Remembering
James Robison

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Service & Sacrifice: Target and Destroy

A snapshot of the burdens brave U.S. troops and military families are shouldering around the world.

U.S. Army soldiers with the New Jersey National Guard recently perform a live fire exercise with an M777 Howitzer in northeast Syria.

By Tom Sileo Published on November 1, 2024

Middle East

The brave men and women of the U.S. military are still doing what they do best: taking out terrorists.

On Wednesday, U.S. Central Command announced that “up to 35” ISIS terrorists were killed in a series of American airstrikes in Syria. The raids were conducted on Monday.

“The strikes targeted multiple ISIS locations in the Syrian desert, targeting multiple ISIS senior leaders,” CENTCOM said. “There are no indications of civilian casualties.”

Many Americans have no idea that hundreds of U.S. military service members are still stationed in Syria, as well as thousands in neighboring Iraq. That ignorance should not be blamed on the public, but on politicians for largely ignoring the daily sacrifices of our troops and the media for obsessing about next week’s election in its neverending quest for higher ratings and readership.

Speaking of Iraq, did you know that two American heroes were injured there last week while battling ISIS? According to CENTCOM, the U.S. military “conducted strikes and follow on raids on multiple ISIS locations in central Iraq, targeting several senior ISIS leaders and killing at least seven ISIS operatives.”

The two U.S. troops were wounded, according to CENTCOM, while helping the Iraqi military gather intelligence material during one of the raids. Thankfully, they are in stable condition. Please join The Stream in praying for their full recovery.

Also in the Middle East, the U.S. military continues to target and destroy Iranian-supplied weapons Houthi terrorists in Yemen are using to attack commercial ships. On October 24, CENTCOM announced that American forces “successfully destroyed 15 one-way attack uncrewed aerial systems, land attack cruise missiles and surface-to-air missiles.”

“These Iranian-supplied weapons, launched episodically by the Houthis and Iranian-aligned militia groups over several days during the week, posed a significant risk to the United States, allies, and partner forces, as well as civilians in the region,” CENTCOM said.

Is next week’s election important? Of course it is, but that doesn’t mean we should look the other way while our country’s brave men and women in uniform are risking their lives in faraway places to keep America and the world safe. No matter who becomes the next president, I hope he or she will do a better job of keeping the country informed and inspired by the sacrifices of our military than the current administration has done.

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Homeland

Another extraordinary effort by the U.S. military that seems to have been overlooked is the ongoing rescue and recovery effort in North Carolina.

Ever since Hurricane Helene devastated the western part of the state, selfless soldiers from National Guard units have been busy working with first responders to save people, pets, and property. The stunning graphic embedded below shows a running tally of their heroics as of yesterday morning.

According to military statistics, a staggering 869 people have been rescued, and also 226 pets. Thousands of pallets of food have been delivered along with tens of thousands of tons of essential supplies. As for water, which is at a premium in western North Carolina after the storm left thousands without running water, more than 5,000 pallets of bottled water has been delivered by the National Guard, as well as more than 600,000 gallons of bulk water.

Amid tragedy, we are seeing the very best of our country as the military, first responders, local residents, and people from other states descend on North Carolina to help those in dire need. Please pray for western North Carolina and all impacted by the recent storms. We humbly ask God to lift these good people up during these incredibly difficult times.

Coming Home

Speaking of North Carolina, a group of U.S. Air Force airmen recently returned to their base there after successfully completing a deployment.

Military Homecoming NC

A U.S. Air Force airman reunites with his family after returning from a deployment at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina on October 24, 2024.

Welcome home, heroes! Thank you for your dedicated service to our country and we hope you enjoy this special time with your families and friends.

 

Tom Sileo is a contributing senior editor of The Stream. He is the author of I Have Your Back, Be Bold and co-author of Three Wise Men, Brothers Forever, 8 Seconds of Courage and Fire in My Eyes. Follow Tom on X @TSileo and The Stream at @Streamdotorg.