The lawsuit is likely to further intensify political tensions between Tokyo and Okinawa, which hosts a large number of the U.S. military bases and units despite strong anti-military sentiment among many local residents.

Marines, airmen and soldiers recently practiced seizing a small Japanese island in an exercise that honed skills some experts say may be necessary in a face-off against China.

In case of an in-flight emergency, aircraft maintenance Marines grab their mattresses. That’s the procedure when no amount of prodding can get the landing gear of an MV-22 Osprey to extend.

In addition to deployments along the U.S.Mexico border, Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller also cited funding transfers, recovery costs from Hurricanes Florence and Michael, new housing allowances and civilian pay raises as factors affecting combat readiness.

U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer said he would have sentenced Richard Laugel to 20 years in prison if not for his military heroism, which included two stints in Iraq.

Former Marine Bradley Darlington was previously dishonorably discharged from the Marine Corps and sentenced to 11 years in prison, with all but five suspended, after pleading guilty to the seven charges, which included domestic violence.

VIDEO

Originally created by an Okinawan restaurant owner to feed hungry American troops after WWII, taco rice has become a staple of the island's cuisine. Now, members of Combat Logistics Regiment 37 hope their rendition of the dish will help them take top prize at the Marine Corps' annual cooking competition.

Explosive ordnance disposal technicians defused the bomb in two hours, an Iwakuni City crisis-management official said.

The sheriff’s website has posted updates on their search efforts for 1st Lt. Matthew Kraft through extreme weather conditions, but on Saturday officials said there will be no more updates after Monday.

On April 27, 2011, Carolyn Hibberd’s world as she knew it came crashing down. Her son and youngest of four children, Cpl. Adam D. Jones, 29, was leading his platoon on a night foot patrol when he stepped on an improvised explosive device in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

Former Marine Miles Lagoze hopes his film “Combat Obscura” will alter the “sanitized and sanctified view of the military” many Americans hold by showing them his view of what combat is actually like.

The search for 1st Lt. Matthew Kraft began March 4 after his father contacted the Mono County Sheriff’s Office after not hearing from his son after he was supposed to have completed a hiking trip.

The Marine Corps, like other service branches, dispatches its media wing to curate its own version of war. But the THC-laced epiphany halfway through the documentary "Combat Obscura," directed by former Marine videographer Miles Lagoze, is something different.

The project at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, which cost nearly $70 million, features expanded military and civilian clothing, fitness, electronics and outdoor departments.

Tyndall Air Force Base was severely damaged by Hurricane Michael in October, while Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Stations New River and Cherry Point were devastated by severe flooding after Hurricane Florence in September.

Each of the eight teams’ rucksacks bore a piece of bright, orange fabric with the name of a fallen Marine stenciled across it in bold, black letters. Some teams carried more than one name.

The annual Marine Corps budget would rise by about 6 percent, and end strength would also grow under a proposal released Tuesday.

After several attempts, Visnu Gonzalez, who was wounded in Fallujah, and wife Sahily Machado welcomed a daughter in December thanks to the help of a fertility doctor who was born to a quadriplegic father.

She told him she wanted a divorce. He left and came back with her gun, an M1911 pistol. He shoved her onto a couch and began strangling her, telling her to open her mouth. Now, he's due to be paroled.

Authorities in California searched for a sixth day Saturday for a missing Marine after he failed to return from a backcountry skiing trip through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. First Lt. Matthew Kraft began trekking on Feb. 23 and was scheduled to complete it on Monday or Tuesday.

ANALYSIS

A recent Military Times poll found that 22 percent of its active-duty readers had seen white nationalism or racist ideology in the service. Among Military Times readers who identified as nonwhite, that number jumped to 50 percent.

Although individual commanders can continue to impose the driving restriction, the III Marine Expeditionary Force commander's announcement is certain to mean more young Marines in Japan behind the wheel.

The unidentified female Marine assigned to Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 12 was on a trip sponsored by MCAS Iwakuni and attempted the climb after a night of drinking.

During its 42 years of service, the Marine Corps’ Prowlers have collectively flown more than 260,000 hours and has deployed more than 70 times in support of major combat operations.

