ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

This is the newst update of the ‘U.S. Carrier Strike Groups Locations Map’ exclusive series showing the approximate locations of U.S. Carrier Strike Groups on a weekly basis. SouthFront: Analysis & Intelligence tracks locations of U.S. aircraft carriers using the available open-source information. No classified information was used in production of the map. Click to see the full-size map Carrier strike group (CSG) is an operational formation of the United States Navy. It is centered on an aircraft carrier and a carrier air wing (CVW) of 65 to 70 aircrafts. It’s composed of roughly 7,500 personnel, an aircraft carrier, at least one cruiser, a destroyer squadron of at least two destroyers and/or frigates. A carrier strike group also, on occasion, includes submarines, attached logistics ships and a supply ship. Carrier strike groups comprise a principal element of U.S. power projection over the world’s oceans.

One Emirati and two Saudi soldiers have been killed in Yemen. Photo: emasc-uae.com Two Saudi fighters and one Emirati soldier have lost their lives during participation in the Saudi-led war in Yemen. On Friday, the General Command of the Emirati Army announced that one of its soldiers, Sergeant Khaled Ali Gharib Al-Balloushi, was killed in Yemen, the Al-Manar TV-channel reported. The Emirati General Command did not disclose how and in which part of the country the soldier was killed. Earlier this month, it became known that commander of Emirati troops in Yemen, Nasser Moshabib al-Atibi, was killed by a medium-range ballistic missile, fired by the alliance on Mokha city in Taiz province. At the same time, it was reported about deaths of two Saudi fighters, who lost their lives in attacks, committed by the Houthi-Saleh alliance in various areas of Yemen. As the Al Masirah TV-channel reported, one Saudi officer was killed by a sniper on the al-Karas military base, located in the southwes...

The Iraqi Air Force has for the first time carried out airstrikes on positions of the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said that he delivered an order to carry out airstrikes on positions of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic , the Reuters news agency reported on Friday. “We gave orders to the air force command to strike Islamic State positions in [the Iraqi town of] Hosaiba and Albu Kamal inside Syrian territory as they [terrorists] were responsible for recent bombings in Baghdad,” Reuters quoted the words of al-Abadi. According to the Prime Minister, Iraqi military have already conducted the operation. “The heroes of the sky executed the operation and responded to the terrorists with amazing success,” al-Abadi noted. Reportedly, the airstrikes were carried out by the F16 fighter jets on Friday morning. As a result, a headquarters of the terrorist group, located in Albu Kamal, was destroyed. “...

This map shows the military situation in eastern Ukraine on February 22, 2017: Click to see the full-size map

The Leopard 2 PL tank has been developed by the Rheinmetall Company for the Polish Army. The Leopard 2 PL tank (Photo: defence.pk) German Rheinmetall Company presented to public the upgraded Leopard 2 PL tank at the IDEX 2017 international arms exhibition, the WarSpot information website reported. This version, intended for the Polish Army , is a future development of the Leopard 2A4 tank . In 2002-2003, 128 tanks of this type were delivered free of charge to the Polish Armed Forces. Since 2015, their upgraded version, designed to bring the tanks practically to the level of the Leopard 2A6, has been developing. The Leopard 2 PL is equipped with an outboard composite armor, which significantly improves the protection against some types of ammunition, and has increased ballistic protection of the tower. Hydraulic stabilization mechanisms of the gun and turret drives of the tank were replaced with electrical ones that allowed to improve work of mechanisms and increase space inside the ta...

Written and produced by SF Team: Brian Kalman, Daniel Deiss, Edwin Watson In the first half of August of 2016, the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) located at Fort Benning, Georgia, invited almost 200 representatives from the defense industry to a meeting to discuss the desire to acquire a whole new type of vehicle. The program was named “Mobile Protected Firepower” (MPF). The U.S Army has decided to dispense with its overly bureaucratic acquisition system of past decades, and has instead had the TRADOC, the command that is most knowledgeable of what the Army requires, sit down directly with industry professionals from the very start to design a vehicle that takes existing technologies and capabilities to design a workable solution at minimal cost. Apparently, the U.S. Army has learned something from past failed programs. In concept, the MPF is seen as a highly mobile vehicle that is able to accompany and support Stryker Brigade Combat Teams and mobile and mechanized in...

Scores of Saudi mercenaries, including several high-ranking commanders, have been killed in a ballistic missile attack in Yemen. A file photo of Yemeni militia commander Major General Ahad Saif al-Yafei (L) and commander of Emirati troops in Yemen Nasser Moshabib al-Atibi (C), who were killed in a missile attack by Yemeni forces (Photo: Wam) The Houthi-Saleh alliance has launched a medium-range ballistic missile on positions of Saudi-backed fighters, stationed near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the al-Masirah TV-channel reported on Wednesday, citing press service of the Yemeni Operational Command. As a result, scores of Saudi mercenaries, including the commander of Saudi-led Emirati troops in Yemen, have been killed and wounded. As the TV-channel noted, the missile hit Mokha city, located in Taiz province, and killed not only usual Saudi militants, but also several high-ranking commanders, including commander of Emirati troops in...

According to local sources from Hasakah, a senior commander of the Islamic State terrorist group, who had come from the US, was killed by unknown assailants in northeastern Syria. Photo: AFP / Ashraf Shazly A senior commander of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, Abu Fariq al-Ameriki, who had come to Syria from the US, was killed by unknown assailants in the southern part of Hasakah , the Fars news agency reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed local sources. Reportedly, the body of the killed commander was found by other members of the terrorist group at a bazaar in Merkedeh town. As the news agency’s sources noted, recently, a number of fighters and commanders of the IS were killed by unknown assailants or members of the terrorist group itself due to accusations of escape from the battlefields in Merkedeh. After the killing of al-Ameriki, the terrorist group has put its forces on red alert in the region. On Sunday, one of the senior commanders of the IS , Abu Mohammad, was execute...