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Sgt. Adam Manibusan an infantryman assigned to 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division completes a 12-mile ruck march before testing on the final lane for the Expert Infantryman Badge at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii on April 30, 2021. After completing these events Manibusan was awarded the EIB. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Alan Brutus)

The Army’s Master Combat Badges will be coming to soldiers this month

Soldiers should be able to purchase the Master Combat Infantryman Badge, the Master Combat Medical Badge, and the Master Combat Action Badge starting around March 21.

Marine shaving policy

Marine commanding officers have final say on medical shaving exemptions

Every Marine diagnosed with a painful skin condition that may prevent them from shaving will have to be reevaluated by a medical officer within 90 days of a March 13 Marine administrative message.

A video captured a jumpmaster acting as the flight ‘safety’ grabbing a soldier whose static line had wrapped around his neck.

A sharp-eyed Army jumpmaster stopped a potentially deadly accident, video shows

Thinking quickly on his feet and leaning into his training, a jumpmaster acting as the flight ‘safety’ grabbed a soldier whose static line had wrapped around his neck.

Air Force shoots down Houthi drones launched at Navy carrier strike group

Air Force shoots down Houthi drones launched at Navy carrier strike group

The attack on the Navy ships come a day after the USS Harry S. Truman and its support ships carried out several strikes inside Yemen.

A painting showing a space plane, cargo bay open, flying to capture a satellite.

It’s official: Space Force wants laser weapons. 

Space Force is looking to expand its offensive capabilities with energy rays, jamming systems and more traditional weapons.

A F/A-18 takes off from a aircraft carrier at night.

US carries out first airstrikes on Yemen in months

The strikes on Houthi sites in Yemen comes after the group said it would restart attacks in the Red Sea following weeks of calm.

Black and white aerial image of a burning car.

US forces kill ISIS’s second in command in Iraq strike

The double-tap strike killed Abdallah Makki Muslih al-Rifai, who also served as ISIS’s chief of global operations.

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Craig Owens, the former command sergeant major of the 200th Military Police Command, U.S. Army Reserve, leads a team-building ruck march while wearing protective masks along with command sergeants major from his brigades and battalions during a ‘CSM Huddle’ in Scottsdale, Arizona, Sept. 16, 2017.

Behold this photo of a bunch of command sergeants major hating life

Of course it’s MPs.

Afghanistan attack

‘The air was on fire’ — Army captain recalls 2012 battle in Afghanistan

Army Capt. James McDaniel was initially dazed when a bomb exploded about 50 meters away from him. “It seemed like the air was on fire,” he said.

A Ukrainian Su-27 Flanker escorts two B1B Lancers during a training mission for Bomber Task Force Europe, May 29, 2020.

Are the U.S. and Ukraine friends again? It’s complicated.

The United States has resumed providing military assistance and sharing intelligence with Ukraine after a disastrous Feb. 28 Oval Office meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A new pilot program offers Marine Corps and navy moms on active duty or spouses access to registered nurses for help with unique physical and mental health conditions that moms face throughout pregnancy and after giving birth.

New program helps Navy, Marine Corps moms with pregnancy and infant care

Navy and Marine Corps moms can get access to in-home visits from nurses trained to navigate barriers to accessing care that can come with military life.

Memorial marker of U.S. Army Capt. Humbert Versace, Medal of Honor recipient, in Section 13 of Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, Feb. 20, 2020. (U.S. Army photo by Elizabeth Fraser / Arlington National Cemetery / released)

Arlington Cemetery website drops links for Black, Hispanic, and women veterans

The website for Arlington National Cemetery “unpublished” links to lists of notable graves, walking tours and educational material pertaining to Black, Hispanic and women veterans, as well as some Medal of Honor recipients.

M60 tank

Why Washington state used M60 tanks to prevent avalanches

As Fleetwood Mac taught us: If you fire an M60 tank’s cannon at the snow-covered hills, an avalanche will bring it down.

Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Juan Taiacardona dumps water on his head during the 2022 Best Squad Competition's 12-mile ruck march even at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, on May 17, 2022. Approximately 40 Soldiers from across the nation travelled to Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, to compete in the 2022 U.S. Best Squad Competition from May 14-21, 2022. The 2022 BSC is an annual competition that brings together the best Soldiers and squads from across the U.S. Army Reserve to earn the title of "Best Warrior" and "Best Squad" among their peers. Competitors are evaluated on their individual and collective ability to adapt to and overcome challenging scenarios and battle-focused events that test their technical and tactical abilities under stress and extreme fatigue. (Army Reserve photo by Sgt. David Barrette)

The Army wants to get the load soldiers carry down to 55 pounds

Army leaders say that the service’s new “squad as a system” approach to kitting our soldiers with less gadgets could cut down on the total gear infantrymen have to carry.

Border security

Here are the latest military units deploying to the U.S.-Mexico border

About 590 soldiers from Army engineer units and 40 Air Force intelligence analysts are headed to the southern border. The timeline for the deployments is still being determined.

Students in the academic track of the U.S. Army’s Future Soldier Preparatory Course work on improving their math skills during a class at Fort Moore, Georgia. The academic track focuses on improving word knowledge, reading comprehension, arithmetic reasoning, and test-taking skills to help students improve their Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) scores and meet the Army’s enlistment standards. (U.S. Army photo by Toygar Ayla)

Budget cuts force military recruit testing stations to close, reduce hours

Satellite locations offering the ASVAB, the initial enlistment test for potential recruits, have been forced to close and reduce their hours because of cuts to civilian travel.

The Pentagon Rundown

PORT HUENEME, Calif. (Feb 27, 2025) - The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) conducts a port call onboard Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) Port Hueneme, Feb. 27. Fitzgerald is underway in the U.S. 3rd Fleet conducting routine operations. NBVC is major shore warfighting platform; providing sustained ready forces to deploy, fight, and win. Composed of three operating facilities: Point Mugu, Port Hueneme and San Nicolas Island and home of the Pacific Seabees, West Coast E-2D Hawkeyes, 3 warfare centers and 110 tenant commands. (U.S. Navy photo by Master-at-Arms 1st Class Jon Cason)

Too close for missiles, switching to guns: How the Navy learned to fight Houthi drones

Veterans caught up in mass federal layoffs — and the smoke hasn’t cleared

There’s a lot going on in the world of military news, and we need your help

US drifts away from Ukraine nearly 3 years after Russia’s invasion

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Task & Purpose was founded in 2014 as a voice for the military community, and continues to serve that community with accurate reporting and great storytelling to this day. Our journalists have reported on the front lines of the Standing Rock protests in North Dakota and the war in Afghanistan. We’ve uncovered American veterans being abused in Kuwaiti prisons, deported veterans being forced to work for Mexican cartels, and drawn national attention to a longstanding legal rule barring service members from suing the government — even in the face of gross negligence.

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