LJUBLJANA, Slovenia - Slovenia’s deployments to multiple countries for NATO, the United Nations and the European Union drew praise here yesterday from the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - The military commissions case of Australian detainee David Hicks, which concluded last night with a sentence of nine months imprisonment, was a fair proceeding that established a good basis for future commissions cases, the chief prosecutor for the Defense Department said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces are working with city leaders to secure the Iraqi city of Tal Afar after a bombing at a market killed more than 80 people earlier this week, a military official said today in a briefing from the city.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Australian detainee David Hicks, the first person convicted under the Military Commission Act of 2006, was sentenced here today to nine months in confinement, a sentence he will serve in Australia under a diplomatic agreement.

WASHINGTON - Bosnia-Herzegovina is among six countries the Defense Department is removing from the list of countries where servicemembers receive imminent danger pay, DoD officials said today.

WASHINGTON - Notwithstanding a March 27 terrorist attack that killed and injured scores of Iraqis in Tal Afar, Iraq, coalition officials have recommended that Ninewah province be transferred to Iraqi control next month, a top coalition officer in the province said today.

WASHINGTON - Over the last year, coalition forces have laid the foundation for stability and provincial Iraqi control in Anbar province, the commander of Multinational Force West said today.

TOKYO - The United States and Japan are increasing their military cooperation and coordination to face evolving threats, the commander of U.S. Forces Japan and 5th Air Force here said.

WASHINGTON - President Bush assured the medical staff at Walter Reed Army Medical Center today he recognizes that problems at the facility reflected a failed bureaucracy, not the care they were providing.

WASHINGTON - Saying America’s men and women in uniform deserve the best medical support system possible, President Bush assured them today he’s committed to making sure they get it.

WASHINGTON - Running a nonprofit organization can be strain on an individual’s time, space and resources. One home-front group’s leader says she relies on a specific form of aid through the tough times: divine intervention.

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia - Slovakia is a key ally in the global war on terror, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Though it’s still in its early stages, the surge operation in Bagdad is showing positive results, the Joint Staff’s deputy director for operations said here today.

WASHINGTON - An alleged al Qaeda leader being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, said he admitted to involvement in the attack on the USS Cole only because he was being tortured, according to a transcript of his hearing released today.

WASHINGTON - Al Qaeda’s use of chlorine gas against civilians and use of children as suicide bombers highlights the terror organization’s barbarity, a Joint Staff spokesman said here today.

WASHINGTON - It’s imperative – especially during wartime – that the Defense Department continues to provide viable morale and family and troop morale welfare programs for servicemembers and their families, a senior Defense Department official said here yesterday.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - The military commission judge today accepted the guilty plea of Australian detainee David Hicks to one charge of material support for terrorism, moving Hicks toward a possible jail sentence of up to seven years.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces captured 12 suspected terrorists today, and bombers continued to target Iraqis over the last few days, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The general in charge of coalition military efforts in Iraq today condemned “barbaric actions” by al Qaeda elements in the wake of bombings in the northern city of Tal Afar that killed dozens of Iraqi civilians and injured scores of others.

WASHINGTON - While early indicators on the Baghdad troop surge appear positive, coalition officials “are looking at this in a very patient fashion,” a senior military official in Baghdad said yesterday.

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia - While NATO’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan is a success, more help is needed from the international community, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said during a speech here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - A soldier and two Marines have been killed while serving in Iraq in recent days, and the Defense Department has released the identities of four soldiers killed March 25.

WASHINGTON - In the Capitol Rotunda here today, President Bush and Congress awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to the Tuskegee Airmen, more than 60 years after the 332nd Fighter Group’s World War II achievements that were made bittersweet by the racial discrimination they endured after returning home.

WASHINGTON - A detainee at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has admitted to being one of the financial facilitators for the mastermind behind the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States.

WASHINGTON - The proposed defense budget will modernize and recapitalize the armed forces, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee today.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces in Iraq this week killed four suspected terrorists, captured 67 others and netted scores of weapons in various operations, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Stories of violence are overshadowing the many successes achieved by U.S., coalition and Iraqi rebuilding efforts in Baghdad and other areas of the country, a senior U.S. military engineer said today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush today repeated his intention to veto an emergency supplemental war spending bill if it includes a deadline for withdrawing U.S. combat forces from Iraq and unrelated domestic spending.

WASHINGTON - An arbitrary U.S. withdrawal from Iraq would tell al Qaeda’s leaders they’ve been right all along and would embolden the terror organization to launch more audacious attacks against the United States, Vice President Richard B. Cheney said last night.

WASHINGTON - Understanding the critical role spouses play in the recovery of wounded warriors, Operation Homefront has created the Wounded Warrior Wives Project to help them navigate the challenges they may face.

WASHINGTON - The United States has been fielding a missile defense system aimed toward defending itself, its deployed forces and its allies against emerging threats, a top military official said today.

WASHINGTON - Retired Army Lt. Gen. Claude M. “Mick” Kicklighter was in Afghanistan leading an assessment team for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in December when he was asked to consider being nominated by President Bush to be the Defense Department’s inspector general.

WASHINGTON - A northern-Virginia-based nonprofit organization has provided worldwide assistance to families of deployed U.S. servicemembers for the past six years.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Australian detainee David Hicks, who entered a guilty plea March 26 to a charge of material support for terrorism, is expected to be sentenced by the end of the week, military officials said.

PANJSHIR, Afghanistan - Building upon their proud legacy of standing up to Soviet invasions and Taliban tyranny, the people of Afghanistan’s Panjshir province are achieving progress through public works and education.

WASHINGTON - Security progress in Baghdad requires more than military success; it also requires advances in Iraq’s institutions, including its criminal justice system, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman said today.

