Stars and Stripes Daily Headlines

July 11, 2017     Mosul freed of ISIS, but it could be years before some Iraqis can return home Mosul has been freed from ISIS’s grip, but months of brutal fighting has left large portions of the Iraqi city uninhabitable, according to U.S. and United Nations officials. Some 700,000 Mosul residents remain displaced in 19 encampments outside the city.   Lawmakers: veterans’ credit damaged by slow VA reimbursements Forty House lawmakers signed onto a letter Monday criticizing the Department of Veterans Affairs for slow reimbursements to private-sector doctors that they say harm their veteran constituents’ credit reports.   Senate committee shows overwhelming support for Navy Secretary nominee In a rousing show of support, the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday questioned Navy Secretary nominee Richard Spencer during a two-hour preliminary confirmation hearing that looked more like a unanimous endorsement than the rigors of interrogation.   Injured Fitzgerald commander is relieved Navy officials announced Tuesday that the USS Fitzgerald commanding officer is being temporary relieved of his command for medical reasons.   2 Americans fighting alongside Kurdish forces killed in Syria Two Americans fighting alongside Kurdish forces in northern Syria were killed last week as the battle to retake the Islamic State's de-facto capital there continues well into its second month.   Hawaii-based Army sergeant charged with attempting to support Islamic State An Army sergeant in Hawaii has been charged with attempting to provide classified military documents and training to the Islamic State.   16 dead in Mississippi in worst Marine crash since 2005 Investigators picked through debris across a fire-blackened soybean field Tuesday to try to determine why a U.S. military plane slammed into the ground, killing all 16 people aboard in the deadliest Marine crash anywhere in the world in more than a decade.   Report: VA claims for Gulf War illness denied 80 percent of the time Besides claims getting denied more often, veterans seeking benefits for Gulf War illness are having to wait four months longer on average to hear back from the VA, the GAO found.   USAREUR-led war-games kick off in Bulgaria U.S. Army Europe’s largest exercise of the year started on Tuesday in Bulgaria, commencing two weeks of drills involving 25,000 troops from more than 20 nations.   USS Fitzgerald moves into dry dock at Yokosuka for full damage assessment Officials are trying to determine if the Fitzgerald is able to travel to the states under its own power or will need to be towed there for repairs.   FBI: Explosion at Air Force recruiting station not being called act of domestic terrorism Federal authorities said Tuesday that they are no longer investigating a pipe bomb explosion that damaged a northeast Oklahoma Air Force recruiting station as a possible act of domestic terrorism, adding that the blast could be the work of a disgruntled employee or a prank.   8th Army celebrates opening of new headquarters on Camp Humphreys The 8th Army marked the inauguration of its new headquarters on Tuesday, a milestone in more than a decade of efforts to relocate the bulk of U.S. Forces Korea south of Seoul.