Carter to brief press

Defense Secretary Ash Carter is scheduled to brief the Pentagon press corps today at 1:45 p.m., according to a Defense Department announcement.

Carter's briefing comes one day after Army Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler became the first U.S. servicemember to die in Iraq since 2011 after taking part in a mission that rescued 70 hostages from a prison controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Wheeler is also the first U.S. servicemember to be killed in action while supporting Operation Inherent Resolve.

The incident has spurred questions in that the Pentagon has avoided stating that Wheeler died in a "combat" mission. Rather, DOD is hewing closely to the message that the operation to free the hostages was part of the military's stated "advise and assist" mission in Iraq.

"I would not suggest you should look at this as some change in tactics on our part," Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said yesterday. "This was a unique circumstance in which very close partners of the United States made a specific request for our assistance."