Despite heavy rains, the $5 million project has progressed well and is about 51 percent complete. The runway is scheduled to be finished by early to mid-April.

The video was posted by a Marine assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in California, according to the Marines. The investigation is being conducted by the unit that the Marines are assigned to, the 3rd Marine Airlift Wing, according to the unit.

Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki traveled his nation’s capital Friday to present results of a referendum on plans to relocate Marine Corps air operations within the island prefecture and called for more talks with the U.S. government on the issue.

Okinawa’s Gov. Denny Tamaki has called for relocating Marine air operations outside of the island prefecture following a prefecture-wide referendum over the weekend.

The linguistic services of Lance Cpl. Robert Lehman, a rifleman who is fluent in Japanese, provided his leaders a bonus; it’s rare for Marines serving in a field unit to be fluent in the local language.

Twitter users took to social media to report the Marine to his command after a series of tweets posted under an account linked to his name espoused support for Nazis and included photos of Adolf Hitler.

Problems in areas like maintenance, reliability and safety has meant the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle is less desirable than older vehicles in some circumstances, according to an annual report by the Director of Operational Test & Evaluation for the Defense Department.

Requests for site visits to every residence in government housing, privatized military housing and off-base civilian rentals for Marines and sailors are to take place by April 15.

Just over half of Okinawa’s 1.15 million registered voters turned out Sunday to deliver a resounding “no” vote in a referendum on the plan to relocate Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.

A Richland, Wash. city councilman thinks native son Jim Mattis would make a terrific governor, or even president. Phil Lemley hopes his neighbors will help push a grassroots campaign to encourage the now-former Secretary of Defense to run for public office.

As part of Thursday’s agreement, the Marine Corps will partner with the city in a pilot program on drones, which will test a variety of advanced drone missions over the next several years.

FEATURE

More than five decades ago, two schoolmates began a journey that led them from Texas to the Marine Corps. Their paths diverged and one went to the front lines of Vietnam, never to return.

Shoot-house exercises are part of a broader firearms training called a “shoot package” that includes live-fire barricade drills in which Marines must shoot targets between small openings in walls.

The family of Marine Maj. Henry Courtney Jr. has been seeking the return of his medal from the Valley Forge-based Freedoms Foundation since around 2015.

The competition includes archery, cycling, rowing, shooting, power lifting, sitting volleyball and swimming along with track and field, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.

The 1st Marine Division has outgrown its command post, known colloquially as the “White House," and a new, modern headquarters is in the works. But the base is nominating the building, built in 1943, to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

GALLERY

The annual Forest Light exercise brings together Marine Corps units with those from the Japan Self-Defense Forces for some training and tightening of their military relationship.

Cpl. Jonathan Currier, 21, of New Hampshire, went missing near the Philippines the morning of Aug. 9, 2018, prompting a “Marine overboard” call on the amphibious assault ship

Lance Cpl. Vincent Taman Jr. was found guilty at a general court-martial of soliciting and receiving visual imagery of a 16-year-old engaged in sexually explicit conduct, according to a 3rd Marine Division spokesman.

3D printing projects spearheaded by servicemembers with the III Marine Expeditionary Force has saved the Marine Corps in Okinawa thousands of dollars and streamlined logistics and supply lines.

Iron Fist is an annual training event between the U.S. Marines and Japanese forces. This was the first year the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force used its own assault amphibious vehicles for the event.

John J. “Jim” Darnaby Jr. was awarded the Bronze Star for running forward 75 yards under heavy Japanese machine gun, rifle and grenade fire on Iwo Jima to rescue a wounded Marine and help carry him back to U.S. lines.

Sgt. David Nguyen Lam was driving in Northern Okinawa on New Year's Eve when he saw an airman on a motorcycle crash into a pair of roadside barriers. Lam quickly sprang into action and help provide aid to the severely injured servicemember.

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Marine combat engineers recently practiced their bridge-building skills at Naha Military Port, demonstrating how to quickly erect a span up to 328 feet long in as little as a half-hour.

As the only permanently forward-deployed Marine Expeditionary Unit, the 31st is the go-to first responder for crises situations in the Indo-Pacific region. This week's training is normally held on Guam, but was moved to Hawaii due to damage from Typhoons Mangkhut and Yutu.

