The military operation in Libya has cost the Defense Department approximately $896 million. “This … includes amounts for daily military operations, munitions used in the operation, President-directed drawdown of DoD supplies, and humanitarian assistance,” a statement from a Pentagon official reads. The estimate, which was provided by the Defense Department,…

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned Tuesday of “devastating effects” if the Congressional supercommittee fails to reach a compromise and the military is required to make large, across-the-board budget cuts. “It would result in hollowing out the force,” Panetta said during a discussion with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the…

General John Allen, the head of U.S. forces Afghanistan, told reporters Wednesday that American forces killed Taliban fighters involved in Saturday’s deadly helicopter crash. The fighters were killed late Monday in an air strike with F-16 fighter jets in Eastern Afghanistan. According to a statement from ISAF Joint Command, the…

Leon Panetta was ceremonially sworn-in as Defense Secretary Friday, three weeks after he took the reins at the Pentagon. Appearing in the Pentagon’s auditorium before an audience of military, Defense and Congressional officials, Panetta received the oath of office from Vice President Joe Biden, who praised the Defense Secretary as…

General David Petraeus passed on command duties in Afghanistan to General John Allen during a ceremony in Afghanistan Monday. Petraeus, who assumed command in Afghanistan last July, was tapped by the Obama administration to head the Central Intelligence Agency. He will assume his new role in September after retiring from…

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told American troops Monday that the Iraqi government needs to definitively answer whether or not they want an ongoing U.S. presence in the country. Panetta, appearing at Camp Victory in Iraq, added that he was frustrated with the pace of the government’s deliberations. “I’d like things…

Leon Panetta was sworn in as Defense Secretary Friday morning in a small, private ceremony at the Pentagon. Panetta, the former director of the CIA, began his first day as Secretary by sending out a message to all Defense and military personnel promising to pursue a “disciplined” approach to military…

President Barack Obama surprised outgoing Defense Secretary Robert Gates Thursday with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor a President can bestow on a civilian. “I can think of no better way to express my appreciation to someone that I have come to admire and who I consider a…

Admiral Michael Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress Thursday that he supports President Barack Obama’s plans to remove 33,000 troops from Afghanistan by next summer, but said that they are “more aggressive and incur more risk than I was initially prepared to accept.” “More force…

Federal officials believe Yonathan Melaku, a 22-year-old Marine Corps reservist, is the individual who opened fire on the Pentagon and other military buildings last year. Melaku was detained last Friday for trespassing in Arlington National Cemetery. He was found with materials in his backpack that authorities believed could be used…