Free Republic

The overall message of Iran is that it will continue to carry out attacks where it pleases. Iran doubled down on its decision to launch attacks against Iraq and Pakistan over the last few days. Iran’s Ministry of Defense said Iran has a right to protect itself, claiming the attacks were defensive. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also continued to claim it was targeting “Zionists” and also “ISIS” in its attacks. The autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq has rejected Iran’s claims and has highlighted the fact Iran killed civilians in its attacks. The overall message of Iran is that it...

In a speech on Monday, Kim Jong Un said he had concluded that unification with the South was no longer possible and accused Seoul of seeking regime collapse and unification by absorption. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Monday called for the constitution to be changed to ensure that South Korea is seen as the "primary foe" and warned his country did not intend to avoid war should it happen, state media KCNA reported on Tuesday. In a speech to the Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea's rubber-stamp parliament, Kim said he had concluded that unification with the South was...

The story about the US carrier leaving the region was covered in Al-Mayadeen media, which is pro-Iran, showing that pro-Iran figures in the region are watching. Iran's Alborz warship has passed through the Bab al-Mandab Strait and entered the Red Sea, the country's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Monday. Iranian warships have been operating in the region "to secure shipping lanes since 2009," Tasnim said. Iranian-backed groups have not reduced their attacks in the Middle East. On the opposite, pro-Iranian media sought to highlight how the attacks are increasing. Al-Mayadeen media, which is pro-Iran, claimed that there were attacks...

Iran is bringing together militias and proxies across the Middle East to attack Israel. Iran has been dictating the tempo of the conflict against Israel for more than a year. It began in the fall of 2022 to heat up threats in the West Bank using Palestinian Islamic Jihad. After seeking to empower this proxy group and fill a vacuum left by the failure of the Palestinian Security forces in Jenin, Iran then turned its attention to other fronts. Iran’s goal has been to “unify” the fronts or “arenas” against Israel. This means bringing together militias and proxies in numerous...

An analysis of the Israel-Hamas war by international strategic advisor Ayelet Frish IDF operation updates: Israeli Defense Forces continue to intensify the operation in Gaza this week from the ground, the air and the sea, taking hold of strategic Hamas outposts in the northern and southern regions of the Gaza Strip. Since the onset of the operation, the IDF has taken hold of Hamas’ parliament, its command-and-control centers and weapons facilities- most of which are embedded in civil infrastructure such as schools, mosques and residential buildings. In the Gaza City neighborhood of Shejaiya, IDF troops directed targeted airstrikes on Hamas...

If all traffic in the Suez Canal stopped, Egypt would lose about $13 million daily, disrupting its main foreign currency income. In light of the constant Houthi attacks on commercial vessels sailing near Yemen’s coasts, several shipping companies have announced in recent days that they will halt their ship flow through the Suez Canal until sailing in the Red Sea is safe again. If this domino-like trend continues, Egypt could face massive foreign currency income losses and devaluation of its currency. Furthermore, if the situation continues for long enough, alternative trade routes could become more frequented. Since the beginning of...

Yemenis support the Palestinian cause, but they are worried that the Houthi attacks on Israel and on ships in the Red Sea will lead to an economic crisis or a strike against Yemen, experts say. In the streets of Sanaa, Yemen's Houthi-controlled capital, support for the Palestinian cause is everywhere, with many cars displaying Palestinian flags, photos of Hamas spokesman Abu Obaida, or slogans showing support for the Palestinian people. The Houthis, who form the de facto authority in northern and western Yemen, are also showing their support in other ways, including launching direct missile and drone attacks against Israel...

The FTC reached a settlement with Rite Aid over its AI-powered surveillance system that agency said lacked consumer safeguards In a complaint filed in federal court, the FTC argued that Rite Aid used AI-based facial recognition tools to identify customers who may have engaged in shoplifting or other problematic behavior. The agency said that Rite Aid failed to put in place safeguards to protect employees who were falsely accused of wrongdoing because the facial recognition technology mistakenly flagged them as matching someone previously identified as a shoplifter or other troublemaker. The FTC said the facial recognition system "generated thousands of...

In post-pandemic times, many employers and companies are continuing to mandate a return to the office for their workers — and some employees are responding with a particular form of pushback. First, there was the trend "quiet quitting," in which workers did the bare minimum on the job just to get by — and now, say workplace leaders and experts, there’s "coffee badging," another form of employee protest. What is ‘coffee badging’? As some employees are being called back to the office, many are subtly protesting by returning to the office for as little time as possible, Frank Weishaupt, CEO...

San Francisco was cleaned up for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit for the APEC Summit in November Less than a month after Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, San Francisco is reverting to a den of homelessness and drugs, according to locals. "It's recognizable. San Francisco, same as before. Anyone they pushed out of important zones has just slowly crept right back in," Crossfit Golden Gate Gym owner Danielle Rabkin said on "Varney & Co" Tuesday. In November, President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jingping met during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit (APEC) in...

