OT subject but worth a main-stream read- OT News Feeds...

fishlessman

HeavyG said:

lousubcap said:

Tuesday Israel-Hamas update:

...

Israel has assembled a system of large pumps it could use to flood Hamas’ network of tunnels under the Gaza Strip with seawater, in a tactic that would not only push fighters out from underground refuge, but also threaten Gaza’s water supply, according to U.S. officials. The IDF-assembled seawater pumps — which draw seawater from the Mediterranean Sea and have the capacity to move thousands of cubic meters of water per hour into the tunnels — would cause severe flooding within weeks. Officials said Israel informed the US of the option last month but there has not been any update on how close they are to carrying out the plan or if they are going ahead with it. “We are not sure how successful pumping will be since nobody knows the details of the tunnels and the ground around them. It’s impossible to know if that will be effective because we don’t know how seawater will drain in tunnels no one has been in before,” one official said. The IDF have declined to comment on the specific flooding plan, but confirmed that it is “operating to dismantle Hamas’ terror capabilities in various ways, using different military and technological tools.” Nancy A. Youssef, Warren P. Strobel, and Gordon Lubold report for the Wall Street Journal. "

Finally. This ain't rocket science.

just wondering if the tunnels are so big and extensive if seawater drainage will damage the fresh water source they currently use. its going to take ALOT of seawater

JohnInCarolina

HeavyG said:

lousubcap said:

Tuesday Israel-Hamas update:

...

Israel has assembled a system of large pumps it could use to flood Hamas’ network of tunnels under the Gaza Strip with seawater, in a tactic that would not only push fighters out from underground refuge, but also threaten Gaza’s water supply, according to U.S. officials. The IDF-assembled seawater pumps — which draw seawater from the Mediterranean Sea and have the capacity to move thousands of cubic meters of water per hour into the tunnels — would cause severe flooding within weeks. Officials said Israel informed the US of the option last month but there has not been any update on how close they are to carrying out the plan or if they are going ahead with it. “We are not sure how successful pumping will be since nobody knows the details of the tunnels and the ground around them. It’s impossible to know if that will be effective because we don’t know how seawater will drain in tunnels no one has been in before,” one official said. The IDF have declined to comment on the specific flooding plan, but confirmed that it is “operating to dismantle Hamas’ terror capabilities in various ways, using different military and technological tools.” Nancy A. Youssef, Warren P. Strobel, and Gordon Lubold report for the Wall Street Journal. "

Finally. This ain't rocket science.

Uhmm… the quote seems to cast doubt on whether or not they’ll actually try and flood the tunnels, because despite the nominal capacity to do so, there are real uncertainties.  

lousubcap

Categorizing CHEETO voters:

https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/4343024-the-five-types-of-trump-voter-and-what-they-mean-for-the-iowa-caucuses/?email=dd294cf2aa830e38ac73761bb083db8a331ad6df&emaila=18ef3a9b5c0145ffffb137da176e4b62&emailb=bd7105ec6726d92e4d8a722bb54636a5c7d880e28c74730477aae05864595e03&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12.5.23 Campaign Report

lousubcap

Wednesday Israel-Hamas update:

"The Israeli military (IDF) said yesterday its ground operation had its “most intense day,” as Israel’s offensive continues into all of Gaza. IDF Chief of the General Staff Lieutenant General Herzi  Halevi said it was a “third phase” that targeted what he said were Hamas strongholds in southern Gaza. Meanwhile, at a briefing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the only way to end the war is to use “overwhelming force.” NBC News reports.

Netanyahu called yesterday on the international community to “stand with Israel,” but added that “Gaza must be demilitarized, for Gaza to be demilitarized there is only one force that can take care of this demilitarization and that force is Israel’s steering army. No international power can be responsible for this. I am not ready to close my eyes and accept any other arrangement.” NBC News reports.

The IDF said its air force has struck around 250 Hamas targets in Gaza over the past 24 hours. “IDF ground troops directed an IDF fighter jet to strike two rocket launchers from which terrorists fired a barrage of rockets toward central Israel yesterday,” it said today. “During these strikes, terrorists from the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations were eliminated, and a number of terrorist infrastructure were destroyed.”Troops also struck an “armed terrorist cell” operating next to a school in northern Gaza, the IDF said. Amir Tal reports for CNN.

