Defense news

• The US built up its missile defenses—and will need to do it again

  04-03-2026 20:04 via defenseone.com
  Over the past several days, integrated air and missile defense forces from the United States, Israel, and key Gulf partners have performed exceptionally well against Iranian air, missile, and drone attacks.This success was not built overnight. It is the result of more than two decades of sustained operational, technical, and political investment in integrated air and missile defense architecture across the Middle East. It reflects the work of multiple administrations, close coordination with Isr
  
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• The D Brief: US-Israel strikes continue; Hormuz closed; 4 US dead, ID’d; SOF join Ecuador drug ops; And a bit more.

  04-03-2026 17:50 via defenseone.com
  US-Israeli war on Iran, day 5: The global economy is still slipping as the war proceeds against Iran, with oil tankers stuck in the Strait of Hormuz as markets in Asia are getting hit particularly hard today. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. to underwrite risk insurance for commercial vessels transiting the Middle East, where many firms have changed course and routed tankers away from the conflict at increased cost. Latest: NATO air defenses downed an Iranian ballist
  
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• Hegseth: US went to war because Iran 'had no intention' of signing a nuclear deal

  04-03-2026 16:54 via defenseone.com
  Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ducked a question on whether Iran posed an imminent threat before the U.S. launched Operation Epic Fury, instead arguing that that the country’s slow-rolling of a nuclear deal and its continued nuclear ambitions necessitated the U.S. launching a war that would kill its leaders and degrade its conventional military capabilities as well. Hegseth’s comments at a Wednesday morning Pentagon press conference echoed a line of reasoning offered earlier thi
  
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• Iran-linked hacktivists could target US state and local targets, experts warn

  04-03-2026 16:30 via defenseone.com
  Further escalating hostilities in Iran could leave state and local governments in the crosshairs of hacktivists aligned with the regime as they look to retaliate in cyberspace, experts warned this week.While internet traffic in Iran itself has dropped precipitously since the U.S. and Israel began their bombing campaign over the weekend, observers with the nonprofit Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center warned that groups aligned with the Iranian regime in other countries may s
  
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• Trump’s CISA nominee to exit Coast Guard role, but still in running to lead cyber agency

  04-03-2026 02:04 via defenseone.com
  President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is leaving the Department of Homeland Security, where he has most recently been serving as an advisor in the U.S. Coast Guard, multiple people familiar with the matter told Nextgov/FCW and Defense One. Sean Plankey is still expected to remain the nominee to lead CISA, said three of the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details of his departure. He is expected to leave
  
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