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Category: Military Interest
After spiking through June and July, military COVID-19 cases level off
The last week in July showed a sizeable slowdown in the increase of coronavirus cases among service members, from a peak of more than 4,000 cases in one week earlier in the month.
With a total of 27,536 infections as of Friday morning, Defense Department officials have attributed the rapid rise in cases to increased testing and community transmission in states like California, Arizona, Texas and Florida, which set records for new numbers of cases throughout the month.
“We’ve not seen any widespread evidence that what’s occurring in the 18-to-24 demographic is because they’re not following the rules,” Air Force Brig. Gen. Paul Friedrichs, the Joint Staff surgeon said Thursday, announcing that young people in the military were showing a slightly higher infection rate than American young adults.
Army ready to begin broad review at Fort Hood in wake of Guillen murder
The Army has named the five members of the independent panel that will soon review the command climate and culture at Fort Hood, Texas, in the wake of Spc. Vanessa Guillen’s murder and her family’s claims that she was too intimidated to report allegations of sexual harassment by a fellow soldier.
The five civilians named to the panel are: Chris Swecker, an attorney and former assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division; Jonathan Harmon, a prominent trial attorney; Carrie Ricci, an associate general counsel at the Department of Agriculture; Queta Rodriguez, a regional director of a nonprofit organization that helps veterans transition into civilian careers, and Jack White, an attorney who has expertise in government investigations.
Third Fort Hood soldier found dead near Texas Army base within past month
Officials have not said whether the death is considered suspicious
Another soldier has been found dead near Fort Hood, the third body of a soldier to be discovered near the U.S. Army base in Texas within the past month.
Pvt. Mejhor Morta, 26, was found unresponsive July 17 in the vicinity of Stillhouse Hollow Lake, Fort Hood officials said on Tuesday. Stillhouse Hollow Lake is a reservoir located in Bell County and managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Fort Worth District.
Officials have not said whether the death is considered suspicious. The Bell County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the incident.
“The Black Knight family is truly heartbroken by the tragic loss of Private Mejhor Morta,” said Lt. Col. Neil Armstrong, commander of 1st Brigade 5th Cavalry. Regiment. “I would like to send my heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and loved ones.”
TikTok Showing Soldier Pointing Loaded Pistol at Buddy Prompts Army Probe
A video clip circulating on social media appears to be proof the U.S. military can’t stress weapons safety enough. But the former soldier who posted it says it’s all a joke — albeit one that triggered an Army criminal investigation.
The short clip, posted on TikTok and reshared by the Twitter account @RecruitingTruth, shows an Army specialist locking the slide of an M9 9mm pistol to the rear to ensure it’s clear and then placing it in front of another soldier, who is recording the video.
“Here you go, Sergeant; it’s clear,” the specialist says, turning his back and walking away.
The other soldier shows the camera a magazine apparently loaded with live ammunition, inserts the magazine into the pistol, then picks the weapon up and releases the slide forward to chamber a live round.