Lara Korte

Lara Korte covers the U.S. military in the Middle East. Her previous reporting includes helming Politico’s California Playbook out of Sacramento, as well as writing for the Sacramento Bee and the Austin American-Statesman. She is a proud Kansan and holds degrees in political science and journalism from the University of Kansas.

@lara_korte

korte.lara@stripes.com

The Military Health System last month rescinded a policy from March that prohibited Defense Department civilian employees and contractors working abroad from getting rape test kits done on military bases.

Military reverses policy that blocked rape kit exams for civilian workers abroad

Defense Department civilian workers and contractors stationed overseas can once again undergo rape kit exams at U.S. military medical facilities.

Airmen from the 124th Fighter Wing load MK-82 general purpose bombs on the A-10 Thunderbolt II at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Oct. 29, 2024. The State Department has authorized a sale of 3,280 bomb guidance kits for MK-82s to Israel.

State Department green-lights $510 million sale of bomb guidance kits to Israel

A Patriot missile is launched by soldiers at an airborne target during a live-fire exercise at an undisclosed location in Central Command's area of responsibility. U.S. troops in the Middle East are likely to stay in a fortified and defensive position until it’s clear the fragile ceasefire between Iran and Israel will hold, analysts say.

US troops in Middle East will remain dispersed and at elevated alert, analysts say

Iran launches attack on US base in Qatar

U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain in Manama, Bahrain.

US bases in Middle East in lockdown as ayatollah aide urges strike on Navy fleet in Bahrain

Naval Support Activity Bahrain remained under lockdown, with access limited to mission-critical personnel, in the wake of U.S. strikes on Iran.

A naval destroyer flying a U.S. flag sails in open ocean with other ships and the horizon in the background.

Base security tightens, family flights continue out of Bahrain following Israeli strikes on Iran

Personnel at Naval Support Activity Naples were told to stay on alert to handle more incoming families. U.S. officials have emphasized that the current conflict is between Israel and Iran, and that measures to evacuate diplomats and families are a precaution.

Afghan evacuees board a flight to the U.S. from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, Oct. 30, 2021.The Justice Department inspector general's office recently released an audit stating that the FBI was effective in vetting Afghans who fled to the U.S. immediately following the fall of the U.S.-backed government in Kabul.

FBI thoroughly vetted Afghans who fled after US withdrawal, audit finds

The FBI effectively screened tens of thousands of Afghan evacuees who came to the U.S. immediately following the collapse of the Kabul government in 2021, according to an audit.

A boy and a woman walk together in Bahrain with service members in the background.

Breaking down the US military’s departure plan for families in Bahrain

Military family members in the Middle East are now authorized to fly anywhere in the United States at government expense for up to six months under guidance released by base officials in Bahrain.

An American military armored vehicle displaying a cross and the word “Kafir,” Arabic for infidel, patrols near Hasakah, Syria, May 31, 2025. An investigation was launched into whether the writing on the vehicle violates Defense Department policy.

Image of cross, Arabic word for infidel drawn on US military vehicle in Syria prompts probe

A Defense Department investigation is underway into the appearance of an armored U.S. military vehicle in Syria that was inscribed with a cross and an Arabic word that can be considered offensive to Muslims.

A uniformed soldier sits in a military vehicle.

CENTCOM touts string of May operations that dealt hit to ISIS in Iraq and Syria

American-aided efforts to ward off an Islamic State group resurgence in Iraq and Syria saw a flurry of recent successes with the capture of an ISIS leader and the killings of two militants, U.S. Central Command said.

A tank flying a Syrian flag idles beside a tank flying an American flag.

US troop presence in Syria will be reduced to a single base, envoy says

The number of U.S. bases in Syria will be pared from eight to one, the American ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria said.

Plan to defund resettlement program for Afghans who aided US puts its future in doubt

No more funding for Operation Enduring Welcome was allotted in President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal released Friday. Advocacy groups fear that hundreds of thousands of Afghans awaiting resettlement in the U.S. could be shut out if the program is defunded.

The littoral combat ship USS Canberra operates in the Persian Gulf on May 23, 2025. It has since arrived in Manama, Bahrain.

Navy deploys first LCS to replace wood-hulled minehunter in Bahrain

The littoral combat ship USS Canberra arrived at the U.S. naval base in Bahrain last week, the first of four new vessels expected to replace aging mine countermeasures ships in the Middle East, according to U.S. Naval Forces Central Command.

A large, tan-colored military radar system is mounted on a wheeled trailer, positioned at an angle on a concrete platform. The radar is housed in a protective, angular enclosure, with stabilizing legs extended to the ground.

Pentagon gets first hypersonic missile defense radar in bid to keep pace with adversaries’ arsenals

A radar system that can track missiles flying five times the speed of sound has been delivered to the U.S. military, marking a major upgrade to one of the its most essential missile defense systems.

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