Free Republic

'I think any father would’ve done the same thing. It’s my baby girl.' Bill Steinkirchner and his wife, Melanie, got a call Sunday morning from their college-student daughter that no parent wants to receive. Melanie Steinkirchner wrote on Facebook that their daughter was walking to breakfast when a male assaulted her, took swings at her, said he had a gun, and threatened to kill her. She was able to duck down, run, and avoid getting hurt, but she was still shaken during her phone call home. But her home is in Southern California — and KIRO-TV noted that the Steinkirchners'...

An aggressive otter pulled a young child off a dock and dragged them underwater at a marina in Washington, officials said. The attack happened at about 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 12 at the Bremerton Marina, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife said in a news release. A family was walking down the dock when the animal appeared and pulled the child underwater for a few moments, officials said. The mom reached into the water to rescue her child and was bitten on the arm by the attacking otter, officials said. She was able to get her child to safety,...

A Colorado state trooper was shot and wounded in a senseless, “targeted” attack while parked on the side of a highway Saturday and still managed to kill the suspect in a shootout, authorities said. Cpl. Tye Simcox encountered “evil” when the gunman randomly began firing on the 16-year state law enforcement vet as he slowly drove by the officer’s patrol car parked in the median of Highway 36 in the Denver suburb of Westminster. The gunman continued his brazen shooting with a semi-automatic handgun after he pulled his Chevrolet pickup truck over to the left side of the highway and...

A pack of young teenage girls randomly attacked an elderly man on a Brooklyn subway platform early Monday — with at least one assailant whacking the victim with a scooter, cops and police sources said. The 76-year-old man was lying on a bench at the Rockaway Avenue subway station when the five suspects launched the assault, punching and kicking his head around 2:10 a.m., according to authorities. One of the perpetrators even swung her scooter at the man’s head in what sources said was an unprovoked attack on northbound C line platform. The offenders are believed to be between the...

Vice President Harris, the Democrat nominee for president, marked the third anniversary of the suicide bombing at the Kabul airport, when 13 U.S. service members were killed. “Today and everyday, I mourn and honor them. My prayers are with their families and loved ones. My heart breaks for their pain and their loss. These 13 devoted patriots represent the best of America, putting our beloved nation and their fellow Americans above themselves and deploying into danger to keep their fellow citizens safe,” she said in a statement. She named the 13 service members and said she is also thinking about...

The Hezbollah chief also stated in his address that they "launched drones from both south of Litani river, and north of Litani river," a direct violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Sunday that his group would assess the impact of its rocket and drone attack on Israeli military targets earlier in the day before determining whether it would carry out further attacks to avenge a slain commander. The leader of the Iran-backed armed group said in a televised address that the group had been able to carry out its attack "as planned,"...

Videos, photos, running commentary by Tousi. 22 minutes. Transcript link below video.

A 15-year-old was arrested Saturday in connection with a knife attack at a festival in Germany that left three people dead and several others hurt, authorities said. The suspect had been on the run for hours following Friday’s bloodshed in Solingen. Authorities could not rule out a “terrorist” motive, noting multiple knives were found, Police Chief Markus Röhrl said. The attacker specifically targeted victims’ throats and necks, Röhrl added.

Former Fox News and Newsmax host Eric Bolling is sounding the alarm to his fellow Republicans, saying former President Trump’s team waited too long to “shake things up” after Vice President Harris entered the race. “Wake the F— up.. we are LOSING!” Bolling posted to his X account, along with a four-minute video. Bolling, a friend of Trump’s, said he warned the former president and his teams that it was not the right idea to wait until after the Democratic National Convention (DNC) to begin attacking Harris. “You waited too long, guys, you waited too long,” he said.

A flurry of black bear attacks has been covered in the media in the summer of 2024. Five people were injured in the attacks. The first occurred in Alaska at a campground near Anchorage, by a male bear. The bear injured a woman’s face after scratching and biting its way into the couple’s tent. She was treated at a hospital. There was no food or other items that usually attract bears inside the tent and it’s not clear what prompted the rare encounter, Wardlow said. “These folks who were involved did everything right and this is just a very unusual...

