The next iteration of Meals Ready-to-Eat is MRE 46, set to release in 2026.

Among the options — all of which are required to have shelf lives of six months in 100 degrees Fahrenheit and three years at 80 degrees Fahrenheit — troops will no longer see beef taco filling, a pork sausage patty and jalapeno pepper jack beef patty.

Instead, those items will be replaced with buffalo chicken, Cuban-style beef picadillo with vegetables and a Thai-style red curry with chicken and rice.

“Buffalo chicken is something that [soldiers] have requested. It’s a popular item … so we’re hoping that this item will be longstanding,” Julie Edwards, a Combat Feeding Division senior technologist and registered dietitian, said in a U.S. Army release.

The Soldier Center’s Combat Feeding Division in Natick Massachusetts, part of the Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, is responsible for developing the MRE menu. Researchers there work with troops in the field to get feedback about the meals, and behavioral psychologists hold focus groups to dig into the data.

The feedback is analyzed and presented to the Joint Services Operational Rations Forum, which decides which new items to include.

The beef taco filling, pork sausage patty and jalapeno pepper jack beef patty were not rated highly among surveyed service members. The process to bring in new meals takes about four years, Edwards said.

“Any new item that we get that can help bring variety and increase acceptability is important,” Edwards said in the release. “We know that eating an MRE isn’t everyone’s No. 1 thing, but we want to make it safe to eat — that’s our No. 1 priority — and then to make it taste good as well.”

A s’mores recovery bar and freeze-dried chocolate peanut butter bites, both high in protein, are also among the new items that will be included in MRE 46.

Edwards said it’s been challenging to find protein-rich products, other than nuts, that can withstand the shelf-life requirements for MREs. Many options, such as beef jerky, experience a chemical reaction that gives them an unappetizing look, she said.

“I know in the commercial sector, you see lots of beef jerky that’s shelf stable. However, it has a very short commercial shelf life,” Edwards said.

Also included in the MRE 46 lineup are more caffeinated products offered as an alternative to coffee, which isn’t as popular among troops as it used to be. To replace coffee, researchers developed other caffeinated beverages, as well as energy chews, gels, caffeinated gum and caffeinated jellybeans.

“What we’ve noticed is caffeine is one of the least consumed items in the MRE,” Edwards said in the release. “Previous generations were big coffee drinkers, but the newer generation of soldiers are not.”

Troops also requested a larger, more durable towelette.

The next menu, MRE 47, is already in development and expected to come out in 2027.

One request from troops was to include more plant-based items. For 2027, the Combat Feeding Division is developing plant-based animal crackers, a new recovery bar, a protein bar and a fruit-flavored cereal, Edwards said. The four vegetarian meals currently in the MRE rotation will be replaced with other plant-based entrees, she said.

Marines from the 8th Engineer Support Battalion and Seabees assigned to Naval Construction Battalion 14 performed trench-building and fortification activities in an exercise in Skrunda, Latvia, according to a Navy release.

“We are creating positions designed for modern combat environments,” Lt. j.g. Wiatt Lewis of Naval Construction Battalion 14 said in the release. “These field fortifications are built to reduce detection, limit exposure to unmanned systems, and enhance force protection across the battlespace.”

As part of the exercise, service members used lumber that was milled from the Latvian Army’s field-deployable sawmill to reinforce trench walls and piece together overhead sections that would provide the personnel with cover and concealment, according to the release.

Marine engineers worked with Seabees to build the structures, with the sailors providing expertise on horizontal construction while employing the use of bulldozers, graders and compactors to create a network of fighting positions in what the release called “dense Baltic soil.”

The training in western Latvia was part of the larger Baltic Operations exercise, or BALTOPS, an annual exercise in the Baltic region that focuses primarily on maritime and air warfare scenarios.

The war in Ukraine has continually proven how trenches, overhead cover and field fortifications are vital for protection against attacks from drones and various forms of precision fire, the release notes.

Drones have become a regular part of combat in the ongoing conflict, even culminating in major attacks such as Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb in early June, a years-in-the-making mission that saw coordinated drone strikes launched deep within Russian territory on airfields and vital equipment.