Fifty trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered Gaza through the Rafah crossing yesterday, including two trucks specifically carrying fuel, according to an Egyptian official. Meanwhile, seven injured Palestinians entered Egypt to receive medical treatment. Asma Khalil and Eyad Kourdi report for CNN."

lousubcap

Wednesday  Russia-Ukraine update:

"Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy canceled a high-profile Senate and House briefing amid an impasse over US funding for Kyiv in the ongoing war. Zelenskyy was due to virtually attend the Senate and the House yesterday. Senate leader Chuck Schumer did not explain why Zelenskyy did not attend the meeting, although the chamber’s top Democrat said Zelenskyy was occupied with a “last-minute” matter. Just hours before Zelesnkyy canceled the meeting, his chief of staff Andriy Yermak said in a speech at the US Institute of Peace in Washington DC that there is a “big risk” of Ukrainian defeat without continued U.S. support. Anthony Zurcher reports for BBC News.

U.S. Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, said yesterday that the US would be “responsible for Ukraine’s defeat” if Congress does not approve the latest multi-billion dollar request for Ukrainian support. Yellen labeled the support “utterly essential” — particularly for Ukraine’s government budget support — and added that “Ukraine is just running out of money. “They’re spending more than every penny they’re taking in, in tax revenue, on military salaries and defense, and they wouldn’t have any schools or hospital [sic] or first responders if not for the money we’re sending to them to support them.” David Lawder reports for Reuters.

Russia targeted an aid centre, a medical centre and residential buildings in Ukraine’s southern and eastern regions, killing three people and injuring at least 11, officials said. The International Rescue Committee confirmed an overnight missile attack hit its humanitarian centre, “I am Kherson”, destroying stockpiles of aid.

Ukraine’s military said it shot down 10 out of 17 attack drones launched overnight by Russia. The governor of Ukraine’s western Lviv region said three drones had struck an unspecified infrastructure target, but there was minimal damage. In the Kharkiv region in the east, authorities said drones hit private homes and residential buildings in at least two different settlements.

Ukraine said the drones hit several “important military facilities in Crimea” including radar systems and an anti-aircraft missile control system. A Ukrainian defence source with knowledge of the operations of the SBU military intelligence services told the AFP news agency the attacks were a “result of a special SBU operation”. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014."

lousubcap

Supplying Ukraine- "Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin is leading a summit of defense industry officials in Washington with the goal of bolstering Ukraine’s ailing military supply chains and infrastructure after nearly two years of war. The conference is a two-day event featuring officials from the White House’s National Security Council and the Departments of Commerce, Defense, and State. Ukrainians from the Office of the President and Ministries of Defense, Strategic Industry, and Foreign Affairs are also attending. The U.S. has already committed more than $44 billion in security aid to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began 651 days ago. Other allies and partners have committed another $36 billion, Austin said Wednesday. To put some of that in context, “as a percentage of their GDP, more than a dozen countries have actually contributed more than the United States,” he added. Reminder: More than 60% of America’s total Ukraine aid is spent inside the U.S.,as the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute points out in its tracker, here."

lousubcap

And more from Bloomberg regarding aid to Ukraine-

"US President Joe Biden urged Congress to approve additional aid for Ukraine before Christmas as the administration warns the embattled nation’s ability to combat Russian invaders will be compromised without it. The latest package of assistance has been held up for months by Republicans, some of whom have made their price for supporting the US ally stricter regulations tied to US-Mexican border. “This cannot wait,” Biden said. “Petty, partisan, angry politics can’t get in the way of our responsibility as a leading nation in the world. And literally, the entire world is watching.” Biden opened the door for talks over the aid, signaling he was willing to consider immigration policy changes to secure a deal. Delays have stoked fears that the desperately needed assistance—over $110 billion of which is tied up in Congress—wouldn’t be approved. The main beneficiary of the gridlock on Capitol Hill has been Vladimir Putin, whose strategy to win his 21-month war has become clearer in the past months. He’s betting on a conflict lasting years, and may believe Russia and his willingness to sacrifice tens of thousands of his country’s soldiers, mercenaries and convicts can outlast the West. —Margaret Sutherlin and David E. Rovella

