Iran’s direct hit: On Saturday night, Iran launched 300 drones and missiles at Israel; the vast majority were intercepted. Damage appears to be minimal, but a few dozen people were injured and some damage was sustained at an Israeli military base in the Negev desert.
The attack was in retaliation for Israel’s April 1 strike in Syria that hit an Iranian consular compound and killed three senior commanders and four officers reportedly responsible for helping dictate the country’s military strategy. Iran. “Israeli officials said the building was a Revolutionary Guards outpost, making it a legitimate military target,” according to The New York Times.
Israel knew that Iran’s retaliation was coming. In preparation for Iran’s possible move, THE Wall Street Journal The US military had reportedly redeployed several warships, including a destroyer carrying the Aegis missile defense system. President Joe Biden was on Friday asked about Iran’s timing and whether he had any messages for its leaders. “My expectation is as soon as possible,” he said, in response to the first question. And on the second he didn’t mince his words, telling the Iranian government: “Don’t do it.”
Israel has primarily used the Arrow 3 defense system, which stops ballistic missiles outside the planet’s atmosphere, as opposed to the more frequently used Iron Dome. Allies helped shoot down missiles and drones, including US fighter jets – which destroyed more than 70 drones – and redeployed warships, which shot down several missiles.
Now Israel is considering its next move. Aggressive retaliation could raise the possibility of all-out war in the Middle East, which would involve the United States in some way. While a direct attack, not a proxy attack, is alarming, Iran has done relatively little damage, perhaps intentionally.
“I think Iran is very worried about what would happen next if they were too effective,” said Gen. Joseph L. Votel, former leader of the U.S. Army Central Command. The New York Times. “The advance notification of what they were doing seems a little interesting to me.”
Some Israeli military sources, however, rejected this idea: 300 missiles and drones were at the extreme limit of the intended range, and Iran did not necessarily expect the Arrow 3 system to work so well.
Iran sent hitmen against journalists: At the end of March the Persian journalist Pouria Zeraati, chief presenter of Iran International, was attacked outside her home in south-west London by men who appear to have been sent by the Iranian government, angered by Zeraati’s criticism of the regime and her platform targeting Iranian figures. opposition e Mahsa protested leaders.
“With all the murders and chaos the Islamic Republic causes within and beyond its borders, the fortunately unsuccessful attempts on the lives of Rushdie and my friends at Iran International might seem secondary. But the fact that such attacks could take place on Western soil, in leafy Wimbledon or quiet Chautauqua, makes them especially heartbreaking.” writes Arash Azizi for The Atlantic. “The Iranian regime clearly feels threatened by the journalism of exiled journalists breaking its monopoly on the truth.”
Iran faced internal unrest throughout 2022 and 2023 following the death of Mahsa Amini while in government custody. The morality police had beaten Amini for wearing her hijab improperly, and his death sparked protests across the country, many of which were brutally suppressed. Internet blackouts were among the tools used to end dissent. But the recent attack on expatriate journalists on Western soil indicates how much the regime fears, and seeks to eradicate, the spread of information.
Trump on trial: The first criminal trial of a former American president begins today in Lower Manhattan, with jury selection.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has charged former President Donald Trump with 34 felonies related to falsifying documents related to hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. Trump is expected to appear in court most days. For the next two weeks or so, the jury will be selected — a somewhat daunting task in blue New York and with such a polarizing figure as Donald Trump. Judge Juan Merchan has imposed a gag order, so the former president will not be allowed to verbally harass jurors, prosecutors, witnesses or the judge’s family.
If convicted, Trump could face up to four years in prison. His other pending criminal cases are all behind schedule, but he has numerous legal challenges to pass, not to mention some $500 million in civil judgments to shell out. Oh, and he’s still running for president.
Expect spectacle, several months of battery life and, if you drive a lot in Manhattan, as I do, some miserable traffic. Don’t expect voters’ opinions to change much based on the verdict.
Scenes from Corpus Christi: This past weekend I moderated the Libertarian Party of Texas presidential debate between four candidates: Chase Oliver, Lars Mapstead, Mike ter Maat, and Michael Rectenwald. My father, who lives in Austin, was my driver and endured his first Libertarian Party event with grace. Thanks Dad! (Also: Peep RFK Jr.’s fanfare in the lobby.)
QUICK SHOTS
- Moreover Reasoners in Texas this past weekend: Nick Gillespie did the Lord’s work and defended the value of immigration alongside Ann Coulter and Sohrab Ahmari. It’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it:
We had a lot of fun #Dallas last night at @TheFIREorg / @TheFP debate on closing American borders @AnnCoulter, @SohrabAhmari, @bariweissAND @cenkuygur! Do you want to know something beautiful about America? Only one person on stage has a family history dating back… pic.twitter.com/nm0sxqVQ8V
— Nick Gillespie (@nickgillespie) April 12, 2024
- Andrea Beck he wrote In First things on Brendan Eich’s cancel culture case,”who ten years ago was attacked and kicked out of Mozilla, a company he co-founded, for taking private civic action based on his silent Christian faith.” Eich was “a visionary technologist whose work has made the web a more accessible, free, and enjoyable experience for all,” but his donations against California’s same-sex marriage initiative led to career ruin.
- Last week, Chicago police officers shot and killed a 26-year-old black man named Dexter Reed, who had reportedly fired first at them, during a traffic stop. A gun was recovered from Reed’s car, and one of the responding police officers was wounded by one of the shots fired by Reed. It doesn’t look like a normal police killing of an innocent man, but some media and activists have omitted context about what happened between Reed and the officers.
- CBS is, hilariously, launching a counter-misinformation unit called CBS News Confirmed, led by Melissa Mahtani. Just take a brief look at Mahtani X power supply to get an idea of how liberal it is in terms of garden variety. I wonder if obvious partisanship should be disqualifying for ombudsman-type roles; it’s not as if journalists, units and disinformation/disinformation czars have a great track record.
- “If you care about your damn country, read Ludwig von Mises and the six lessons of the Austrian school of economics, you motherfuckers,” Brazilian MMA fighter Renato Moicano said over the weekend after yet another UFC win.
- A Strange Friday ongoing situation: “Polls show that former President Donald Trump is ascendant among the younger bloc of the electorate, even leading President Joe Biden in some polls, while less engaged young voters despise Biden,” reports Politic. “Meanwhile, Biden is stronger with seniors than he was four years ago, even as his personal image has declined significantly since he was last elected.”
- Honestly, the thing about young people trying to suffocate doesn’t shock me. But I’m shocked that Midwesterners are also declining.