WASHINGTON - The crackdown on insurgents in Baghdad is showing progress, but a senior military official there warned that it’s likely to drive the enemy to strike out dramatically before succeeding.

WASHINGTON - Intelligence analysis is best left to the organizations set up for that purpose, President Bush’s nominee to be the next undersecretary of defense for intelligence told the Senate Armed Services Committee at his confirmation hearing here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The commander of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit today honored the Lebanese army for its assistance in the largest evacuation of U.S. civilians from a foreign country.

WASHINGTON - Safety is critical to readiness, Defense Safety Oversight Council's executive secretary told safety officers attending the Voluntary Protection Program conference here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - With straight unemployment running at 20 percent nationwide, there is no wonder that Iraqi men would be sympathetic to violence and insurgency, the Defense Department’s point man for Iraqi reconstruction said today.

WASHINGTON - First lady Laura Bush joined military leaders and other luminaries here last night in praising the United Service Organizations for its support for the military as she accepted the 2007 USO of Metropolitan Washington Service Award.

WASHINGTON - Afghan and coalition forces arrested six suspected militants near Khowst, in eastern Afghanistan, early today. Elsewhere, a rocket hit Bagram Air Base, but no one was killed or injured.

WASHINGTON - President Bush’s nominee to be the Defense Department’s next top health care official promised the Senate Armed Services Committee here yesterday that he’d bring a patient’s perspective to the job if confirmed.

WASHINGTON - President Bush said today he will veto any bill that reaches his desk containing a timetable for U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq.

WASHINGTON - U.S. and Iraqi officials have condemned a terrorist attack that killed dozens of civilians in Tal Afar, Iraq, yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces in Iraq this morning captured 19 suspected terrorists in various operations, Iraqi forces repelled an attack in Fallujah, and attacks on civilians continue across the country, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. relationship with Turkey is “under valued and under appreciated” and the country’s geographical position is vitally important to security challenges facing the U.S., Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today told the American-Turkish Council.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces captured seven terrorism suspects and destroyed illegal weapons today, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis entered the Persian Gulf today escorted by the guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam.

WASHINGTON - Afghan and coalition troops arrested five suspected terrorists and seized illegal weapons in two operations today, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - A letter from a soldier added bittersweet importance to Packages From Home’s participation in Tucson Navy Week’s weekend activities at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, and an Arizona Diamondbacks preseason baseball game.

WASHINGTON - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff emphasized just how important U.S. military leaders believe noncommissioned officers are by including his senior enlisted advisor in all his talks with senior Japanese and Chinese leaders.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - David Hicks, the Australian terror suspect captured in Afghanistan in 2001, has pleaded guilty to a charge of supporting terrorism at his military commission hearing here tonight.

WASHINGTON - Army Spc. Patrick D. Tillman was accidentally shot and killed by members of his divided Ranger unit after part of it had been ambushed by enemy fighters in a canyon in Afghanistan, senior Defense Department and Army officials told reporters here today.

WASHINGTON - A home-front group that alters clothing for wounded servicemembers received accolades for its efforts on an evening news show last week.

WASHINGTON - Roadside bombs killed five U.S. soldiers in Iraq yesterday, and the Defense Department has identified two Marines who died earlier.

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Preliminary hearings began here today in the case of an Australian detainee captured in Afghanistan in 2001, the first detainee to be charged under the Military Commissions Act of 2006.

CAMP H.M. SMTH, Hawaii - Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating will bring the same good judgment and decisiveness to the U.S. Pacific Command that he demonstrated as commander of U.S. Northern Command, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

WASHINGTON - A terrorism suspect who admitted to helping to kill 13 civilians, including two children, in a 2002 car bombing in Eastern Africa is in U.S. custody and has been transferred as a “dangerous terror suspect” to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a Defense Department official announced today.

WASHINGTON - Over the next week, 1,800 Individual Ready Reserve Marines will receive notice from the Marine Corps that they are needed in Iraq, an official announced today.

WASHINGTON - Several positive developments indicate that Iraq’s leaders and its people will eventually surmount insurgent violence occurring in the country and ultimately achieve stability, the outgoing U.S. ambassador to Iraq told reporters in Baghdad today.

WASHINGTON - Operation First Response helps bring comfort to wounded servicemembers and their families through outreach efforts both overseas and in the United States.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi security and coalition forces began a major operation to clear al Qaeda from western Ramadi in Iraq’s Anbar province, military officials reported today.

SCIO, N.Y. - The Navy honored Marine Cpl. Jason L. Dunham March 24 by naming a guided missile destroyer after the fallen Marine hero during a ceremony here.

WASHINGTON - American and Afghan forces killed 12 insurgents yesterday during a firefight near Fire Base Tillman in Paktika province, Afghanistan, officials said.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces captured or killed insurgents and confiscated explosives, weapons and other contraband during operations in Iraq over the past few days.

HONOLULU - By their words and deeds, Chinese military leaders made Marine Gen. Peter Pace welcome in their country and showed their desire to find common ground.

HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii - Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, gave coins, and his wife, Lynne Pace, gave hugs as the two wished 340 Marines and sailors Godspeed as they deployed to Iraq from Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. soldiers died March 23 during operations in Iraq, officials said, and the Defense Department has identified four earlier casualties.

WASHINGTON - An early withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq would be a catastrophic mistake, Iraq’s Ambassador to the United States said here today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush yesterday urged Congress to send him an emergency war-spending bill that funds overseas troop operations, but contains no deployment restrictions or deadlines for a withdrawal of forces from Iraq.

DALIAN, China - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff had some career advice here today for junior members of the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army.