lousubcap

Thursday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israel said it has killed about half of Hamas’ mid-level battalion commanders and surrounded yesterday the house of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Khan Younis, proving Israeli “forces can reach anywhere in the Gaza Strip,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released a photo they claim to have found during the fighting of what they allege was a group of operatives likely overseeing thousands of Hamas fighters. “The terrorists are now emerging from the underground tunnels and engaging our forces in close combat. Our forces will continue to further our achievements in Jabalya, Shuja’iyya, and also in the Khan Younis area—the heart of Hamas’ terror,” IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said yesterday. Rory Jones reports for the Wall Street Journal.

Head of the World Food Programme has warned that “Everyone in Gaza is hungry,” while the director-general of the W.H.O. cautioned that “Gaza’s health system is on its knees and near total collapse.” The comments came following the U.N.’s calls for a humanitarian ceasefire. NBC News reports. 

Israel maintains that Hamas has a stronghold in Jabalia refugee camp and claimed the IDF captured a main Hamas outpost in the area, as well as locating tunnels and weaponry used by Hamas. Hundreds of IDF tanks are surrounding the densely populated refugee camp in north Gaza and hundreds of tank shells are reported to have hit the region. The Hamas-run local authority said about 100,000 people are still in the camp without a functioning hospital. No aid has reached north Gaza since the fighting pause collapsed last week. BBC News reports.

The IDF said this morning that its “troops killed Hamas terrorists and struck dozens of terror targets” during operations in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip over the past day. “IDF troops engaged with a terrorist cell that exited from a tunnel shaft, killed two terrorists in combat and struck the shaft,” the IDF said. Morgan Winsor reports for ABC News.

An airstrike hit Rafah last night, a region specified by Israel as an area to relocate to as they urged civilians to leave southern Gaza. The strike came soon after the U.N. expressed alarm at the conditions there, including how over-crowded it was and that displaced people were sleeping on the street. “Under international humanitarian law, the place where you evacuate people to must, by law, have sufficient resources for their survival — medical facilities, food and water,” said James Elder, a spokesperson for the United Nations Children’s Fund. He added that instead, these regions are “patches of barren land” where “thousands of people are building tents made of wood and plastic.” Military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a post on X that Gazans heading north should instead use the main coastal road, although it is unclear whether many people would do so given the bombardment. Liam Stack reports for the New York Times."

Edit to add the following-

Senior Biden administration officials said that striking the Iran-backed Yemen Houthis is the wrong course of action, despite military officers proposing more forceful responses to the attacks in the Red Sea. The attack on Sunday drew a U.S. Navy warship into a firefight, but intelligence officials have not determined that its warship was the target due to the imprecise Houthi missiles. Officials believe the Houthis were instead attempting to target assets with Israeli ties. Just yesterday, the USS Mason shot down another drone launched by the Houthis in the Red Sea, according to a U.S. military official. No damage or injury has been reported to equipment or personnel. A State Department spokesperson said, “in light of the recent targeting of civilians by the Houthis and its piracy in international waters, we have begun a review of potential sanctions.” Lara Seligman and Alexander Ward report for POLITICO.

Saudi Arabia has asked the US to show restraint in responding to Houthi attacks, according to two sources familiar with Saudi thinking. The Houthis have said its attacks are a show of support for the Palestinians, and a senior source said Houthi representatives had discussed their attacks with Iranian officials in a meeting in November, where it was agreed they would carry out actions in a “controlled way” to help bring an end to the Gaza war. The two Saudi-familiar said Riyadh’s message of restraint to Washington was aimed at preventing rising escalation. The sources added that Riyadh is pleased with the way the US is dealing with the situation. Both the White House and the Saudi government declined to comment. Aziz El Yaakoubi and Parisa Hafezi report for Reuters."

lousubcap

Thursday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Republicans yesterday blocked an emergency $111 billion bill, on a 49-51 vote, that would have provided $50 billion to fund the war in Ukraine, and instead demanded new border restrictions in exchange for Ukraine funding, in a move that jeopardizes President Biden’s push to provide further support to Kyiv amid another winter wartime. While the bill failed over an immigration dispute, the ongoing resistance it has met in Congress demonstrates the waning support of Ukraine among Republicans. Just hours before the vote, Biden said, “make no mistake: Today’s vote’s going to be long remembered, and history is going to judge harshly those who turned their backs on freedom’s cause.” He added that Republicans were “willing to literally kneecap Ukraine on the battlefield and damage our national security in the process.” Karoun Demirjian reports for the New York Times.