Ukrainian forces deployed 117 drones, which were smuggled in container trucks into Russian territory, and struck 20 Russian military aircraft on the ground.

But small ground units must contend with drone threats as well. The quickly configurable aerial devices can spot troops for strikes and carry munitions to drop themselves.

“We have trained for this kind of work in the United States, but doing it here alongside the Seabees and our Latvian partners adds a different level of complexity,” Staff Sgt. Austin Leigh, combat engineer and platoon sergeant with 8th ESB, said in the release.

“We are always thinking about our visibility from above, the effects of thermal detection, and how to keep the position secure from multiple angles.”

The claim by Bassam al-Hassan, a strategic advisor and member of Assad’s inner circle, has not been corroborated, sources told The Washington Post.

FBI and CIA agents interviewed Hassan in Beirut, Lebanon, in April, marking the first time one of Assad’s senior officials has talked with U.S. officials about Tice, the Post reported.

Hassan told the FBI he tried to dissuade Assad from having Tice killed but that the American was killed by a subordinate in 2013 after he had briefly escaped from his prison cell, The Post reported.

U.S. officials recovered a notice issued circulated to Syrian authorities in late October 2012 to be on the lookout for Tice, indicating he had escaped around that time.

Hassan told agents he advised Assad that Tice could be used as leverage in dealings with the U.S. and was more valuable alive than dead, sources told The Post.

Sources interviewed by The Post doubted that Hassan advised against Assad’s order and said it was more likely the senior Syrian official was trying to create “distance from his culpability.” The same source said the account of Assad ordering Tice’s killing appeared to be “credible.”

However, Marc Tice, Austin’s father, strongly disagrees, noting that Hassan is a “mass murderer who has denied many of the acts he is known to have committed,” Marc Tice told The Post. “I would not take his statements as the truth or consider them anything more than his effort to take care of himself.”

FBI agents told the Tice family in April they’d interviewed Hassan and shared with them a summary of the interview, the Tices told The Post.

Debra Tice, Austin’s mother, traveled to Beirut in May with the hopes of meeting with Hassan. “I wanted to talk to him as a mother, not as an interrogator,” she told The Post. The meeting did not happen.

Marc Tice told The Post the family believes Austin is still alive based on testimony from people who’ve come forward saying they saw Austin in prison after 2013. However, none of those accounts have produced hard evidence that Austin is still alive, according to U.S. officials.

The former Marine captain and freelancer for The Post disappeared near Damascus, Syria, in August 2012.

His family has worked tirelessly to find him and bring him home. Presidents Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden each called Tice’s return a top priority but got nowhere with the former Syrian government. Syrian officials never admitted they had Tice nor provided proof he was alive, avoiding mentioning his name, U.S. officials told The Post.

After the Assad regime fell late last year and Assad and his family fled to Russia following a rapid rebel advance, the Tice family saw a chance to learn more. But as each of the regime’s prisons emptied, there was no evidence of Tice.

The new Syrian government has cooperated with the U.S. and the Tice family in trying to find him.

Following the fall of the regime, Hassan fled to Iran. He traveled to Beirut this spring, where the interviews with U.S. officials took place.

He gave descriptions of a site where Tice’s remains could be found, which have changed but remain near the Damascus area. FBI agents are trying to reach the locations described by Hassan to search for Tice’s remains.

“There is not anything, at least at this time, to corroborate what [Hassan] is saying,” one of the people familiar with the matter told The Post. “The flip side of it is, with his role in the regime, it’s hard to understand why he would want to lie about something like that.”

After being taken hostage in August 2012, Tice was first held in a car garage near Hassan’s office in southern Damascus, said Safwan Bahloul, who says he was a three-star general who worked in Syria’s external intelligence service, The Post reported.

U.S. officials did not know about Bahloul or his role until a recent interview in the Economist and have not yet corroborated his account, The Post reported.

Bahloul told the Economist that Hassan ordered him to interrogate Tice and gave him Tice’s iPhone. He was to find out if Tice was “merely a journalist” or “an American spy.”