DALIAN, China - Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, observed a land combat exercise at the Dalian Training Area here today at the invitation of the leaders of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

ANSHAN, China - In a move toward openness, Chinese military officials let the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff examine their top-of-the-line combat aircraft and allowed him to speak with pilots and ground personnel here.

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Air Force Gen. Victor E. Renuart Jr. became the 20th commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command and the third commander of U.S. Northern Command in a ceremony here today.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department today released the transcripts of the combat status review tribunal hearings for Ahmed Khalafan Ghailani and Mohamed Farik bin Amin Zubair.

WASHINGTON - The National Guard has problems that affect its readiness, particularly at home, but fixing them requires a sweeping, intergovernmental effort, the chairman of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves told Congress today.

WASHINGTON - A U.S. soldier and a Marine died yesterday during operations in Iraq, officials said, and the Defense Department has identified two earlier casualties.

WASHINGTON - U.S. and Iraqi security forces continued clearing operations in Baghdad today, while other coalition and Iraqi security forces discovered and destroyed several enemy weapons caches in the past few days, officials said.

WASHINGTON - President Bush promised to veto an emergency supplemental war spending bill passed by the House of Representatives today because it sets a date for the return of combat forces from Iraq and includes spending unrelated to the war.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - Military burn patients took an orientation tour of the Center for the Intrepid at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, with an eye on how the rehabilitation center could help them in their next level of occupational and physical therapy.

WASHINGTON - Since it began in 1969 as the Military Wives Association, the National Military Family Association, with headquarters here, has been a voice for military families.

WASHINGTON - A proactive stance in Africa will help to enhance stability and deter terrorist activity in the future, the deputy commander of U.S. European Command said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - More than 60 wounded warriors from Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., spent last night clowning around at Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus’s Military Appreciation Night.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi soldiers and police are achieving success as the primary providers of security for residents of Nineveh province in northern Iraq, a senior U.S. military officer said today.

LONDON - A U.S. Marine appeared before Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace March 21 to receive the United Kingdom's Distinguished Flying Cross for saving lives and in recognition for his bravery during combat operations in Iraq.

WASHINGTON - Defense Department officials have launched an investigation into recent computer hackings of servicemembers’ home computers that compromised personal information and led to the redirection of funds from their military pay accounts.

WASHINGTON - The British government is demanding the immediate and safe release of 15 sailors whose boats were surrounded by Iranian navy vessels and escorted into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf this morning.

WASHINGTON - The outgoing commander of U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command reflected on his tenure at a news conference here yesterday.

BEIJING - Military-to-military contacts will help China and the United States avoid misunderstandings and help build greater stability and prosperity in Asia, Marine Gen. Peter Pace said here today.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces in Afghanistan captured eight suspected terrorists and discovered a weapons cache today.

WASHINGTON - Anti-insurgent operations conducted by U.S. and Iraqi security forces as part of Operation Law and Order and recent meetings with area tribal leaders have combined to reduce the violence in and around southern Baghdad, senior U.S. and Iraqi military and civic officials said in Baghdad yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Medal of Honor recipients are heroes, despite their many humble objections to the label, and are important to the fabric of our society, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told those gathered yesterday to celebrate the official naming of March 25 as National Medal of Honor Day.

WASHINGTON - Two U.S. soldiers and a Marine died in Iraq yesterday, and the Defense Department has identified seven soldiers who died previously.

WASHINGTON - The new security plan in Iraq has made progress in its early stages, but the security situation is never static, and additional capabilities may be needed in the future, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

WASHINGTON - A delay in approving the Defense Department’s fiscal 2007 supplemental budget request will seriously damage the Army’s readiness, possibly resulting in delayed training for units headed to Iraq and reduced funding for building and equipment repairs, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces nabbed more than 50 suspects and dismantled a bomb factory in Iraq over the past few days.

WASHINGTON - The reconstruction effort under way in Iraq is one of the most extensive and challenging of all time, but also one of the most important, the deputy commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs today.

WASHINGTON - About 1,200 Marines who deployed to Okinawa in January to serve as part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit will remain on the Japanese island about five months longer than originally planned, Marine Corps officials said today.

WASHINGTON - The 200,000 coalition-trained Iraqi policemen and women are an independent force, a top military official told reporters at the Pentagon today.

WASHINGTON - A garment factory in Najaf, Iraq, will start supplying clothes to U.S. and international retailers in a few months, a senior U.S. official said in Baghdad yesterday.

WASHINGTON - A mile’s worth of yellow ribbon bearing the signatures of 10,000 young Americans is finally bound for Baghdad.

CAMP STRIKER, Iraq - When a military working dog is in the field at work, he is a formidable force.

WASHINGTON - Peace in the Middle East is hard work, but it’s necessary for U.S. security and for the development of the region, President Bush said here today.

WASHINGTON - A renewed effort to integrate security progress with economic and political initiatives in Baghdad and the rest of Iraq has created “the potential for a turnaround” in the country, a U.S. State Department official said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Resident care is the paramount concern at the Armed Forces Retirement Home here, and allegations of poor conditions “are without merit,” the facility’s chief operating officer said in a statement released yesterday.

BEIJING - Chinese leaders today warmly welcomed Marine Gen. Peter Pace here as he began a visit intended to expand military-to-military contacts between the United States and the world’s most populous nation.

WASHINGTON - A group of Japanese-Americans who served as interpreters and interrogators helped America “fight smart” during World War II, a top military historian said today.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department observed Women’s History Month and honored the women filling its ranks in a ceremony today at Arlington National Cemetery.

WASHINGTON - As the United States works to reduce its nuclear weapons stockpile, it must ensure it has enough safe, reliable weapons -- both nuclear and conventional -- to deter against the threats it faces, the commander of U.S. Strategic Command told the House Armed Services Committee today.

