E9 REPORT
Brought to you by the Sergeant Major

Conflict, War & OSINT Intelligence News

Real-time aggregation — ISW • Bellingcat • The Warzone • War on the Rocks • BBC • Al Jazeera • Google News

Updated: July 21, 2026 • 21:17 UTC  •  231 articles

Sergeant Major Rank
OSINT Estimated DEFCON — defconlevel.com
DEFCON 2 — FAST PACE
Forces ready in 6 hours
1
COCKED PISTOL
2
FAST PACE
3
ROUND HOUSE
4
DOUBLE TAKE
5
FADE OUT
⚠ OSINT estimate only — official DEFCON status is classified
Sergeant Major Rank
🔐 CISA Cyber Advisories
Tycon Systems TPDIN-Monitor-WEB2
9h ago
Siemens SIDIS Secured SmartPlug
9h ago
CISA Adds Four Known Exploited Vulnerabilities to Catalog
9h ago
Siemens IAM Client
9h ago
Siemens RUGGEDCOM APE1808 with Palo Alto Networks Virtual NGFW
9h ago
Rockwell Automation 1734 POINT I/O
9h ago
cisa.gov →
⛈ NWS Watches & Warnings
Tornado WarningExtremeBourbon, KY; Clark, KY
Tornado WarningExtremeBath, KY; Menifee, KY; Montgomery, KY; Powell, KY
Flash Flood WarningSevereGraham, AZ; Pinal, AZ
Flash Flood WarningSevereGreenup, KY; Lawrence, OH
Flash Flood WarningSevereBreckinridge, KY; Grayson, KY; Hardin, KY
Flash Flood WarningSevereLewis, KY; Adams, OH; Scioto, OH
Flash Flood WarningSevereWashington, OH; Pleasants, WV; Ritchie, WV; Wood, WV
Flash Flood WarningSevereAnderson, KY
Flash Flood WarningSevereCoconino, AZ; Gila, AZ
Flash Flood WarningSevereChester, PA; Delaware, PA
Flash Flood WarningSevereNew Castle, DE; Burlington, NJ; Camden, NJ; Gloucester, NJ;
Flash Flood WarningSevereMcKinley, NM
Flash Flood WarningSevereMarion, WV; Monongalia, WV; Wetzel, WV
Flash Flood WarningSevereSocorro, NM; Torrance, NM
Flash Flood WarningSevereBronx, NY; Nassau, NY; Queens, NY; Suffolk, NY
weather.gov →
☢ Nuclear & Radiation
Would NJ be safe in nuclear war? See fallout map, 'dangerous' spots - Asbury Park Press
137d ago
Russia arms missiles with uranium in new Ukraine attacks - The Telegraph
61d ago
How safe is DC, VA, MD during nuclear war? Fallout map, 'targets' - Delawareonline.com
138d ago
Russia hits Ukraine with nuclear-capable missile near EU, NATO border - politico.eu
193d ago
No radiation measured in Norway after Putin's Burevestnik missile allegedly flew 14,000 km - The Barents Observer
268d ago
Trump calls Russia's missile test 'inappropriate' — but is Putin's nuclear-powered weapon actually a threat? - NBC News
267d ago
EPA RadNet →
🌍 Conflict Maps & Situational Awareness
🗺 LiveUAMap 🗺 Scribble Maps Conflict 📊 ACLED Dashboard 🌐 Crisis Group CrisisWatch 🔍 Bellingcat Ukraine Map 🗺 Military Land Maps
ISW Bellingcat The Warzone War on the Rocks BBC World Al Jazeera Google News
The Warzone 1h ago

Munitions Expenditures In Iran War Take Center Stage At Senate Hearing

The Pentagon wants $21B to replace the weapons it already has used as alarm bells ring about sustaining the conflict with available munitions going forward. The post Munitions Expenditures In Iran War Take Center Stage At Senate Hearing appeared first on TWZ .

