Top 5     USS Abraham Lincoln Strike Group receives Presidential Unit Citation (Military Times) As the USS Abraham Lincoln pulls into port 321 after first leaving Naval Station San Diego, it will do so with another notch on its historic belt after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that the carrier strike group had been awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the military’s highest unit-level valor award.       Pentagon barred Qatar base access to hide Iran war damage, US senator claims (Defense News) A U.S. senator was recently denied access to the largest military installation in the Middle East, calling it a “cover-up” over the damage suffered during the Iran war.       US to livestream Army execution of Fort Hood shooter, Pentagon official says (Reuters) The U.S. will livestream the Army’s upcoming firing squad execution on Dec. 3 of Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, in a 2009 shooting spree, a Pentagon official said, in what would be an unprecedented move.       Readiness bill coming due for Navy after marathon carrier deployment, No. 2 admiral says (Military Times) A day after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a speech from the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, congratulating the crew on proving doubters wrong, the Navy’s No. 2 officer sounded a warning note, saying the full readiness impact of a deployment double extension and other combat commitments had yet to be felt.       US Army report cites systematic failures in 2025 helicopter and jet collision that killed 67 (Reuters) The collision of an American Airlines regional jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport last year that killed 67 people was the result of several systemic failures, according to a U.S. Army investigative report seen by Reuters.   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.   Congress & Politics     No new attack on Iran before the midterm elections, Trump says (Washington Post) The president has acknowledged sometimes using public statements about negotiations and military planning to keep adversaries off guard.   Your Military     Pentagon recruits drone pilots from across services for upcoming competition (Military Times) The Defense Innovation Unit is recruiting service members with first-person-view drone experience to participate in the Defense Department’s Drone Dominance program, according to a recent announcement.       What is the US Public Health Service’s Commissioned Corps? Its top leader wants you to know (Military Times) The head of the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service says his officers no longer want to “feel invisible.”       Planned DEERS outage could affect Tricare beneficiaries, DOD says (Military Times) Defense Health officials are advising Tricare beneficiaries that the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System, or DEERS, will be temporarily unavailable this weekend.   Army     Century-old houses getting new life at Fort Bragg (Defense News) Homes that are nearly a century old are getting a new life at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, preserving their historic character while providing updated features and addressing safety concerns.   Marine Corps     4 Marines ‘receiving medal care’ after hard landing of MV-22B Osprey in North Carolina (Stars and Stripes) Four Marines aboard an MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft are receiving medial care after a hard landing that resulted in a fire at a remote landing zone near Elizabethtown, N.C.       Future cost, use of Marine Corps ACVs scrutinized in congressional report (Defense News) With today’s armored vehicles vulnerable to drones, congressional researchers are raising questions about the U.S. Marine Corps’ new Amphibious Combat Vehicle.   Coast Guard     Coast Guard reports major recruiting success for 2026 (Stars and Stripes) The U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday that it had surpassed its recruiting goal for the third consecutive year, beating a streak set in 1987.   Veterans     New VA dental patients face waits of 2 months for appointments (Task & Purpose) Veterans looking to find a dentist through Department of Veterans Affairs health clinics waited nearly two months for a first appointment, according to new figures provided by the VA to Task & Purpose. That delay is about three times as long as the typical time a returning patient can expect to get dental care in the VA system.       VA rolls out CLEAR login option and in-person identity verification pilot (GovExec) The Department of Veterans Affairs announced on Wednesday that it has rolled out a new identity verification login option from CLEAR and established a pilot program at six medical facilities to help veterans create online VA accounts in person.   Defense Industry     US Air Force, Army eye industry access on test ranges (Defense News) Earlier this year, the Army announced it was opening five of its military test ranges – four domestic and one overseas – to approved companies in a move designed to speed innovation and get weapons and tech to the warfighter faster.       