WASHINGTON - The latest round of the Base Realignment and Closure process is the most extensive, transformational round the nation has ever seen, and will require full funding to implement, a senior Defense Department official said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - When injured servicemembers get to a field hospital or are evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, they have no clothing or personal items. The Landstuhl Hospital Care Project reaches out to these wounded warriors by providing comfort and relief items to the medical center in Germany and to field hospitals in Afghanistan and Iraq.

TOKYO - On the eve of his first trip to China, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today he is optimistic about relations with the world’s largest communist nation.

TOKYO - The Baghdad security plan is buying the Iraqi government the chance it needs to prove to its citizens that it can lead, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces killed 17 terrorists, detained about 90 suspected insurgents, and found several weapons caches in operations throughout Iraq in the past three days, military officials reported.

TOKYO - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff today thanked the Japanese people and their government for their help in the war on terror.

WASHINGTON - Parents of even young children often wonder how they’ll pay for college tuition, but military service organizations are taking some uncertainty out of the equation.

TOKYO - The U.S. military is stretched, but it is able to do all missions the country asks of it, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today.

WASHINGTON - More Iraqi army units have deployed into Baghdad as part of Operation Law and Order, while an American aviation unit’s deployment to the Iraqi capital city has been sped up, a senior U.S. military officer said here today.

WASHINGTON - After receiving $250,000 in donations last week through a partnership with the Duquesne Light Home and Garden Show in Pittsburgh, “Homes for Our Troops” founder John Gonsalves didn't think things could get much better. But yesterday was one for the record books; Gonsalves found a $3 million check in the group’s mail.

WASHINGTON - Three suspected extremists were killed after firing at Afghan and coalition forces during an operation in Afghanistan’s Helmand province today, officials said.

WASHINGTON - A roadside bomb killed two U.S. soldiers in Baghdad today, and the Defense Department has identified seven soldiers and a Marine who died in Iraq earlier.

WASHINGTON - May 1 will be “Silver Star Day” in Alabama, as Gov. Bob Riley signed a proclamation officially declaring the observance in a brief ceremony yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Senate confirmed the nominees to the top posts at U.S. Northern Command and U.S. Pacific Command during last night’s session.

WASHINGTON - Twenty-one vessels will soon be added to the Iraqi navy fleet, putting it another step closer to being operationally independent, officials said during a Baghdad news conference yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Since 1914, members of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars have supported U.S. servicemembers and their families and worked to ensure that America’s military veterans are never forgotten, auxiliary officials said.

BAGHDAD - March 17 was a hectic day inside a makeshift clinic in the desperately poor Sadr City neighborhood here. In classrooms converted into treatment rooms, Iraqi and U.S. medics attended to a constant stream of patients, from white-bearded old men to babies only a few months old.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces nabbed 18 suspected terrorists, discovered a weapons cache and killed a potential suicide bomber in Iraq over the past few days.

WASHINGTON - Local education officials should seek partnerships with chambers of commerce and other business organizations to explain the financial needs of schools that serve students from military families, a senior Defense Department official said here today.

WASHINGTON - During the new Baghdad security plan’s first month, civilian casualties were reduced by about 50 percent from the previous 30 days, a senior military official told reporters in the Iraqi capital today.

WASHINGTON - They were once known as “weekend warriors,” ordinary citizens who gave up just a little bit of their time for minimal military training and a paycheck. That changed forever on Sept. 11, 2001, when terrorists struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the United States launched the global war on terror.

WASHINGTON - The United States’ most pressing concern in Iraq is helping the Iraqis secure their capital, President Bush said here today on the fourth anniversary of the beginning of U.S. operations there.

WASHINGTON - Covering the rent just got a little bit easier for military personnel in Ohio thanks to Empirian Property Management’s “Service Appreciation Program.”

WASHINGTON - A detainee at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has admitted to helping orchestrate the bombings of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1998 and the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000.

WASHINGTON - Army officials this morning launched a new hotline to help wounded warriors and their family members to get information or assistance with medical or other issues.

WASHINGTON - U.S. military officials refuted a Taliban claim that they shot down a U.S. helicopter in Afghanistan’s Nuristan province on March 16.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces nabbed numerous suspected terrorists and uncovered several weapons caches in operations in Iraq over the past few days, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - About 350 Iraqi civilians and six coalition force members were treated for chlorine gas exposure after suicide bombers detonated chlorine- laden dump trucks in three separate incidents March 16, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Eight U.S. soldiers and a Marine died recently during operations in Iraq, military officials reported, and the Defense Department has identified previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates acknowledged today on CBS's “Face the Nation” that he was “angered and offended” when he learned of problems at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, but recognizes they don’t reflect on the hospital’s top-notch medical staff.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. troop surge in Iraq is in its early stages, but seems to be paving the way for a political solution to the country’s woes, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today on CBS's “Face the Nation.”

WASHINGTON - Al Qaeda and other extremist groups have worked hard to provoke sectarian violence in Iraq, yet the situation there cannot be called a traditional civil war, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - It is vital Congress pass an emergency war spending bill as soon as possible and without strings attached, President Bush said during his weekly radio address today.

WASHINGTON - Recent improvements in Baghdad’s security situation are the result of compounding “evolutionary” developments, the U.S. official responsible for training the Iraqi army said today.

WASHINGTON - Four coalition soldiers died in a roadside-bomb attack today, and 34 suspected terrorists were detained in operations taking place over the past few days in Iraq, military officials reported today.

WASHINGTON - Tribal leaders are cooperating with U.S. and Iraqi security forces to reduce terrorist-staged violence in Diyala province, senior U.S. and Iraqi military officials said today.