Officials from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense presented a “list of armaments to meet the needs of the defense forces of Ukraine” during a closed-door session yesterday attended by government officials and defense executives in Washington, with the list including drones, Apache and Blackhawk helicopters, F-18 Hornet fighter jets, and air defense systems. The list includes new stock for Ukraine as well as replenishment of existing stock including Abrams tanks and 155mm artillery. Mike Stone reports for Reuters.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Ukrainians that Kyiv would defeat Russia and win a fair peace in an unusual early-morning video that showed him walking through Kyiv on his way to pay his respects to fallen soldiers on what Ukraine marks as Armed Forces Day. “It has been difficult, but we have persevered,” he said. “No matter how difficult it is, we will get there. To our borders, to our people. To our peace. Fair peace. Free peace. Against all odds.”

Russia launched a major drone attack on southern, central and eastern Ukrainian regions, damaging privately owned and commercial buildings as well as key infrastructure. Air defences shot down 41 of 48 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched from Russia’s western Kursk region and Crimea, which Moscow seized from Ukraine in 2014.

Russian television broadcast footage of what it said was a US-built Bradley infantry fighting vehicle captured on the front line in Ukraine’s Luhansk region. Channel 1 said the Bradley, one of several dozen supplied to Ukraine this year, was immobilised by Russian fire and abandoned by its crew. The broadcaster suggested that its capture would enable Russian forces to identify the vehicle’s vulnerabilities."

lousubcap

Representatives (both parties) are bailing on Congress:

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/12/kevin-mccarthy-resigns-congress-members-fleeing-record-pace.html?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

lousubcap

And this from Politico: Biden campaign and CHEETO's dictator remark-

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/12/07/trumps-dictator-2024-campaign-biden-00130488

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/highbrow_nobrow/status/1733072755896021502?s=20

lousubcap

Friday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israel accuses Hamas of firing 14 rockets from “humanitarian zones,” including Al-Mawasi, a barren area in Rafah that Israeli forces have directed people to evacuate to for safety. It is unclear whether Israel would now regard the area as a military target, with Israeli military spokesperson Major Nir Dinar saying Gazans were “being updated frequently in various ways” about Israeli military activities. The U.N. says that tens of thousands of people fled to the city in Rafah and that it is the only region in the Gaza Strip that received humanitarian aid in nearly a week. Liam Stack and Yara Bayoumy report for the New York Times.

A senior Hamas official in Lebanon warned yesterday that the chances of another hostage release are “dwindling” and that the return of further detainees will not take place until “the aggression stops.” ABC News reports.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it apprehended hundreds of people suspected of terrorism across the Gaza Strip yesterday, including wanted Hamas operatives. IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari added in a televised briefing that many suspects had turned themselves in. Isabel Kershner reports for the New York Times.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi accused the West yesterday of supporting “genocide” by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza, during a televised talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Neither leader referred to their countries’ growing military relationship, while Putin commented that the sight of Gaza makes “tears come to your eyes.” Russia and Arab countries accuse the West of double-standards over their support for Israel in Gaza but accusations of war crimes by Russia in Ukraine. White House spokesperson John Kirby labeled the growing defense relationship between Moscow and Tehran “worrisome.” Reutersreports.

The “solution” to the war is “likely to be a Palestinian Authority who need to be capable of a level of governance,” British Defense Minister Grant Shapps said yesterday. Schapps added that the solution “will require a huge amount of international help and support … and we are not there yet.” A British military team has been in the West Bank advising the Palestinian Authority for years, and Britain is in discussions with the Palestinian Authority and the US about expanding that support, Shapps said. The comments highlight the growing divide between the Israeli government and its allies including the US and the UK, and their respective plans for the future of Gaza, following British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s speech last month affirming support for a two-state solution. The New York Times reports."

lousubcap

Friday Russia-Ukraine update: (Not much provided.)

