[Garowe] Elite forces from Kenya's Special Operations Group (SOG) neutralized at least four al-Shabaab ... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda... bully boyz in Garissa, an official said, signalling endless cooperation in the fight against the group, which controls large swathes of rural central and southern regions of Somalia.
According to intelligence reports, the bully boyz were neutralized at Najo and Guracho areas in Garissa County, following a fierce shootout with the Special Operations Group, managing to down the fighters.
The success followed a meticulously planned intelligence-led operation. The bully boyz were first spotted by a surveillance drone, after which SOG units tracked and engaged them, intelligence reports indicate, highlighting the government's commitment to stabilizing the region.
A fierce exchange of fire ensued, resulting in four Lions of Islam being eliminated. Recovered at the scene were AK-47 rifles, a PKM machine gun, multiple rounds of ammunition, and communication radios, officials said in a report filed by the County security team.
"This marks yet another major victory in a series of well-coordinated operations that continue to cripple al-Shabaab activity," the team said. "The SOG, in close collaboration with other security agencies and the local community, remains unwavering in its mission to safeguard the lives and security of Kenyans."
Kenya has been fighting bully boyz along the border for two decades, and the recent elevation of Wajir Air Base to a full-fledged base and the equipping of Modika Barracks have greatly influenced victories against al-Shabaab, thanks to the quick response by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF).
The KDF is also establishing several Forward Operating Bases in the region, part of a strategy aimed at enhancing security awareness and operational success. The KDF also participates in the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM)..
Through civil-military cooperation, the government of Kenya has tremendously changed perceptions, with the local community also working with security forces to improve security within the Northern Frontier Districts (NFDs) of the Republic of Kenya.
[ShabelleMedia] Puntland ...a region in northeastern Somalia, centered on Garowe in the Nugaal province. Its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Puntland and the equally autonomous Somaliland seem to have avoided the clan rivalries and warlordism that have typified the rest of Somalia, which puts both places high on the list for Islamic subversion... ’s elite security forces killed more than 35 ISIS bully boys, including several imported muscle, during a major military operation in the mountainous rural areas between Miraale and Balade in Bari region on Tuesday, regional officials said.
Commanders leading the offensive presented the bodies of slain ISIS fighters to the media, stating that many of those killed were foreign nationals attempting to flee through rugged hideouts. Troops also destroyed weapons caches and military equipment used by the group.
The operation comes amid increased pressure on ISIS remnants in the region. The Balade Valley, located near the port city of Bosaso, is now believed to serve as a key regrouping point for the jihadist group, which has come under intense aerial and ground assaults in recent months.
This latest push follows a significant victory last week when Puntland forces captured the ISIS command center in Miraale Valley — a longtime strategic stronghold of the group.
Puntland authorities have escalated counterterrorism operations in the mountainous terrain of Bari, where ISIS has used the difficult geography to train, plan, and launch attacks over the years.
Officials say the ongoing offensive marks a renewed determination to dismantle ISIS networks in northeastern Somalia and restore lasting stability to the region.
[REUTERS] Nigeria's defence chief on Tuesday called for the country's borders with its four neighbours to be completely fenced to curb the entrance of gangs amid escalating insecurity.
Nigeria's military has been strained by widespread security issues, particularly a 16-year insurgency in the northeast led by Islamist bad boy group Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... and its offshoot Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... West Africa Province. Security forces and civilians have been attacked and killed and tens of thousands of people have been displaced.
Defence Chief of Staff, General Christopher Musa, who spoke at a security conference in the capital Abuja, said "border management is very critical," citing Pakistain's 1,350 km (839 miles) fence with Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... 's 1,400 km barrier with Iraq as successful precedents.
This is the first time a top Nigerian official has publicly suggested such a measure. "Other countries, because of the level of insecurity they have, had to fence their borders," he said.
