COVER STORY‘The Bullet Magnet’ is back in the fight in AfghanistanStruck by shrapnel during heavy mortar bombardment in Iraq in 2003, Camacho has since been grazed by one bullet, hit in the shoulder with a tracer round and finally, in June, shot in the arm. His men call him "The Bullet Magnet" and joke that since all his injuries have been on his left side, if they just stand to his right, they’ll be fine. • Story
Overseas custody rights: American parents struggle to reunite with children in JapanU.S. State Department reports show the number of open cases of parental abductions in Japan involving American children has doubled since last year, rising from 40 cases involving 50 children to 80 cases affecting 118 children. Most cases involve Japanese mothers and non-Japanese fathers whose breakup results in the mother keeping her children away from their father in Japan. State Department officials agree the problem is getting worse as international marriages and divorces continue to rise and more parents report their cases to the department, but they contend Japan is moving toward taking action. • Story
Obama says burn pits won't become another Agent OrangePresident Barack Obama promised Tuesday that health concerns related to burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan will not become another Agent Orange, with the military denying their dangers for decades. • Story
Veteran finally receives his Bronze Star Medal for 1967 battle in VietnamThe package Alfred Pankey had waited more than 40 years for finally arrived. The retired Army staff sergeant, now 69, hobbled into the post office on crutches anxiously looking for his long overdue Bronze Star Medal with “V” device for his acts of valor in a battle that claimed the lives of nine of his comrades. • Story
Artillerymen returning to traditional rolesArtillerymen who have spent years training and fighting as infantry in Iraq are returning to traditional roles as the Army shifts its focus to the Afghan fight. • Story
Being overseas offers a unique opportunity for car enthusiastsIn Germany, troops can find themselves behind the wheel of a used Mercedes-Benz for less than $5,000. In Japan, $5,000 can put them in the bucket seats of one of Japan’s prized sports cars. But officials and car enthusiasts warn that anyone hoping to bring that dream car back to the United States better have deep pockets. • Story
It takes a con to know a con: Former criminal helps gullible tourists in NaplesAntonio Solla and 80 other former convicts are part of an experimental program funded by the Campania regional government. The former criminals, all with firsthand experience in the petty-crime business, are posted at numerous tourist hotspots in Naples to help unsuspecting travelers avoid becoming targets of crime. • Story
Erik Oropeza: ‘There was a sudden white light’With Oropeza in the driver’s hatch, six U.S. soldiers headed north on a routine Stryker patrol down Main Supply Route Tampa along with another Company B Stryker. The bullets started flying less than 500 yards later. It was to be no ordinary day for the Manchus of Fort Lewis, Wash. By the time Oropeza returned to his unit’s outpost hours later, two of his fellow soldiers would be dead and three more severely wounded. For his courage in a fearsome firefight, Oropeza would be declared a hero. • Story
Spouse CallsA weekly column in Stripes' Scene magazine by Terri Barnes, a military wife and mother of three who lives and writes in Germany. • This week's column • Terri Barnes' blog
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