Syria
NBC: Drone Attacks On American Bases Injured Two Dozen U.S. Military Personnel
“Two dozen American military personnel were wounded last week in a series of drone attacks at American bases in Iraq and Syria, U.S. Central Command told NBC News on Tuesday. The Pentagon confirmed the attacks last week, but the number of U.S. casualties has not been previously disclosed. Twenty American personnel sustained minor injuries on Oct. 18 when at least two one-way attack drones targeted al-Tanf military base in southern Syria, CENTCOM said. One of the drones was shot down. All of the wounded personnel were returned to duty, CENTCOM said, and there was no damage to any military installations. On that same day, another four American personnel suffered minor injuries during two separate drone attacks against U.S. and coalition forces stationed at al-Asad base in western Iraq, CENTCOM said. The U.S. shot down the one-way attack drones, but the debris from one destroyed a hanger that contained small aircraft, CENTCOM said. All of the injured personnel returned to duty. An American civilian contractor died due to a cardiac incident during a shelter-in-place order, but it did not occur during one of the drone attacks.”
ABC: US Moves Carrier To Middle East Following Attacks On US Forces
“The Pentagon announced late Saturday that it will send an aircraft carrier and air defense systems to defend U.S. military troops in response to a growing number of attacks on U.S. facilities, presumably by Iranian-backed groups as tensions mount amid the Israel-Hamas conflict. Additional U.S. military forces in the U.S. have also been placed in a higher state of readiness for a possible future deployment to the Middle East on short notice. In a major change, the aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower and its strike group of a cruiser and destroyers is being redirected to the Middle East instead of to the eastern Mediterranean where it was supposed to join the USS Ford strike group as an additional deterrent for Iran and Hezbollah from broadening the conflict between Hamas and Israel. "Following detailed discussions with President Biden on recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces across the Middle East Region, today I directed a series of additional steps to further strengthen the Department of Defense posture in the region," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement released late Saturday night.”
Iraq
Reuters: Rockets Attack Targets Iraqi Base Housing U.S. Forces - Sources
“Two rockets landed inside Iraq's Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts U.S. and other international forces west of Baghdad, two security sources told Reuters on Tuesday. One of the sources said the rockets were big, and the rocket launcher was found about 50 km southeast of the base. Ain al-Asad air base is located in the western Anbar province.”
Lebanon
The Times Of Israel: As Hezbollah Attacks Defy UN Resolutions, Lebanon’s PM Claims Country Commited To Them
“Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati reaffirmed on Tuesday Beirut’s commitment to a UN resolution that ended a 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, as cross-border fire along the Lebanon-Israel border continued to intensify. Hezbollah has been violating that resolution incessantly since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Mikati paid a surprise trip to southern Lebanon on Tuesday, as Israel and the terror group — a key Hamas ally — continued to trade deadly cross-border fire, while Israel and its Western allies have repeatedly warned the group against an escalation. Since October 7 — when Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel from Gaza, brutally murdering at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians, in a deadly rampage and taking more than 200 others hostage — Hezbollah has been operating freely against Israel along Lebanon’s border with Israel, firing rockets and anti-tank missiles at Israeli towns and army positions and opening fire at troops on a near-daily basis. The IDF has responded by striking the terror group’s cells and posts in southern Lebanon. During his visit, the caretaker prime minister emphasized what he said was Lebanon’s commitment to UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War. That resolution called for the demilitarization in southern Lebanon of all groups other than state security forces. Israel has said for years that Hezbollah, which acts with impunity throughout Lebanon, utterly defies the resolution.”
Middle East
Epoch Times: What Is Hezbollah, The Terrorist Group Behind The Attacks In Northern Israel?
“…"Hezbollah has successfully embedded itself into every aspect of Lebanese society—politically, economically, socially, and militarily," Josh Lipowsky, senior research analyst at the Counter Extremism Project, told The Epoch Times. "Hezbollah is the strongest military force in the country and holds enough sway in the parliament that it can hold the country hostage by freezing government processes."