Dutch firm uses AI to help drone systems ‘talk’ on Ukraine’s battlefield (Reuters) A high-velocity drone launched at a disused Dutch airbase by the North Sea roars through the clouds and intercepts a mock enemy target detected by radar and verified using artificial intelligence.       Sig Sauer develops 25-round mag for Army’s next-gen rifle (Defense News) Soldier feedback, from the constructive to the blistering, has been instrumental in guiding weapons manufacturer Sig Sauer in its development of the M8 carbine, staff here said this week.       France to start training Ukrainian pilots on Rafale warplanes in November, minister says (Defense News) France will begin training Ukrainian pilots on the Rafale fighter jet next month, Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin said in a parliamentary hearing on Thursday.       Shield AI expects to fly its unmanned fighter jet within months (Defense One) Shield AI expects to start flying its X-BAT prototype unmanned fighter jet by year’s end—and is getting $150 million from the Navy to keep developing it, officials said.       German lawmakers approve funds for eight-ship fleet of sub-hunting frigates (Defense News) German lawmakers on Thursday approved the acquisition of four additional MEKO A-200 DEU frigates from shipbuilder TKMS, bringing Berlin’s planned fleet to eight ships after the government abandoned its troubled F126 program.       Air Force, Northrop Grumman break ground on B-21 Raider facility (Military Times) The U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman broke ground on a new assembly line for the production of B-21 Raiders last month.       German pilots prepare for CH?47F fleet with US Army flight simulator (Defense News) A U.S. Army flight simulator at a barracks in Germany stands as a center of critical training for NATO’s aviation community.       Turkey’s foreign minister says Ankara weighing Saudi defense support, rules out offensive role (Reuters) Turkey is assessing how it can help Saudi Arabia defend against attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militants under a joint defense pact with Pakistan, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, ruling out Turkish participation in offensive operations.       No alcohol ban, but US troops on Okinawa face heightened oversight during 30-day curfew (Stars and Stripes) U.S. service members on Okinawa will not be prohibited from drinking alcohol during a monthlong overnight curfew that begins Friday, according to the Marine Corps.   Video     Interview: Former Ukraine defense minister launches 'Army of Robots' initiative (Defense News) Mykhailo Fedorov, former Ukrainian defense minister, launches a defense company with the goal of fielding wide networks of futuristic killer robots and sensors.   Commentary & Analysis     I was a homeless woman veteran. The programs meant to help weren’t built for survivors like me (The War Horse) I spent too many restless nights in a hot, wood-paneled room in my parents’ double-wide, taking self-soothing shots of five-buck Paul Masson brandy, and wondering how in the hell I ended up there.       National Guard rescues 2 boaters stranded in icy Alaskan waters (Stars and Stripes) Two boaters and their dog were rescued Tuesday by the Alaska National Guard after their boat became trapped in ice about 7 miles north of the Arctic Circle.       How war starts: A warning from the Korean DMZ (The Cipher Brief) The current landmine incident in the Demilitarized Zone of the Korean Peninsula could escalate into conflict on the Korean Peninsula.       How Iran’s drones hit America’s Achilles heel (Politico) The abrupt evacuation of American bombers from a key U.K. airbase underscores the extreme vulnerability facing the world’s most powerful fighting force and its NATO allies — as cheap drones and off-the-shelf tech transform warfare.       The future of Iran lies beyond the regime (The Cipher Brief) The U.S. administration is pursuing its latest strategy: a naval blockade combined with aggressive “Outcast” sanctions, aiming to strangle the Iranian economy, force the regime to its knees, and compel it to return to negotiations on American terms.       Russia’s hybrid war has entered a dangerous new phase (Foreign Affairs Magazine) For the first few years of the war in Ukraine, Russia’s hybrid warfare attacks in Europe remained just below the threshold that might trigger a collective response.       Achieving breakthrough: Maneuver warfare in the face of robotic mass (War on the Rocks) In 1914, European armies entered a war with forces designed to move. Within months, they were digging themselves into the earth.       The new Red Sea wars (Foreign Affairs Magazine) On June 3, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the U.S. Congress that the fighting that had raged for three years in Sudan was now a “proxy war” and blamed Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates for frustrating American efforts to bring the conflict to an end.       For Ukrainians in the US, a last-ditch effort to forestall deportation (Politico) Lawmakers afraid the Trump administration will cancel protections for Ukrainian refugees in the United States want the president to consider another option: Do nothing.       Reducing the number of generals isn’t the problem (The Atlantic) The self-styled secretary of war strode confidently across the stage as he outlined his vision for America’s armed forces.