For the first time in more than two decades, the State Department is poised to officially recognize the central government in Somalia as the legitimate ruling power in the East African nation, according to recent news reports. 

“The readiness of our Armed Forces is at a tipping point,” military leaders told the Armed Services Committee.

Defense secretary says the kidnappings by al-Qaeda affiliated extremists may be retaliation for French counterterrorism offensive in West Africa. 

The American Future Fund's print and online campaign will also target states of key senators.

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Taliban suicide bombers struck the headquarters of Afghanistan's intelligence directorate in Kabul on Wednesday, killing one and injuring dozens in the daring daytime attack, according to recent reports. 

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta promised Wednesday to take “all necessary and proper steps” after Algerian Islamists took several Americans hostage in the latest foreign-policy crisis to rock the administration.

Two groups linked to al Qaeda — the “Masked Brigade” and “Signers in Blood” — claimed responsibility for what the White House has dubbed a terrorist attack on a gas field near the Libyan border. The groups called the raid retaliation for France's U.S.-backed intervention in neighboring Mali. The groups said they'd captured 400 hostages, including seven Americans and 33 other Westerners.

The Obama administration confirmed the circumstance of American hostages but did not say how many there were. The embassy earlier in the day issued a statement saying there had been no U.S. casualties. Read more...

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey met with his NATO military counterparts in Brussels on Wednesday to flesh out the details of the administration's plan to accelerate the security handover in Afghanistan to local forces by spring. 

President Obama's deputy special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan on Wednesday made the case for peace talks with the Taliban.

Speaking to the public via a State Department Q&A on Twitter, James Warlick said the administration supports reconciliation with the insurgents it has been battling for the past 12 years. President Obama for the first time endorsed a proposal to open a “Taliban office” in Qatar when he met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai last week.

“At the Summit, the Leaders called on Taliban to join political process and take necessary steps to open office,” Warlick said on Twitter. “We agree that reconciliation is surest path to peace and ending violence in Afghanistan. As SecClinton has said, 'You don’t make peace with your friends, you make peace with your enemies.' "

Former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) will testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing on Jan. 31, the committee announced Wednesday.

Hagel’s hearing on his nomination to secretary of Defense is poised to be a high-profile, contentious affair, as many senators on the committee have said they are concerned with Hagel’s statements and positions on Israel, Iran and other issues.

The hearing will be the key opportunity for Hagel to publicly address his critics’ questions about his record.