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Friday, October 27, 2023

United States to Deploy 900 Additional Troops to the Middle East

New York Post: An Iran-backed terrorist group launched another attack on US forces stationed in Iraq on Thursday, continuing a recent spate of rocket and drone attacks on American troops since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out on Oct. 7, Pentagon spokesman Air Force Gen. Patrick Ryder said. The Thursday attack, which Ryder described as “unsuccessful,” occurred at Erbil Air Base. The spokesman said there were “no significant injuries or damage” sustained in the attack. The news comes after approximately 900 troops stationed in the US were deployed to the Middle East in response to the Hamas-Israel conflict and the continued attacks by Iran-backed terrorist groups on American forces in Iraq and Syria, Pentagon spokesman Air Force Gen. Patrick Ryder said Thursday (New York Post). CNN: That is in addition to US troops already in Iraq and Syria – roughly 2,500 and 900, respectively – and Navy assets that were announced to be heading to the region. The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group has been directed to the Middle East, and the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is currently in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (CNN).

Deadly Shooting in Maine Leaves 18 Deceased, 13 Injured

CBS: At least 18 people were killed in mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine, Wednesday night, Maine Gov. Janet Mills said Thursday morning. At least 13 others were injured. A suspect was at large, authorities said. Authorities are attempting to locate 40-year-old Robert R. Card, Maine Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck told reporters during a news conference Thursday morning. He is considered armed and dangerous. Sauschuck said earlier that the shootings began shortly before 7 p.m. State Police said shortly after 8 p.m. that they were investigating “multiple locations.” According to a Maine law enforcement bulletin, Card was enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve and was believed to be stationed out of Saco, Maine. He recently reported mental health issues, including hearing voices. He had also threatened to shoot up the National Guard base in Saco, the bulletin said, and he was reported to have been committed to a mental health facility for two weeks this summer (CBS). MSNBC: 18 people were killed and 13 injured last night’s mass shooting in Maine, according to Gov. Janet Mills. Mills says the manhunt continues for the person of interest in the shooting and a shelter in place order is in place (X).

Israel Carries Out Largest Raid in Gaza Since October 7

Wall Street Journal: The Israeli military carried out what appears to be its biggest incursion into the Gaza Strip since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7. Officials said Israel’s incursion into Gaza was an effort to prepare the ground for an eventual invasion of the enclave (Wall Street Journal). Times of Israel: Troops struck “numerous” terrorists, infrastructure, and anti-tank guided missile launch positions, and “operated to prepare the battlefield,” the army said. Soldiers returned to Israeli territory after the raid. IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the operation lasted a few hours, and no soldiers were hurt. The troops operated within one kilometer of the border (Times of Israel).

Iranian Foreign Minister Visits New York to Address the UN to Halt Resolution Stating Israel Has a Right to Defend Itself

Times of Israel: Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian arrived in New York on Wednesday evening ahead of a United Nations General Assembly vote set for Friday on a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas War. Abdollahian’s arrival in New York, where the UN headquarters are located, came after the United Nations Security Council failed to address the war during a session on Wednesday, rejecting both US and Russian resolutions on the matter. Speaking to Iranian state media outlet IRNA News upon his arrival, Abdollahian confirmed Iran’s role in ensuring that the resolution put forward Wednesday by the US, which would have reaffirmed Israel’s right to defend itself, failed to pass (Times of Israel). Joni Ernst: Iran-backed terrorists have attacked our servicemembers and are currently holding Americans hostage. But the Biden administration has granted a top Iranian official a visa — welcoming this regime on U.S. soil with open arms. The appeasement must end (X). Fox News: Jason Brodsky, the policy director for the non-profit United Against Nuclear Iran and a non-resident scholar at the Middle East Institute, wrote on X that Amirabdollahian “has the blood of Americans on his hands” and slammed the Biden administration for issuing him a visa (Fox News).

IDF Eliminates Hamas Leader Who Was Instrumental in Planning the Oct. 7 Attack

Israel Hayom: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) successfully killed the deputy head of Hamas’ intelligence disposition, who, along with Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, had planned the October 7 attack on Israel, the IDF said on Thursday night. “Using combat aircraft with precise intelligence from the IDF and the Shin Bet, today they eliminated the deputy head of Hamas’ intelligence disposition, Shadi Baroud,” the IDF said in a statement. Baroud held several roles within Hamas’ military intelligence and was responsible for the organization’s information security. Additionally, he was in charge of intelligence ties for the organization (Israel Hayom). ANI: IDF spokesperson at Gaza border amid war with Hamas says,”…We are ready for anything…IDF is focused on a mission to ensure that Hamas leadership from top to bottom are unable to commit any more atrocities” (X).