A ferry loaded with fuel tanks sank in the Russian port of Kavkaz in southern Krasnodar region on Thursday after a Ukrainian attack, local authorities said. The ferry carrying 30 fuel tanks, as confirmed by Fyodor Babenkov, district head of the town of Temryuk which includes the port, sustained significant damage as a result of the attack, which caused a fire. Seventeen crew members were rescued from the ferry, the Krasnodar region governor said on his Telegram channel. The rescue operation is ongoing, and the whereabouts of two additional crew members was unknown, he said. Ukraine has not immediately commented...

The Manhattan pizzeria worker mauled by an irate customer’s pit bull during a savage Monday beatdown is still comatose and hooked to a respirator — as a judge hit his alleged attacker with a hefty bail during his Wednesday arraignment. Manhattan prosecutors asked that Tyshaun Watson, a National Guard member and hospitality worker from Secaucus, New Jersey, be held on $250,000 cash/$500,000 insurance or partially secured bond for his alleged crimes against Zakaira El Sherief, which include second-degree attempted murder. Judge Simiyon Haniff granted the request, but added that he was surprised prosecutors wanted any bail at all.

The challenge for Iran in retaliation was trying to go beyond its April attack on Israel. Iran now wants to message about how it reserves the right to at some later date. Almost three weeks after the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, the Iranian regime is trying to step down from its early claims it would carry out an attack on Israel in retaliation. The regime in Tehran has built up a lot of expectations regarding how it would attack Israel. Now it is trying to shift messaging. The challenge for Iran in retaliation was trying to...

A video appeared to capture protesters attacking a man outside the DNC on Monday, which caused an injury under his eye. In the video, which occurred during a broadcast on The Rudy Giuliani Show, the reporter could be heard talking before a fight broke out nearby. “Get an ambulance. We need a doctor over here,” the reporter yelled.

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani urged Iran to hold off on an attack on Israel to avoid harming the ongoing Doha hostage talks in a phone call with Iran's leadership, The Washington Post reported on Friday citing two diplomats familiar with a phone call had between the two leaders. Iran vowed to attack Israel following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last month. Despite anticipation in Israel and around the world, the attack has yet to come. Al Thani warned Iran that an attack may further risk the current Gaza ceasefire discussions, which Hamas...

Iran could attack Israel with no warning within days, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said Thursday as the region remained on edge. “An attack could come with little or no warning and certainly could come in the coming days, and we have to be ready for it,” he told reporters during a virtual briefing. “But the messaging effort continues and will continue, because what we’re really after is de-escalation and trying to prevent this.” Washington has sent messages to Iran through third parties to underscore this message, Kirby said, as all eyes were on the Gaza hostage...

An Iran attack against Israel remains likely so it’s important to avert that scenario by finalizing a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, top US officials said as they prepared for a critical round of talks in Doha on Thursday. “We are working 24/7 around the clock at this time to get this deal done,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters in Washington. CIA Director William Burns and US special envoy Brett McGurk will represent the US, while Mossad chief David Barnea will head the Israeli team to help secure a deal to return the remaining 115 hostages and...

Iran is expected to skip a retaliatory strike on Israel if a Gaza ceasefire deal is reached, US President Joe Biden told reporters in New Orleans on Tuesday, stressing “That’s my expectation.” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant left nothing to chance, stating in northern Israel that the IDF is prepared for defensive and offensive actions against Hezbollah and Iran, even as the United States pinned its hope for averting a regional war on Thursday’s hostage talks in Doha. A hostage and Gaza ceasefire agreement would more “broadly, create conditions for diplomacy to get the region out of this cycle of violence,”...

Hamas attempted to fire two rockets at Tel Aviv and central Israel on Tuesday, but failed with one of them landing in the Mediterranean Sea and one of them failing to even leave the Gaza Strip. Citizens in Tel Aviv and other parts of central Israel heard sounds of explosions, initially creating confusion until the IDF clarified the situation. According to the IDF, the rocket which landed in the Sea was immediately detected, but the IDF did not activate any alarms because it was apparent from the start that its entire trajectory was flying only over the Sea. Likewise, no...

Security and Strategic Affairs Analyst Faiz Al-Asmar claimed that the delay in Iran’s attack has caused it to lose the element of surprise, strengthening Israel, during an interview with the Saudi Al-Hadath channel. He said, "In terms of the situation on the ground, it can be said that Iran and Hezbollah's delay in responding to the deaths of Ismail Haniyeh and Fuad Shukr have so far allowed Israel and the US to strengthen their position on the ground and use all means available. There is currently a warship that has recently arrived in the area. All of this has given...