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Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter

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Defense &
National Security

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The Big Story

Pentagon ‘tracking’ employees who mock, celebrate Kirk death

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is warning civilian and military employees that the Pentagon is “tracking” any comments from them that celebrate or mock the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

“We are tracking all these very closely — and will address, immediately. Completely unacceptable,” Hegseth wrote Thursday on social media.

Hegseth was responding to a statement from chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, who earlier said it is “unacceptable for military personnel and Department of War civilians to celebrate or mock the assassination of a fellow American. The Department of War has zero tolerance for it,” using the Trump administration’s preferred name for the Department of Defense.

They did not mention any specific examples of personnel who had reacted positively to Kirk’s death.

Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot in the neck at the campus of Utah Valley University on Wednesday. After a search, officials identified the suspected shooter as Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old Utah man.

Both Republican and Democratic political figures — including all living former U.S. presidents — have condemned Kirk’s assassination, but a small number of social media users have mocked or celebrated the killing, drawing outrage.

The heads of military services also have warned those under them that any inappropriate comments on Kirk will be met with retribution. Navy Secretary John Phelan cautioned sailors, Marines and civilians they “will be dealt with swiftly and decisively” should they bring “discredit” on the department.

“I am aware of posts displaying contempt toward a fellow American who was assassinated,” he wrote on the social platform X late Thursday. “I want to be very clear: any uniformed or civilian employee of the Department of the Navy who acts in a manner that brings discredit upon the Department, the [U.S. Navy] or the [Marine Corps] will be dealt with swiftly and decisively.”

The official X account for the U.S. Coast Guard, meanwhile, also said it “is aware of inappropriate personal social media activity made by a member regarding recent political violence,” though did not provide specifics.

Read the full report at TheHill.com.

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I’m Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.

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Essential Reads

How policy will affect defense and national security now and in
the future:

Naval Academy midshipman shot by security during lockdown

A midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy was injured Thursday after mistaking law enforcement for an active shooter due to online misinformation. After concerns of an active shooter were posted anonymously on a chat platform, the campus in Annapolis, Md., was placed on lockdown shortly after 5 p.m. and security officials began clearing buildings, CNN reported. Even as communications from the school’s commandant seen by …

Full Story

ICE detainees arriving at former prison in Tennessee

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees recently started arriving at a former prison in Tennessee, prison firm CoreCivic told The Hill on Thursday. “We have begun receiving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees at our West Tennessee Detention Facility (WTDF) in response to an immediate need from the federal government for safe, humane and appropriate housing and care for these individuals,” CoreCivic spokesperson Ryan Gustin told The Hill in an emailed statement.

Full Story

Rubio: US will ‘respond accordingly’ to Bolsonaro ‘witch hunt’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Thursday that the U.S. is preparing to “respond accordingly” to Brazil’s 27-year prison sentence for former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who was convicted of attempting a coup to stay in office after he lost reelection in 2022. Rubio accused the Brazilian federal court justice who is overseeing the case and others of unfairly targeting Bolsonaro. “The political …

Full Story

US not in the clear 24 years after 9/11: Ex-CIA officer

A former CIA officer who helped fight the war on terror after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, says another attack against the U.S. remains possible. Tracy Walder, a national security contributor for The Hill’s sister network NewsNation, was part of the effort to track down 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden, who was killed by a Navy SEAL team in 2011. She tells “The Hill on NewsNation” that taking out terrorist leaders …

Full Story

In Other News

Branch out with a different read from The Hill:

Suspect in Charlie Kirk shooting identified as Tyler Robinson

The FBI has taken a man named Tyler Robinson into custody as a suspect in connection to the assassination on Wednesday of conservative activist Charlie Kirk following a multiday search. “Good morning ladies and gentlemen — we got him,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) said at a Friday morning press conference. …

Full Story

On Our Radar

Upcoming things we’re watching in and around the defense world:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio set to travel to Israel tomorrow for discussion on th Gaza Strip in the wake of an Israeli strike on Qatar.
Brookings will discuss “The state of democracy: Global insights from Africa,” at 10:00 a.m. EDT on Monday.
The Center for a New American Security will have a conversation on “Europe with Less U.S.: Preventing Russia Opportunistic Aggression in Europe,” Monday at 11:30 a.m. EDT

What We’re Reading

News we’ve flagged from other outlets:

Trump says he’ll send National Guard to Memphis, escalating his use of troops in US cities (The Associated Press)
Pentagon stages first ‘Top Drone’ school for operators to hone skills (Military Times)