"The head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin, said yesterday that Western support for Ukraine risks turning the conflict into a “second Vietnam.” In an article for Russia’s “The Intelligence Operative” journal, Naryshkin added that “every new American administration will have to try to deal with it,” referencing its warnings. Guy Faulconbridge reports for Reuters.

Former Ukrainian MP Ilya Kyva has been assassinated in Russia by Ukraine’s SBU security service, Ukraine’s military intelligence has confirmed, saying “this fate will befall other traitors of Ukraine and puppets of Putin’s regime.” Kyva had campaigned unsuccessfully for Ukraine’s presidency in 2019 and was reportedly planning on seeking political asylum in Russia. He was a regular participant in Russian state-run media propaganda TV shows. Jaroslav Lukiv reports for BBC News."

lousubcap

Congress has nothing more important to do these days:

A US senator has called for a government investigation into the impact on national security of garlic imports from China.

Republican Senator Rick Scott has written to the commerce secretary, claiming Chinese garlic is unsafe, citing unsanitary production methods.(article linked below).

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-67662779?at_campaign_type=owned&at_medium=emails&at_objective=awareness&at_ptr_type=email&at_ptr_name=salesforce&at_campaign=newsbriefingpm&at_email_send_date=20231208&at_send_id=4016148&at_link_title=_Name-Chinese+garlic+is+a+national+security+risk+says+US+senator_Topic-Health_Placement-Get+up+to+speed_Location-hyperlink&at_bbc_team=crm

lousubcap

And in overloading Friday reading to carry thru the weekend-

This regarding the US response to the Houthi attacks on Red Sea ships and shipping:

"MCKENZIE’S RECOMMENDATION: Retired Gen. FRANK McKENZIE, who commanded all U.S. forces in the Middle East for three years during the Trump and Biden presidencies, believes Biden should respond more forcefully to attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, Lara also reports.

McKenzie said Iran has taken the lack of a strong U.S. military response to the recent spike in Tehran-backed Houthi attacks on civilian vessels, which pose a threat to U.S. warships, as an invitation to continue its aggressive behavior.

“Sometimes you’ve got to throw a pitch,” McKenzie told Lara. “You can’t catch eternally, because eventually the law of averages is going to turn against you, and you’re going to take a significant escalatory event on a ship, and then you’re going to be forced into an even more significant level of response.”

The Houthis’ base in Yemen makes them the ideal group to escalate the conflict in the Middle East in hopes of pressuring Israel to end its fighting with Hamas, analysts close to the Iranian government told The New York Times’ FARNAZ FASSIHI, RONEN BERGMAN and ERIC SCHMITT.

That assessment tracks with descriptions of a plan by Iran to escalate the conflict by increasing attacks on Israeli and American troops in the region, two Iranians affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps told the Times.

A main reason Iran chose the Houthis instead of other militant groups that it supports: “Unlike Hezbollah … the Houthis are not beholden to domestic political dynamics — making them effectively accountable to no one,” the Times writes."

HeavyG

lousubcap said:

Congress has nothing more important to do these days:

A US senator has called for a government investigation into the impact on national security of garlic imports from China.

Republican Senator Rick Scott has written to the commerce secretary, claiming Chinese garlic is unsafe, citing unsanitary production methods.(article linked below).

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-67662779?at_campaign_type=owned&at_medium=emails&at_objective=awareness&at_ptr_type=email&at_ptr_name=salesforce&at_campaign=newsbriefingpm&at_email_send_date=20231208&at_send_id=4016148&at_link_title=_Name-Chinese+garlic+is+a+national+security+risk+says+US+senator_Topic-Health_Placement-Get+up+to+speed_Location-hyperlink&at_bbc_team=crm

Big Garlic must have donated big bucks to his PAC.

Seems like domestic cantaloupe is more of a "national security" concern for us and our Canadian friends.

lousubcap

Monday Israel-Hamas update:

"The “health care system is collapsing” in Gaza, the U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned yesterday in Qatar, adding that there “was no effective protection of civilians in Gaza.” “I expect public order to completely break down soon, and an even worse situation could unfold, including epidemic diseases and increased pressure for mass displacement into Egypt,” he added. In an interview yesterday, Phillipe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, which takes care of Palestinian refugees, said that “the population has been pushed more and more into tinier and tinier and tinier pieces of land in the Gaza Strip, and there is no way that this piece of land will be able to accommodate such a high number of people.” Ben Hubbard and Vivian Nereim report for the New York Times.

