Steve Balestrieri

Steve Balestrieri

Steve is a SOFREP Senior Editor. He has served as a Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer before injuries forced his early separation. He writes for SOFREP and covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and his work was regularly featured in the Millbury-Sutton Chronicle and Grafton News newspapers.

Arizona college professor gets death threats for calling Jihad violent

In a bizarre twist of fate, Nicholas Damask, an Arizona college professor came under heat from his own school last month, had a lawsuit filed against him and his college, and then received death threats against himself and his family for teaching material that was thought by some as condemning Islam. The Arizona Council for […]

US calls for a ceasefire in Libya while Egypt threatens military intervention

The ongoing civil war in Libya has now reached a critical stage. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has threatened military intervention if there are any attacks by Turkish-backed forces on Sirte or the airbase at Jufra. Sisi stated that any move against either of these locations would amount to crossing a “red line.” The United States […]

Israeli Air Force keeps pressure on Iranian forces in Syria

An airstrike, reportedly conducted by the Israeli Air Force, struck several different sites in southern and eastern Syria on Tuesday. According to different reports, one of the targets hit by the Israelis was an Iranian arms shipment. So far, two Syrian soldiers have been reported killed and another four wounded in the airstrike. Iranian militia […]

A ship captain & World War I: The history behind donuts with holes

Ah, the ubiquitous donut. The guilty pleasure is, at the same time, the most reviled snack by doctors and professional trainers because of its extreme fat content and beloved by people everywhere because, let’s face it, it tastes so damned good. Donuts in some form or another have been around forever. Archaeologists have dug up […]

American fighter jets pound 3 ISIS mountain camps in Iraq

A flight of American F-15 Eagle Strike fighter jets struck and destroyed three remote Islamic State bases in the mountainous region of Iraq. Another strike pounded a cave complex in Nineveh. Defense Department officials stated that the airstrikes were carried out in coordination with the Iraqi government. The ISIS bases were in Wadi al-Shai, an […]

French military chief wants to overhaul military to prepare for a major conflict

General Thierry Burkhard, the French Army’s Chief of Staff, believes that a major conflict is now a relative possibility. He has a strategic plan to flip the French military from an emphasis on asymmetric warfare to symmetric and to toughen it up by 2030. Burkhard, who was the Commander of the Combined Operations Center, the […]

37 years ago, the Special Forces Regiment got its Tab

SF troops come from humble and austere beginnings. The original Special Forces troops were formed on Smoke Bomb Hill in 1952. Special Forces were created as former members of the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) were assigned with paratroopers and Rangers, with a sprinkling of former members of the Army’s 1st Special Service Force, to […]

Indian Army overhauls Special Operations selection and training

The Indian Army is looking at restructuring the selection process of its personnel volunteering for Special Forces and Airborne battalions. It is also aiming to expand their role in multiple operational theatres. India, despite having large numbers of Special Forces units and troops, does not have a national strategy on how its SF troops should […]

The Air Force continues to make history by naming a woman as its top enlisted troop

The U.S. Air Force became the first U.S. military branch to select a woman to serve as the highest-ranking noncommissioned officer. Chief Master Sgt. JoAnne Bass will become the 19th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. She will succeed Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Kaleth Wright, who is expected to retire on […]

Islamic Jihadists ambush Malian Army convoy, heavy casualties

About a dozen military vehicles were ambushed on Sunday at Bouka Were, around 60 miles from the border with Mauritania, the army said. Unnamed Malian military sources confirmed that the ambush on the military convoy in central Mali left 24 soldiers dead and a number missing. Jihadists aligned with al-Qaeda perpetrated the attack.  According to […]

President Trump unveils plan to end Veteran suicides

President Trump and the U.S Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced on Wednesday the release of the President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS). This is a nationwide plan aimed at raising public awareness about mental health, connecting Veterans and others at risk of suicide to federal and local […]

Special Operations units to receive new dune buggy

Polaris’s government and defense business has been awarded a potential seven-year, $109 million contract from the General Services Administration (GSA) to build a light tactical all-terrain vehicle for the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM). This follow-on contract is for the Polaris MRZR Alpha, a new light tactical vehicle. The seven-year contract has a value of […]