Leaders of Terrorist Groups Meet in Lebanon

Daily Wire: Leaders of the terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, all groups funded by Iran, the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, met on Wednesday in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is located. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah met with Hamas deputy chief Saleh Al-Arouri and Palestinian Islamic Jihad head Ziad al-Nakhala. A portrait of Iran’s original Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, and another portrait of Iran’s current Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, were on the wall behind them. (Daily Wire). Times of Israel: Their goal, according to the statement that was carried on Hezbollah-run and Lebanese state media, was to achieve “a real victory for the resistance in Gaza and Palestine” and halt Israel’s “treacherous and brutal aggression against our oppressed and steadfast people in Gaza and the West Bank” (Times of Israel).

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) Pleads Guilty to Pulling Fire Alarm

Washington Examiner: Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) pleaded guilty on Thursday to willfully setting off a fire alarm after he was captured on camera last month pulling the alarm in a congressional building amid the House voting on a critical government funding bill. Bowman will pay a $1,000 fine after he was charged with a misdemeanor in Washington, D.C., Superior Court with “willfully and knowingly” giving a “false alarm of a fire,” in violation of city code. As part of his plea agreement, he is also required to write and deliver an apology letter to the U.S. Capitol Police chief. Bowman now has a sentencing hearing set to take place in three months, on Jan. 29, but the charge will be dropped at the time of the hearing as long as he has followed the terms of his agreement (Washington Examiner).

Pro-Hamas Protestors Bang on Doors While Jewish Students Hide Away in University Library

National Review: Jewish students huddled in the locked library of a New York City college Wednesday night while protesters banged on the doors, yelling “free Palestine” and “globalize the intifada from New York to Gaza,” while trying to break in. According to eyewitness Jake Novak, former media director at the Israeli Consulate in New York, the protesters, who had been gathered outside the Cooper Union library, learned the Jewish students were in the library and frightened, and brought the rally indoors. Later that evening, campus security had led the students out of the library through tunnels. After the fact, he and New York City councilwoman Inna Vernikov shared more information they had gleaned through speaking with those locked inside. The campus rally was part of a national “walk-out” day for Palestinian activists, for which faculty members canceled class, encouraged students to participate, and in some instances offered extra credit for those students who did (National Review). Jake Novak: Video from the Cooper Union library (X). Councilwoman Inna Vernikov: Even though this rally/walk-out was supposed to be outside the school on public property, protestors STORMED the school building. There were no consequences and NOBODY WAS ARRESTED (X).

19 American Soldiers Stationed in the Middle East Suffering from Traumatic Brain Injuries After Recent Terrorist Attacks

Politico: Nineteen American service members stationed in Iraq and Syria have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury after rocket and drone attacks from Iran-backed militants last week, according to a Defense Department official. The news comes a day after the Pentagon announced that 21 service members had received minor injuries during the attacks on Oct. 17 and 18. Iran-backed groups have launched a number of additional attacks on U.S. positions in Iraq and Syria over the past week, but none has resulted in additional injuries to service members. The reports of brain injuries highlight the risk to hundreds of U.S. troops at bases across the Middle East — and that threat is expected to grow as Israel prepares for its ground invasion of Gaza. On Tuesday, another Iranian proxy issued a statement threatening attacks on U.S. military bases in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait (Politico).

10.

Wall Street Journal Reporter Evan Gershkovich Turns 32 in Prison

Wall Street Journal: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich turned 32 on his 211th day of incarceration in a Russian prison as the White House continues to work to secure his release. His birthday Thursday was a solemn reminder to his parents and sister of all the milestones they haven’t been able to celebrate together. In a series of recent interviews, his family said they were relying on President Biden’s pledge to bring Gershkovich home. Gershkovich is a U.S. citizen who was accredited by Russia’s Foreign Ministry to work as a journalist in the country. He was detained on March 29 by Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB, while he was on a reporting trip in the city of Yekaterinburg. He has been held on an allegation of espionage. Russian courts have rejected appeals by his lawyers and ordered him held in pretrial detention in a Moscow prison until at least Nov. 30. Russian authorities haven’t publicly provided evidence to support the allegation against the Journal reporter. The U.S. government has designated Gershkovich as wrongfully detained (Wall Street Journal). TalkTV: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is spending his 32nd birthday in a Moscow prison where he has been held for over six months. “I can only imagine what Evan’s family and friends are going through” (X).