Nigeria borders Niger Republic, Cameroon ...a long, narrow country that fills the space between Nigeria and Chad on the northeast, CAR to the southeast. Prior to incursions by Boko Haram nothing ever happened there... , Benin ...Benin, a French-speaking West African nation, that they put where Dahomey used to be. It is a birthplace of voodoo and zombies. In Abomey, Dahomey's former capital, the Historical Museum occupies two royal palaces with bas-reliefs recounting the kingdom’s past and a throne mounted on human skulls. To the north, Pendjari National Park offers safaris with elephants, hippos and lions and tigers and bears, oh my!... , and Chad, which are all grappling with escalating bad boy campaigns across the Sahel.
Continued on Page 47
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[IsraelTimes] Stuttgart court convicts former militiaman of ‘terrorizing’ local Sunnis in support of now-ousted strongman in 2011, after trial involving testimony from 30 witnesses
A German court on Tuesday convicted a Syrian man of crimes against humanity and placed in durance vile Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! him for life over offenses committed during his time fighting for former Syrian president Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Horror of Homs... The court in the city of Stuttgart found the former militiaman guilty of crimes including murder and torture after a trial that involved testimony from 30 witnesses.
His name was not provided.
Shortly after the outbreak of anti-Assad protests in early 2011 — which sparked the deadly 14-year civil war — the man joined a pro-government Shia militia in the southern town of Bosra al-Sham.
He proceeded to take part in several crimes against the local Sunni population with the aim of "terrorizing" them and driving them from the town, the court found.
German authorities have pursued several suspects for crimes committed in Syria’s civil war under the principle of universal jurisdiction, even after Assad’s ouster last December by Islamist-led rebels, led by now-interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
In 2022, former Syrian colonel Anwar Raslan was found guilty of overseeing the murders of 27 people and the torture of 4,000 others at the notorious al-Khatib jail in 2011 and 2012.
That was the first international trial over state-sponsored torture in Syrian prisons and was hailed as "historic" by human rights ...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you... activists.
[NY Post] A "Jew hater" who protested against Israel on Columbia University’s campus and contemplated setting a student on fire allegedly had a direct link to Hamas’ deadly al-Qassam Brigades militant group, The Post can reveal.
Tarek Bazrouk — currently awaiting trial charged indicted on three federal hate crimes against Jewish people — was "a member of a chat group that received regular updates from Abu Obeida," the official spokesperson for the brigades, according to allegations in federal documents.
The accusation is the first evidence of an agitator receiving information directly from Hamas and taking action during protests on the University campus.
Bazrouk, 20, who was not a Columbia student, also frequently wore the green headband used by Hamas terrorists and boasted to friends about having relatives overseas who were part of the terror group, prosecutors claim in a court filed letter.
While on Columbia’s campus during protests in April 2024, Bazrouk allegedly texted a pal saying he lit a flare and considered lighting someone on fire, but that there were "too many" people around for him to take on, otherwise he "would’ve hurted (sic) them."
Bazrouk, a US citizen born and raised in New York, was also arrested next to the campus in December 2024 for one of the three attacks against Jewish people he stands accused of.
It is not clear how Bazrouk got on campus, which is private university property, but Columbia was beset with anti-Israel protesters shielded by masks throughout 2024, resulting in the NYPD being called to flush them out in April that year.
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Posted by: Frank G ||
06/04/2025 06:58 ||
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[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Activists have clashed with federal officials in crazed scenes on the streets of Minneapolis after people apparently mistook a criminal investigation for an ICE raid.
Black Bloc/Antifa - Hispanic version getting jiggy, as they used to say.
Photographs show protestors outside a taco restaurant shouting at government agents in military-style vehicles, and in some cases launching objects at them.
Twin Cities Mayor Jacob Frey said the law enforcement operation at Las Cuatro Milpas restaurant in south Minneapolis on Tuesday was 'not related to immigration'.
However, city council member Jason Chavez said authorities had 'tried to lie about an ICE presence', claiming that the immigration officials were also at the scene.