War on the Rocks 2h ago

How Ukraine Put Russia on the Backfoot

Ukraine’s expanding use of drones at all ranges has changed the war’s momentum. This episode examines how Kyiv is reaching deeper into Russian territory, disrupting operations and logistics as well as energy infrastructure. How is Russia adapting (or not)? Can these strikes produce lasting advantages on the battlefield? Will this force Russia to escalate? Mike Kofman and Dara Massicot join Ryan to

War on the Rocks 3h ago

How the War with Iran is Shaping Key U.S. Relations Beyond the Middle East

The U.S. war with Iran has had political, economic, and military implications that spread far beyond the Middle East. We asked five experts to assess how the war with Iran has affected U.S. bilateral relations with key countries that illustrate some of the global ramifications: South Korea, India, Ukraine, France, and the United Kingdom.Read more below.  Jenny Town Senior Fellow at the Stimson Cen

The Warzone 4h ago

MV250 Hybrid-Electric VTOL Combat Cargo Drone Unveiled

The new uncrewed platform is designed to move cargo, deploy air-launched effects, and support dispersed military operations. The post MV250 Hybrid-Electric VTOL Combat Cargo Drone Unveiled appeared first on TWZ .

War on the Rocks 13h ago

Rebuilding America’s Critical Minerals Base

There’s a clear consensus that America hollowed out its critical minerals base. How to rebuild it is less settled. Alex Grant of Magrathea Metals and Wes Spurlock of Principal Mineral join Jonathan to discuss the processing technology, labor force, and how government can catalyze private capital investment in the sector rather than replace it.Image: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission via Wikimedia

War on the Rocks 13h ago

Learning from the ‘Voyage of the Damned’: The Making of a Russian Naval Disaster

Editorial Note: The dates cited in Eugene Politovsky’s account are from the old Russian Orthodox calendar, which is 13 days behind that of the (Gregorian) calendar system used in this article.A recent War on the Rocks article on the failure of the Spanish Reserve Fleet to prepare for war with the United States in 1898 offers a useful point of entry into what may be the most significant issue of po

The Warzone 22h ago

Where Are The Aircraft Carriers: July 20, 2026

The U.S. conducted a weekend wave of strikes against Iran and announced a new round today, while the reinstated blockade of Iranian ports approaches the one-week mark. The post Where Are The Aircraft Carriers: July 20, 2026 appeared first on TWZ .

The Warzone 22h ago

X-Bow Unveils Sub-$100K Buckler Supersonic Drone Interceptor

The company says its surface-to-air missile can defeat Shahed-like drones at a fraction of the cost of many missiles in current service. The post X-Bow Unveils Sub-$100K Buckler Supersonic Drone Interceptor appeared first on TWZ .

War on the Rocks 1d ago

Corruption Takes Center Stage in Ukraine’s National Conversation

Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces wid

War on the Rocks 1d ago

Before Q-Day: The Race to Quantum First

Somewhere, a hard drive is filling up with secrets no one can read yet, and its owner is waiting for the machine that opens them all at once. On March 30, 2026, that wait got shorter.Two independent research teams lowered the public estimates for breaking the encryption that secures banking, communications, and classified traffic. One showed that Shor’s algorithm, the quantum method for factoring

War on the Rocks 1d ago

The Make-or-Buy Line has Moved

The secretary of defense’s November announcement on acquisition reform laid out an unprecedented vision across the entire acquisition spectrum to improve the delivery speed of critical capabilities to our warfighters. One foundational pillar is the implementation of a commercial first policy, which laid out several initiatives: leveraging existing but less often used acquisition authorities, maxim

The Warzone 3d ago

Two U.S. Troops Killed In Iranian Barrage On Base In Jordan (Updated)

Jordan is a key host of U.S. troops, with Muwaffaq Salti Air Base housing the largest contingent of American tactical airpower in the entire Middle East. The post Two U.S. Troops Killed In Iranian Barrage On Base In Jordan (Updated) appeared first on TWZ .

War on the Rocks 4d ago

The Fedorov Dismissal: On Trust, Technology, and Turnover

Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members.Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.Western coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen

The Warzone 4d ago

Australian Army Unveils Abrams Disguised As Chinese Tank

The PLA-inspired vehicle adds visual realism to exercises as Australia’s military trains for conflict against its primary adversary. The post Australian Army Unveils Abrams Disguised As Chinese Tank appeared first on TWZ .