WASHINGTON - Utah will observe “Thank a Soldier Day” tomorrow and March 19 to express gratitude to the servicemembers who protect America’s freedoms.

WASHINGTON - A Multinational Division North soldier was killed and another was wounded yesterday while conducting operations in Iraq’s Salah ad Din Province, military officials reported today.

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - For the first time since the United States created a combatant command with responsibility for the Middle East, Northern Africa and Southwest and Central Asia, a naval officer took over the helm of U.S. Central Command here today.

WASHINGTON - Moving coalition forces out of big forward operating bases and into smaller community-based combat outposts as part of the Baghdad Security Plan has reduced violence and helped to stabilize northwestern Baghdad, a senior Army officer serving there said today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush met this morning with members of the Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors to tell them he’s behind their efforts and will act on the problems they identify.

WASHINGTON - The total number of U.S. servicemembers who will be part of the surge in Iraq will be about 28,000 overall, a Defense Department official said today.

WASHINGTON - A four-year-old servicemember support group has proved to be “Always Faithful” as it continues to assist Marines, sailors and other military members who have been injured during their service in the global war against terrorism.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - Airlift is essential to success in the war in Afghanistan, the commander of U.S. Transportation Command said here March 14.

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - In a nondescript building at U.S. Central Command headquarters here, officers from 64 countries work together daily to ensure the coalition fighting terrorism in the Middle East remains strong and well organized.

WASHINGTON - “Muse of Fire,” a film that debuted here last night, uses American troops’ eyewitness accounts and private journals to bring to life the tragedy, pain, horror, death and even the hope and optimism of war.

WASHINGTON - The military’s top enlisted servicemember received a very special care package at his Pentagon office this morning.

WASHINGTON - A U.S. military combatant command with headquarters in Norfolk, Va., is helping warfighters worldwide think and fight jointly to win the war against terrorism, a senior U.S. military officer told the House Armed Services Committee at a hearing here today.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Afghan forces arrested four people this morning during an operation targeting a known terrorist safe house, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The United States is keeping a watchful eye on developments in North Africa to ensure terrorists don’t gain a foothold there, a senior U.S. military officer said in remarks provided to the U.S. House Armed Services Committee at a hearing here today.

WASHINGTON - A soldier and a Marine died yesterday during operations in Iraq, military officials reported today, and the Defense Department has identified two previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces killed four terrorists and detained 11 suspected terrorists during raids over the past several days targeting al Qaeda networks in Iraq, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department recognized a troop-support group and a corporation here today for their teamwork in supporting the nation’s servicemembers.

WASHINGTON - An Army mom in Malone, N.Y., is asking Americans to show their compassion and make life a little more pleasant for troops serving overseas through her Have a Heart/Adopt a Soldier program.

WASHINGTON - As the Defense Department works to simplify its acquisitions processes, it can borrow best practices from business, but also must factor in variables businesses simply don’t have to deal with, the Pentagon’s acquisitions chief told reporters here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Some areas in Iraq are involved in a civil war, according to a report titled “Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq” that the Defense Department released yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Suspected al Qaeda operative Khalid Sheikh Muhammad has admitted masterminding the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks as well as the World Trade Center bombing in 1993.

WASHINGTON - The armed services’ four vice chiefs of staff discussed challenges that affect military readiness at a U.S. House of Representatives’ subcommittee hearing held here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Coalition military officials in Iraq are hoping to reach out to younger, broader audiences by posting clips of servicemembers in action on a popular video-sharing Web site.

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. - As the Defense Department hurries to get the latest weapons systems and protective equipment to deployed troops, the Aberdeen Test Center here is operating at what its commander calls a “fast and furious rate” to ensure effectiveness and safety remain top priorities.

WASHINGTON - The Iraqi people have a “renewed sense of hope,” a senior U.S. diplomat said in Baghdad today.

WASHINGTON - An independent review group charged by the defense secretary with identifying shortcomings and making recommendations for improvements in care for injured troops held its first public meeting at Walter Reed Army Medical Center yesterday.

WASHINGTON - A soldier and a Marine died yesterday during operations in Iraq, military officials reported today, and the Defense Department has identified five previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - Violence is down in Iraq and Iraqis “are starting to see this growth and gaining new confidence,” a coalition spokesman in Baghdad said today.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - Give an Afghan a job hauling bags of cement, he works for a day. Give an Afghan a job that offers on-the-job-training, and he works for the rest of his life.

WASHINGTON - Army Spc. Timothy Lott gripped his walking cane as he prepared to meet some of his lifelong heroes.

WASHINGTON - Active-duty recruiting is in good shape, with all services making or exceeding their goals in February, but four of the six reserve components did not make their numbers, Defense Department officials announced yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Beyond making budget and administrative decisions, leadership is about setting a tone of integrity and caring, and working for lasting change, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

WASHINGTON - The Baghdad security plan has only been under way for a short time, but the Iraqis are meeting their commitments and early signs are pointing toward success, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

WASHINGTON - The top civilian and military leaders in the Defense Department today expressed support for the current “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy barring openly gay people from military service.

WASHINGTON - Coalition soldiers uncovered four caches of ordnance and explosive materials and detained 13 suspected terrorists in Iraq on March 11, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The Military Officers Association of America announced it will present its highest award to an actor and a corporation for their strong support of military servicemembers.

WASHINGTON - Better job and educational opportunities or family reasons may have led them from the lands of their birth to the United States, but serving in the armed forces made it possible for four servicemembers to become citizens yesterday.

WASHINGTON - For nearly four years, overseas-deployed servicemembers have been redeeming gift certificates at military exchange stores as part of a successful troop-support program.

