In a Sept. 25 air strike near Al Nussayyib, Iraq, a USAF F-16 dropped two inertial navigation system/Global Positioning System-guided 500-pound Joint Direct Attack Munitions, killing Abu Nasr al-Tunisi and two other al Qaeda operatives. Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Anderson, Multinational Corps Iraq chief of staff, told Pentagon reporters that al-Tunisi was a foreigner who brought al Qaeda members into Iraq. He was a one of an inner circle of advisors to Ayyub al-Masri, the overall al Qaeda leader in Iraq. Anderson said his death “deals a significant blow to their operation.”
United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket is slated to fly its second national security mission in February—nearly six months after its first operational launch and almost a year after it was certified to fly military payloads for the Space Force.
