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Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang

bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com

Ben Wolfgang is a National Security Correspondent for The Washington Times. His reporting is regularly featured in the daily Threat Status newsletter.
Previously, he covered energy and the environment, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016, and also spent two years as a White House correspondent during the Obama administration.
Before coming to The Times in 2011, Ben worked as political reporter at The Republican-Herald in Pottsville, Pa.
He can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Ben Wolfgang

President Donald Trump bows his head down as they say their prayer at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Donald Trump’s Saudi Arabia deployment undercuts bid to end ‘forever wars’

President Trump has stoked his political base by touting the withdrawal of more than 1,000 U.S. troops from Syria as keeping his 2016 campaign promise to end American involvement in foreign "forever wars." The problem is that the Pentagon's near-simultaneous deployment of some 3,000 troops and advanced missiles to Saudi Arabia is likely to trigger an escalation with Iran that could undercut Mr. Trump's determination to get the U.S. military out Middle East entanglements.

October 14, 2019
A resident of Tal Tamr welcomed a Syrian soldier to the northern city Monday. Syria's Kurds said government forces agreed to help them fend off Turkey's invasion — a major shift in alliances after President Trump ordered all U.S. troops withdrawn from the northern border area amid the rapidly deepening chaos. (SANA via AP)

Bashar Assad sends Syria troops to aid Kurds against Turkey

Syrian President Bashar Assad's troops returned to northern Syria on Monday to back up Kurdish forces in their increasingly desperate fight with the Turkish military, marking a major geopolitical turning point for the region and sparking a fresh wave of bipartisan criticism over President Trump's decision to pull U.S. forces out of the fight.

October 14, 2019
People standing on a rooftop in Akcakale, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, at the border with Syria, watch as in the background smoke billows from fires caused by Turkish bombardment in Tal Abyad, Syria, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019. Turkey's official Anadolu news agency says Turkey-backed Syrian forces have advanced into the center of a Syrian border town, Tal Abyad, on the fifth day of the Turkey's military offensive against Kurdish fighters in Syria. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Kurds eye Syria, Russia alliance as Turkey military advances

President Trump on Sunday ordered another pullback of U.S. troops inside Syria as a Turkish military invasion gains steam and the geopolitical situation deteriorates, with American-backed Kurdish forces now pursuing an alliance with Moscow and the government of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.

October 13, 2019
People watch from Akcakale, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, as smoke billows from fires on targets in Tel Abyad, Syria, caused by bombardment by Turkish forces, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019. The United Nations says at least 130,000 people have been displaced by the fighting in northeastern Syria with many more likely on the move as a Turkish offensive in the area enters its fifth day.(AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

ISIS prisoners escape Syria detention camp after Turkey invasion

Hundreds of Islamic State supporters attacked guards, stormed the gates and escaped a detention camp in northeast Syria on Sunday, according to Kurdish officials who warned that similar incidents are likely to follow as Turkey forges ahead with its military invasion.

October 13, 2019
In this photo taken from the Turkish side of the border between Turkey and Syria, in Akcakale, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, smoke billows from targets inside Syria during bombardment by Turkish forces Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019. Turkey launched a military operation Wednesday against Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria after U.S. forces pulled back from the area, with a series of airstrikes hitting a town on Syria's northern border.(AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey launches attack in northern Syria

Turkey on Wednesday launched a military offensive into northern Syria with the goal of crushing U.S.-backed Kurdish forces and eliminating a "terror corridor" on its border.

October 9, 2019
A Turkish army officer jumps from his tank moving to its new position on the Turkish side of the border between Turkey and Syria, in Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2019. Tensions have risen at the border between Turkey and Syria, on expectation of a Turkish military incursion into Syria. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey assault on Kurds advancing despite Trump warning

Turkey amassed troops and moved heavy weapons to its border with Syria on Tuesday in apparent preparation for a major assault on U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters, with Ankara steamrolling over an international outcry and pledging to eliminate what it calls a "terror corridor" in its backyard.

October 8, 2019
In this Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019, photo, Turkish forces artillery pieces are seen on their new positions near the border with Syria in Sanliurfa province, Turkey. U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces in Syria said American troops began withdrawing Monday from their positions along Turkey's border in northeastern Syria, ahead of an anticipated Turkish invasion that the Kurds say will overturn five years of achievements in the battle against the Islamic State group. (DHA via AP)

Turkey military advances as U.S. withdraws from Syria

World leaders were "preparing for the worst" Monday as Turkey moved quickly toward a sweeping military offensive against U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters in northern Syria after President Trump's surprise announcement that he would pull American forces out of a crucial buffer zone along the border between the two nations.

October 7, 2019
Capt. Philip Gunn participates in a flyover during the interment ceremony of retired Brig. Gen. Robinson Risner on Jan. 23, 2014, at Arlington National Cemetery. (Image: Air Force) ** FILE **

Pentagon takes over federal background checks

The Pentagon on Tuesday officially took over the federal background-check system, with a new agency inside the Defense Department now charged with reducing a massive backlog of clearances for employees and contractors.

October 2, 2019
Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-17 ballistic missiles roll during a parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of Communist China in Beijing, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. Trucks carrying weapons including a nuclear-armed missile designed to evade U.S. defenses rumbled through Beijing as the Communist Party celebrated its 70th anniversary in power with a parade Tuesday that showcased China's ambition as a rising global force. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

China military parade a warning to Pentagon of waning dominance

The rest of the world was watching the pomp, circumstance and speeches celebrating China's 70th anniversary Tuesday, but military analysts were glued to another spectacle in the heart of Beijing: the arsenal of cutting-edge weaponry capable of challenging U.S. military might for decades to come.

October 1, 2019
In this Monday, Sept. 23, 2019, photo, Afghan security forces stand guard in front of an election poster for presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani in Kabul, Afghanistan. Millions of Afghans are expected to go to the polls on Saturday to elect a new president, despite an upsurge of violence in the weeks since the collapse of a U.S.-Taliban deal to end Americas longest war, and the Taliban warning voters to say away from the polls. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Taliban threatens Afghanistan elections after U.S. peace talks collapse

The collapse of peace talks in Afghanistan has left the U.S. with few military options as intense fighting resumes, while the near complete lack of public and political support for an influx of ground troops means the Trump administration must search for new ways to put pressure back onto the Taliban.

September 26, 2019
Defense Secretary Mark Esper speaks during a ceremony in observance of the 18th anniversary of the September 11th attacks at the Pentagon in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Defense Secretary Mark Esper pushing to lower civilian casualties

The Pentagon reportedly is crafting a major new policy designed to cut down on civilian casualties resulting from U.S. military operations and will specifically address the growing trend of innocent deaths caused by allies who have bought U.S. weapons.

September 25, 2019