Cogat, the Israeli defense ministry body overseeing policy for the Palestinian territories, said in a post on X that the U.N. “must do better” on delivering aid supplies to Gaza. “We have expanded our capabilities to conduct inspections for the aid delivered into Gaza. Kerem Shalom is to be opened, so the amount of inspections will double. But the aid keeps waiting at the entrance of Rafah. The UN must do better – the aid is there, and the people need it.” The U.N. said the aid distribution has largely stopped over recent days due to the fighting and restrictions of movement on main roads, particularly around and nearby Khan Younis. BBC News reports.

Hamas warned yesterday that hostages would not leave Gaza alive unless the group’s demands were met. In an audio clip posted on Hamas’ Telegram channel. spokesperson Abu Obeida said: “Neither the fascist enemy and its arrogant leadership… nor the supporters behind them… can take their prisoners alive without exchanging, negotiating, and agreeing to the terms of the resistance.” It is believed there are 138 people remaining in captivity by Hamas and other armed groups. BBC News reports."

lousubcap

Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russia fired eight ballistic missiles at Kyiv early today, all of which were shot down by Ukraine, Kyiv’s Air Force said. One person was injured by shrapnel and three others suffered severe stress reactions, officials said. The Air Force also said it intercepted 18 drones fired by Russia over the southern Mykolaiv region overnight. AP News reports.

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy had a brief but sharp-looking meeting with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Oban at the inauguration of Argentina’s new president yesterday. Orban remains a threat to Ukraine’s hopes of joining the EU. Details of the discussion are unknown. Jessica Parker reports for BBC News.

President Zelenskyy is scheduled to meet with President Biden tomorrow at the White House in a meeting that will “underscore the United States’ unshakable commitment to supporting the people of Ukraine,” the White House confirmed yesterday,  amid the ongoing  dispute in Congress over funding for Ukraine. The statement added, “As Russia ramps up its missile and drone strikes against Ukraine, the leaders will discuss Ukraine’s urgent needs and the vital importance of the United States’ continued support at this critical moment.”

Ukraine strongly condemned Russian plans to hold presidential elections next March in occupied areas of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson, which Moscow annexed in 2022, declaring the polls “null and void” and promising to prosecute any observers sent to monitor them."

lousubcap

Tuesday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israel used U.S.-supplied white phosphorus in southern Lebanon, according to a Washington Post analysis of munitions fragments from October shelling, in which at least nine civilians were injured. Markings indicate the white phosphorus, which has legitimate battlefield purposes such as signaling and marking but not as an incendiary weapon, was supplied as part of U.S. military aid to Israel. A Pentagon spokesperson said the U.S. had not yet verified the weapons’ origin and had not provided white phosphorus munitions since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. Rights groups have called for its use in the Lebanon attack to be investigated as a possible war crime. William Christou, Alex Horton, and Meg Kelly report for the Washington Post.

A U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the administration is “certainly concerned” about the reports that Israel used white phosphorus and “asking questions.” Matt Berg reports for Politico.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken privately told Israel during his most recent visit that the U.S. administration wants them to wrap things up by the end of the calendar year, several sources told The Economist.

Following several reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a policy of encouraging funding for Hamas as a counterweight, a report by the New York Times discusses the origin of that policy and its operation over time. “Israeli intelligence officials now believe that the money had a role in the success of the Oct. 7 attacks, if only because the donations allowed Hamas to divert some of its own budget toward military operations,” Mark Mazzetti and Ronen Bergman report for the New York Times.

A U.S. official said a missile from Houthi-controlled Yemen hit a merchant ship in the Red Sea on Monday. The attack is part of escalating violence in which Iranian-backed Houthi militias are attacking vessels in the region in response to Israel’s military operations in Gaza. Luis Martinez reports for ABC News.

