According to U.S. President Donald J. Trump, the U.S. and Poland are working to establish a U.S. Army base in Poland, which would be the third such site, if it is administered similar to other sites at Naval Support Facility Redzikowo (Aegis Ashore) and Camp Kościuszko (U.S. Army Garrison Poland (USAG-P). Per President Trump, the location of the planned base has not yet been determined but will be announced soon if plans move forward.

Early reports just now of an F-16 crash in Blair County, Michigan. More to come.

The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) has added three Iranians and two Iranian businesses to its sanctions list, while simultaneously designating three Cuban individuals and six Cuban state-owned entities and removing several Belarusian entities from the sanctions list.

The Iranian designations target Seyed Adel Heidari, Hossein Ali Zaker Hossein and Mohammad Mahdi Zaker Hossein, along with Bitbank and Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company. OFAC lists the individuals and entities under its Iran sanctions authorities and says they are subject to secondary sanctions.

The Cuban designations target three individuals and six state owned research, defense, mining and industrial entities. Meanwhile, OFAC removed several Belarusian entities, including Lakokraska and Kontsern Bellesbumprom, from the SDN List.

Source: https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20260917

The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $24.3 billion sale of 48 F-35A Lightning II fighters to Saudi Arabia, marking a major expansion of the Kingdom’s advanced combat aircraft capabilities.

The proposed package includes 49 Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 engines, along with secure communications and cryptographic equipment, electronic warfare support, training, simulators, spare parts, maintenance and other logistics support.

The notification to Congress says the sale would strengthen Saudi Arabia’s homeland defense, improve interoperability with U.S. and regional forces and enhance its air-to-air and air-to-ground self-defense capabilities. The State Department also states that the sale would not alter the military balance in the region or adversely affect U.S. defense readiness.

State Department approval and congressional notification is one of several steps in the process and does not mean a sale is final.

The Texas Air National Guard has issued a statement confirming that the F-16 "Fighting Falcon" that crashed in Blair Township near Traverse City, Michigan belonged to the 149th Fighter Wing based at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas and was conducting routine training in the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, adding that the pilot successfully ejected from the aircraft. The incident is currently under investigation.

The U.S. military is expected to move most of its MQ-9 "Reaper" drones out of Africa and into U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), which oversees Latin America, according to six sources who spoke with CNN. The Pentagon declined to comment.

The shift comes as the Trump administration ramps up counternarcotics and counterterrorism plans in South America, including potential operations in Ecuador. One source said discussions are still underway about sending some drones to the Middle East instead, where the US has lost MQ-9s in strikes against Iran. Some sources voiced concern that pulling drones from Africa could hurt ongoing operations against ISIS and al Shabaab there.

The move follows a classified DOJ legal opinion, previously reported by CNN, authorizing lethal strikes against a secret list of cartels. Colombia has separately arranged to borrow three MQ-9A drones from the US, and Panama just received over six million dollars in drone systems for border surveillance.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/18/politics/us-military-drones-south-america

As a precautionary measure amidst escalation in Yemen involving the Houthis, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas announced today the EU’s maritime escort mission in the Red Sea, ASPIDES, would be increasing the alert level of vessels participating in the mission. The move comes amidst increased worries that the Houthis may target commercial shipping in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.

Currently 4 vessels, including an Italian frigate, a French FREMM warship, and a Greek warship, are involved in the rotational mission that saw its mission area overlap with the at the time (late 2024) already ongoing EU naval mission, ATALANTA.

According to a release by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), since the resumption of the U.S. blockade of vessels traveling to and from Iran, 105 vessels have been redirected by US forces.

According to a report from CNN, an AI-aided intelligence report incorrectly assessed that a Chinese vessel in the Middle East was carrying nuclear material. Per the report, the assessment induced a fast reaction from U.S. military forces in the region, with forces preparing to interdict the vessel based on some sourcing, via the AI chat-bot the analyst used, that was “entirely false.” While the quote that a potential operation “may have started a war” is overstating the potential fallout, should the operation have been carried out, it would have dampened the U.S.-China diplomatic relationship significantly before the much anticipated meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald J. Trump.

The Pentagon's public casualty database is undercounting US deaths in the Iran war, according to six US officials who spoke with The Washington Post.

The Defense Casualty Analysis System currently lists 18 military fatalities since the war began Feb. 28. Five of the officials say the real number is at least 22. A sixth put it at 23, though that official said not all of those deaths are directly tied to combat, some involve personnel who were in the Middle East during the conflict but died for other reasons. The same official said three US contractors in the region have also died since fighting started. The Pentagon declined to address questions about the discrepancy.

Of the deaths currently listed, 14 fall under Operation Epic Fury, the administration's name for the war, while four more are filed under a separate "Overseas Operations" category tied to the collapse of a July ceasefire. That categorization has drawn scrutiny: the administration reclassified renewed hostilities under Overseas Operations over the summer, around the same time four combat deaths were briefly left off the public tally altogether.

Two other confirmed deaths, a training accident in Erbil, Iraq, and a medical emergency in Kuwait, occurred at bases that have come under Iranian attack but aren't counted toward either tally. More than 820 troops have been wounded in action, many from traumatic brain injuries caused by Iranian strikes on US bases.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/09/18/more-us-troops-have-died-amid-iran-war-than-pentagon-has-disclosed-publicly/

According to U.S. President Donald J. Trump, “effective immediately,” he will be barring CNN, MSNOW, and Politico from the White House, citing their critical coverage of his administration, which he says is “fake news.” While it’s yet to be seen whether the president can actually unilaterally ban the new outlets from the White House space, as the Associated Press still is embroiled in a legal spate as well, the move would be extremely notable if implemented.