   Defense Industry     US makes it easier to export Nvidia AI chips and military equipment to the UAE (Reuters) The U.S. loosened export controls on the United Arab Emirates on Friday, making it easier to export Nvidia AI chips.       Zelenskyy taps European allies to build Freya, a cheaper Patriot-alternative to Russia’s ballistic missiles (Defense News) Ukraine will hold its first coalition meeting on a homegrown ballistic missile defense system in France “in the coming days” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday, advancing Kyiv’s yearslong effort to begin producing a domestically made counter to Russia’s deadly ballistic missiles.       Ukraine can soon build its own Patriots – but it could take years (Military Times) U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to give Ukraine a license to build its own Patriot interceptors would grant a manufacturing right the United States currently extends to only a handful of allies. It is one Kyiv has eyed since the war began, though it could be years before a homegrown iteration defends a Ukrainian city.       Rheinmetall, MBDA to develop laser weapon for German Navy (Defense News) Rheinmetall and MBDA will develop a high-energy laser weapon for the Germany Navy that builds on previous work by the two companies on a laser demonstrator, with the weapon system expected to be operational in 2029.       Italy busts Russian spy ring collecting data on Ukrainian air defense vulnerabilities (Defense News) Russia has told one of its spies in Europe to find out more about air defense capabilities western nations are sending to Ukraine, Italian investigators have reported after breaking up an alleged espionage ring in Rome.   Ukraine     10 injured in overnight Russian strikes on Kyiv (CBS News) Ukrainian military said its air defenses shot down or suppressed two missiles and 111 drones, while Russia claims its forces targeted drone production facilities in Kyiv.   International     South Korean navy recovers body of seaman missing near North Korean border (Reuters) The South Korean navy early on Monday morning ?recovered the body of a seaman who went missing ?at sea over the weekend near the maritime border with North Korea, the navy said in a statement.   Military Culture & History     80 years ago, the military tested nukes on a fleet (Task & Purpose) After World War II, the U.S. military had a new problem to figure out: Just what could a nuclear weapon do against a conventional force? To figure that out, the Army and Navy teamed up for the first post-war nuclear tests, assembling a massive fleet, tens of thousands of troops and several of its then-limited atomic arsenal for what would be dubbed Operation Crossroads.   Video     Navy says sailors with ‘unmanageable permanent’ razor bumps face separation (Defense News) A new directive in the Navy says sailors who need shaving waivers for more than one year face involuntary separation.       ‘I fought for that flag’: Medal of Honor Recipient speaks at ceremony (Defense News) Maj. James Capers, hero of the Vietnam War, remembered fallen comrades and ‘dark days’ at a recent ceremony after receiving the Medal of Honor.       Foam drones and a throwable 360-degree tactical camera - SOF Week tech (Defense News) New systems seen at SOF Week include one-way drones made of lightweight material, and a camera you can throw into a room for a full-spectrum view.       How do you park an aircraft carrier? Watch the Nimitz return home (Defense News) The number of small boats zooming in front of the bow seems a little eerie.   Commentary & Analysis     How Trump failed to secure the Strait of Hormuz in his Iran deal (The New York Times) President Trump signed an agreement that Iran said gave it control of the waterway — and global energy supplies. Now, Iran’s military is violently asserting authority.       Iran: On negotiating with criminal/terrorist organizations, states, and other entities (The Cipher Brief) Pending the failed cease-fire and Memorandum of Understanding between Iran and America, all eyes have focused on the ongoing, difficult negotiations – mediated by Pakistan, Oman, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt – between America and Iran.       The timidity of America’s top generals (The Atlantic) What is the role of a general in a democracy? Many of today’s military leaders have a very particular answer: Focus on tactics, carry out orders, and otherwise shut up.       The front line of the AI race runs through your company's chat logs (The Cipher Brief) Last week, a statement from former White House AI advisor David Sacks stopped Washington cold. "We now have a Chinese open-weight model that is as good as the currently available models from OpenAI and Anthropic," Sacks told a podcast audience, describing Z.ai's GLM-5.2 as comparable to Anthropic's Opus and level with OpenAI's latest offerings. A Chinese startup had, in his telling, matched the two American frontier labs that have spent tens of billions of dollars to stay ahead.       Military mission success depends on understanding what people can do (Federal News Network) "The real power here is to have the different inputs to kind of form that overall estimate of where somebody is on a given competency," said Julia Brown.       How Putin turned Japan into a den of spies (The New York Times) Operating out of a Tokyo high-rise, a military intelligence unit finds the high-tech equipment that Russia needs to wage war.       Going over the brink: How Hezbollah's risk strategy made Lebanon impossible to ignore (War on the Rocks) When the United States and Iran announced their framework agreement on June 15, attention focused on the direct U.S.-Iran dimensions of the deal, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, and the fate of Iran’s nuclear program. But the agreement also included a commitment to the “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon.” Washington had spent months treating Lebanon as a separate issue in negotiations, even as the Israel-Hezbollah conflict remained active under a nominal ceasefire in place since April 16.       The continued myth of Russia’s imminent collapse: Lessons from Prigozhin’s mutiny three years on (The Cipher Brief) Three years ago, in June 2023, the Kremlin confronted one of the most dramatic internal crises of Vladimir Putin's quarter-century in power. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the former convict turned oligarch, Wagner founder, and longtime Kremlin insider known as Putin's "chef," launched an armed mutiny that stunned Russia and captivated the world. Wagner fighters seized the headquarters of Russia's Southern Military District in Rostov before beginning an astonishing march toward Moscow, encountering remarkably little organized resistance along the way.       Iran is losing Iraq (Foreign Affairs Magazine) Whenever the Iran war comes to an end, the Islamic Republic is likely to emerge in a stronger position. Should the terms of a June memorandum of understanding be met, Western governments would lift many sanctions on Tehran and the country would gradually be reintegrated into the global economy. Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz, once an open waterway, might be formalized through some kind of joint tolling system. And Iran might be free to reconstitute its ballistic missiles and drone capabilities, weapons that proved very useful in the most recent months of fighting.