‘We were told that war was simple, either the other guy or me. At the time, I believed our leaders. Now, I’m not so sure’ thewarhorse.org/vietnam-ambu...

Internal Pentagon documents obtained by @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social show Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s team began laying the groundwork for a new review of women in combat just weeks after he took office. Read our exclusive report: thewarhorse.org/women-in-com...

Hegseth's study of women in combat is designed to reach one conclusion [via @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social]

The researcher leading the assessment also led a controversial 2015 Marine Corps study that the defense secretary has used to argue women should not serve in combat roles thewarhorse.org/women-in-com...

Sacramento's Disabled Veterans of America chapter received nearly $40K from the estate of a local woman. Then the DAV national headquarters’ general counsel told them the money wasn't theirs to keep. Published in partnership with @sacbee.com thewarhorse.org/disabled-vet...

A battle over the Disabled American Veterans chapter’s donation reveals a larger struggle over money, authority, and the future of local posts. Published in partnership with @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social

When the Sacramento Disabled American Veterans post learned they were getting a nearly $40K check, they were thrilled. Then, the DAV national headquarters’ general counsel told them the money didn't belong to them. Published in partnership with @sacbee.com thewarhorse.org/disabled-vet...

Her actions could have killed soldiers. But had everyone caught up in the Vietnam War misjudged the situation? thewarhorse.org/vietnam-exec...

Cuts to a congressional fund are alarming scientists, veterans, and advocates thewarhorse.org/gulf-war-ill...

Talking with an AI chatbot started as a diversion, but later became a way to confess what I saw and did in Iraq thewarhorse.org/ai-help-heal...

Thanks to @inn.org for recognizing our partnership with @npr.org for our collaborative reporting on VA consulting claims companies' use of aggressive tactics to collect fees from veterans. READ THE STORY: thewarhorse.org/veterans-aff...

On this week's Substack: The Vietnam War Killed My Father Decades After His Tour. Am I a Middle-Aged Gold Star Child? Thank you to @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social for featuring this essay.

I was introduced to a mare named Star. I stepped toward her. Star stepped away. I moved faster. Star moved faster. Even the horse hates me, I thought. thewarhorse.org/veteran-reha...

Three Marines in the same unit died by suicide in two years. After the latest death, leaders gathered the Marines and spent hours criticizing troops who had complained about leadership, according to leaked recordings obtained by @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social. Read: thewarhorse.org/secret-recor...

Secret recording exposes claims of toxic leadership after a Marine’s suicide [via @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social]

After a Marine died by suicide, members of the unit raised concerns about leadership. Leaked audio obtained by The War Horse shows the response: a two-hour meeting in which the first sergeant and the commanding officer berated Marines for speaking up.⁠ thewarhorse.org/secret-recor...

Highlights of Trump's first 500 days: -Top military firings, resignations, retirements -200 people killed in lethal strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats -VA cut staff, closed offices, canceled contracts -Pentagon’s budget hit $1 trillion Read the full breakdown: thewarhorse.org/trump-500-da...

We’ve tracked every major military and veteran-related change with Operation Timeline. Here’s what we learned thewarhorse.org/trump-500-da...

I was proud of my service. I deployed to Iraq. I was awarded a Bronze Star. But was I someone who drove around with a Bronze Star Medal license plate on my car? thewarhorse.org/army-iraq-wa...

Welcome our new managing editor, @paulszoldra.com! 🎉 Paul served for 8 years in the Marine Corps before he became a reporter. He has spent more than a decade in national security journalism, most recently as editor-in-chief of Task & Purpose. We're excited to have him lead our newsroom!

Congratulations to our managing editor, Mike Frankel, on a well-deserved retirement after 40 years in journalism 🎉 We are grateful that he chose to spend the last years of his career with us. Read his goodbye note: mailchi.mp/thewarhorse/...

My grandpa never came back from World War II. I found his final resting place in France thewarhorse.org/grandpa-worl...

The Pentagon could name thousands of unknown soldiers. Families want to know why it hasn’t. From our colleagues at @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social:

"The most important thing I can do is show up, put on my uniform and prove I can do the work." WATCH: @etskehrt.bsky.social speech to @columbiajournalism.bsky.social 2026 graduating class: youtube.com/shorts/OZqkK...

Forensic DNA experts say it should take the Pentagon years—not decades—to identify the remains of thousands of nameless service members in US military cemeteries thewarhorse.org/missing-troo...