News of the increase in suicides came within days of commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller’s “Message to the Force 2019,” which was drafted Jan. 25, according to a copy provided to Stars and Stripes. In that document, Neller said he felt compelled to address the issue.

Court personnel declined to describe Marine Col. Keith Parrella’s health emergency, citing privacy, but his wife and other war court personnel said the colonel had a detached retina that required surgery in the U.S.

The two innovations are so new that Navy Air Systems Command’s additive manufacturing team has not yet figured out how to track the possible savings generated by these 3D-printed products.

Thousands of homes remain damaged more than five months after Hurricane Florence hit Eastern North Carolina Marine Corps installations, its housing authority says.

Each day about 100 Marines start at sunrise, go to a briefing, grab chow and get to work on the 3,000-foot runway. Their mission: to build a new runway guaranteed to last at least 70 years.

Triston Walsh was 4 years old when his father, Nick, was killed in a 2007 sniper attack in Fallujah. One of their last adventures was a road trip from Colorado to California in the Bronco, just the two of them.

A study released in April found that the industrial chemicals that contaminated drinking water in wells on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune was linked to an increased risk for bladder cancer, kidney cancer and kidney disease for people who lived or worked there from the 1950s to 1985.

The activist, seen beating a drum Friday in Washington as teens from Covington High School in Kentucky surrounded and mocked him, has referred to himself as a “Vietnam-times” veteran. He served from June 1972 to May 1976 in the Marine Corps Reserve and did not deploy.

Marine Maj. William Easter was preparing for a run on the Okinawa seawall near American Village when he saw an exhausted man who had made it to shore after a swim, but whose pregnant wife was in distress roughly a quarter-mile out.

Sisters Brookelyn and Addisyn Shanle squealed with delight when they saw their dad, Dustin Shanle, walk into the room at HSHS St. John's Children's Hospital. After all, he had flown halfway around the world to see the newest addition to their family, Callie Grace, who was born on New Year's Day and about seven weeks premature.

The Japanese government plans to expand landfill work as early as March on a new U.S. military runway that will lead to the closure of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, local media have reported.

R. Lee Ermey, who served 11 years in the Marines, including a tour as a drill instructor, turned his experience as a Marine Corps drill instructor into a notable role in the Academy Award-nominated 1987 film “Full Metal Jacket.”

A Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge sucked in a refueling strap in the Mediterranean earlier this month causing at least $2 million in damage, according to the Navy.

While Japanese nationals can visit MCAS Iwakuni during the popular, annual Friendship Day air show — one of the largest in the Pacific — most of installation is off limits. The recent tour provided local families are rare look at the base.

Cross-country is a chance to spread the word of veterans' organizations across the country while also raising awareness about mental health, veteran suicide prevention and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Marines will need to start preparing for more challenging fitness tests after the Corps announced changes to its physical fitness and combat fitness tests beginning this month.

Sgt. Morgan Bergdahl was scheduled to appear for the start of court-martial proceedings on four counts of sexual assault and four of abusive sexual contact. A dismissal without prejudice means the charges against Bergdahl could be refiled later.

The man who was killed in a possible hit-and-run crash in San Diego on Saturday was identified as a Marine who had enlisted only months ago, officials said Monday.

The sky was a gloomy gunmetal gray Monday as dozens of U.S. Marines swarmed the notoriously tricky airstrip high atop Santa Catalina Island.

Calvin Smith endured 21 surgeries and a leg amputation caused by war injuries he suffered in Iraq, a motorcycle accident and a brain tumor. On his road to recovery, he fell in love with his speech therapist and she’s now his wife. He also discovered Pilates, which has so reshaped his mental and physical health that he’s now becoming an instructor.

The Marine Corps has remained the last service branch not to completely train men and women recruits together. About 60 percent of recruit training is already integrated.

A retired Marine Corps officer whose career was damaged after his unit was falsely accused in 2007 of war crimes in Afghanistan should have his rank elevated and be awarded back pay for damages, a Navy board has determined.