WASHINGTON - Motivated by its commitment to those who fight for freedom, the Army is acting quickly to fix problems with the medical system that have come to light since reports surfaced in February of poor conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here, the Army’s top civilian leader said today.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi army and police forces worked together to provide security for the more than 6 million pilgrims traveling to Karbala to observe the Shiite ritual of Arbaeen, officials in Baghdad said today.

WASHINGTON - An early withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq would endanger the United States and imperil the global war against terrorism, Vice President Richard B. Cheney told members of a pro-Israel advocacy group here today.

WASHINGTON - Administrative tribunals were held March 9 and 10 for three of the 14 high-value detainees being held at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the Defense Department announced today.

WASHINGTON - U.S. and Iraqi officials are working to build an Iraqi air force capable of conducting operations across the entire spectrum of the counterinsurgency fight, a senior U.S. military officer said today.

WASHINGTON - Although recent operations to secure Baghdad are off to a good start, Americans must be patient in expecting progress, a senior coalition spokesman said in Baghdad today.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi security forces have made much progress in the past two years, transitioning from being coalition-driven to being a capable, competent force fighting for its own people, the commander of the Iraqi Assistance Group told reporters in Baghdad yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Army Lt. Gen. Kevin C. Kiley, the service’s surgeon general who has been under fire for shortcomings in outpatient care at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here, submitted his request to retire from the Army yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces captured 48 suspected insurgents and killed eight, and insurgents killed more than 20 civilians in several attacks over the past few days in Iraq, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Four soldiers and a Marine died in Iraq yesterday, and the Defense Department released the identities of 11 servicemembers who died recently supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

WASHINGTON - An unconventional public service announcement produced by the Pentagon Channel reminding military members to vote has been awarded first place in a nationwide competition sponsored by Cable World Magazine.

WASHINGTON - Afghan and coalition forces captured five suspected terrorists early today near Jalalabad, Afghanistan, during a search for individuals believed to be responsible for transporting and hiding al Qaeda terrorists and other fighters moving into and around Nangarhar province, officials said.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces killed one terrorist and captured 61 others during various raids and operations throughout Iraq over the past three days.

VAIL, Colo. - Vail firefighters opened their house here yesterday evening for the fourth year in a row to thank the 25 participants of the Vail Veterans Program for their service to the nation. The firefighters treated the veterans and their guests to a homemade lasagna dinner.

VAIL, Colo. - As the Vail Veterans Program wrapped up the last day of its fourth annual winter sports clinic here yesterday, the veterans and their guests expressed their appreciation for what they’d gained at the four-day event.

VAIL, Colo. - Walter Reed Army Medical Center patients participating in the Vail Veterans Program’s winter sports clinic took their newfound skiing skills to the next level here yesterday.

VAIL, Colo. - After two days of skiing and snowboarding, last night was all about fun for the 25 injured veterans participating in the Vail Veterans Program here and their guests.

WASHINGTON - While security remains the overriding concern in Iraq, the Iraqi government is making progress on the economic front, the coordinator for economic transition in Iraq, today said.

WASHINGTON - The Independent Review Group recently established by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates wants to hear from patients and family members about their experiences with military medical care, the review group announced today.

WASHINGTON - Two home-front groups are helping American citizens support servicemembers and their families worldwide through the donation of gift certificates.

WASHINGTON - Three of the four Iraqi army divisions in the north are now under the control of the Iraqi Ground Forces Command, and U.S. troops are turning over more counterinsurgency operations to those units, the top U.S. commander in the region said today.

WASHINGTON - To adapt to the shifting national security environment, United States Strategic Command is refining and fielding new capabilities, the organization’s commander said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Iraqis in the country’s north, fed up with ongoing violence, are leading U.S. and Iraqi forces to some of the largest weapons and bombs caches found in the region to date, the commander of Multinational Division North told Pentagon reporters today.

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Army National Guard Director Lt. Gen. Clyde A. Vaughn received a warm welcome from fellow Guardsmen on Kandahar Airfield during a March 4 visit .

WASHINGTON - Pakistani, Afghan and U.S. troops teamed up to stop a group of Taliban insurgents from crossing the border from Afghanistan into Pakistan during a March 7 incident, officials said.

WASHINGTON - American troops killed one terrorist and detained 16 others, including an alleged al Qaeda-affiliated killer and a media representative, during a series of morning raids conducted throughout Iraq today.

WASHINGTON - The Army vice chief of staff yesterday announced leadership changes to the medical hold units at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, which he called an important first step in correcting administrative and bureaucratic challenges wounded soldiers face during recovery.

WASHINGTON - The nominee to lead U.S. Northern Command and North America Aerospace Defense Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee here yesterday that he realizes the missions of both organizations are demanding and challenging, but that he would consider leading them to be a “sacred honor.”

BESIMAYA RANGE, Iraq - In a landscape almost void of trees or plants, dust is king here at Besimaya Range Complex. Troops from recently got a taste, literally, of what nature has to offer in the desert.

WASHINGTON - The admiral nominated to lead U.S. Pacific Command told members of Congress yesterday that he plans to take an “aggressive, but measured and reasonable approach” when dealing with China if he is confirmed.

VAIL, Colo. - While many of their comrades learned to ski, three injured veterans hit the snowboard hill under instructors’ guidance yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates vows "to keep the welfare of men and women in uniform uppermost in my mind at all times."

WASHINGTON - China is not a strategic adversary of the United States, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a news roundtable yesterday.

WASHINGTON - One of the Defense Department’s top officials said today he is not surprised that servicemembers get different disability ratings from each of the services, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Social Security Administration.

WASHINGTON - Top DoD and Army officials are concerned that recent widely publicized problems in outpatient care at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here might overshadow the quality of inpatient care and lower staff morale.