The IDF struck over 250 terror targets in ground, aerial and naval operations across the Strip over the past 24 hours. Dozens of Hamas terrorists lost contact with the terror group's leadership, leaving them with no option but to lay down their weapons and surrender to Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip, Army Radio reported on Sunday morning. After images of stripped terrorists in Jabalya and Khan Yunis circulated on social media, reports emerged that the IDF is "identifying changes in Hamas leadership's conduct." A security source told Army Radio that Hamas's senior leaders, thought to have fled to Khan...

Gaza’s water, soil and air have been devastated. And reconstruction will add to the carbon emissions. ---Snip From polluted water supplies to toxic smoke-filled air from burning buildings and bodies, every aspect of life in Gaza is now filled with some form of pollution. “On the ground, this war has destroyed every aspect of Gaza’s environment,” Nada Majdalani, the Ramallah-based Palestine director for EcoPeace Middle East, told Al Jazeera. Here’s a look at how the unstoppable bombardment of the enclave could further affect climate change in a region that has already seen temperatures increase, with projections of a 4 degrees...

The security establishment is bracing for imminent military achievements against Hamas, which are expected to weaken the grip of both Sinwar and Mohammed Deif on their ground forces. A senior security official, in a confidential briefing, shared insights on the escalated efforts to locate Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas. The official revealed, "There is a significant intelligence effort underway to track down Sinwar," emphasizing his misjudgment of the IDF's strength and his shock at recent military actions in Shifa. Security forces are now focusing on the southern Gaza Strip, with an expectation that operations in areas like Khan Yunis...

Iran also claims the US is holding the UN Security Council hostage to prevent wider condemnation of Israel’s war against Hamas. Iran’s foreign ministry slammed the US in a series of statements on Monday. The Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani claimed the US is now a party to the war in Gaza because the US has supplied Israel with munitions. Iran also claims the US is holding the UN Security Council hostage to prevent wider condemnation of Israel’s war against Hamas. Iran backs Hamas and has had meetings with Hamas leadership since October 7. Iran also backs militias in...

Iran’s IRGC leader gave a speech providing insight into the Iran regime’s prophecies about Israel and the US being defeated. In a new speech Saturday by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps head Hossein Salami, he claimed that the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas is a step towards the defeat of Israel and the US. He made the speech in Tehran during a large anti-Israel rally. The comments by Salami predicting the defeat of Israel and the US are typical of his speeches. However, the October 7 Hamas attack and massacre has created a new drive by Iran to carry...

Iran does not recognize Israel's existence, while Israel has long threatened military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to curb its disputed nuclear activity. Iran's supreme leader delivered a clear message to the head of Hamas when they met in Tehran in early November, according to three senior officials: You gave us no warning of your Oct. 7 attack on Israel and we will not enter the war on your behalf. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Ismail Haniyeh that Iran - a longtime backer of Hamas - would continue to lend the group its political and moral support, but wouldn't intervene...

There have been regular demonstrations in cities across Europe in recent weeks to show support for Gaza's Palestinians. Dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters blocked the entrances to a BAE Systems factory in southeast England on Friday, targeting Britain's biggest military supplier to call for an end to arms sales to Israel. Holding up a sign saying "Stop Arming Israel" and waving Palestinian flags, about 50 people stood in front of one entrance at the Rochester, Kent, site, where BAE tests and assembles electronic equipment used on military aircraft and in surveillance systems. Tens of protesters gathered at other entrances. Direct or...

The key leaders in Iran’s efforts are President Ibrahim Raisi and chief diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. Iran is trying to leverage its foreign policy and diplomatic connections to isolate Israel in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack. Hamas and other terrorists massacred 1,400 people. In the month that followed, Iran encouraged its proxies in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen to attack Israel and also to attack US forces. Now, after dozens of attacks in Iraq and Syria on US forces, and numerous missile attacks from Yemen and Lebanon by the Houthis and Hezbollah against Israel, Iran is shifting gears....

"The Accords are our future," stressed Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi. The Abraham Accords are not at risk amid the war between Israel and Hamas, said Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, chairman of the Defense, Interior, and Foreign Affairs Committee of the United Arab Emirates Federal National Council on Tuesday, according to the European Jewish Press. “This the third war in Gaza. Whenever there is something happening in Gaza, people come to us and ask: ‘What do you think of the Abraham Accords. Are you going to change?’” said Nuaimi in comments to a special online briefing organized by the...

Marzouk also said that protecting Gazan civilians is the responsibility of the United Nations and Israel. Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk said that the tunnels built by Hamas are meant to protect and hold terrorists, and not civilians, in an interview that was translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute. "We have built the tunnels because we have no other way of protecting ourselves from being targeted and killed," he claimed. "These tunnels are meant to protect us from airplanes. We are fighting inside the tunnels." Marzouk's statements were in response to questions about why Hamas constructed over 500...