Mayor Frey said in a statement: 'I am aware of the operation federal agencies carried out earlier today near Lake and Bloomington.
'While we are still gathering details, this incident was related to a criminal search warrant for drugs and money laundering and was not related to immigration enforcement. No arrests were made.'
The Minneapolis Police Department said the conflict escalated so much that some of their officers were also dispatched to assist with crowd control.
'After a federal law enforcement operation was already underway, a crowd began to form, and MPD officers arrived to ensure the crowd and the surrounding area remained safe,' the department said on X.
'A federal criminal search warrant for drugs and money laundering was executed today in the area of Lake St & Bloomington Ave. Multiple federal agencies were involved.
'There were no arrests at the scene by federal law enforcement executing the search warrant.'
'MPD was NOT involved in any immigration enforcement activities today, nor were we given advance notice of any such operation,' the department added.
Minneapolis council member Jason Chavez claimed that the authorities were lying about there being no ICE agents on the scene, while sharing photographs of officers wearing ICE badges on X.
'They tried lie about an ICE presence. MPD assisted with closing off the area. This is completely wrong. Hennepin County Sheriffs have been helping too,' Chavez wrote.
A witness told CBS affiliate WCCO News that some activists hurled objects onto Lake Street in an attempt to obstruct a military-style vehicle.
The organization COPAL (Comunidades Organizando el Poder y la Acción Latina) said its members came to the scene 'to ensure that constitutional rights and legal due process are respected.'
'In situations like the enforcement today, it's important that there are signed warrants in place, the right to peaceful assembly is protected, and that no Minnesotan, no human being is treated as 'collateral,'' COPAL's Ryan Perez said in a statement.
[DETROITNEWS] Federal agents have arrested a University of Michigan scholar from China on charges she tried to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States characterized as a potential agricultural terrorism ... an emotional boo-boo suffered by the sensitive when someone is mean to them... weapon that can be used for targeting food crops.
The FBI counterintelligence case against UM scholar Yunqing Jian, 33, and her boyfriend, 34-year-old Zunyong Liu, was unsealed in federal court in bankrupt, increasingly impoverished, reliably Democrat, Detroit ... ruled by Democrats since 1962. A city whose Golden Age included the Purple Gang... on Tuesday and marks the second time in less than a week a Chinese national with ties to the university has been charged with federal crimes.
On Friday, prosecutors unsealed a criminal case against a former University of Michigan Chinese student who voted illegally in the 2024 election, saying he fled the U.S. to avoid prosecution.
Jian is a citizen of China who received a doctorate degree in plant pathogens from Zhejiang University, and Sherlocks say they have discovered information describing her membership in and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party. Prosecutors say she received money from a Chinese foundation funded largely by the Chinese government to conduct post-doctoral work, including research on a fungus known as Fusarium graminearum, a biological pathogen that can cause devastating diseases in crops.
Prosecutors say her boyfriend illegally smuggled a biological pathogen into the U.S. at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on July 27.
"When Customs and Border Protection officers questioned Liu, he made false statements to CBP officers about the purpose of his visit to the United States, and his knowledge of the existence of the biological pathogen in his possession," an FBI special agent wrote in the criminal filing.
"Ultimately, Liu admitted to smuggling the pathogen and stated that he brought the pathogen into the United States so that he could conduct research on it at a laboratory at the University of Michigan where his girlfriend, Jian, worked," the agent added.
Fusarium graminearum is a strain of a plant pathogen that causes ''head blight,'' according to the criminal case, a disease that can devastate wheat, barley, maize and rice.
Courtesy of Yunqing Jian, 33, and Zunyong Liu, 34, citizens of the People’s Republic of China, were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements, and visa fraud, announced United States Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr.
Gorgon was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Division and Marty C. Raybon, Director of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The FBI arrested Jian in connection with allegations related to Jian’s and Liu’s smuggling into America a fungus called Fusarium graminearum, which scientific literature classifies as a potential agroterrorism weapon. This noxious fungus causes “head blight,” a disease of wheat, barley, maize, and rice, and is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year. Fusarium graminearum’s toxins cause vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.
