Overnight Defense: Obama touts strikes against ISIS; Bergdahl faces court martial

THE TOPLINE: President Obama stepped up his efforts to reassure the public of his strategy against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), stopping at the Pentagon on Monday and touting a hike in the number of airstrikes against the group.

“ISIL leaders cannot hide, and our message to them is simple: You are next,” Obama said, using another term for the terrorist group.

Prior to his speech, Obama met with top national security officials and military brass. 

{mosads}He said U.S. forces have accelerated the pace of airstrikes against the terror network, completing 9,000 as of today. Obama also said the U.S. and its allies have taken out more than half a dozen key ISIS leaders.

Obama’s visit to the Pentagon is a follow-up to an Oval Office address he made a week ago in which he sought to calm public worries about his administration’s response to ISIS. The address was panned by critics, who said the president didn’t do enough to assuage concerns about the group.

Obama acknowledged more needs to be done to defeat ISIS. He announced he is sending Defense Secretary Ashton Carter to the Middle East today to “secure more military contributions” from Arab allies.

BERGDAHL TO FACE COURT MARTIAL: U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, a former Taliban prisoner of war, will face a general court-martial, raising the possibility that he could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.

Bergdahl, who walked away from his base in Afghanistan in 2009, was charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy.

The decision for a general court-martial means that Bergdahl will face a trial, versus administrative or some other form of lesser punishment. An Army officer had recommended he face a special court martial, a lower judicial proceeding that would have come with a maximum penalty of 12 months of confinement.

In a recent interview featured on NPR’s “Serial” podcast, Bergdahl claimed that he left his base only to trigger an alarm, which would win him an audience with senior officials.

HOSPITAL BOMBING DEATH TOLL RISES TO 42: Doctors Without Borders raised the death toll from the October bombing of its hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, by the U.S. military to 42.

The new total includes 14 staff members, 24 patients and four relatives who helped with nursing.

Separately, a United Nations report released over the weekend found the death toll at the hospital was 30. But that report cited MSF’s previous estimate and acknowledged the toll could be higher.

The U.N. report dealt with total civilian casualties during the fight for Kunduz, which was overrun by Taliban forces. The report found that 289 civilians were killed in Kunduz from Sept. 28 to Oct. 13 during the fighting. The majority of the deaths could not be attributed to a single party, the report said.

The U.S.-led coalition did not respond to UNAMA’s requests for information on the hospital bombing, according to the report.

LAWMAKERS URGE DOD TO REJECT ‘NO TOUCH’ POLICY AT GITMO: Lawmakers in both parties are urging the Pentagon to reject a petition from five prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility asking that female service members not be allowed to touch them.

In January, a military judge ordered a temporary “no touch” policy for female guards on the base after the detainees — including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks — said contact with female guards violated their religious beliefs.

The policy could be made permanent in the coming days, outraging lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

“We cannot allow our values to be compromised by prohibiting female soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen from certain assignments due to the objections of our enemies,” said a letter to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter spearheaded by Reps. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), Martha McSally (R-Ariz.), Susan Davis (D-Calif.) and Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) and signed by 26 other lawmakers.

The lawmakers said numerous accommodations have already been made for the religious beliefs of the Muslim detainees, such as allowing breaks during court hearings for prayers, access to the Koran and halal-only meals in according with Muslim dietary restrictions.

The lawmakers said prohibiting women from transporting Muslim detainees would discriminate against U.S. troops and allow the detainees to dictate the terms of their imprisonment.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

— Former Gitmo detainee alleges torture, rape threats

— National Guardsman pleads guilty in ISIS plot

— Rand Paul hits Cruz, Rubio on refugees ahead of debate

— Army allows Sikh soldier to keep his beard

— Russia, Turkey cancel summit as tensions rise

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