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Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attends a meeting between President Donald Trump and Poland’s President Karol Nawrock in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington D.C., on September 3, 2025. On Monday, the Pentagon announced Hegseth has established a new grooming standard for U.S. service members that targets beards and facial hair. Photo by Aaron Schwartz/UPI | License Photo

Sept. 15 (UPI) — U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is targeting beards and facial hair in the military to establish a new “grooming standard,” as the Pentagon announced Monday that leadership will be required to conduct a review of how service member grooming practices have changed over the past decade.

The “rapid force-wide review of military standards,” requested by Hegseth, according to a Pentagon statement issued Monday, includes “grooming standards for facial hair.”

“The grooming standard set by the U.S. military is to be clean shaven and neat in presentation for a proper military appearance,” Hegseth said, according to the statement by Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell.

“Commanders must apply consistent criteria and appropriately consider the department’s interests in safety and uniformity when authorizing individual exceptions,” Parnell added.

According to Hegseth, shaving waivers will be allowed under a written recommendation by military medical officers, as long as there is a treatment plan. Hegseth also said service members who require a shaving waiver after more than one year of medical treatment will be considered for “separation.”

“As I stated when directing the Rapid Force-Wide Review of Military Standards, the strength of the military is our unity and our shared purpose,” said Hegseth. “The department must remain vigilant in maintaining the grooming standards which underpin the warrior ethos.”

Both President Donald Trump and Hegseth used the term “warrior ethos” earlier this month when renaming the Department of Defense to the Department of War.

“Words matter. Restoring … the warrior ethos. Restoring victory and clarity as an instinct,” Hegseth said Sept. 5, as Trump signed the executive order. A permanent department name change will require Congress to act.

In addition to grooming, Hegseth’s new requirements extend to body composition and physical fitness.

“We must remain vigilant in maintaining the standards that enable the men and women of our military to protect the American people and our homeland as the world’s most lethal and effective fighting force,” Hegseth wrote. “Our adversaries are not growing weaker, and our tasks are not growing less challenging.”

BRITAIN’S top cop yesterday hailed Live Facial Recognition technology as a “game-changing tool.”

Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley revealed how more than 700 arrests have been made so far this year thanks to camera vans deployed on streets to find wanted suspects and offenders in breach of orders.

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Those arrested include 50 registered sex offenders in breach of licence conditions, Sir Mark said in a speech to the TechUK trade association.

He described Live Facial Recognition(LFR) – which uses biometric technology to identity wanted suspects from unique measurements of the face – as a “targeted” investment to back front-line policing.

Sir Mark told how he went on an LFR operation at last month’s Notting Hill Carnival, saying: “Every officer I spoke to was energised by the potential.”

He added of the Carnival operation: “Across the weekend, LFR delivered 61 arrests-including 16 for serious violence-related offences and 13 for violence against women and girls.

“The first arrest happened within five minutes of going live, locating someone wanted on a prison recall since 2015.

“Another suspect was wanted for GBH, having allegedly stabbed a victim five times with a machete.

“These results show that LFR played a critical role in keeping the public safe at Carnival.”

Sir Mark said LFR had made “a major contribution” to one of the safest Carnival events in years, with robbery down 70%, violence reduced by more than half and sex offences by 8% compared to 2024.

Meanwhile, the Met boss also revealed how the force plans to use drones to support public safety.

He said: “From searching for missing people, to arriving quickly at serious traffic incidents, or replacing the expensive and noisy helicopter at large public events.

“Done well, drones will be another tool to help officers make faster, more informed decisions on the ground.”

A data-driven approach to tackling violence against women and girls has led to more than 162 of “the most prolific and predatory offenders” in London being convicted, Sir Mark said.

The Met’s V100 programme uses data to identify and target men who pose the highest risk to women, enabling cops to focus their efforts on dangerous suspects.

Sir Mark also told how the London force will be using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help catch criminals caught on CCTV and translating languages of suspects, victims and witnesses.

He said: “CCTV helps secure thousands of charges against dangerous offenders, but trawls are time-intensive and rely on the human eye.

“Take Oxford Street, with 27 junctions—a trawl to identify a suspect’s route can take two days.

“Now imagine telling AI to find clips of a male wearing a red baseball cap between X and Y hours—and getting results in hours. That’s game changing.”

However, Sir Mark warned the current national policing model must be changed if the force can “unlock the full benefits” of AI.

He said the current setup of 43 forces using hundreds of technology systems “just won’t cut it.”

Sir Mark urged the Government to create a new national centre for policing and set up of regional forces to create shared technology platforms and make better use of data.

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