According to the complaint, Jian received Chinese government funding for her work on this pathogen in China. The complaint also alleges that Jian’s electronics contain information describing her membership in and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party. It is further alleged that Jian’s boyfriend, Liu, works at a Chinese university where he conducts research on the same pathogen and that he first lied but then admitted to smuggling Fusarium graminearum into America—through the Detroit Metropolitan Airport—so that he could conduct research on it at the laboratory at the University of Michigan where his girlfriend, Jian, worked.
United States Attorney Gorgon stated: “The alleged actions of these Chinese nationals—including a loyal member of the Chinese Communist Party—are of the gravest national security concerns. These two aliens have been charged with smuggling a fungus that has been described as a ‘potential agroterrorism weapon’ into the heartland of America, where they apparently intended to use a University of Michigan laboratory to further their scheme.”
[IsraelTimes] Police detained two foreign activists who entered a closed military zone in the southern West Bank on Saturday, a police spokesman says. Both are slated for deportation in the coming days.
The women were arrested in the South Hebron Hills after officers received a complaint from the security coordinator for Maon, a West Bank settlement in the area.
Police investigators discovered that one of the women detained has a reputation abroad as an anti-Israel activist.
Any connection to the one expelled for the same thing in mid-May?
After being brought to a hearing before the Population and Immigration Authority, the two women were ordered deported from the country.
While one of the activists accepted the ruling, the other is petitioning to overturn her deportation.
Until the appeal hearing is held, both women will remain in custody at Givon Prison in central Israel, police say.
[IsraelTimes] The IDF says it foiled yet another attempt to smuggle weapons into Israel from Egypt using a drone today.
The drone had been identified crossing the border from Egypt into Israel before it was downed by troops deployed to the area.
The drone was found to be ferrying 11 rifles and ammunition. The contraband and drone have been handed over to the police.
In recent months, there have been frequent attempts to bring weapons and drugs over the Egypt border, as well as from Israel into Gaza, using drones.
Continued on Page 47
[IsraelTimes] The United Nations conference to be hosted by France and Saudi Arabia later this month is aimed at achieving “a ceasefire enabling the release of all hostages, the disarmament of Hamas and setting a stage in the Gaza Strip for the day after,” says a senior French official who is currently in Israel to meet with Israeli counterparts.
“And for that to happen, we agree that we need additional pressure on Hamas,” says the official.
Enlightenment dawns. But how, pray tell, do you imagine to achieve that?
French recognition of a Palestinian state, a move under serious consideration by French President Emmanuel Macron, is “a matter that will be dealt with separately from the outcome of the June conference,” says a second official.
However, the overarching goal is to rally support for a two-state solution, alongside regional integration of Israel.
No Palestinian state in this generation, possibly never. Absolutely never for one involving Hamas.
“What we are aiming to do is to create a political framework in which the two-state solution is a central piece,” says the senior visiting official, adding that the outcome of the conference will not be a UN resolution, but will be instead a vision document that UN member states can sign on to.
No. And anyway, how is it any of your business?
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has dismissed France’s potential upcoming recognition of a Palestinian state, calling the move “revolting” while Israel fights Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“What we are trying to do is contribute to relaunch a positive and lasting political dynamic to ensure peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians,” says the senior French official. “We are not overpassing the US. We are engaging with the US ahead of the conference.”
Not when the US government considers your position to be vicious nonsense at best.
Nor is France trying to exclude Israel, says the senior official.
Yes, France is. France is trying to undermine Israel in favour of whichever Palestinians are in play at the moment, to curry favour with the Moslem mob rioting through your streets.
Israel’s criticism has grown increasingly strident of late, with the Foreign Ministry accusing Macron of a “crusade” against the Jewish state.
“We are having a discussion with Israel on the content of this vision.