We spend a lot of time talking about “the bombs and the bullets.” But as Thomas Brennan of @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social tells @cnn.com's Brianna Keilar, the real stories that Americans need demonstrate the human impact of military service. Watch the full interview here: www.cnn.com/2026/05/20/u...

The casualty notification manual can outline procedures, but it can’t help you comfort families on their worst day thewarhorse.org/marine-casua...

‘I understand the purpose of annual training … But we are lying to ourselves if we try to wrap suicide into a neat little box’ thewarhorse.org/military-sui...

AI is one of several ways VA has been putting a significant dent in the agency’s years-long disability claims backlog. “You can do something faster. You can do it good,” said Jason Anderson, a former VA claims rater who left the agency at the end of May last year. “It’s really hard to do both.”

Veterans Affairs leaders tout the shrinking claims backlog, but some veterans’ advocates are asking: Does quicker always equal better? thewarhorse.org/ai-veterans-...

"My husband has sworn an oath to serve this country … He isn’t making policy, but he is part of the institution that carries it out." thewarhorse.org/military-spo...

Loss is a thread connecting too many veterans, service members, and military families. As we approach Memorial Day, we invite you to share stories about your loved ones. support.thewarhorse.org/campaign/788...

Go inside our investigation into the Southern Border with @theborderchronicle.bsky.social. Learn about our reporting into the unprecedented expansion of federal power and its impact on border communities: www.theborderchronicle.com/inside-the-n...

As local newsrooms shrink, coverage of U.S. military bases is disappearing—leaving millions with fewer reliable sources of information. Read new research by Medill State of Local News Project's director Zach Metzger here: localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu/posts/2026/0...

‘There is a profound, sickening duality in being thanked for your service by people who would be horrified if they actually saw what that service required.’ thewarhorse.org/iraq-army-co...

Loss is a thread connecting too many veterans, service members, and military families. As part of our Memorial Day campaign this year, we invite donors to tell us about their loved ones. support.thewarhorse.org/campaign/788...

Patient frustrations with Tricare claims continue to mount in Reddit threads and TikTok posts, with military family members and veterans swapping outrage over stalled claims, scheduling troubles, unpaid bills, and little explanation. thewarhorse.org/tricare-insu...

My latest on the issues plaguing military families' health care. The Defense Health Agency and its contractors say the challenges in processing medical claims was a glitch that's been fixed, but many people I talked to showed that's not the case at all.

A year after the military’s rocky start to a new health care contract, service members, veterans, and medical providers are still up in arms about denied care and unpaid claims thewarhorse.org/tricare-insu...

Pundits debate gas prices, nuclear weapons, and congressional authority, not what soldiers pay in death, toxic exposure, and lives forever changed thewarhorse.org/marine-iraq-...

A WIN FOR US IS A WIN BY YOU! It’s your donations that made it possible to tell the story of a transgender Army officer whose career is at risk, a sergeant whose wife has been deported, and an early female Ranger school graduate watching women’s contributions in combat get sidelined. THANK YOU!

‘I remember standing there, trying to imagine my name in his handwriting, and understanding that no version of it would ever let me go.’ thewarhorse.org/marines-suic...

If the skies aren’t safe to evacuate injured soldiers, prolonged casualty care will become the collective effort by close combat forces. thewarhorse.org/done-war-med...

Studies from the Ukraine war show drone-delivered explosives are more destructive, lead to a wider range and higher severity of traumatic injury thewarhorse.org/done-war-med...

Frequent moves, BX clothing, and commissary meals made it difficult to befriend others, a problem that persisted into adulthood thewarhorse.org/air-force-ch...

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Our profile on Marine Javier Ortiz Rivera that set the standard for our decade of reporting: providing an essential platform for stories about veterans and military families that Americans need to hear. Read the first story we published: thewarhorse.org/echoes-proje...

There are almost 50,000 service members currently deployed to the Middle East with more Marines set to join them soon: thewarhorse.org/military-fam...

Writing ‘pilot error’ would mean spending the rest of your day explaining your attitude to someone who outranked you. thewarhorse.org/air-force-fi...

Troops deployed to the border have brought with them expertise in surveillance and unmanned aircraft systems, supercharging a surveillance network that worries civil liberties experts. Read our investigation in partnership with @theborderchronicle.bsky.social thewarhorse.org/southern-bor...

More than 40% of the southern U.S. border has been handed over to the military Airwars visualised the changes for a major investigation by @thewarhorsenews.bsky.social and @theborderchronicle.bsky.social thewarhorse.org/southern-bor...