Tice told Bahloul he was a former Marine working as a freelance journalist, Bahloul said. Tice was kept in handcuffs except during interviews.

Bahloul said Hassan ordered the filming of a video posted to YouTube in September 2012. U.S. officials determined early that Syrian government officials staged the clip to make it appear as though Tice were being held by Islamic militants, The Post reported.

Since 2016, the intelligence community has assessed, with low confidence, that Tice was alive. But, after the Assad regime fell, the CIA changed its assessment that Tice was likely dead, though also with low confidence.

There remains no hard evidence one way or the other to prove that Tice is alive or dead, officials told The Post.

The new Syrian government has pledged to help the Tice family search for their son. Roger Carstens, the U.S. special envoy for hostage affairs, and Barbara Leaf, the assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs, traveled to Damascus on Dec. 20 and were some of the first U.S. officials to meet with the new government.

“There’s been virtually no sign … of Austin,” Trump said in late March. “It’s been a long time. It’s been many, many years. He was in Syria and just disappeared off the face of the Earth. So, you know, a lot of bad things happen, but we will never — until we find out something definitive one way or the other — we will never stop looking for him.’’

Debra Tice visited Rome last week during the Catholic Church’s Jubilee, a year of reconciliation and renewal that takes place every 25 years. A cardinal in Syria arranged a short meeting with Pope Leo XIV.

She told The Post that the pope “gave me a very tender blessing about being a mother and being determined.”

This August will mark the 13th anniversary of Austin’s disappearance. Debra remains steadfast.

“I’m Austin’s mom,” she told The Post. “And my son is alive.”

The improvements are part of a series of modernization efforts scheduled over the next seven years, according to an Army release.

As part of the modernization initiative, Burroughs Range was upgraded to extend a section of the range from 800 meters to 1,100 meters. A future upgrade includes some target areas being expanded to distances of up to 1,200 meters, offering improved training opportunities for soldiers using the range.

“The current sniper rifle system used by the Army has an effective range of about 1,000 meters,” said Shane Duncanson, Fort Benning range planner.

The Army’s newest sniper rifle, the Mk22, can strike targets as far as 1,500 to 1,800 meters, Duncanson said.

The Mk22 is a multi-caliber, bolt-action rifle that replaces the M2010, M110 and M107 sniper rifles.

“The requirements for changes to the training ranges came from new weapons systems being introduced,” said John Nolt, acting director of Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization & Security at Fort Benning.

Completed in 1976, Burroughs Range was initially designed as a heavy sniper training facility, with armored targets placed throughout the training area, according to the release.

Additionally, a two-meter tall, 225-meter-long, 21-meter-deep berm, complete with a moving target rail system to its rear, is located on the west side of the range at 800 meters from the shooting positions.

“As the battlefield changes, our training ranges have to change, too,” said Jason Olive, Fort Benning range officer. “As Burroughs Range transitions to the Army’s newest Multipurpose Sniper Range, the requirement for a moving armored target was eliminated, which required the removal of the berm and tracks behind it, allowing additional line of sight and an area to incorporate the Army’s newest trackless moving target technology.”

The construction work at Burroughs Range involved leveling the berm, demolishing the obsolete rail system — which featured a 44-centimeter concrete base and a 20-centimeter rebar barrier extending along the entire 225-meter length — gradually leveling the land behind the berm, removing trees and clearing debris throughout the range.

“Burroughs Range was built back in a day when 1,000 meters was the farthest someone could shoot, and typically a solider would train at 600-800 meters,” Duncanson said. “We’re in the process of doing small incremental improvements so that we can use the new weapon systems and rounds at 1,200 meters.”

Personnel from Fort Benning, as well as the Georgia Army National Guard’s 177th Engineer Support Company, 878th Engineer Battalion out of Augusta, Georgia, and the Army Reserve’s 718th Engineer Company, 926th Engineer Battalion out of Birmingham, Alabama all contributed to modifying the range.

“This type of training allows us to meet directly on the job site with our active duty and Reserve counterparts,” said Warrant Officer James Jarrett, a construction officer with 177th Engineer Support Company.

