BIN LADEN’S BODYGUARD TRANSFERRED: Late last night, the Pentagon announced another transfer from the U.S. prison camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, reducing the prison population to 79. Abdel Malik Ahmed Abdel Wahab al-Rahabi was cleared for release to the government of Montenegro, after a review board determined his continued detention was no longer necessary “to protect against a continuing significant threat to the security of the United States.” Anna Giaritelli reports al-Rahabi was accused of serving as a bodyguard for the late al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Meanwhile, last we heard, law enforcement was still searching for a former Gitmo prisoner transferred to Uruguay in 2014, who vanished and is believed to have left the country. Syrian national Jihad Ahmed Mustafa Dhiab is suspected of slipping into neighboring Brazil.
NORTH KOREA DECLARES SUCCESS: North Korea says a second test yesterday of its intermediate range “Musudan” missile was a success. The U.S. said the first try failed yesterday, but that it was still assessing the second firing. A senior Pentagon official confirmed that second test reached outer space more than 600 miles above the Earth’s surface, and fell 250 miles downrange into the Sea of Japan. “Success is in the eye of the beholder,” the official said. “If they intended it to go 250 miles, then it was a success.” State media quoted North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as boasting that he could now strike U.S. forces in the Pacific.
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HOUSE ADJOURNS AFTER 3 A.M.: The House adjourned early this morning for a recess that will last through July 5. Susan Ferrechio writes it was the only way House Republicans could end a 16-hour sit-in by Democrats seeking votes on gun control measures. As of this morning, some Dems were still holding the chamber floor, and with the CSPAN cameras dark under House rules, they are resorting to the live-streaming app Periscope to beam video that’s being rebroadcast by the cable TV nets.
MCCAIN BEATEN BACK: The Arizona senator’s amendment to broaden the FBI’s surveillance powers was rejected yesterday 58-38 on a procedural vote, Rudy Takala reports, just two votes short of the 60 needed to end debate. “McCain’s language would have given the FBI the ability to issue national security letters to demand customer data, but not content, from telecommunications companies without a warrant. That could include browsing history and metadata, which can contain people’s real-time location.”
CAN U.S. TROOPS FIGHT ASSAD’S FORCES? The White House isn’t sure, Nicole Duran reports. “It’s unclear to me exactly what sort of legal authority the president would have to do something like that,” Obama spokesman Josh Earnest said. “It’s also unclear exactly how that would have a positive impact on our efforts to degrade and ultimately [destroy] ISIL. First of all, how do you do that without harming innocent civilians? Second of all, I’m not sure exactly what legal authority the president would rely on to do something like that. And three: It seems like a slippery slope.”
PLEDGE DRIVE FOR IRAQ: The U.S. plans to hold a “pledging conference” in Washington with representatives from Canada, Japan and Germany in the drive to increase aid to Iraqis, Diana Stancy reports. “More funding is needed for humanitarian projects and to assist displaced Iraqis, which continues to face attacks from the Islamic State. The State Department noted that just 33 percent of the United Nation’s $861 million Iraq Humanitarian Response Plan has been funded so far, and that the lack of funding has caused some relief programs to close.”
GRIM TOUR OF FALLUJAH: The New York Times reports on the aftermath of the liberation of Fallujah from the Islamic State, and it isn’t pretty. “Iraqi forces liberating the city are finding beheaded bodies, apocalyptic streetscapes and clumps of hair from fighters who shaved to blend in with fleeing civilians,” the Times reports.
TRUMP GETS RUMMY’S VOTE: It’s a process of elimination, really. Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld would never vote for Hillary Clinton, and he told us a while back he definitely would vote Republican in the presidential contest, ergo Rumsfeld’s vote goes to: (drumroll, please) Donald Trump. But it’s the half-hearted, defaultish sort of backing we’ve seen from other Republicans. When asked if he’s endorsing, Rumsfeld said “No, I don’t — one asked me for my endorsement, but I’m clearly going to vote for him. I mean, there’s — I just can’t imagine not.”
HEAVYWEIGHT ENDORSEMENT: Former National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft has endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, calling her the candidate with most the “wisdom and experience to lead our country at this critical time.”
MORE VETS TO SERVE: Sen. Tom Cotton predicts that more Iraq and Afghanistan veterans will serve in Congress over the next decade, which he said is a positive step toward bringing a frontline perspective to Washington about the costs of war.