War on the Rocks 4d ago

The Blood Bank and the Logistics of Wartime Medicine

Editor’s note: This is the fourth article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer. Prior installments can be

War on the Rocks 4d ago

Broken Drone, Far from Home: The Case for Overseas Autonomous System Sustainment

It’s 2028, and the Fujian carrier strike group has just left Yulin, China, for an unknown destination. The U.S. Navy’s “Hedge Strategy” has let commanders disperse unmanned systems across regional choke points as forward-deployed scouts. But days before contact with Fujian, an unmanned undersea vehicle in the Banda Sea transmits an error code and must head back to Yokosuka for repairs — a 3,000-mi

War on the Rocks 4d ago

How Revolutions Break Their Believers

Waguih Ghali, Beer in the Snooker Club (Vintage International, 2014)The noise, the noise, the unrelenting noise of the world: How is any writer with an interest in the long view supposed to escape it, if only for a couple hours to work, let alone maintain their sanity in the remainders of a day? It’s an old dilemma, for certain, but little digital town criers in our pockets bring instant, constant

The Warzone 5d ago

UK Unveils Storm Fighter Loyal Wingman Program

The new initiative revives Britain’s collaborative combat aircraft ambitions and is intended to fly alongside Typhoon, F-35, and the future Tempest. The post UK Unveils Storm Fighter Loyal Wingman Program appeared first on TWZ .

Bellingcat 5d ago

Identifying the Crypto Entrepreneur Linked to Popular Forum Trading in ‘Leaked’ Nudes of Women

This investigation is a collaboration between Bellingcat and New Zealand news site The Press. You can read The Press’ piece here.  Content warning: This article discusses non-consensual sexually explicit content and child sexual abuse material. In 2024, a former track and field coach in Boston, Massachusetts, was sentenced to five years in jail for attempting […] The post Identifying the Crypto En

War on the Rocks 5d ago

Reading through the Lines of the FY2027 NDAA

The relationship between Congress and the Pentagon over the past year has been marked by public disagreements and frustrations over lawmakers’ concerns about the Iran War, and by what some lawmakers view as politically motivated firings of top military leaders. In many ways, the House and Senate versions of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act reflect lawmakers’ efforts to check

War on the Rocks 5d ago

The Peace That Redistributes War: What Camp David Reveals About Lebanon and Iran

Nothing reveals truths more effectively than patterns. If you can identify a pattern, you can see what actions conceal, what statements leave unsaid, and what agreements postpone. Peace treaties and the negotiations surrounding them are rarely analyzed in this way, even though they may exhibit patterns that recur across different circumstances. Consequently, there is often a simplification in unde

War on the Rocks 5d ago

Academia’s Critical Role in Developing an Economic Security Workforce

Editor’s note: This is the tenth article in an 11-part series examining how the United States should organize, lead, and integrate economic statecraft into strategy, defense practice, and the broader national security ecosystem. The special series is brought to you by the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and War on the Rocks. Prior installments can be found at the War by Other Ledgers page.The

War on the Rocks 6d ago

One Size Doesn’t Fit All: The Many Faces of Africa’s Foreign Fighters

In 2020, Austin Doctor wrote, “The Looming Influx of Foreign Fighters in Sub-Saharan Africa,” in which he predicted the region would see an influx of foreign fighters to aid Islamist extremist groups. Six years later, we asked Austin to revisit his arguments.Image: African Union Mission in Somalia (Photo by Abukar Albadri)In your 2020 article, you forecasted an influx of foreign fighters into sub-

War on the Rocks 6d ago

MOLLE, PALS, and the Empty Loops of America’s Civil-Military Divide

Editor’s note: This is the third article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer. Prior installments can be

War on the Rocks 6d ago

Before the Next Mythos Moment: The Case for an AI Threat Fusion Center

Earlier this spring, Claude’s developers found the cyber potential of Anthropic’s model, Mythos 5, hazardous enough to pump the brakes on model release, creating the Project Glasswing collaboration to give cyber defenders the upper hand through controlled access to the model. Despite these efforts, the U.S. government stepped in on June 12, 2026, and forced Anthropic to take down Mythos and its sa

War on the Rocks 6d ago

Breaking America’s Promise to Pacific Island Veterans

In January, Robson Henry died at the age of 66. Chances are, you have never heard of Henry. He was not famous, rich, or powerful. In many ways, Henry was no different from the thousands of young men and women who, at the age of 18, chose to serve by enlisting in the U.S. Army. Nor does the fact that he stayed in the Army for the next 26 years, serving multiple tours of duty in the Middle East, mea