WASHINGTON - The top lawyers in the State Department and DoD have sent a letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross criticizing the methodology authors used in compiling a study that purports to be a definitive explanation of the laws of war.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces detained 33 terrorist suspects and responded to a suicide-bomb attack in Iraq over the past two days.

WASHINGTON - Three soldiers died yesterday during operations in Iraq, military officials reported today. The Defense Department also identified eight previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - The Armed Services YMCA paid tribute to military medics and corpsmen here last night during its first Angels of the Battlefield awards dinner.

VAIL, Colo. - For the fourth consecutive year, 25 veterans wounded in the global war on terrorism will test their mettle on the slopes thanks to the Vail Veterans Program’s winter sports clinic that kicked off here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Sensational attacks like the March 6 suicide bombing that killed more than 100 religious pilgrims in Karbala, Iraq, illustrate insurgents’ lack of respect for human life, the top U.S. military officer in Iraq told reporters today.

WASHINGTON - Spurred by North Korean missile testing in 2006, the United States has made significant strides this year in upgrading its missile detection in the Pacific region, the top U.S. Pacific Command official said yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The possibility of sending a contingent of military police to Iraq to augment the more than 21,500 American combat troops already earmarked for deployment there was foreseen by military planners, the top U.S. officer in Iraq said today.

WASHINGTON - A new strategy that puts U.S. and Iraqi forces inside Baghdad neighborhoods to safeguard residents against insurgent and sectarian violence can work, but it will take time to be fully implemented, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq said in Baghdad during his first news conference today.

WASHINGTON - NATO is stepping forward in Afghanistan, and the feared Taliban spring offensive is being replaced by a NATO offensive, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a news roundtable here today.

WASHINGTON - The United States will send another 2,200 troops into Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today.

WASHINGTON - The military will not wait to hear the results of many boards examining military and veterans medical care, but will move out to correct the situation, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a news roundtable today.

WASHINGTON - Military veterans of the American Legion today recognized a television show and the founder of an organization that supports wounded troops for their special efforts to honor the men and women of the armed forces.

WASHINGTON - Problems in the outpatient system at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and possibly at other Defense Department medical facilities should not tarnish the image of the military medical professionals who save lives every day, the Army chief of staff said here today.

WASHINGTON - The group called “Families United for Our Troops and Their Mission” works publicly to ensure the troops know that the American people support them.

WASHINGTON - Coalition and Iraqi forces detained 48 suspected terrorists and found several weapons caches in operations throughout Iraq in the past two days.

WASHINGTON - The top U.S. commander in Korea today said he wants to end one-year tours there and replace them with standard three-year tours, enabling more family members to move to the region.

WASHINGTON - Although it’s too early to draw firm conclusions, the new combined Iraqi-U.S. security effort to reduce violence in Iraq’s capital city already seems to be bearing fruit, a senior U.S. military officer said today in Baghdad.

WASHINGTON - President Bush today promised the co-chairs of the Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors that they will have the full cooperation of all agencies of government.

WASHINGTON - Afghan and coalition forces have captured suspected terrorists and destroyed a car rigged with explosives in operations in Afghanistan over the past three days.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces have killed five and captured five terrorists in Iraq in recent days.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department announced today that administrative tribunals will begin March 9 for 14 high-value detainees transferred in September to the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

WASHINGTON - Questions to top Army and DoD officials before the Senate Armed Services Committee today focused on how to eliminate the bureaucracies that many say permeate servicemembers’ outpatient health care.

WASHINGTON - There are no shortcuts in Iraq, President Bush told members of the American Legion here today.

ABOARD USS JOHN C. STENNIS - Navy, Marine Corps and Army personnel are working side by side aboard the USS John C. Stennis Strike Group supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

WASHINGTON - With income tax deadlines quickly approaching, the Internal Revenue Service is reminding troops and their families that free assistance is available to them at military tax centers worldwide.

WASHINGTON - American and Afghan forces captured five suspected terrorists yesterday during a joint operation in Khowst province, and an enemy rocket missed a coalition base during an attack in Kapisa province the same day, U.S. officials reported.

WASHINGTON - The hospital ship USNS Comfort will provide health care to disadvantaged citizens at several Latin American and Caribbean ports of call this summer, President Bush announced here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Improvised explosive devices are to the war in Iraq what artillery and mortars were to World War II, Korea and Vietnam -- the main troop killers, a retired general working to defeat the deadly devices said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Americans have a moral obligation to provide the best possible care and treatment to the men and women who serve their country, President Bush told members of the American Legion here today.

WASHINGTON - Hundreds of volunteer buglers and trumpeters are being sought to participate in Armed Forces Day observances held at veterans’ cemeteries nationwide and overseas, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs official said here yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Military family members in Michigan don’t have to squeak by anymore when it comes to routine auto maintenance thanks to eight auto garages throughout the state.

STUTTGART, Germany - A week-long visit by the deputy commander of U.S. European Command to five East African nations focused on fostering relationships and improving bilateral military engagements in the region.

WASHINGTON - Ten soldiers died and five were wounded recently during operations in Iraq, military officials reported today. The Defense Department also identified three previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - Servicemembers can take advantage of the generosity of professional wrestlers by getting free admittance into World Wrestling Entertainment events worldwide.

WASHINGTON - Army leaders are committed to improving the service’s health care systems for wounded servicemembers and their families, top officers told the national security subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today.

WASHINGTON - Two Marines and a U.S. Navy sailor died recently during operations in Iraq, military officials reported today. The Defense Department also identified five previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - In operations around Iraq over the past three days, coalition forces captured 38 suspects.

