MORE THAN 300 ILLINOIS NATIONAL GUARD SOLDIERS PREPARE FOR DEPLOYMENT TO MIDDLE EAST

The Chinese navy has stepped up assault training and combat readiness with a series of night bombing drills in waters off the southern island of Hainan. Dozens of bombers from a naval aviation regiment carried out patrols earlier this month to improve the crews’ stamina and situational awareness at night. The exercise comes as military tensions mount in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.