Associated Press: Israeli Airstrikes Surge In Gaza, Destroying Homes And Killing Dozens At A Time
“Israel escalated airstrikes across the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, crushing families in the rubble of residential buildings, as health officials said hundreds of Palestinians were killed in the past day and medical facilities were shut down because of bomb damage and lack of power. The massive air bombardment continued through the night as Israeli jets hit sites across Gaza, the Hamas-run Interior Ministry said. The soaring death toll from the bombardment is unprecedented in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It augurs an even greater loss of life in Gaza once Israeli forces backed by tanks and artillery launch an expected ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas militants. Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been running out of food, water and medicine since Israel sealed off the territory following the devastating Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on towns in southern Israel. The Gaza Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, said Israeli airstrikes killed at least 704 people over the past day, mostly women and children. The Associated Press could not independently verify the death tolls cited by Hamas, which says it tallies figures from hospital directors.”
Politico: U.S. Has ‘High Confidence’ Palestinian Militants To Blame For Gaza Hospital Blast
“U.S. intelligence officials say they have “high confidence” that last week’s deadly blast at a Gaza hospital was caused by a failed rocket launch by Palestinian militants, not an Israeli strike. In a briefing to reporters on Tuesday, the intelligence officials said they based their assessment on analysis of videos of the projectile’s flight, as well as an examination of the blast’s effects on the hospital and surrounding area. They were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Analysis of videos shot from four locations, including from two cameras that captured the projectile’s flight, showed the rocket was launched from within the Gaza Strip and traveled northeast, according to one of the officials. About 10 seconds after the launch, analysts assess the motor combustion became “unstable,” one of the officials said. “We can tell that in part based on the fluctuating intensity of the rocket plume about five seconds after that there’s a flash in the video,” said the official. Five seconds later, one object hit the ground, followed about two seconds later by a second. Analysts believe the first object was likely the motor from the rocket, and the second was the warhead.”
United Kingdom
CapX: Terrorist Sympathisers Are Exploiting The Right To Peaceful Protest – Northern Ireland Can Teach Us How To Police Them
“It’s fair to say that Northern Ireland’s Parades Commission is not universally loved for its perceived interference in public processions – but it may well be a template for dealing with hate on the streets of Great Britain. Recent weekends have seen tens of thousands of protestors on the streets of London and elsewhere in a show of solidarity for Palestinians. The right of peaceful protest in this country is a precious one and a xxxxxx against tyranny. It also acts as a safety valve for emotions and opinions that might otherwise curdle into violence. But the opposite is also true. Protests in favour of Palestinian rights in Gaza and the miserable conditions its citizens endure have clearly been infiltrated by extremists who are exploiting police ineptitude to intimidate British Jews.”
France
Reuters: France's Macron Wants International Coalition Against Hamas
“French President Emmanuel Macron proposed on Tuesday that an international coalition fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria widens its scope to include the fight against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza. Macron gave no details on how the U.S.-led coalition of dozens of countries, of which Israel is not a member, could be involved. His advisers said, however, that the coalition's participation would not necessarily imply boots on the ground, but could include intelligence-sharing. Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Macron stressed that France and Israel shared terrorism as their "common enemy". "France is ready for the international coalition against Daesh in which we are taking part for operations in Iraq and Syria to also fight against Hamas," he told reporters, referring to Islamic State. Macron, who warned against the risks of a regional conflict, also said the fight against Hamas "must be without mercy but not without rules". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not directly comment on Macron's proposal but said the fight was a battle between the "axis of evil" and "the free world". "This battle is not merely our own... it's everybody's battle," he said.”
Germany
DW: Germany: Duisburg Police Arrest Terror Suspect — Reports
“Police in the western German city of Duisburg on Tuesday arrested a man who was allegedly planning a terror attack, multiple German media outlets reported. The man was supposedly planning to attack a pro-Israel demonstration with a truck to which he had access, the publications Bild and Spiegel reported. The media reports said the suspect, Tarik S. had previously been sentenced to five years imprisonment by the Higher Regional Court in Düsseldorf in 2017 for membership of the terrorist organization "Islamic State." Essen police said on their website on Tuesday evening that they had received "indications of a possible attack scenario." The tipoff was said to have come from a foreign security service.”
Europe
The Telegraph: Europe Deepens Dependence On Qatari Gas Despite Gulf State’s Hamas Links
“…A Qatari official told AFP that Hamas’s political office was opened in 2012 “in coordination with the United States government, following a US request to open a communication channel”. However, the Counter Extremism Project, a non-profit, has called for the boycott of Qatari-owned hotels, which include the Ritz, over its harbouring of Hamas and its leaders.”
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