WASHINGTON - The North Atlantic Treaty Organization Military Committee visited U.S. Joint Forces Command here March 2 to cement its relationship with NATO Allied Command Transformation.

WASHINGTON - Vice President Richard B. Cheney today assured those attending the Veterans of Foreign Wars conference here that he and other U.S. leaders are committed to members of the armed forces and to the nation’s strategy overseas.

WASHINGTON - The Internet is the most important venue for the radicalization of Islamic youth, the head of intelligence at U.S. Central Command, said in an interview aired yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Traumatic brain injury, the signature wound of a conflict punctuated by daily bomb attacks on coalition forces and Iraqi civilians, is receiving increased emphasis from Defense Department leaders and the military medical community.

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan - The Craig Joint Theater Hospital, named for an Army medic killed in 2006, opened for business here yesterday, offering patients here a whole new level of care and doctors a new level of technology with which to work.

MIAMI, FL - U.S. Southern Command here partnered with the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. Navy’s Project Handclasp to airlift more than $30,000 of emergency relief supplies to victims of recent devastating flooding in eastern Bolivia.

WASHINGTON - The traditional concept of defense has given way to a new model of security, bringing concepts such as partnership and cooperation to the fore, the commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Europe said here.

WASHINGTON - The “Eagle’s Watch Foundation” maintains a low-flying profile as it employs a bird’s-eye view in finding ways to support U.S. servicemembers and their families.

WASHINGTON - The initial implementation of the new security plan for Iraq has been encouraging, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq said today from Baghdad.

WASHINGTON - The commander of Multinational Corps Iraq said today the new Iraqi security plan will take months, not weeks, to accomplish.

WASHINGTON - A coalition servicemember was injured, eight Afghan civilians were killed and 35 civilians were wounded today when militants assaulted a coalition forces convoy as it moved east along Highway 1 in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - More than 600 Multi-National Division Baghdad soldiers and 550 Iraqi security forces began a clearing operation in the eastern Baghdad district known as Sadr City today, military officials reported.

WASHINGTON - Three Multinational Corps Iraq soldiers were killed yesterday when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb in central Baghdad.

WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced this afternoon that he has accepted the resignation of Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey in light of allegations of shortfalls in care of outpatients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here.

WASHINGTON - In response to problems recently reported at the Army’s top medical center, President Bush today said his office is creating a bipartisan commission to review the overall quality of health care wounded servicemembers receive.

WASHINGTON - Iraqi security forces for the first time have taken control of Baghdad’s security, a senior military official there said today.

WASHINGTON - Two Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers and an interpreter were killed today when their vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb.

WASHINGTON - Establishing U.S. Africa Command will mean big changes to U.S. European Command, the top U.S. military commander in Europe said at a news roundtable here today.

WASHINGTON - Afghanistan is making progress, but big challenges remain, the man with ultimate responsibility for NATO’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan said today.

WASHINGTON - Over the past two days in Iraq, coalition forces killed eight terrorists and found a car bomb and weapons cache, Iraqi forces detained five suspects, and insurgents killed four civilians with mortar fire.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - A handful of wounded warriors recovering at Brooke Army Medical Center here are getting a taste of home -- minus the neck-wrenching skyscrapers and taxi-filled city streets.

WASHINGTON - As a senior in high school, Tania Foster could easily focus all her energy in preparing for her collegiate pursuits. However, the 18-year-old is instead putting her spare time into helping others -- primarily the men and women of the armed forces.

WASHINGTON - The anticipated spring offensive may mark the beginning of the end for the Taliban in Afghanistan, a military official told bloggers and online journalists in a conference call yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Changes are needed to pull together the nation’s security team and break down “institutional stove pipes” between agencies, the chairman of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves reported to Congress today.

WASHINGTON - A Marine died yesterday and an Army soldier died Feb. 27 in Iraq, military officials reported today. The Defense Department also identified three previous casualties.

WASHINGTON - Coalition forces killed 13 insurgents, detained 26 suspects and found scores of weapons in operations around Iraq over the past three days.

WASHINGTON - Rebuilding Iraq is shifting from a U.S.-led “jump start” effort to a self-sustaining Iraqi driven phase, the director of the Iraq Reconstruction Management Office said today.

WASHINGTON - The defense budget request before Congress reflects what’s required to ensure the United States can defend itself and its people against current and future threats, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told Congress today.

WASHINGTON - The independent review group that will assess outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here, and at the National Naval Medical Center in Maryland, held its first meeting at the Pentagon today.

ARLINGTON, Va. - International partnership is vital in the war on terror, a senior defense official said yesterday at the 18th annual Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict Symposium here.

WASHINGTON - Leaders of 10 America Supports You homefront support groups from around the country, and a National Guard family program, accepted President Bush’s invitation to meet with him at the White House yesterday.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department’s Office of Military Commissions referred a charge today against David Matthew Hicks, an Australian captured in Afghanistan in December 2001.

WASHINGTON - The United States and the international community will need to support countries in the Middle East as they join together to defeat extremism during the long war on terror, a top U.S. Central Command officer said here.

WASHINGTON - Army Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman was relieved of command today as a result of failures in care for outpatient soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Army officials announced.

WASHINGTON - Child care is a critical issue for many families around the country, and the Defense Department stands alone as a model for quality child care in the nation, an independent study released today finds.

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas - A San Antonio-based joint trauma institute is taking on a national role, a change that is expected to have a positive impact on trauma research.

WASHINGTON - Servicemembers with ties to central Oregon can rely on “Caring for Troops” for a touch of home when they’re deployed, the organization’s president said.

WASHINGTON - Barring additional requests and funding from the government of Iraq, U.S. reconstruction work in Iraq could draw to a close within 18 months, the top U.S. military official for reconstruction said yesterday.