www.stripes.com STARSk,#STRIPES, DAILY Daily Headlines September 4, 2024 | OBESITY AMONG TROOPS COSTS PENTAGON MORE THAN $1 BILLION PER YEAR, NEW STUDY FINDS Obesity was the leading cause for disqualification among hopeful military recruit applicants and the top driver of separations among active-duty troops in 2023. Researchers suggested the Pentagon take a more proactive approach. Read more > FIRE AND ICELAND: POLISH MISSILES BROADEN NATO’S NORTHERN REACH AT US-LED EXERCISE Russian aggression in Europe has energized a Cold War-like sensibility among NATO nations in defending not only the Continent but also the Arctic. Read more > US FORCES SHOULD CONSIDER UKRAINE’S FREEWHEELING MODEL FOR SOCIAL MEDIA MESSAGING, ANALYSTS SAY Ukrainian efforts at countering Russian disinformation campaigns have seen success because their troops aren’t bogged down by an overly cautious U.S.-style chain of command, according to a new report. Read more > ‘SENSE OF DUTY’: US, SOUTH KOREA SEARCH UNDERWATER FOR MISSING KOREAN WAR BOMBER Teams from the U.S. and South Korea tasked with recovering wartime remains launched a joint underwater search in South Korea this week for a bomber and its crew that crashed during the 1950-53 Korean War. Read more > ‘WHERE THE MAGIC BEGINS:’ US AMBASSADOR ATTENDS START OF DODEA’S UNIVERSAL PRE-K IN JAPAN The U.S. ambassador to Japan appeared at Yokosuka Primary School on Wednesday to mark the first day of the Department of Defense Education Activity’s new universal prekindergarten program. Read more > SENATORS PUSH $15M BILL TO STUDY BIRTH DEFECTS IN CHILDREN OF VETERANS EXPOSED TO TOXIC CHEMICALS The generational effects of chemical warfare agents and other hazardous materials on the descendants of service members would be evaluated under a bill to fund $15 million in research on birth defects identified in the children and grandchildren of toxic-exposed veterans. Read more > A US NAVY SAILOR IS DETAINED IN VENEZUELA, PENTAGON SAYS A U.S. Navy sailor has been detained in Venezuela after traveling there unauthorized on personal business, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The enlisted sailor was detained last week by Venezuelan law enforcement, two defense officials said Read more > SHOOTER KILLS 4 AT A GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL, AND A 14-YEAR-OLD STUDENT IS IN CUSTODY, OFFICIALS SAY A shooter at a Georgia high school killed four people on Wednesday, authorities said, sending students scrambling for shelter in their classrooms — and eventually to the football stadium — as officers swarmed the campus and parents raced to find out if their children were safe. Read more > WITH CHARGES AND SANCTIONS, US TAKES AIM AT RUSSIAN DISINFORMATION AHEAD OF NOVEMBER ELECTION The Biden administration seized Kremlin-run websites and charged two Russian state media employees in its most sweeping effort yet to push back against what it says are Russian attempts to spread disinformation ahead of the November presidential election. Read more > ISRAEL’S NETANYAHU DEMANDS OPEN-ENDED CONTROL OF GAZA’S BORDER WITH EGYPT Families of remaining hostages have stepped up their demands that he agree to a deal after Hamas killed six hostages last week as Israeli troops appeared to be moving to rescue them. In angry public statements, hostage families have accused Netanyahu of blocking a deal and potentially sacrificing their loved ones’ lives for the sake of holding the border strip. Read more > TURKEY SEEKS TO JOIN THE BRICS BLOC OF EMERGING ECONOMIES, A KREMLIN OFFICIAL SAYS NATO member Turkey has applied for membership in the BRICS bloc of developing economies, a senior Kremlin official said Wednesday, as Russia and China seek to counter the West’s global influence. Read more > - FOLLOW US FOLLOW US Facebook  X STRIPES.COM | EUROPE | JAPAN | KOREA | OKINAWA | GUAM Stars and Stripes Stars and Stripes