Read the latest articles from Task & Purpose (Page 5)

Judge David O. Carter looks at the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs campus through a chainlink fence.
Veterans

Appeals court upholds order for the VA to build 2,550 housing units in Los Angeles

The Department of Veterans Affairs "has strayed from its mission," the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found, and must build 1,800 permanent and 750 temporary housing units on its West Los Angeles campus.

A missile launches in a plume of fire from a U.S. warship as part of strikes against ISIS in Nigeria on Dec. 25, 2025.
Africa

US targets ISIS with multiple strikes in Nigeria

The Christmas day attacks in the country’s northwestern Sokoto state are the first direct strike against militants in Nigeria by the U.S.

Space Force graduation
Space Force

Space Force guardians graduate basic training in their own uniforms for the first time

“This milestone reflects more than a uniform change. It represents the strength of a shared training foundation and the future focused mission these guardians are stepping into.”

Image: Jeep: US soldiers of the 3rd Division having Christmas dinner on the hood of a jeep on the front lines, World War Two, France, December 25th 1943. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)
World War II

How US troops in World War II celebrated Christmas dinner on the front

Fighting was brutal, rationing was strict, but turkey was never in short supply.

Santa deployed to helmand afghanistan
Culture

Happy holidays from Task & Purpose

It's been quite a year, and we're glad we got to share it with you.

The Navy has released this rendering of the new battleships announced by President Donald Trump, which feature a railgun.
Navy

The Navy’s railgun may be back from the dead — for now

President Donald Trump announced that the Navy’s new “battleships” will each be armed with “state-of-the-art electric railguns.”

The vessels would allow the Marines to move small teams onto remote islands. Medium Landing Ship, or LSMs, can carry 200 Marines to shore.
Marine Corps

Marines may finally get landing ships for modern-day island hopping

The Navy plans to buy between 18 and 35 Medium Landing Ships, which each can carry more than 200 Marines ashore along with helicopters and vehicles.

U.S. Army Pfc. Daniel Flores, left, and Spc. Evan Card, both with 101st Sustainment Brigade, assigned to Joint Task Force-Southern Border (JTF-SB), mount a M2A1 machine gun to their M1114 Humvee before a gunnery exercise at Dona Ana Training Complex, N.M., Aug. 21, 2025. Gunneries are a routine training exercise that Soldiers conduct in order to stay proficient in warrior tasks and drills. JTF-SB executes full-scale, agile, and all-domain operations in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to protect the territorial integrity of the United States and achieve 100% operational control of the southern border. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Elijah Ingram)
Americas

Have you served on the US-Mexico border in the last year? We want to hear from you.

In the new year, we’ll continue to report on challenges facing deployed troops, whether abroad or at home. But to do that, we need your help.

Feature Art:  WATERTOWN, N.Y. – Labor and delivery nurses from the Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, N.Y., observe as Army and civilian health care professionals train to stop life-threatening complications of a simulated mother who just gave birth during a training simulation at the Samaritan Medical Center June 7. Obstetrics and gynecology health care professionals from Fort Drum, N.Y. work side by side with their civilian counterparts at Samaritan to provide pregnancy, labor and delivery care to Fort Drum service members and their families. (Photo by Warren W. Wright Jr., Fort Drum MEDDAC Public Affairs) 
News

Fort Hood OB-GYN abuse case raises questions on chaperone policy

The Army hospital’s policy states that patients can request a chaperone and staff will try to honor it. Advocates say it should be mandatory for all sensitive exams.

Three Pararescue Airmen from the 131st Rescue Squadron, 129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard, at left in orange, join for a group photo at Moffett Air National Guard Base in Mountain View with HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter aircrew members from the 129th Rescue Squadron, early in the morning of Dec. 17 after rescuing a woman with a medical emergency from the Ruby Princess cruise ship 130 nautical miles southwest of San Francisco. (Courtesy Photo)
National Guard

California Air Guard team pulls off ‘high risk’ night rescue from fog-covered cruise ship

"We don't train to do it inside a fog bank," said one of the rescue pilots after the crew of guardsmen faced rough winds and poor visibility to reach a woman on a cruise ship 100 miles from shore.

A Coast Guard helicopter approaches the M/T Centuries on Dec. 20, 2025.
Coast Guard

US forces seize oil tanker in the Caribbean

The Coast Guard and other troops boarded the M/T Centuries after it departed Venezuela. It’s the second tanker seized this month.

A US Air Force C-130 Hercules taxis at Rafael Hernandez Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, on December 18, 2025. US President Donald Trump's administration is conducting a military campaign in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, deploying naval and air forces for what it calls an anti-drugs offensive. (Photo by Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images)
Air Force

US forces returning to Ecuador for ‘short-term’ counter-drug mission

The return to the base at Manta comes a month after Ecuadorian voters rejected a measure to allow the reopening of foreign bases.

Leaders from the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade run as part of a brigade wide workout in honor of opening the Maj. General Frank W. Tate Soldier Performance Readiness Center at Wheeler Army Airfield, O’ahu, Hawai’i, July 1, 2025. The mission of Holistic Health and Fitness, also known as H2F, is to empower soldiers to take charge of their health by focusing on five key domains: physical, mental, nutrition, sleep, and spiritual readiness. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Olivia Cowart)
Resources

Army tosses out its Spiritual Fitness Guide after four months

The recently launched effort to boost resilience in the “spiritual domain” is already canceled.

UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 22: Aerial view of the Pentagon building in Arlington, Va., on Wednesday, October 22, 2025. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
News

Pentagon fails its 8th audit in a row

The Department of Defense once again promised it will achieve a clean audit in 2028.

U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (Dec. 19, 2025) A U.S. Airman prepares an A-10 Thunderbolt II for flight from a base in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Dec. 19, in support of Operation Hawkeye Strike. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Middle East

US forces launch strikes on ISIS in Syria in retaliation for the death of 2 soldiers

The large-scale ground and air campaign against multiple ISIS sites comes in response to last weekend's attack that killed two US soldiers.

Marine Corps Physical Fitness Test
Marine Corps

Marines moving to gender-neutral Physical Fitness Test for combat jobs

Combat roles in the Marines have had gender-neutral requirements since 2015. A new policy will extend that rule to annual fitness test scores.

Julie Eshelman, her husband Andrew who is in the active duty Reserve, with their 4-year-old daughter who was conceived by IVF.
Benefits & Pay

Military families are ‘pissed’ after IVF coverage cut from defense bill

“People are pissed,” a military spouse said. “They're like, ‘oh, of course, Congress doesn't give an F about us.’”

Jumpmaster save
Army

Jumpmaster who saved paratrooper breaks down viral video

Sgt. Maj. Keith Platt explains why he stopped a paratrooper in a widely seen video whose static line was across his neck. His lesson: “If something isn’t right, say something.”

A photo taken by the Inspector General of the Doña Ana Range Complex's bathroom with sewage leaks.
Army

Soldiers at border lived with ‘leaking raw sewage,’ broken toilets, no AC, watchdog finds

An Inspector General report found leaking sewage, broken AC, and fire hazards in housing for soldiers deployed to the southern border in July.

Marine Drill Instructor of the Year
Marine Corps

Marine Corps’ top drill instructor explains the correct way to yell at recruits

“Screaming through your diaphragm, you pretty much save your vocal cords,” the Marine Corps’ Drill Instructor of the Year for 2025 said.