Frontlines of Freedom

17/09/2025

The Pentagon on Monday unveiled new grooming standards, which now require service members “to be clean shaven and neat in presentation for a proper military appearance.” Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement Monday that following “a rapid force-wide review of military st...

16/09/2025

Trump indicated that Chicago was next on his list, which now includes St. Louis as a possible target for federal intervention.

15/09/2025

AKU AGHA, REST IN PEACE: During my year living with the Kurds in Northern Iraq, I was blessed to have a close friendship with this man, Aku Agha. He was headquartered up amongst the mountainous beauty of Raniya, where the Aku tribe could boast of 8,000 men under arms (peshmerga). The tribe is an historic Kurdish tribe, and Aku Agha is an historic figure, as is his father and grandfather. Pick up a Kurdish history book, and you will see photos of them all.
On 5 March 1991, following February broadcasted messages of George Bush urging Iraqi citizens to overthrow the Saddam Hussein regime, the Kurdish uprising (Reperin) began in Aku Agha's base area, Raniya. The Iraqi Army units that Saddam had sent there were grossly outnumbered by peshmerga of the Aku tribe, and Aku Agha, himself, was instrumental in persuading the Iraqi officers to order their troops to lay down arms. When they did, and to avoid needless bloodshed, the Aku tribe then guaranteed their safe retreat back to Baghdad...an honorable act in a country of countless dishonorable acts.
On the night before I returned to the USA for my next assignment, Aku Agha drove the hour and a half south to visit me in my safehouse to say goodbye. He brought with him a gorgeous, Kurdish dagger (daban) of curved, damascus steel. He presented it to me with the message, "This is daban signifies that wherever you go, wherever you are, if you need my help, I will come."
He passed away yesterday. Rest in peace, old friend.

14/09/2025

US Air Force Colonel Kim Nichole Campbell AKA "Killer Chick":
Campbell was decorated for piloting her A-10 Thunderbolt II back to base in southern Iraq after taking heavy anti-aircraft artillery damage in aerial combat over Baghdad during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

Campbell is the daughter of the former mayor of San Jose (and former USAF captain) Chuck Reed. She joined the Civil Air Patrol as a cadet at age 13 and made her first solo flight in a civilian aircraft over San Jose at age 17.

April 2003 incident
During a mission over Baghdad on April 7, 2003, Campbell's aircraft A-10A Warthog suffered extensive damage from enemy fire. "We did our job with the guys there on the ground, and as we were on our way out is when I felt the jet get hit. It was pretty obvious it was loud... I lost all hydraulics instantaneously, and the jet rolled left and pointed toward the ground, which was an uncomfortable feeling over Baghdad. It didn't respond to any of my control inputs."

She tried several procedures to get the aircraft under control, none of which worked; she put the plane into manual reversion, controlling the aircraft through a system of cables and pulleys.

The A-10 immediately responded. "The jet started climbing away from the ground, which was a good feeling because there was no way I wanted to eject over Baghdad." With some technical advice from her flight leader, Lieutenant Colonel Turner she flew the crippled plane for an hour back to the air base. "The jet was performing exceptionally well. I had no doubt in my mind I was going to land that airplane."

Landing was complicated by the damage the aircraft had sustained. She knew three other pilots had attempted to land using manual reversion. One had cartwheeled the aircraft and died. "When you lose all the hydraulics, you don't have speed brakes, you don't have brakes, and you don't have steering."

After landing ground crews discovered that her A-10 had sustained damage to one engine and to the redundant hydraulic systems disabling the flight controls landing gear and brakes. A detailed inspection revealed hundreds of holes from extensive flak damage to the airframe.

13/09/2025

9/11 - THE CIA COMMANDER of JAWBREAKER, THE TEAM MISSIONED TO KILL OSAMA BIN LADEN - MY GUEST, GARY BERNTSEN, on THE FRONTLINES REPORT: Join us this week for Show #3 of our 3-part series commemorating 9/11. An old friend, Gary Bernsten, was the CIA’s on-the-ground commander of Jawbreaker, the operation to kill Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan in late September 2001. Think of the pure courage, the will to personally accept the responsibility of a nation, and the immense risks of infiltrating with 6 other men into Tora Bora, bin Laden's hide site in Afghanistan, one month after 9/11. Bin Laden had none less than 1,000 men guarding him...and yet Gary went in after him.
Gary details the mission that killed untold numbers of al-Qaeda, injured bin Laden and left him running for his life. Gary holds nothing back when he recounts the attack as well as explaining who allowed bin Laden to get away. Here's the link to the show: https://frontlinesoffreedom.com/show-925/

13/09/2025

13/09/2025

Ship that hunted submarines in World War II departs Muskegon museum

The USCGC McLane, a longtime museum exhibit, metaphorically sailed off into the sunset.

11/09/2025

In Detroit, high school students are volunteering to serve as pallbearers at the funerals of homeless veterans who have no family to honor them.

This initiative, called the Pallbearer Ministry, began in 2015 when a group of six seniors from the University of Detroit Jesuit High School decided to step in and offer a dignified farewell to veterans who passed away alone.

Since then, the program has grown, and over 50 students have been trained to assist at these services. Each student learns about the life and military service of the veteran before the funeral, which helps them connect more deeply with the person they are honoring.

By participating, the students provide a final act of respect for those who served the country but had no family to carry their casket. The experience is not only a way to show respect to the deceased but also offers the students valuable lessons in empathy, dignity, and community service.

The program has become an important reminder that every life has worth, and that even those who may have been forgotten by society deserve to be treated with dignity in their final moments. Through their involvement, the students are learning to reflect on the significance of service and the impact they can make on others, particularly those who are marginalized.

This small act of kindness highlights the value of community and the importance of standing together to support those in need.

11/09/2025

US warns hidden radios may be embedded in solar-powered highway infrastructure by Chinese manufacturers

By Jana Winter and Raphael Satter WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. officials say solar-powered highway infrastructure including chargers, roadside weather stations, and traffic cameras should be scanned for the presence of rogue devices – such as hidden radios – secreted inside batteries and inverters...

10/09/2025

Hellfire missile bounces off mysterious orb in stunning UAP footage shown to Congress. Witnesses testify no known technology could survive Hellfire impact

Lawmakers stunned as footage shows Hellfire missile bouncing off unidentified aerial phenomena, with experts testifying no U.S. technology could survive such a strike.

10/09/2025

Poland says it shot down Russian drones that violated its airspace during attack on Ukraine. Polish airspace was violated by at least 19 Russian drones this morning. Polish PM: This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since WWII

“This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.

10/09/2025

In 1986, well before the sex scandals, the crack and the tiger blood, the 20-year-old actor embarked on the most intense shoot of his career. In an excerpt from his explosive new memoir, Sheen reveals how Oliver Stone’s epic Vietnam War film changed him forever.