NAWA, Afghanistan — Taliban militants were nowhere in sight as the columns of Marines walked a third straight day across southern Afghanistan. But the desert heat proved an enemy in its own right, with several troops falling victim Saturday to temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The Marines carry 50 to 100 pounds on their backs. But because they are marching through farmland on foot, they can’t carry nearly as much water as their thirst demands. Few even realized the date was July 4, but once word of the holiday spread through the company, several said they knew relatives would be holding lakeside celebrations — a world away from the strenuous task Bravo Company of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, was taking on. “Happy 4th of July, dawg. Happy America,” said Lance Corp. Vince Morales, 21, of Baytown, Texas said to one of his Marine buddies while resting under a tree during a break.

WASHINGTON — An American soldier is believed being held by the Taliban after he walked off his base in eastern Afghanistan without his body armor and weapon, officials said Thursday. The military has intercepted communications in which insurgents said they had captured an American, two U.S. officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record. Several officials declined to say whether there has been any direct communications with the insurgents or whether any demands had been made for the return of the soldier, who is a private first class. The military was largely silent about details surrounding the kidnapping, believed to be the first such abduction of a U.S. service member in the nearly eight-year-old war.

MOSCOW — Russia will allow the U.S. to ship weapons across its territory to Afghanistan, a top Kremlin aide said Friday, a gesture aimed at bolstering U.S. military operations and improving strained ties between Washington and Moscow. The deal is expected to be signed during President Barack Obama’s visit to Moscow next week, Kremlin foreign policy adviser Sergei Prikhodko said. Russia has been allowing the U.S. to ship non-lethal supplies across its territory for operations in Afghanistan, and Kremlin officials had suggested further cooperation was likely.

Navy officials will make the new E-6 and below service uniform available in Navy Exchange uniform stores beginning Sept. 1. The news came in a Navy-wide message that also clarified the exchange’s policy on defective or ill-fitting uniform items. Navy Exchange Command’s proposal to field the uniforms in all regions “was based on the assessment of the inventory on hand and what the manufacturers are able to put out,” said Capt. Vince Drouillard, branch head within the Navy’s personnel, plans and policy division. “Part of the reason we had a two-year rollout plan was to give industry time to produce the correct inventory.”

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea fired seven ballistic missiles off its eastern coast Saturday, South Korea said, a violation of U.N. resolutions and an apparent message of defiance to the United States on its Independence Day. The launches, which came two days after North Korea fired what were believed to be four short-range cruise missiles, will likely further escalate tensions in the region as the U.S. tries to muster support for tough enforcement of the latest U.N. Security Council resolution imposed on the communist regime for its May nuclear test. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said three missiles were fired early Saturday, a fourth around noon and three more in the afternoon. The Defense Ministry said that the missiles were ballistic and are believed to have flown more than 250 miles.

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — With a fattened GI Bill covering full tuition and more, the number of veterans attending college this fall is expected to jump 30 percent from last year to nearly 500,000. That’s left many universities looking for ways to ease the transition from combat to the classroom. Vets already in school have run into problems including campus bureaucracy, crowds that can trigger alarm instincts honed by war and fellow students who don’t understand their battlefield experiences. In response, colleges across the country are offering veterans-only classes, adding counselors and streamlining the application and financial aid process.