You are telling Israel what she must do; Israel is saying, “Hell, no!”
The purpose of our visit is to try and comprehend what is Israel’s vision for the day after and for the future.”
A Gaza free of the presence of any who support Hamas, et al, local rule by the tribes, perhaps, with an active IDF presence throughout thr Strip and especially at the Egyptian border.
[IsraelTimes] Staff Sgt. Lior Steinberg, Staff Sgt. Ofek Barhana and Staff Sgt. Omer Van Gelder die when their Humvee drives over IED planted along convoy route
Three Israeli soldiers were killed and two were maimed by a roadside kaboom Monday during operations in the Jabalia area in the northern Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip, the military announced Tuesday morning.
The slain soldiers were named as Staff Sgt. Lior Steinberg, 20, a combat medic, from Petah Tikva; Staff Sgt. Ofek Barhana, 20, a combat medic, from Yavne; and Staff Sgt. Omer Van Gelder, 22, a squad commander, from Maale Adumim.
It was the most deadly loss for the Israel Defense Forces since it renewed combat operations in Gaza after a ceasefire collapsed in March.
The troops all served in the Givati Brigade’s Rotem Battalion. During the incident in Jabalia, they were operating as part of a platoon under the 9th Armored Battalion.
According to an initial IDF probe, the five troops were in a Humvee in Jabalia, escorting an army fire engine that had entered Gaza to extinguish an armored personnel carrier that caught fire due to a technical issue.
On the way out of Jabalia, the convoy was hit by an bomb planted on the side of a road. It directly struck the Humvee, killing and wounding the soldiers.
The two maimed troops were listed in moderate condition.
Along the same route, the IDF later discovered some 20 more roadside kabooms that had been rigged for detonation. It was unclear why the others did not explode.
Evacuation of the injured soldiers was complicated and prolonged, as the troops in the convoy realized they were in a booby-trapped area. The IDF also carried out numerous strikes in the area to enable the evacuation.
The military said it was investigating the incident further, including how terror operatives had identified the route used by the army, and when the bombs had been planted.
Van Gelder was related to Sgt. First Class (res.) Omer Moshe Gaeldor, 30, who was killed in November in Leb ...The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. Only one of those statements is an exaggeration.... , Ynet said.
The deaths brought Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas ..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",... in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Strip to 423. The toll includes two coppers and three Defense Ministry civilian contractors.
Continued on Page 47
[IsraelTimes] IDF carries out airstrikes across southern Syria after two projected fired from 12 km inside Syria; Houthi missile triggers sirens across central Israel; no injuries reported
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Jerusalem would mount a "full response" against the regime of Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa after two rockets were fired from Syria at the Golan Heights for the first time in over a year, minutes before a Iran's Houthi sock puppets ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him... missile triggered sirens across central Israel.
No injuries were reported from either attack. The IDF said it had responded to the attack from Syria with artillery fire on the source of the rockets, some 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from the border with Israel.
That was fast.
The IDF said the rockets had been launched from the area of Tasil in south Syria, near an area where button men had fired at Israeli troops in April.
The IDF also carried out a series of Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s throughout southern Syria that it said targeted weapons belonging to the regime.
"The Syrian regime is responsible for what is happening in Syria and will continue to bear the consequences as long as hostile activity continues from its territory," the IDF said in a statement.
Katz issued his own statement asserting that Israel views Sharaa himself as "directly responsible for every threat and [rocket] fire toward the State of Israel."
"The full response will come soon," said Katz, adding that Israel "will not allow a return to a pre-October 7 reality."
The rockets from Syria had triggered sirens in the Golan Heights communities of Hispin and Ramat Magshimim. Police later said officers had located the site of the two rocket impacts in an open area near Ramat Magshimim.
The Syrian foreign ministry asserted that it "has not and will not pose a threat to any party in the region" and is working to rein in armed, non-state actors in southern Syria.