The ongoing modernization of training ranges across Fort Benning is focused on improving soldiers’ training, readiness and operational capabilities, according to the release.

The address, held to celebrate the Army’s 250th birthday week, included the president making partisan comments, soliciting cheers and jeers from the uninformed audience seated as a backdrop behind the commander-in-chief.

According to reporting by Military.com, messages obtained by the outlet showed handpicking of soldiers for both appearance and political leanings.

One message said simply, “no fat soldiers.”

Another message sought to minimize anyone who did not support the president politically.

“If soldiers have political views that are in opposition to the current administration and they don’t want to be in the audience then they need to speak with their leadership and get swapped out,” according to a unit message obtained by Military.com.

Trump attacked political rivals, including former President Joe Biden and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been critical of Trump’s decision to deploy the Army National Guard and Marines to quell protests in Los Angeles against federal immigration raids.

Many of his comments received cheers and boos from soldiers in the audience, expressing political views while in uniform — which would often result in reprimand.

“This has been a bad week for the Army for anyone who cares about us being a neutral institution,” one commander at Fort Bragg told Military.com on the condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation. “This was shameful. I don’t expect anything to come out of it, but I hope maybe we can learn from it long term.”

Social media posts also showed soldiers purchasing clothing and items with pro-Trump and conservative messaging, such as “Make America Great Again.”

Items in some of the posts were sold by 365 Campaign, an Oklahoma-based business that sells pro-Trump and conservative memorabilia.

Col. Mary Ricks, a Fort Bragg spokesperson, told Military.com that “the vendor’s presence is under review to determine how it was permitted and to prevent similar occurrences in the future.”

Army Times reached out to Ricks on Thursday for further comment about the allegations of soldier screening. The spokesperson did not immediately respond.

Sgt. Aaron Cox, of Mabank, Texas, was an infantryman with the “Strike” 2nd Mobile Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).

The sergeant died from wounds sustained during a vehicle accident during preparations for the upcoming Exercise Saber Guardian 25.

The accident is under investigation.

“The loss of Sgt. Cox is a tragedy for all of us on the Strike team,” said, Col. Duke Reim, commander, 2MBCT, 101st Airborne Division. “He was a strong soldier and leader, who quickly rose through the ranks while serving. We are in direct contact with his family, for care and support that they need during this difficult time. We would like to thank our Hungarian Allies for their prompt response and support to our soldiers.”

Cox enlisted in 2021 and graduated basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, before being assigned to the 101st at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in 2022. The sergeant was a graduate of the Army Basic Leader Course and Combat Lifesaver Course.

He previously deployed to Poland. The Hungary deployment was his second deployment.

His awards include the Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Expert Infantryman Badge and Air Assault Badge.

The MCON Health Summit is a one-day event to be held at MCON 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Oct. 24.

MCON Health is partnering with PsychArmor, a leader in military cultural competency training looking to drive innovation in whole health, brain health, wellness, care delivery, payment systems and suicide prevention, according to a joint release.

Military Times is also a partner with the MCON 2025 event.

“At MCON Health 2025, we’re bringing together the right voices — leaders in healthcare, research, innovation, and veteran support; turning good ideas into real impact,” said Tina Atherall, CEO of PsychArmor. “By collaborating across sectors, we can reduce duplication, accelerate impact and ensure our communities are not just veteran-friendly, but truly veteran-ready.”

The new health initiative is built on six pillars of change designed to bring new thinking, new stakeholders and innovative solutions to military and veteran healthcare.

1. Human Performance Innovation – Advancing cognitive and emotional resilience through cutting-edge research and training.

2. Economics of Care Delivery – Exploring sustainable, scalable healthcare models for military populations.

3. Advancing Therapy Development – Accelerating breakthroughs in neurotherapy, mental health treatments, and suicide prevention.

4. Leading Industry Change – Engaging public, private, and nonprofit sectors to disrupt outdated care models and drive systemic improvements.

5. Transforming the Continuum of Care – Strengthening the transition from military to civilian healthcare systems for seamless support.

6. Healing Communities – Empowering families, caregivers, and local networks to play a proactive role in brain health and mental wellness.

