THURSDAY PDB – USS Mount Whitney heading to Eastern Mediterranean. The U.S. 6th Fleet command-and-control ship Mount Whitney is heading to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea to support U.S. operations there.
US Navy ships in Mediterranean bring considerable abilities to help Israel if called upon. Two U.S. Navy carrier groups being positioned in the eastern Mediterranean Sea possess intelligence-gathering and patrol capabilities that could boost Israel in its battle against Hamas.
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here's a roundup of today's other top defense stories from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.
Not the President's Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL'S DAILY BRIEFING – the PDB:
ISRAEL'S WAR AGAINST HAMAS TERROR
Intel, defense officials tell senators that Israel did not strike hospital. This information from a classified briefing Wednesday confirmed that Israel is not responsible for a blast that reportedly killed hundreds of people at a hospital in Gaza, contradicting earlier media reports and claims from Hamas that an Israeli airstrike caused the carnage.
Israel to allow entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza from Egypt after US pressure. Israel's war cabinet on Wednesday approved the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
TOTALLY WRONG – SOFT ON IRAN – The wrong person: Senate Republicans slam Biden's pick for Israel ambassador. They aren't sold on Joe Biden's pick, despite calls from Democrats to quickly fill the post amid the increasing turmoil in the Middle East.
POLITICS
Jordan fails again to win vote to become House speaker, support slips. He was opposed by two more than the 20 Republican detractors he lost in first round voting the day before.
KEY! – The US military depends on US culture. The key isn't defense spending but citizens with dedication and a real love of country.
PENTAGON WOKE WATCH
MAYBE GIVE THEM COOKIES AND MILK, TOO? – Air Force touts success of program allowing recruits to meet drill instructors before shipping out to boot camp. The program allowing recruits to connect online with a drill instructor before arriving at basic military training has reduced the number of dropouts as the service faces a recruiting crisis.
NATIONAL SECURITY
Biden to deliver prime-time address Thursday on Israel, Ukraine wars. Joe Biden will address the nation Thursday about the wars in Ukraine and the conflict between Israel and Hamas in a prime-time speech from the Oval Office.
Putin touts solidarity with China in Xi's pitch for new world order as crisis grips Middle East. Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping discussed the conflict in the Middle East during a meeting on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing Wednesday, according to Putin – who said “common threats” brought the two countries closer.
US is receiving dozens of UFO reports a month, says senior Pentagon official. These reports of unidentified anomalous phenomena, more commonly known as UFOs, are each month, according to the director of the office established to investigate the incidents, with the potential for “hundreds, if not thousands” more reports expected soon.
HOMELAND SECURITY
PRO-TERRORISTS – Protesters calling for Israel-Hamas ceasefire arrested in House office building. A large group of protestors swarmed the Cannon House office building Wednesday demanding an Israeli ceasefire, resulting in several arrests,
CHINA THREAT
Taiwan reports 13 Chinese air force planes in its air defense zone Thursday. The Chinese military aircraft included fighter jets and drones, accompanying Chinese warships carrying out “combat patrols” and drills.
US, Philippines wrap up naval drill amid clashes in South China. The drills focused on replenishment at sea, naval warfare, and human assistance and disaster response.
RUSSIA THREAT– UKRAINE WAR
GUESS THE ATACMS WEREN'T A ‘RED LINE' AFTER ALL – Putin plays down threat posed by powerful US-supplied missiles. Analysts say the long-range weapons could force Russia to move military assets further away from the front lines, undermining their operations.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 603. At least 10 people were killed in Russian attacks, including five who died after a missile hit a residential building in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia. The other deaths were reported in the central region of Dnipropetrovsk, the southern region of Kherson and the southern city of Mykolaiv.
Russia's foreign minister thanks North Korea for ‘unwavering' support of its war in Ukraine. Sergey Lavrov visited Pyongyang days after the White House said the North had transferred munitions to Russia to strengthen its warfighting capabilities.
IRAN THREAT
Troops hurt after three drones attack US bases in Iraq. Coalition forces were slightly injured in Iraq in a spate of Iranian-backed drone attacks over the last 24 hours at U.S. bases in Iraq as regional tensions flare following the deadly bombing of a hospital in Gaza.
SPACE THREAT
Why record-breaking ‘Victus Nox' space launch is such a big deal. The Chief of Space Operations likened the record-breaking rapid launch of a satellite last month to when Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947, saying it has implications for how quickly the Space Force can respond to threats in the future.
BIG MISTAKE, BIDEN – Space Force strategy projects first ever budget drop in 2025. The service is projecting budget reductions in the next few years—the first such cuts since the service was established in late 2019.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY
US vetoes Security Council call for ‘humanitarian pause' in Israel-Hamas war. The veto of the draft resolution for besieged Gaza – spark criticism of political paralysis in the global body.
Norwegian Navy shadows Chinese vessel probed over Baltic pipe damage. The ship shadowed a Chinese container ship investigated over damage to a gas pipeline in the Gulf of Finland for about 15 hours as it sailed along the western coast of Norway on Monday.
UK naval chief on threats to undersea infrastructure: ‘We don't fully understand' solutions. Adm. Ben Key made his comments hours after Sweden stated that an undersea telecommunications cable between Sweden and Estonia had been damaged.
US MILITARY
In birthday message to Marines, top general emphasizes ‘high standards.' The new commandant urged Marines to keep their high standards sacred and their “honor clean.”
END of PDB
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
READ NEXT: RINOs Notch Devastating Victory Against Conservatives On Capitol Hill?