The Syrian government claimed it had yet to confirm the rocket launches that targeted Israel, but it did condemn the Israeli counter-attack, saying it resulted in "heavy human and material losses" and violated Syria’s illusory sovereignty "at a time when we are most in need of calm and peaceful solutions."
"We call on the international community to assume its responsibilities in stopping these attacks, and to support efforts aimed at restoring security and stability to Syria and the region," the Syrian foreign ministry statement said.
It was the first alert in the Golan since a drone alarm from Iraq sounded there in November, and the first the first rocket fire from Syria since May 5, 2024, seven months before a jihadi group led by Sharaa toppled the country’s Iran-backed President Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Horror of Homs... The United States, which previously placed a bounty on Sharaa’s head, has since embraced him and removed Assad-era sanctions on Syria. On Tuesday, Sky News Arabic reported Sharaa will speak at the coming UN General Assembly in September, which would make him the first Syrian leader to travel to the US in almost 60 years.
Israel has remained publicly leery despite reportedly seeking warmer ties with Sharaa’s administration. Following Assad’s ouster, Israel moved troops into the Syrian side of the two countries’ demilitarized buffer zone, and has carried out numerous strikes across Syria.
ISRAEL DOWNS 3RD HOUTHI MISSILE IN AS MANY DAYS
Additionally on Tuesday evening, the IDF said it downed a missile fired by Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of... ’s Iran-backed Houthis that had triggered sirens in central Israel roughly 20 minutes after the attack from Syria. The sirens were preceded by an early warning to residents via a push notification on their phones. It was the third Houthi attack in as many days.
Sirens also sounded some three minutes later in the northern towns of in the northern town of Nof HaGalil and other communities near Nazareth. The IDF said those sirens had been caused by "fears of interceptor fragments" but were later confirmed to have been a "false identification," meaning not a threat.
Possible fragments from either the Houthi or interceptor missiles landed in the central city of Modiin, police said, adding that officers were at the scene to remove the debris.
The Houthi missile stopped air traffic at Ben Gurion International Airport for some 25 minutes, in accordance with standard procedure.
Continued on Page 47
[IsraelTimes] Spokesman says army probing 3rd incident in as many days, acknowledges troops fired warning shots but insists they ‘didn’t hit that many people as far as we understand’
The Israel Defense Forces’ Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin on Tuesday accused Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... of making "exaggerated" claims about deadly incidents over the past three days near US- and Israel-backed aid distribution sites in southern Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... The IDF front man’s televised presser also featured the presentation of a map of military positions in the Strip and new details on the deaths of three troops Monday.
"This week, it was claimed that the IDF fired on civilians at the aid distribution site. This is a totally false report, it echoes Hamas propaganda," said Defrin at his presser, referring to reports of 31 people killed near a site in Rafah early Sunday.
"This did not happen," he said of those reports.
"Hamas disseminates false information, which is unfortunately taken by some international media without verification," said Defrin, even as The News Agency that Dare Not be Named released a statement standing by its coverage of Sunday’s incident.
The IDF has acknowledged firing warning shots at Paleostinians about a kilometer (0.6 miles) from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation site before it opened for distribution on Sunday. However,
a person who gets all wrapped up in himself makes a mighty small package... it denied that any gunfire took place "within" the aid site during opening hours, and GHF said the aid distribution went on without incident.
On Tuesday morning, Hamas again reported dozens of people killed and injured at the aid site in Rafah, but GHF denied the reports. Asked about those reports, Defrin reiterated the military’s response that troops had fired warning shots, but said troops "didn’t hit that many people as far as we understand [and] we will continue to investigate."
"The numbers given by Hamas were the same. It reported 29 on Sunday and today — exaggerated. We are investigating," he said.
"We fired warning shots toward a group of people who posed a threat to our forces, far from where they were supposed to be. Warning shots were fired, not to hit anyone," said Defrin, referring to Tuesday’s reports. "According to the claims, people were hit, so we are investigating, but it will take time."
