By Abdi Sheikh and Feisal Omar MOGADISHU (Reuters) – Rival forces from Somalia’s army shot at each other in the capital Mogadishu on Monday, with one group trying to storm a training centre the United Arab Emirates left behind after it ended a training programme there, soldiers and residents said. The clash was an indication of the difficulty in rebuilding unified security forces for a state where centralised authority collapsed in 1991 and an internationally backed government, elected last year, faces huge challenges. It was also another sign of the fallout from a crisis in the Gulf region that has spilled into the volatile Horn of Africa. The UAE has trained hundreds of troops since 2014 as part of an effort boosted by an African Union military mission to defeat an Islamist insurgency and secure the country for the government backed by Western countries, Turkey and the United Nations. The Gulf nation ended its programme in Somalia this month in response after Somali … [Read more...] about Rival groups from Somalia’s army fight at former UAE training facility
Army
Syrian army targets south Damascus insurgent enclave
BEIRUT (Reuters) – The Syrian army bombarded a jihadist enclave in south Damascus on Monday, state television and a war monitor said, as President Bashar al-Assad seeks to regain all ground near the capital. The military focus on the area, where Islamic State holds a pocket next to one held by rebel factions, began last week after the army took back eastern Ghouta. Rebels in two other enclaves northeast of Damascus surrendered in recent days. Buses transferring fighters from one of them to opposition territory in northern Syria under safe passage from the government continued to leave on Monday, state media said. On Friday, state television and a war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said Islamic State and the rebels had agreed to surrender the south Damascus area, withdrawing to territory their comrades control in other parts of the country. However, the fighting has continued and the Observatory said on Monday that it was because some of the Islamic State … [Read more...] about Syrian army targets south Damascus insurgent enclave
Army mulls tougher basic training for out-of-shape, undisciplined recruits
A drill sergeant scolds one of his recruits inside the soldiers barracks during basic training at the Fort Sill Army Post in Fort Sill, Okla. (REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi) Citing a disturbing trend of new soldiers lacking both proper discipline and physical fitness, senior U.S. Army leaders are calling for a tougher and longer basic training program to prepare troops for combat over the next decade. “We have every reason to get this right, and far fewer reasons not to,” Secretary of the Army Mark Esper said at the Association of the United States Army's Global Force Symposium in Alabama on Monday. “That’s why we are considering several initiatives — from a new physical fitness regime to reforming and extending basic training — in order to ensure our young men and women are prepared for the rigors of high-intensity combat.” While Esper didn’t divulge any details of what an extended Basic Combat Training (BCT) might look like, the … [Read more...] about Army mulls tougher basic training for out-of-shape, undisciplined recruits
One Tough Bird: Big Crow Program stayed alive after Army dropped it, ended funding
.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........Copyright © 2018 Albuquerque Journal Two NKC-135 jet planes called Big Crows similar to the one pictured were loaned to the U.S. Army for testing electronic warfare systems. (Source: U.S. Air Force)This is the story of an obscure Albuquerque-based government agency with a mostly classified mission that managed to stay alive by hook or by crook for 10 years after it was cut loose financially by its parent organization, the U.S. Army.The agency was called the Big Crow Office Program, and its mission was to analyze electronic warfare testing data for the Army.ADVERTISEMENTBut the Army dropped the program from its budget in 1999. Despite that, Big Crow managed to keep its doors open as an Army agency at Kirtland Air Force base until 2009.Federal prosecutors now claim that the program’s … [Read more...] about One Tough Bird: Big Crow Program stayed alive after Army dropped it, ended funding
Army lowers recruiting goal but leaders say more soldiers are staying on
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Army will not meet its mission to recruit 80,000 active duty soldiers this year and has officially lowered that goal. But Army leaders said the service has been able to encourage more experienced service members to stay on the job to satisfy a growing demand for troops. Army Sgt. Maj. Daniel Dailey said Friday that the updated goal will be 76,500. Six months into the recruiting year, the service has brought in just 28,000 new soldiers. Terrorism no longer the military's top priority, Mattis says Dailey said the goal is to grow the Army to 483,500, as approved by Congress, and it's up to the Army whether to use more recruiting or re-enlistment. He said that retaining current soldiers has been more successful this year than in the past, with 86 percent staying on, compared with 81 percent in previous years. Army Secretary Mark Esper said there is a mismatch between the number of soldiers in the Army and the demand for more troops, and … [Read more...] about Army lowers recruiting goal but leaders say more soldiers are staying on