War on the Rocks 7d ago

NATO’s Unity on Paper and Fractures Beneath the Surface

On July 7-8, NATO held its 36th official summit in Ankara, Turkey. There were several consequential topics to discuss at this year’s meeting, chief among them the wars in Ukraine and Iran and the uncertain future of European defense and security. We asked five experts to assess the outcomes of the summit for the various parties involved.Liviu HorovitzAssociate Researcher at German Institute for Se

Bellingcat 14d ago

Between Graves and Uncertainty: The Management of the Dead After Venezuela’s Earthquake

Bellingcat has geolocated footage circulating on social media that appears to show coffins placed in newly dug trenches following the recent deadly earthquakes in Venezuela. The site identified extends over two hectares beside an existing cemetery in La Esperanza, a town near La Guaira on the country’s northern coast. It was visited by a representative of […] The post Between Graves and Uncertaint

Bellingcat 21d ago

Burning Forests: Tools for Tracking and Reporting Wildfire Damage

If you’ve seen reports of a wildfire in your region and you’re looking for open source data, NASA’s fire-tracking tool is often the first place to start. It provides a heat signature and an approximate location. But detection is only the first step in understanding what’s happened. In this guide, we explore ways to analyse […] The post Burning Forests: Tools for Tracking and Reporting Wildfire Dam

Bellingcat 21d ago

Satellite Imagery Shows Scale of Venezuela Earthquake Damage

At least 1,719 people are reported to have died after two devastating earthquakes struck northwestern Venezuela last week. The final casualty count is expected to rise significantly. Some media outlets report resident’s growing frustration with the Venezuelan government and its recovery efforts. Sky News on June 29 reported that the United Nations Coordinator for Humanitarian […] The post Satellit

Bellingcat 24d ago

Poster Boy: Sanctioned Kinahan Cartel Lieutenant Found Playing Padel in Dubai

This article is the result of a collaboration with The Sunday Times. You can find their corresponding piece here. Every Friday evening, the brochure says, players can compete to win cash prizes in one of the world’s fastest-growing racquet sports. The padel club in Dubai’s west is the picture of modern wellness culture: climate-controlled courts, […] The post Poster Boy: Sanctioned Kinahan Cartel

Bellingcat 26d ago

How to Use AI to Help Find Civilian Harm

Between February 2022 and September 2025, Bellingcat staff and volunteers collected, geolocated, and shared more than 2,500 incidents of civilian harm following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.  As part of this effort, Bellingcat tested a new machine learning model intended to rank Telegram social media posts on their likelihood of containing incidents of civilian harm.  […] The post How t

Bellingcat 27d ago

Rhino Horn, Leopard Skin and Tiger Claws Sold Openly on Facebook

Warning: Includes graphic descriptions of animal harm and images of animal parts from the outset. A Bellingcat investigation has uncovered a Myanmar-based wildlife trafficker who has operated openly across social media for at least six years, claiming to have sold tiger bones, rhino horn, elephant skin and other products from protected and endangered species to […] The post Rhino Horn, Leopard Ski

Bellingcat 33d ago

Super-Potent Synthetic Opioids Spread Across US Amid Fentanyl Crackdown

This article was co-published with Signal Ohio and STAT. In high school, Ashley Delgado dreamed of becoming a doctor and one day buying her father a Rolls-Royce. “She wanted to heal people,” said her father, James Taylor. She had a high GPA, Taylor added, and did especially well in science and Latin. In her mid-20s, […] The post Super-Potent Synthetic Opioids Spread Across US Amid Fentanyl Crackdo

Bellingcat 39d ago

Heading Off: New Technique Helps Track Grain Smuggling Expansion to Libya

On February 15, 2026, the bulk carrier, Grumant (IMO: 9385879) was pictured at the occupied Ukrainian Port of Feodosia on the Crimean peninsula. Satellite imagery suggests it had already been there for several days.  It appeared to stock up on grain before departing on a two-month-long journey eventually docking at the Port of Benghazi in […] The post Heading Off: New Technique Helps Track Grain S

Bellingcat 47d ago

Tracing Digital Links Between Viory and Ruptly

“In the age of misinformation, the line between fact and fiction is blurrier than ever.” “For those of us working in video news, verification isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a necessity. It is how we protect the stories we help shape and how we earn and maintain trust in an increasingly chaotic information ecosystem,” Abu Dhabi-registered […] The post Tracing Digital Links Between Viory and Ruptly appe