Defrin added that he was aware of criticism that the IDF takes too long to investigate such claims. "We will not report information or details that are not true," he said. "Reliability is critical, even if it takes time."
He said, "Hamas is losing control of the population" in Gaza because GHF prevented the terror group from controlling humanitarian aid in the Strip.
"Alongside the continuous military pressure against Hamas, its rule is cracking and is being undermined," said Defrin. "Each day, tens of thousands of food packages are handed out, directly to residents."
During the presser, Defrin said three troops who were killed in action on Monday in northern Gaza’s Jabalia were hit by roadside kabooms planted by button men who had set out from a tunnel hidden inside a partially demolished building.
"The holy warriors set out from a tunnel shaft in a building and planted the bombs. This is an active tunnel that is used for terror," he said.
"The entrance to the tunnel is located inside a destroyed building, close to a route. Therefore, it is important to emphasize that this building is a military target, like tens of thousands of other buildings in Gaza that are used for terror," Defrin said.
"Nearly every other building is booby-trapped and contains a tunnel entrance. We are demolishing these homes, not for the sake of destruction. Every building that is destroyed poses an operational threat and could harm our forces," he said.
The IDF has accused Hamas of embedding itself in civilian infrastructure, including schools, mosques and hospitals, throughout the war sparked on October 7, 2023, when the terror group invaded Israel to kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages.
Defrin also presented for the first time a map showing troop deployment in the IDF’s renewed ground offensive in Gaza, which the military said last month would seek to seize 75 percent of the Strip.
According to the map, the Gaza Division is operating in the Rafah area, the 36th and 98th divisions are pushing into Khan Younis from the south and east, the 252nd is operating in Gaza City and the Netzarim Corridor area, and the 162nd is fighting Hamas in the Strip’s north.
AP STANDS BY REPORTING AS ISRAEL, US SLAM MEDIA GAZA COVERAGE
…unlike the Washington Post, which shows relative level of professional ethics.
In an online briefing for international media, a government front man reiterated the military’s response to Gaza casualties reported Tuesday, saying troops had "diligently" fired warning shots at suspects who approached them roughly half a kilometer (0.3 miles) away from the Rafah aid site.
"Let’s be clear: Israel is not preventing Gazooks from accessing humanitarian aid, and the IDF did not fire at civilians in or near aid distribution zones," said David Mencer. "The IDF is doing everything in its power to allow Gazooks to get to the humanitarian aid."
Referring to the casualties reported on Sunday, Mencer said, "The IDF’s initial investigation confirms that serious accusations made on Sunday in so much of the media... were based on Hamas propaganda."
He said the IDF had already "put out materials proving them to be false and baseless."
In fact, the IDF has not issued any materials from the incident in Rafah to prove its account of what happened there. The IDF did release a video from an unrelated event later Sunday, which the military explicitly said was from Khan Younis and not Rafah.
Mencer said it was "clear that Hamas is trying their hardest to keep its own people, Gazooks, away from the GHF distribution sites."
"We urge the media — do not amplify Hamas disinformation. Verify before reporting," Mercer said. "It’s a battle of the narrative, and too many global newsrooms have become foot soldiers for Hamas."
The statement came after US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Monday accused foreign outlets of fomenting antisemitism with their coverage, leading to an attack on pro-Israel protesters in Boulder, Colorado, on Monday, and the killing of two Israeli embassy workers in Washington last month.
Responding to Huckabee’s statement, The News Agency that Dare Not be Named said it stood by its reporting, which the news agency said included multiple eyewitness accounts, interviews with health and hospital officials and the Red Thingy, as well as statements from the IDF and GHF.
"The Israeli military later released a video of what it said were masked men firing at civilians trying to collect aid, which the AP included in its coverage. That video was shot in daylight from the city of Khan Younis, miles from the incident in Rafah that witnesses described," the AP statement said.
"The Rafah incident occurred in an Israeli military zone that international journalists have been barred from entering except on approved military embeds. AP and other news organizations have repeatedly called for international journalists to be allowed into Gaza to report on the war," the statement added.
Huckabee had cited "drone video and first-hand accounts" as showing that the reports by AP and other major outlets had been false.
It was unclear what drone footage and first-hand accounts Huckabee was referring to. A US embassy spokesperson cited IDF drone footage when pressed by The Times of Israel, but the footage released by the military was not shot at the time or place of the Rafah incident.
Continued on Page 47
[IsraelTimes] Suspect also burned IDF uniforms and hung banner over Jerusalem highway labeling Netanyahu a ‘dictator’ and declaring support for ousted Shin Bet chief, police say
Police and Shin Bet agents arrested a Paleostinian man on suspicion of plotting a terror attack in central Israel at the behest of an Iranian handler, a police front man said Tuesday.
The suspect, a man in his 30s residing in East Jerusalem’s Issawiya neighborhood, had been in contact online with an Iranian agent who asked him to carry out various "missions" against the State of Israel.
The agent reportedly asked his recruit to stage a terror attack in central Israel, but the suspect was arrested before he could set the plan into motion.
The suspect also received thousands of shekels for hanging signs against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu around Jerusalem, burning IDF uniforms, and gathering information about well-known sites in the capital, including the Western Wall and Mahane Yehuda Market.
He was also asked to set fire to a forest and smuggle arms into the West Bank, police said, but those missions were foiled upon his arrest.
Footage shared by law enforcement showed the suspect hanging a sign over a highway running through the Mount Scopus tunnel in Jerusalem, on an unknown date.
During a search of the suspect’s home in Issawiya, police seized cash allegedly transferred from the agent, a can of spray paint, two airsoft guns, and a substance thought to be a drug.
Officers also found in his possession a banner with a spray-painted message reading: "Bibi is a dictator, we are not weeds. Ronen Bar, we support you."
The banner — which masquerades as having come from an anti-Netanyahu activist — seems to refer to an April statement from the premier, in which he derided a group of IDF reservists advocating a hostage-ceasefire deal as "weeds... trying to weaken the State of Israel and the IDF."
According to police, the suspect was also offered thousands of shekels to enlist his own mother to carry out additional tasks for the Iranian agent.
The man’s detention was extended Tuesday, though police did not specify for how long.
State prosecutors were expected to file an indictment against him for serious security offenses in the days following the investigation’s announcement.
In recent years, police have arrested dozens of suspects, many Israeli citizens, for espionage on behalf of Iranian agents, with some agreeing to take on other tasks, including liquidations of senior figures.
The foreign handlers contact potential recruits through social media, offering them money to carry out missions to damage Israel’s national security.
[Townhall] Last week, in what is being called the largest-ever ICE enforcement operation, nearly 1,500 illegal foreign nationals were arrested—most of them hiding in so-called "sanctuary" jurisdictions. That’s not just a number. That’s a blunt warning: there are thousands more just like them—living, working, and perhaps plotting among us, thanks to open-border ideologues and their enablers in blue-state leadership.
These weren’t friendly tourists who overstayed a visa to see the Statue of Liberty one more time. These were criminal aliens—some with convictions for rape, murder, kidnapping, and terror-related charges. They were swept up in Democrat-run strongholds like California, Illinois, and New York, where the local governments actively thwart federal immigration enforcement.
Let that sink in: Your government is risking your life to score cheap political points.
The operation was described as a "major success" by top Homeland Security officials under Secretary Kristi Noem, who has brought a radically different tone and urgency to the department since taking over. Unlike her predecessor Alejandro Mayorkas—who presided over record-setting illegal crossings and national security apathy—Noem has made it clear: illegal entry will not be ignored, and criminal aliens will not be protected by politics.
But the deeper question lingers like a storm cloud over our national security: Is it enough?
Continued on Page 47
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda...
... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
Horror of Homs...
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the 
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...
