Rowan Scarborough
Articles by Rowan Scarborough
Pentagon says Ramadi operation imminent to retake city from Islamic State
A month ago the two top U.S. military officials told senators that retaking the western Iraqi city of Ramadi had been elevated to one of three critical objectives leading to the ultimate defeat of the Islamic State's terrorist army. Now that major objective is days away. Published November 19, 2015
ISIS shows nimble ability to strike multiple Western targets
Stark evidence that the Islamic State now has the organizational power to conceive plots in a wide range of locations is seen in a stream of videos featuring armed jihadi leaders vowing more attacks outside Iraq and Syria. Published November 18, 2015
Obama enumerates what he will not do in anti-terror fight
President Obama's year-old military strategy to defeat the Islamic State is noteworthy for what he will not do, as well as the steps he has taken for a projected drawn-out war lasting years. Published November 16, 2015
Attack on U.S. just a matter of time, security experts say
It is only a matter of time before a Paris-style coordinated terror attack comes to the streets of America, experts say, citing the fact the Islamic State is far more gruesomely efficient than even al Qaeda and is attracting hundreds of committed U.S. followers. Published November 14, 2015
Kurds seize Sinjar, city in northern Iraq, from Islamic State’s clutches
The Kurdish government in Iraq declared Friday morning that its peshmerga fighters, backed by intense U.S. airstrikes, had liberated the city of Sinjar, a place of horrifying atrocities carried out by the Islamic State. Published November 12, 2015
Moderate Democrats pleading with Obama for decisive plan to beat Islamic State
Moderate Democrats are breaking with their party's left and with President Obama on the Iraq-Syria war strategy, basically pleading with the commander in chief to come up with a more decisive plan for defeating the Islamic State's terrorist army. Published November 11, 2015
Pentagon ‘gay’ rape debacle: Report alleging male-on-male sexual trauma retracted
The American Psychological Association has taken the extraordinary step of retracting an in-house journal article that asserted the rate of rape and other sexual trauma among military men was as much as 15 times higher than the Pentagon's own survey. Published November 9, 2015
Doctors Without Borders refuses Pentagon money to rebuild hospital damaged in airstrike
Doctors Without Borders is saying no thanks to a Pentagon offer to pay for rebuilding its trauma center destroyed by a U.S. AC-130 gunship on Oct. 3, killing 30 patients and staff. Published November 8, 2015
Aaron Allmon case makes Minot Air Force Base ground zero in military’s new gender wars
He is an award-winning combat photographer who stands accused of trying to pick up women in the public affairs office at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota, and for that prosecutors wanted to put him in prison for 130 years. Published November 5, 2015
‘Gay’ rape in military underreported by Pentagon
Far more military men are being raped by other men than is reported by the Pentagon because of the stigma attached to such sexual assaults, says a new study published by the American Psychological Association. Published November 3, 2015
Green Beret war hero cleared of wrongdoing in whistleblower case
A Green Beret war hero, whom the Army had banished from his Pentagon office for whistleblowing to Congress about what he considered a failed hostage rescue policy, has been cleared of wrongdoing. Published November 1, 2015
Army misfires on pistol upgrade effort, confuses gun makers with complex requirements
The Army is botching the procurement of what should be one of the simplest weapons to buy: the pistol. Published October 28, 2015
Obama’s team preps for more U.S. boots on the ground in fight against Islamic State
President Obama's war cabinet signaled Tuesday that the U.S. military is preparing for deeper troop commitments in the one-year offensive against the Islamic State, with ratcheted-up airstrikes on the terrorist group's moneymaking enterprises and with more American boots on the ground. Published October 27, 2015
Obama’s competence as commander in chief challenged in Senate hearing
Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain on Tuesday directly questioned President Obama's competence as the nation's commander in chief. Published October 27, 2015
Russian airstrikes in Syria target Assad foes, not Islamic State
The vast majority of Russian airstrikes in Syria are hitting rebels opposed to the Bashar Assad regime -- not Islamic State terrorists -- and, like the Syrian president's forces, often make no effort to avoid hitting civilians, a study says. Published October 25, 2015
Syrian forces unleash ‘suicide’ drones on rebels
In a war first, Syrian allies Russia and Iran have begun unleashing "suicide" drones that land and explode, presenting another challenge to rebels trying to oust the regime of president Bashar Assad. Published October 22, 2015
Charles Martland, Green Beret discharged for confronting child rapist, gaining support
A Green Beret who is being discharged for roughing up an accused Afghan child rapist is gaining support nationwide from pro-military groups as his appeal nears the finish line. Published October 21, 2015
Wayne Simmons, accused fraudster, says he has proof of CIA work
A conservative cable news pundit, whom federal prosecutors accused last week of fabricating a life story of being a former deep-cover CIA officer, now sits in jail, unable to publicly address the felony charges against him. Published October 18, 2015
Islamic State, al Qaeda are big fans of Edward Snowden’s tweets
Among the keen followers of Edward Snowden's new Twitter persona are terrorists associated with Al Qaeda's branch in Syria and the Islamic State terror army. Published October 16, 2015
Obama ignores generals on troop levels for unprecedented 6th time in Afghanistan, Iraq
In the end, President Obama was forced to listen to his generals -- not his political instincts -- on Afghanistan troop levels, and he decided to split the difference. Published October 15, 2015
