A U.S. Army team transfers the remains of Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga., at Dover Air Force Base, Del., on Oct. 5. Wright was one of four U.S. troops killed in an ambush in Niger. Staff Sgt. Aaron J. Jenne/U.S. Air Force via AP hide caption
Four American soldiers were killed in Niger last Oct 4. From left, they are Staff Sgt. Bryan C. Black, 35, of Puyallup, Wash.; Staff Sgt. Jeremiah W. Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio; Sgt. La David Johnson of Miami Gardens, Fla.; and Staff Sgt. Dustin M. Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga. A Pentagon report cites multiple failures with the mission, and the military is now briefing families of those killed. AP hide caption
Senegalese Army Gen. Amadou Kane (left) receives the 2016 Flintlock flag from U.S. Army Gen. Donald Bolduc during the inauguration of a military base in Thiès, Senegal, in February 2016, during a three-week joint military exercise between African, U.S. and European troops known as Flintlock. Seyllou/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
A Navy fighter jet comes in for a landing on the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the South China Sea. Anthony Kuhn/NPR hide caption
Entrance to Camps 5 and 6, Naval Station Guantánamo Bay. (Photo reviewed and cleared by U.S. military.) David Welna/NPR hide caption
Sgt. Nick Cunningham speeds down the track during men's bobsled training on Friday. He is one of seven U.S. service members competing in Pyeongchang. "They told me, 'Go win medals for this country,'" Cunningham says. "And that's my job at this moment." Quinn Rooney/Getty Images hide caption
Some of the devastation caused by the fight to remove ISIS from Raqqa, Syria. Greg Dixon/NPR hide caption
An Army team at Dover Air Force Base, Del., carries a transfer case containing the remains of Sgt. 1st Class Hughton O. Brown on Nov. 16. Steve Ruark/AP hide caption
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Paul Funk (left), and Iraqi Maj. Gen. Najm Abdullah al-Jibouri, walk through a busy market in Mosul, Iraq, on Oct. 4. U.S. forces in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan have been increasing this year under President Trump, going from about 18,000 at the beginning of the year to 26,000 recently, according to Pentagon figures. Spc. Avery Howard/AP hide caption
Myeshia Johnson, widow of U.S. Army Sergeant La David Johnson, who was among four special forces soldiers killed in Niger, sits with her daughter, Ah'Leeysa Johnson at a graveside service in Hollywood, Fla., on Oct. 21. Joe Skipper/Reuters hide caption
A U.S. Army team transfers the remains of Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga., at Dover Air Force Base, Del., on Oct. 5. Wright was one of four U.S. troops killed in an ambush in Niger. U.S. forces work with many African militaries. While the Americans are advising and assisting in most cases, they also travel into the field, where they can face combat. Staff Sgt. Aaron J. Jenne/U.S. Air Force via AP hide caption
American flags are placed at graves at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on May 25, in preparation for Memorial Day. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
U.S. Army Gen. John Nicholson told the Senate Armed Services Committee in February that the war in Afghanistan was at a "stalemate." Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption
Displaced Syrians head to refugee camps on the outskirts of Raqqa on Sunday. Syrian fighters, backed by the U.S., have been driving out the Islamic State. However, many civilians are fleeing the fighting, and there's still no sign of a political settlement in Syria on the horizon. Bulent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will maintain current policy on transgender service members, promising to convene a panel to study how to implement President Trump's ban on transgender troops. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption