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(CNN) — North Korea said Sunday it would no longer move forward with nuclear disarmament in response to a planned U.S.-South Korean joint military exercise.

The announcement was made by the official Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA.

“The maneuvers clearly indicate once again that the U.S. and the South Korean authorities are the harassers of peace and warmongers keen to bring a war to this land,” the statement sa

Full Story at CNN.com

(CNN) — A U.S. soldier who defused roadside bombs in Iraq wants credit for inspiring the main character in “The Hurt Locker,” a movie up for nine Oscars this weekend.

Master Sgt. Jeffrey Sarver filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday claiming writer Mark Boal — a journalist embedded with his Army unit in Iraq — based the film’s main character on his life.

“They literally transposed his life in the film and then claimed it was a work of fiction,” said lawyer Geoffrey Fieger. “The only fiction was the claim it was a work of fiction.”

Without directly denying Sarver’s claim, the production company said it was “a fictional account of what brave men and women do on the battlefield.”

Full Story at CNN.com

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Five U.S. soldiers were wounded Thursday when a suicide bomber attacked a U.S. base, an Afghan official said.

The attacker detonated the bomb about 9 p.m. while in the “sleeping area” on the base, said Paktia province spokesman Roullah Samoun. It is unclear how the bomber got onto the base, but preliminary investigations show the attacker wore an Afghan border police uniform, Samoun said.

Full Story at CBSNews.com

The United States has quietly increased the capability of land-based Patriot defensive missiles in several Gulf Arab nations, and one military official said the Navy is beefing up the presence of ships capable of knocking down hostile missiles in flight.

The officials discussed aspects of the defensive strategy on condition of anonymity because some elements are classified.

The moves have been in the works for months and are part of a broader adjustment in the U.S. approach to missile defense, including in Europe and Asia

Full Story at news.Yahoo.com

KABUL, Afghanistan – Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday it will be at least 15 years before his government can bankroll a security force strong enough to protect the country from the threat of insurgency.

Speaking at a news conference with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Karzai said Afghan security forces would take the lead in securing the nation within five years, but he said his nation would need financial help to pay the salaries and equip a growing army and police force.

“Afghanistan is looking forward to taking on our responsibilities in terms of paying for its forces with its own resources, but that will not be for another 15 years,” Karzai said.

Full Story at msnbc.com

JACKSONVILLE, N.C. – Battle-weary troops and their families braced for a wrenching round of new deployments to Afghanistan announced Tuesday by the president, but many said they support the surge as long as it helps to end the eight-year-old conflict.

As President Barack Obama outlined his plan to send 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan — while pledging to start bringing them home in 2011 — soldiers, Marines and their families interviewed by The Associated Press felt a tangle of fresh concerns and renewed hopes.

“All I ask that man to do, if he is going to send them over there, is not send them over in vain,” said 57-year-old Bill Thomas of Jacksonville, N.C., who watched Obama’s televised speech in his living room, where photos of his three sons in uniform hang over the TV.

Full Story at  CNN.com

(CNN) — A U.S.-flagged ship that played a central role in a bloody hijacking drama last spring was attacked again Wednesday, a busy day for piracy in the dangerous waters off the east coast of Africa.

It was the first time a security team aboard a major merchant ship repelled a pirate attack, a top U.S. Navy officer said.

But a defensive weapon that emits a loud noise did not work, Vice Adm. Bill Gortney said in a briefing.

“They tried to employ [a long-range acoustical device] and it did not have the effect,” said Gortney, the commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, which is responsible for the area favored by pirates. He said he did not know why the device did not work.

Full Story at The-Daily-Record.com

RITTMAN DISTRICT — Asking all 18- and 19-year-olds to stand, Gary Maibach urged Rittman students to look at the teenagers.

Those are the ones asked to serve their country in the military, Maibach said, not gray-haired grandfathers.

Maibach, who served as a medic in the Army during the Vietnam War, encouraged the students to seek out veterans, shake their hands, thank them for their service and listen to their stories, if they are willing to share them.

Maibach was the guest speaker during Rittman High School’s Veterans Day program Tuesday, which is held every other year and is organized by the Quest Class.

“Veterans, generally, do not go forward to talk about their experiences,” Maibach said, adding later, “don’t press them.”

Full Story at msnbc.com

FOMBELL, Pa. – Thirteen-year-old David Rojas didn’t tell his mother how terribly he missed her while she was on Navy deployments to the Middle East, because he worried it would upset her.

Knowing her mother is under stress, Shania Jones, 10, does extra chores to help with her younger brother and sister while her dad’s away with the West Virginia Army National Guard on his second Iraq deployment.

“Deployment” is a word unfamiliar to many children. For David, Shania and other military kids who stayed recently at Camp Kon-O-Kwee in western Pennsylvania, it’s a way of life that’s become increasingly hard.

Full Story at msnbc.com

The years-long U.S. commitment in Iraq and Afghanistan is taking a significant toll on the children of service members, who are 2½ times more likely to develop psychological problems than American children in general, new research indicates.

The study, published this week in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, found that deployment of a parent was correlated to high stress levels in the parent who remains at home, which it said was linked to greater psychological impact on children.

The findings open a new window on the collateral damage wartime deployment can exact back at home.

Full Story at CNN.com

A new study commissioned by the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs recommends a complete ban on tobacco, which would end tobacco sales on military bases and prohibit smoking by anyone in uniform, not even combat troops in the thick of battle.

According to the study, tobacco use impairs military readiness in the short term. Over the long term, it can cause serious health problems, including lung cancer and cardiovascular disease. The study also says smokeless tobacco use can lead to oral and pancreatic cancer.

The Defense Department’s top health officials are studying the report’s suggestions and will make recommendations to the Pentagon’s policy team and Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Full Story at msnbc.com

SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea fired seven ballistic missiles off its eastern coast Saturday, South Korea said, a violation of U.N. resolutions and an apparent message of defiance to the United States on its Independence Day.

The launches, which came two days after North Korea fired four short-range cruise missiles, will likely further escalate tensions in the region as the U.S. tries to muster support for tough enforcement of the U.N. resolution imposed on the communist regime for its May nuclear test.