Tom Bowman

"What we found is children had been so traumatized, they couldn't even recognize numbers or letters," says a U.S. official. "We had to work through that before we could start educating them again."

While historian Max Hastings may break no new ground in his tome, it's how he crafts his story with color, detail and pathos that makes it great — and likely to become the standard on the war.

In the fight to take the last land held by ISIS, U.S. forces in Syria are supporting local Kurds and Arabs who face hardened fighters amid roads and houses seeded with bombs.

About a year after the battle to force ISIS out of the Syrian city of Raqqa, a trip there shows progress in clearing the rubble but still great destruction and uncertainty.

Air Force officials say the service simply lacks the resources it needs to face all the jobs it is called upon to perform. The Air Force is proposing a 25 percent increase in the number of squadrons.

The Taliban confirmed the death of Jalaluddin Haqqani for the first time Tuesday. Haqqani was a former U.S. ally turned creator of the Afghan military network.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says planning for joint U.S.-South Korea military exercises continues. President Trump tweets "war games" may not be necessary.

McCain, who died Saturday at the age of 81, believed the U.S. had a moral responsibility to advance the global cause of freedom, and he worked to ensure it had the military power to do so.

President Trump presented the Medal of Honor to the widow of Tech. Sgt. John Chapman, only the 19th airman to receive the medal and the first since Vietnam. Chapman was killed in 2002 in Afghanistan while attempting to rescue a Navy SEAL.

Tech. Sgt. John Chapman was killed in Afghanistan in March 2002 during an operation to rescue a wounded Navy SEAL. President Trump presented the Medal of Honor to his widow.

President Trump has postponed the military parade planned for November after complaints about its anticipated cost. He said he will instead attend the Armistice Day parade in Paris.

The Pentagon, in a brief statement Thursday night, said it was postponing until 2019 a military parade in the nation's capital. It had been planned for Veterans Day weekend this year.

A U.N. report says there are still some 30,000 ISIS members in Iraq and Syria. This despite assurances by U.S. and other officials that ISIS has been defeated in Iraq and nearly defeated in Syria.

The Trump administration has offered no information about supposed "specific" proposals that Russian officials have mentioned publicly.

At their joint news conference, President Putin said Russia and the U.S. can work together to alleviate suffering in Syria. Russia continues to attack civilian targets in support of the Syrian regime.

The Department of Defense plans to start building tent encampments on two military bases in Texas to house migrant families apprehended at the border.

President Trump presented the Medal of Honor posthumously to Garlin M. Conner on Tuesday. Connor was a World War II soldier who ran ahead of his unit to call in artillery on German forces.

The bed space has been requested starting in July and running through the end of the year. Officials tell NPR that four bases are expected to provide space.

"I can't guarantee you a timeline or an end date" for the war, Lt. Gen. Austin "Scott" Miller, President Trump's pick to lead U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told a Senate panel on Tuesday.

President Trump has agreed to suspend military drills with South Korea in return for denuclearization from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The announcement came after the summit in Singapore, with Trump calling the drills "very provocative" — an echo of past North Korean sentiments.