Officials familiar with the investigation said there are two possible scenarios: a weapon discharged as it was being passed from one Marine to another during a shift change, or a Marine accidentally fired a sidearm as it was being removed from a holster.

ANALYSIS

How does a Marine Corps veteran, who is allegedly visiting Russia to help a friend, get picked up as a spy? It's a case that has birthed countless theories and speculation not only about Paul Whelan, but also about America's complex relationship with Russia.

Marine Maj. Henry Courtney Jr.'s family is asking for the medal to be given or loaned to a Duluth veterans memorial and museum that already has a substantial Courtney display.

Marine Maj. Henry Courtney Jr. was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during a daring World War II night attack against the Japanese.

Riley S. Kuznia, 20, from the small northwestern Minnesota town of Karlstad, was shot about 5 a.m. Tuesday, his mother confirmed in a Facebook posting.

A U.S. Marine was shot and killed Tuesday morning inside the Marine Barracks on Capitol Hill in Southeast Washington, prompting a District of Columbia police investigation.

In recognition of the holiday, “only the absolute minimum level of mission-essential flight activity will be permitted” at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni from Jan. 1 to Jan. 3, said the statement by Col. Richard Fuerst.

Tom Mattis is unsure what will come next for departing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, but he says his brother's loyalty lies with the Constitution and the American people.

When Col. George Bristol retired after 38 years in the Marine Corps, including 19 years in some of the most dangerous places on earth, he could have easily kicked back and relaxed. But that's not his style. "In the military, the mission was to kill or capture," he said. Now, he's on a mission to get runaway kids back home safely.

GALLERY

Watching out for “cow pies” on patrol, adjusting fire to account for free-range cattle and sleeping while bulls with foot-long horns walk past their tents are some of the things U.S. Marines are getting used to in Spain.

The group of Marines had been on leave for the weekend — camping in tents and hiking at Big Bear. As they headed back toward Camp Pendleton, they came upon the crash and entered into what one of the Marines called "Marine Mode" to save the injured motorcyclist.

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Marine scout snipers with Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crises Response Africa practiced long-distance shooting and sniper combat training alongside Spanish army reconnaissance soldiers.

Growing up, Lyle Gilbert didn’t consider joining the military. Today, he’s a Marine Corps major whose example has led four of his children into military service – three as fellow Marines.

Among the flaws discovered so far: exhaust gas sucked back into the engine, limited service life for parts for the main rotor gearbox, deficiencies with the tail rotor and driveshaft and late deliveries of redesigned parts.

For 52 years, Paul Schultz never revealed details about his Vietnam War service. The closest he got was telling his sons that they owed their lives to his best friend in Vietnam.

On Dec. 10, retired Marine Col. Jim Turner put on his dress uniform and medals and drove to the Bay Pines Department of Veterans Affairs complex. He got out of his truck, sat down on top of his military records and took his own life with a rifle.

Uniforms that saw Evan Wheeler through some pivotal times in his life - and some of the best, like when he married his wife in his dress blues - stolen along with vehicle.

The new U.S. military runway will eventually facilitate the relocation and closure of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma. A small protest movement — backed by popular support — has stood fervently opposed to the relocation of Marine air operations within the prefecture.

A single KC-130J flew slowly past MCAS Iwakuni Friday in remembrance of five Marines who lost their lives after their aerial refueler collided in midair with an F/A-18 Hornet Dec. 6 off southern Japan.

Investigators have concluded that a Marine's failure to follow firing range procedures was responsible for a June 21 incident where a bullet broke two windows in a mango farmer's shed near Camp Schwab.

There are over 4,500 sailors and Marines serving in the Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) that will deploy Dec. 17.

In a somber congressional hearing on Navy and Marine Corps readiness, lawmakers expressed condolences, read aloud the names of the Marines who died in a recent crash and urged newfound vigilance for the military.

Four Marine F/A-18 Hornets roared over Iwakuni in tribute to Capt. Jahmar Resilard, who died in a midair collision last week.

Marines assigned to the 9th Engineering Support Battalion were exposed to a different type of battlefield setting than the U.S. has been involved in the past quarter-century during recent drills at Okinawa’s Jungle Warfare Training Center.