Israeli officials warned Monday that “increased attacks on northern Israel by Hezbollah, from Lebanon, could prompt a powerful response.” The officials did not specify what steps Israel might take. Andrés R. Martínez, Neil MacFarquhar, and Thomas Fuller report for The New York Times."

lousubcap

Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update: (Slim news.)

The Ukrainian military said Russian forces unleashed a huge new offensive on the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, just northwest of the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk. Military spokesperson Oleksandr Stupun told Ukrainian television that fighting had been intense with 610 artillery shellings reported near Avdiivka over the previous 24 hours. There was no immediate comment from Russia on the fighting in the area. About 1,500 people remain in Avdiivka out of a pre-war population of some 32,000.

A Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s capital early Monday destroyed several homes and left more than 100 households without electricity.The predawn attack on Kyiv came amid warnings that Russia will step up its attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure as winter sets in with freezing temperatures. The missiles were shot down by Ukrainian air defences and people were hurt after being hit by the debris or shards of glass.

In a separate Russian attack, Ukrainian air defences shot down 18 Shahed drones aimed at the south.

lousubcap

And this from Politico regarding some European militaries:

"WEAK EUROPEAN MILITARIES: Some of Europe’s most powerful militaries aren’t so powerful at all, The Wall Street Journal’s MAX COLCHESTER, DAVID LUHNOW and BOJAN PANCEVSKI report.

The U.K., home to the continent’s strongest armed forces, “has only around 150 deployable tanks and perhaps a dozen serviceable long-range artillery pieces,” leading London to consider “sourcing multiple rocket launchers from museums to upgrade and donate to Ukraine, an idea that was dropped,” they write.

Then there’s this: “France, the next biggest spender, has fewer than 90 heavy artillery pieces, equivalent to what Russia loses roughly every month on the Ukraine battlefield. Denmark has no heavy artillery, submarines or air-defense systems. Germany’s army has enough ammunition for two days of battle.”

All that highlights the weakening of Europe and the overreliance on U.S. military might for its protection. If Europe wanted to reverse course, it would need to do so quickly. Russia is still fighting in Ukraine and former President DONALD TRUMP has long considered withdrawing the U.S. from NATO."

lousubcap

More on Ukraine and the border security funding debate:

“The world really did change after [the Berlin] Wall came down, starting a new era,” President Volodymir Zelenskyy said during a speech at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. “Nations that had been under the thumb for so long and could only dream of freedom started walking that path. But, the ones who used to suppress freedom, they didn’t give up their dreams either,” he said, alluding to Russian leader and convicted war criminal Vladimir Putin.

“In Berlin, the great words were spoken: ‘Tear down this wall.’ We need no less confidence now than President Reagan had then,” said Zelenskyy, whose military has been stymied and largely held in check by invading Russian forces since June, despite billions of dollars in weapons from the U.S. and its allies to help Zelenskyy’s troops take back almost 42,000 square miles of invaded land across the south and the east. It’s a conflict that’s cost Russia more troops than its Afghan invasion in the 1980s, and indeed any period since the Second World War.

“Russia’s war on Ukraine isn’t just about some old-fashioned dictatorship trying to settle scores, real or imagined,” the Ukrainian president said. “It’s Putin attacking that big shift that happened back in 1989.” But what happens next depends, at least in part, on discussions today with key lawmakers and President Joe Biden.

One big problem: Isolationists have taken control of the Republican party, as the Wall Street Journal reported Monday following the paper’s CEO Council Summit, featuring House Speaker Mike Johnson. The speaker persists in his refusal to decouple future U.S. aid to Ukraine from immigration reforms demanded by Republicans, telling the audience, “If we’re going to have a national-security supplemental package, it ought to begin with our own national security.” 

Worth noting: Study after study shows that rising immigration does not equal rising crime in the U.S., yet the stereotype and talking point persists throughout Johnson’s Republican Party. The Atlantic’s David Frum, writing on Tuesday, explains the more salient issue of asylum and “asylum abuse” in the U.S., as he lays out four primary obstacles amid the currently stalled negotiations between Republicans and the White House, including “playing to the gallery” and “the politics of domination.” 

 Johnson was even confronted over the political impasse by former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Monday. “I absolutely take your point about the need to sort out the chaos on the border,” Abbott said during audience questions. “But just because you can’t get both things, right, isn’t it better to get one thing right? So could I please appeal to you, please don’t go out for Christmas without at least giving the Ukrainians what they need.”"

