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WNU Editor: From the U.S. Department of Defense ....

The men and women of the U.S. military serve in operations around the world. They also are family members, athletes and sports fans who embrace life. Military photographers provide a visual record of their activities. In this review, Year in Photos 2012, we offer a selection of some of the most compelling pictures they produced.

Their photo gallery is here.

Libyan militia behind Benghazi terror attack still operating unimpeded.

Ansar al-Sharia, the Islamist militia linked to the deadly terror attack against the United States diplomatic compound in Benghazi, continues to operate Facebook pages and conduct fundraising and proselytize in Libya, according to U.S. officials.

Intelligence reports provided to the U.S. Africa Command earlier this month revealed that Ansar al-Sharia operates several Facebook pages, including one outlet called the Campaigns of Ansar al-Sharia for Dawa and Charity. The website was operating as late as Dec. 15 before being shut down under pressure from the U.S. government.

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My Comment: I guess this is who President Obama was talking about when he mentioned that the U.S. had some good leads on who was responsible for the Benghazi consulate attack.

After spending months reporting on the conflict, a SPIEGEL journalist has pieced together a realistic view of the situation on the ground, and reports that dictator Bashar Assad's fall seems inevitable. But as the fighting grows more barbarous on both sides, he worries what the ultimate price will be.

It was August 2012 and we were sitting in front of the TV. The Syrian state-run channel was reporting that the country's army was fighting bravely in the streets of Maraa, and was close to defeating the terrorists there. At this very moment, the program continued, Syrian army troops were storming the cultural center where the last terrorists had holed up. The screen showed soldiers running past three-story apartment buildings.

We watched the TV, fascinated.

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My Comment: The fog of war is definitely in play in Syria. Another sobering commentary on Syria (from The National) is here.

It’s no secret that the diminishing coalition of Western governments still involved in the 11-year war in Afghanistan are desperate to get out. Some, like the French, have already wound down their military operations ahead of schedule. Washington preaches staying the course through gritted teeth until the end of 2014, at which point Afghan government forces will ostensibly have the numbers, the training, the equipment and the will to take over the fight against the Taliban. That narrative has been challenged by events in 2012, not least the steady toll of regular “green-on-blue” killings—when supposedly friendly Afghan personnel attack their NATO mentors. More than 60 coalition soldiers have died in such attacks this year alone.

WNU Editor: For the other 9 stories, start here.

(CNN) -- Forecasting the major international stories for the year ahead is a time-honored pastime, but the world has a habit of springing surprises. In late 1988, no one was predicting Tiananmen Square or the fall of the Berlin Wall. On the eve of 2001, the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent invasion of Afghanistan were unimaginable. So with that substantial disclaimer, let's peer into the misty looking glass for 2013.

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My Comment: Syria and the economy will be the big stories in 2013.

From Obama and the generals to women in combat, here are the big issues that mattered in 2012.

1. Obama and his generals
This election year, Democrats finally owned national security for the first time in decades. It began with the 2011 Osama bin Laden raid, sure, but the cement began to set after President Obama rewrote the national security strategy and built a new defense budget to heed the Budget Control Act with close buy-in from top brass. Obama delivered the plan at the Pentagon in January, flanked by the joint chiefs. The result: Republican attacks from Mitt Romney, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-OH), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) trying to put daylight between the president and the Pentagon fell flat. If there was any doubt before, Obama is commander in chief.

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My Comment: #6 (Staying out of Syria) and #7 (Afghanistan and the forgotten exit) are my two top picks.

The following script is from "Morten Storm" which aired on Dec. 30, 2012. Lara Logan is the correspondent. Howard Rosenberg, producer.

Just over a year ago in Yemen, a U.S. drone operated by the CIA unleashed a Hellfire missile killing one of the most wanted terrorists in the world, Anwar Al Awlaki. The American-born cleric had been waging Holy War against his own country. Because he was a U.S. citizen, it was one of the most controversial drone strikes in the campaign against al Qaeda.

To this day, the question of how the CIA zeroed in on Awlaki in that distant desert land remains a mystery. Some of that will be answered tonight and you'll learn how an unlikely Danish spy named Morten Storm managed to get inside Awlaki's world and become one of his most trusted friends. And how, Storm says, he helped lead that fatal missile to its target.

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My Comment: I am not sorry to see Anwar Al Awlaki dead .... but his death does open a debate on should the U.S. government order the assassination of an American citizen. As it is .... for the moment .... that debate is absent .... no one on the left (and everyone on the right) do not want to put President Obama on the spot for ordering this kill mission. But I predict .... and under a different administration .... that this debate will occur.

As for this 60 Minutes report .... it is a must see on how Al Qaeda in Yemen operates and how counter-terrorism officials try to get terror leaders like Anwar Al Awlaki.

On a side note .... Morten Storm did his job and he does deserve some of the reward money.