Tom Bowman

Thousands of civilians, soldiers and police were killed this year in suicide attacks, bombings and airstrikes. The lives and deaths of three Afghan men shed light on the challenges the country faces.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan is a systems management guy, not a policy guy. It's not clear how he will guide the Pentagon but it is clear it will be different from the leadership of former secretary Jim Mattis.

President Trump is ordering the withdrawal of 7,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan, about half the number now deployed there. The effects of this action on military operations are not yet clear.

Once again, President Trump has made a national security decision in opposition to the advice of his secretary of defense, Jim Mattis. This time it was to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria.

President Trump has decided it's time for the U.S. forces to leave Syria. But the move goes against statements by top American military officials, who have consistently said it would be wise to stay.

The U.S. is withdrawing its forces from Syria on orders from the White House. This is a reversal of U.S. policy and had been opposed by the Pentagon.

Green Beret Maj. Mathew Golsteyn is under investigation in the death of a suspected Taliban bomb-maker in U.S. custody in 2010. President Trump tweeted that he will review the case himself.

The Army general has a voracious appetite for history — and Boston sports teams. If approved by the Senate, the 60-year-old Massachusetts native will take the helm next summer.

The request comes as the overall size of the military force at the border will be cut from around 5,900 personnel to 4,000, Pentagon officials tell NPR. The deployment may be extended through January.

The move would extend the rare deployment of active-duty troops at the U.S.-Mexico border, rather than only National Guard soldiers and personnel.

There is growing concern as more and more migrants are headed toward the U.S. border near San Diego, creating crowded conditions and protests in Mexican border towns.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis visited active duty soldiers deployed at the border near McAllen, Texas. About 5,000 troops are being sent to the border in response to a caravan of migrants headed to the U.S.

The Trump administration's military operations in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq have been relatively free of congressional oversight. That will change in the House when Democrats take control next year.

Just over a year ago, ISIS was pushed out of the Syrian city of Raqqa. Now residents are trying to recover from a brutal military campaign which included house to house fighting and U.S. bombs.

The White House plans to deploy up to 5,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. They will provide logistics support, but are prohibited by law from acting as law enforcement agents within the U.S.

The troops are likely to be active-duty Army personnel. As U.S. troops are prohibited from performing law enforcement activities within the United States, they will be in support roles only.

An attack in Kandahar last week killed the province's governor and police chief and wounded an American service member. The Pentagon is now saying the officer is Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Smiley.

Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Smiley was shot twice, according to the Pentagon, during an attack in Kandahar that killed the province's chiefs of police and intelligence and wounded the governor.

Top leaders in Kandahar province in Afghanistan have been assassinated two days before the country votes in parliamentary elections. The top U.S. military commander escaped injury. The Taliban have claimed responsibility in the attack.

"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."