A West Seattle sailor who went missing in Afghanistan has been found dead, his body recovered and his family notified, according to The Associated Press.

The Seattle Times has the complete story here.

Charges were preferred today against a soldier who is accused in the deaths of three Afghan civilians.

Charges against Specialist Jeremy Morlock include: three specifications of murder under Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 118 - Premeditated Murder; one specification of assault under Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 128, Assault.
JBLM officials emphasize that the charges constitute an accusation and that the accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Morlock, 22, from Wasilla, Alaska, is an infantryman assigned to B Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. He entered the military in June 2006 and reported to JBLM in December 2006, after receiving initial entry training and advanced individual training at Fort Benning, Ga.

Morlock deployed in July 2009 with his unit in support of Operation
Enduring Freedom. He redeployed on June 3, and was placed in pre-trial
confinement. This was his only deployment.

Jurisdiction of Morlock's case was passed to JBLM upon his redeployment.

Criminal Investigation Command officials are continuing their
investigation into the case.

The phrase "death by PowerPoint" is quite popular in many military circles, often referring to the common overuse of the program by commanders to illustrate key points in military briefings.

Lately, a PowerPoint slide illustrating the war in Afghanistan has made its way around the Internet. It's quite a piece of art.

The New York Times has a great story about the use of PowerPoint and how useful it is in actually conveying understanding of certain topics in military briefings.

Read more here. 

The Defense Department released the identity of a Washington state soldier serving with a Fort Bragg unit who was killed in Afghanistan.

Spc. Joseph T. Caron, of Tacoma, age 21, died Sunday in Char Bagh, Afghanistan. Insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device.

He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq - Military and civilian officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to commemorate the grand opening of the new Container Repair Yard March 22 at Joint Base Balad, Iraq.

The ceremony marked a milestone in the growth and development of the Miran Village Company, an Iraqi contractor, said Lt. Col. Chris Mohan, commander of the 80th Ordnance Battalion, 15th Sustainment Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary).

"It started out with the requirement to repair 150 containers per month and they've grown their business so we've grown their capability," he said. "Now they're repairing 2,000 containers per month."

The CRY outgrew their old area and needed a larger workspace in order to meet a higher demand of repaired trailers, said Mohan, a Carthage, N.C., native. The expansion of the facility and their ability to train and recruit workers helped the CRY meet the demand for repaired trailers, he said. 

It took roughly six months to coordinate the CRY relocation and expansion, which was a joint effort between Army, Air Force and the Iraqi people, said Mohan.

"It's all about responsible drawdown," he said. "In order to rapidly ship equipment out, we have to have seaworthy containers."

JBB serves as the major logistics hub in Iraq, and repairing the containers in country, instead of sending them to Kuwait, saves the U.S. military time and money, he said.

The completion of the CRY expansion and relocation served as a tribute to the Miran Village Company's employees' hard work, said 1st Lt. Theresa Fouda, the adjutant with the 80th Ord. Bn. out of Fort Lewis, Wash. 

"Since inception, the Container Repair Yard has repaired (more than) 10,000 unserviceable containers to a seaworthy status," she said.

In August 2008, the Iraqi-based Industrial Zone began developing plans for a CRY at JBB, said Fouda, a Seattle native. The CRY offered a significant benefit for both the Iraqi economy and U.S. forces in Iraq, she said.

The yard's mission is to repair unserviceable containers to a seaworthy status, so they can be used to transport supplies back to the U.S., while providing training and employment opportunities to local nationals.

The Miran Village Company is able to repair containers to both U.S. and Coast Guard standards, said Mohan.

"On August 20, 2008, the Miran Village Company, owned by Hashim Mahdi, was awarded the container-repair contract with an initial annual requirement of repairing 1,440 containers," said Fouda. 

The CRY at JBB hired a local labor force trained in accordance with the Iraqi government's minister of labor and social affairs certification standards for welding, carpentry and other skills, said Fouda.

"In April 2009, the former Container Repair Yard area and fence line was expanded to allow for increased container flow," she said. "In May 2009, the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing approved the former CRY as an Iraqi Free Zone, which allowed Hashim to manage the area with minimal U.S. supervision. This month, the 332nd Expeditionary Security Forces Group approved the new Container Repair Yard site as an Iraqi Free Zone."

Initially, the CRY was capable of repairing 20 containers per month with a work force of 20 local nationals, said Fouda. By August 2009, the operating capability increased to 250 containers repaired per month with a work force of 70 local nationals, she said.

In September 2009, the Regional Contracting Command-Balad, and both the 13th ESC and 332nd EAW commands held meetings to discuss the increased need for containers in preparation for Operation Responsible Drawdown, said Fouda. As a result, the CRY was to be relocated to a larger area to increase work productivity. 

"By the end of September, the 332nd Expeditionary Civil Engineering Squadron obtained an area to expand the Container Repair Yard from three acres to 28 acres, and the 37th Engineer Battalion began preparation on the new site," she said. 

Mohan said the CRY has played an important part in the 13th ESC's mission and helped give back to the redeveloping Iraqi infrastructure, providing for both the Iraqi people and the U.S. military efforts for the upcoming drawdown.

"The Container repair yard has repaired over 10,000 containers, which has directly contributed to our success during the initial phases of Operation Responsible Drawdown," he said.    

Army Times has an interview with Gen. Patraeus, here.

CAMP MURRAY, Wash. — The Washington National Guard will welcome home from Afghanistan approximately 25 citizen soldiers on Saturday.

The soldiers belong to the Washington Army National Guard's Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment of the 741st Ordinance Battalion (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) based in Tacoma. They are returning home after a year-long deployment serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  

"The members of the 741st provided critical support to our forces in Afghanistan and we congratulate them on a job well done," said Major General Timothy J. Lowenberg, the Adjutant General and Commander of the Washington National Guard.

Their missions in Afghanistan primarily focused on providing command and control to assigned forces, coordinating tactical support and conducting assessments and analysis to determine EOD priorities of support. 

(Courtesy Camp Murray Public Affairs)

Here's an indepth look at Kyle Wright: Here

The father of Spc. Kyle Wright has told reporters that his Fort Lewis stationed son was killed in Afghanistan, Wednesday after driving over an IED.  See the full report here.

Here's AP's report.

A retired Fort Lewis soldier was one of eight CIA employees killed in Afghanistan.  KOMO has the report here.