Gulfcoastguy

Perhaps Europe including the UK could spend the 2% of their GDP on their militaries like the NATO accords require and like a certain person called them out on before Russia renewed their invasion.

fishlessman

lousubcap said:

And this from Politico regarding some European militaries:

"WEAK EUROPEAN MILITARIES: Some of Europe’s most powerful militaries aren’t so powerful at all, The Wall Street Journal’s MAX COLCHESTER, DAVID LUHNOW and BOJAN PANCEVSKI report.

The U.K., home to the continent’s strongest armed forces, “has only around 150 deployable tanks and perhaps a dozen serviceable long-range artillery pieces,” leading London to consider “sourcing multiple rocket launchers from museums to upgrade and donate to Ukraine, an idea that was dropped,” they write.

Then there’s this: “France, the next biggest spender, has fewer than 90 heavy artillery pieces, equivalent to what Russia loses roughly every month on the Ukraine battlefield. Denmark has no heavy artillery, submarines or air-defense systems. Germany’s army has enough ammunition for two days of battle.”

All that highlights the weakening of Europe and the overreliance on U.S. military might for its protection. If Europe wanted to reverse course, it would need to do so quickly. Russia is still fighting in Ukraine and former President DONALD TRUMP has long considered withdrawing the U.S. from NATO."

thats pretty insane, atleast we have canada on our side

Gulfcoastguy

fishlessman said:

lousubcap said:

And this from Politico regarding some European militaries:

"WEAK EUROPEAN MILITARIES: Some of Europe’s most powerful militaries aren’t so powerful at all, The Wall Street Journal’s MAX COLCHESTER, DAVID LUHNOW and BOJAN PANCEVSKI report.

The U.K., home to the continent’s strongest armed forces, “has only around 150 deployable tanks and perhaps a dozen serviceable long-range artillery pieces,” leading London to consider “sourcing multiple rocket launchers from museums to upgrade and donate to Ukraine, an idea that was dropped,” they write.

Then there’s this: “France, the next biggest spender, has fewer than 90 heavy artillery pieces, equivalent to what Russia loses roughly every month on the Ukraine battlefield. Denmark has no heavy artillery, submarines or air-defense systems. Germany’s army has enough ammunition for two days of battle.”

All that highlights the weakening of Europe and the overreliance on U.S. military might for its protection. If Europe wanted to reverse course, it would need to do so quickly. Russia is still fighting in Ukraine and former President DONALD TRUMP has long considered withdrawing the U.S. from NATO."

thats pretty insane, atleast we have canada on our side

Are they really?

HeavyG

Gulfcoastguy said:

Perhaps Europe including the UK could spend the 2% of their GDP on their militaries like the NATO accords require and like a certain person called them out on before Russia renewed their invasion.

There's no magic in that 2% figure. That was a number that was just thought to be attainable at the time over the following decade or so. That figure also predates Trumpy by more than a decade (first brought up by Dubya in 2006). 

Gulfcoastguy

Which meant it pre existed Trump, he didn’t come up with it , just tried to enforce it.

HeavyG

Gulfcoastguy said:

Which meant it pre existed Trump, he didn’t come up with it , just tried to enforce it.

His intent was to use that as an excuse to break up NATO.

lousubcap

US consumer prices ticked up slightly in November on increases in housing and other service-sector costs. The new data comes as Federal Reserve officials began a two-day meeting that is expected to culminate with them holding interest rates steady yet again. Chair Jerome Powell will likely reiterate he and his colleagues want to see a more sustainable pullback in price growth before cutting interest rates. Nevertheless, the bigger picture remains bright: The central bank increasingly looks like it’s pulling 0ff a soft landing for the world’s largest economy. Powell previously said pain would be necessary to quell inflation—as is usually the case. That pain traditionally comes in the form of millions of lost jobs. But that may not happen this time. At 3.7%, the unemployment rate is about where it was when the Fed began raising rates in March 2022. Meanwhile, the pace of inflation’s fall leaves it one percentage point above the central bank’s 2% target. —David E. Rovella FWIW-