“MCON Health is about rethinking how we approach the continuum of care, mental health, and suicide prevention,” said, Waco Hoover, co-founder at MCON. “By bringing together leaders from neuroscience, mental health, technology, and policy, we are fostering an ecosystem where innovative solutions can be developed and scaled to save lives. Our partnership with PsychArmor strengthens our ability to turn insights into action.”

PsychArmor is a nationally recognized nonprofit using military cultural awareness to transform how our nation engages with the military and veteran community.

“At PsychArmor, we know that meaningful change happens when communities come together,” Atherall said.

The MCON Health Summit will feature:

• Expert Keynotes & Panels – Thought leaders from military leadership, neuroscience, and tech innovation discussing the future of mental health care.

• Live Technology Demonstrations – AI-driven diagnostics, wearable health tech, and data-driven early intervention tools.

• Solution-Driven Workshops – Actionable strategies to integrate emerging technologies and innovative care models into existing systems.

• Cross-Sector Networking – Facilitating partnerships between healthcare professionals, policymakers, researchers, and technology leaders.

After the event, attendees will leave with actionable strategies, new partnerships, and a roadmap to drive systemic improvements in military and veteran health care, according to the organizers.

“As a Marine veteran and son of a Vietnam veteran, I’m proud to see our team’s commitment to advancing health care innovation for the military and defense sectors come to life,” Hoover said. “Our latest MCON programs are designed to improve health outcomes for service members and veterans — both on the battlefield and throughout their lives. By integrating cutting-edge tech, powerful data analytics, and community-based care, we’re delivering solutions that address the unique challenges faced by our military communities. Supporting those who serve is at the heart of everything we do at MCON Health.”

Authorities arrested Levi Austin Frakes and Charles Ethan Fields, both veterans, at their home in Lacey, Washington, on Monday night, according to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court.

FBI agents found an arsenal that included dozens of guns, explosives and body armor, along with Nazi paraphernalia at the home.

According to the complaint, a soldier entered a building at the Army Ranger compound at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Sunday night and found two men wearing Ranger physical training clothing with a cluster of Army property around them. The soldier questioned them about what they were doing and told them to pull down their masks, which they did.

A fight ensued, and one of the men brandished a hammer and struck the soldier in the head. Despite losing a large amount of blood, the soldier continued to fight and managed to get control of the hammer — at which point, one of the men pulled a knife. The soldier then let them go, the complaint said.

The two veterans had attempted to steal about $14,000 worth of body armor, ballistic helmets and communications equipment, most of which they left behind when they dropped their rucksacks as they fled, the complaint said.

During the fight, one of the men dropped his hat. It said “Fields” on the inside. Using base entry logs and surveillance video, investigators determined that Fields and Frakes had entered Lewis-McChord together about an hour before the attack, investigators said.

Additionally, the wounded soldier, who required hospital treatment, told investigators he asked around his unit about the name Fields after finding it on the hat. The soldier learned that Fields had been assigned to the Ranger Battalion around 2021, and he was able to identify him as one of the attackers based on photos shown to him by others in his unit, the complaint said.

The men had access to the base because they were veterans, the probable cause statement filed in state court said.

“Charles E. Fields was a 11B (Infantrymen) in the Regular Army from February 2017 to July 2021,” An Army spokesperson told Army Times. “He deployed to Afghanistan twice from September 2018 to February 2019 and October 2019 to November 2019. He left the Army in the rank of Sergeant.”

Information was not immediately available regarding Frakes’ military service.

One of the defendants told investigators the pair had been stealing equipment from the base for the past two years to sell or trade, and agents found about $24,000 in cash at the home, wrote Special Agent Christopher J. Raguse of the Army Criminal Investigation Division.

Washington state business license records show Frakes and Fields own a company called Sovereign Solutions, which featured an “SS” logo with the letters separated by a lightning bolt, according to The Associated Press.

The company’s website advertises “Quality Training and Equipment for the Modern Warfighter,” including marksmanship classes, as well as a T-shirt with the company logo and the words “Professional War Crime Committer.”