BREXIT OR BREMAIN?: Today’s the big vote in Britain over whether the U.K. should exit the EU. The polls, and London’s bookies, suggest the backers of “stay” may carry the day, but either outcome could have a huge impact on the global economy and political order. Results are expected early Briday in the U.K., late tonight in the U.S.
BIG RADIO CONTRACT: The Pentagon announced yesterday that Harris Corp. received a $1.7 billion contract for radios, ancillaries, spares and services for Afghanistan.
ALL THAT WAS MISSING WAS BACKUP DANCERS: Lockheed’s rollout of the first Israeli F-35 yesterday was a Hollywood-style high-production number, David Wilkes reports, complete with a stirring soundtrack, a dramatic light show, and an Israeli singer-songwriter. Oh, and a cool name, since the Israeli version of the JSF goes by the nickname of “Adir,” which means “mighty.” Check out the video here.
THE RUNDOWN
Foreign Policy: U.S. Navy Officers In Crosshairs Over Iran Debacle
Defense News: Air Force Digs Its Heels In On Bomber Cost Secrecy
UPI: Lockheed Martin breaks ground for C-130J training center
Forbes: As Foreign Arms Sales Surge, Washington Struggles To Speed Approvals
Defense One: As Defense Markets Shift, It’s Time to Stiffen Anti-Corruption Rules for Middlemen
Defense News: F-35 Software Runs Smoothly During Mountain Home Deployment
UPI: U.S. Navy deploys latest JSOW variant
USNI News: USS Coronado Departs San Diego For First Independence-Variant LCS Deployment
UPI: Lockheed gets SQQ-89 undersea warfare contract
Breaking Defense: Thornberry Fears Bureaucracy Hamstrings Cyber Vs. ISIS
Military.com: US Commander Warns NATO Couldn’t Repel Russian Baltic Invasion
Air Force Times: B-52s step up airstrikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
War on the Rocks: We already have an arsenal plane: It’s called the B-52
Associated Press: Islamic State militants push back in Syria, Iraq and Libya
Reuters: Steely will seen behind Kim’s push for North Korea weapons that work
Military.com: Sailor’s Death in Djibouti under Investigation
Stars and Stripes: Pentagon’s civilian hiring freeze ends
Time: Pentagon’s Mum on Blood and Treasure
Calendar
THURSDAY | JUNE 23
7 a.m. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and Booz Allen host a daylong summit on the future of directed energy with a classified afternoon portion. csbaonline.org
9 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Gen. Mark Milley, the Army chief of staff, speaks about the U.S. military strategy. csis.org
9:30 a.m. Cannon 311. House Homeland Security committee discuss the readiness of Homeland Security for insider threats and counterintelligence. Homeland.house.gov
10 a.m. Pentagon Briefing Room. U.K. Maj. Gen Doug Chalmers, Deputy Commander, Strategy And Sustainment, Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, briefs via teleconference. Live streamed defense.gov
10 a.m. Dirksen 419. Senate Foreign Relations committee will review the NATO Warsaw Summit agenda and possible outcomes. foreign.senate.gov
10 a.m. Rayburn 2172. House Foreign Affairs committee hold a hearing on how to counter the Islamic State’s virtual caliphate. foreignaffairs.house.gov
12:30 p.m. 1777 F St. NW. The Council on Foreign Relations host Sen. Christopher Coons to discuss the Iran nuclear deal. cfr.org
2 p.m. Rayburn 2154. House Oversight subcommittees on National Security and Government Operations hold a hearing on terrorist radicalization in the U.S. oversight.house.gov
FRIDAY | JUNE 24
10 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. CSIS and the U.S. Naval Institute discuss challenges facing the Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard. usni.org
TUESDAY | JUNE 28
9:30 a.m. Hart 216. Retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on strategic integration at the Pentagon. armed-services.senate.gov
9:30 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. CSIS hosts Assistant Attorney General John Carlin to discuss a whole-government approach to national security cyber threats. csis.org
10 a.m. Dirksen 419. Brett McGurk, Special Presidential Envoy for the global coalition to counter ISIL, testifies at the Senate Foreign Relations committee. foreign.senate.gov
WEDNESDAY | JUNE 29
10 a.m. 529 14th Street NW. Arab Center D.C. hosts a panel of think tank experts at the National Press Club to discuss the impact of the presidential elections on U.S. Middle East policy. arabcenterdc.org
11:45 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The Hudson Institute hosts a panel to discuss the future of North Africa in light of current unstable conditions. hudson.org
