Northern Strike

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jason Benson, a combat engineer assigned to 4th Combat Engineer Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, demonstrates to partner nation forces how to use a detonating cord linear charge during a field training exercise as part of Bright Star 23 at Mohamed Naguib Military Base, Egypt, Sept. 4, 2023. A detonating cord linear charge is a type of breaching charge sandwiched in industrial tape for ease of charge placement. Bright Star 23 is a multilateral U.S. Central Command exercise held with the Arab Republic of Egypt across air, land, and sea domains that promotes and enhances regional security and cooperation, and improves interoperability in irregular warfare against hybrid threat scenarios. Benson is a native of Murfressboro, Tennessee, and is currently studying mechatronics engineering at Middle Tennessee State University. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Samuel Qin)