The federal complaint charges Frakes and Fields with robbery, assault and theft of government property. The pair also face investigation on state charges of unlawful possession of incendiary devices, short-barreled rifles and a machine gun. Each was being held at the Thurston County Jail on $500,000 bail as of Thursday.

Agents found rifles staged at the upstairs windows, a probable cause affidavit filed in Thurston County Superior Court said. The federal complaint said agents “observed numerous Nazi/white supremacy memorabilia, murals, and literature in every bedroom and near several stockpiles of weapons and military equipment.”

Photos from inside the home included in court documents showed a wall decorated with a red Nazi flag emblazoned with a black swastika and a black SS flag — the letters shaped like lightning bolts — referencing the Schutzstaffel, the Nazi paramilitary led by Heinrich Himmler.

Agents seized about 35 firearms at the home, including short-barreled rifles and an MG42 machine gun — a type typically supported with a bipod and which was used by German troops during World War II.

Other seized gear included 3D-printed suppressors and Army-issued explosives, such as smoke grenades and blasting caps, ballistic plates and helmets and night-vision devices, authorities said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Maj. Jonathan Batt faces 63 accusations, which include 10 specifications of rape and 15 sexual assault charges against 17 women, according to the Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel. Batt also faces charges of aggravated assault, battery, obstruction of justice and abusive sexual contact.

Batt has pleaded not guilty to all charges, his civilian attorney Nathan Freeburg told Stars and Stripes.

The major was charged in October with 76 violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice against 20 women. Some of the charges were dropped prior to trial because some of the victims declined to participate in the proceedings, Michelle McCaskill, spokeswoman for the Office of Special Trial Counsel, told Stars and Stripes.

Court documents show that Batt is accused of a variety of sexual and aggravated assaults on women in Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., between 2019 and 2023, Stripes reported. Some women allege Batt choked them until they were unconscious before he raped them.

Other women allege he used sex toys on the women against their will and bit and slapped them without consent.

His obstruction of justice charge stems from an allegation that he told one person not to speak with “someone posing as a police officer” about “sexual allegations that some women are making against me,” Stripes reported.

Batt graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York in 2007. He was commissioned as an infantry officer and has served with the 82nd Airborne Division, 5th Ranger Training Brigade, the 3rd Infantry Division and the 75th Ranger Regiment.

Batt served four combat tours in Afghanistan and was previously assigned to the Defense Department’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center in Crystal City, Virginia.

The trial is expected to last until June 27, McCaskill told Stripes.

The Army Criminal Investigation Division posted the reward with details regarding the death of 1st Lt. Marciano Angelo Parisano, who was last seen on camera footage May 3 at 3:20 a.m. outside Club Santos in Comayagua, Honduras. He was off base on a liberty pass at the time.

Individuals with credible information regarding this incident are encouraged to contact the Army CID MacDill Resident Unit at (912) 547-4626 or via WhatsApp at (571) 656-7842. They can also submit an anonymous tip online at www.cid.army.mil/tips.

Parisano, 25, served as a UH-60 Black Hawk pilot with 1st Battalion, 228 Aviation Regiment at Soto Cano Air Base near Comayagua, a city in west-central Honduras. He is a 2023 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York.

The lieutenant was found dead near the Chiquito River on May 3, according to a Joint Task Force-Bravo release. Police do not suspect robbery as a motive in his death.

Joint Task Force-Bravo, Parisano’s unit parent command headquartered out of Soto Cano Air Base, posted on social media May 9 with a statement from his parents, Tom and Jessie Parisano.

The couple said they are “committed to seeking justice for Marco.”

“We trust the authorities will do everything in their power to ensure that accountability prevails,” they said in the statement. “No family should have to endure this kind of loss, and we hope that Marco’s story will serve as a reminder that God’s timing is unknown, and we must always be prepared.”

Tom and Jessie Parisano shared additional comments about their son and their loss.

“No words can truly capture the depth of our grief, nor the pain of waking up each day without him,” they said in the statement. “Marco was more than just our child — he was a bright light in our lives, a source of joy, kindness, and unwavering love. His presence was a gift, touching the hearts of everyone who crossed his path.”