RR The Wire 2100Z November 16, 2023

PRECEDENCE: ROUTINE RR

DTG: 210016Z NOV 23

ICOD: 200016Z NOV 23

CONTROLS: Public Release

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BLUF: ATF BANS PYROTECHNICS. APEC SUMMIT CONTINUES.

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-International Events-

Middle East Front: In Gaza the information war continues, effectively restricting the overwhelming majority of information regarding the situation on the ground. In Gaza City, Israel has reportedly captured al Shifa hospital. AC: Al Shifa hospital is the largest medical center in Gaza, and according to IDF officials was allegedly the “beating heart” of Hamas’ operations and intelligence for the entirety of Gaza. For years, Israel has touted that Hamas maintained a large bunker complex beneath the hospital. Israeli officials are certain of the exitance of this complex because Israel built it in 1983. Following the raid on the hospital, Israel released photos of the SSE that strongly indicate that only 10 rifles have been found so far in this vast underground complex.

European Front: The Guardian removes Bin Laden’s Letter to America from their website, which was posted to their website over 20 years ago. This letter went viral on TikTok a few days ago, resulting in the removal of this document due to the implications contained in the text. Note on sources: The “Letter to America” that has been mentioned in several viral videos is not the “Letter to America” that was taken down. Bin Laden wrote multiple open letters to the American public, and many of the viral videos mention one of his final letters, which mentions Obama being president, and therefore cannot be a 20 year old document. The letter that was removed by The Guardian was Bin Laden’s first letter, which has completely different content. The removed letter can be found (for now) via the Internet Archive.

-HomeFront-

Washington D.C. – In a declaration dated November 2, but is just now becoming public, The ATF issued a blanket ban on all consumer smoke grenades and civilian flashbang devices.

CA: Demonstrators gather in San Fransisco in support of Xi Jinping and the CCP during the APEC Summit. Though unconfirmed ATT, limited reporting indicates many of these supporters may have been paid by Chinese diplomats to show support for Jinping.

-Analyst Comments-

From time to time, historical events resurface to the public consciousness, much like Bin Laden’s Letter to America has done in the past few days. Unfortunately, the lack of critical thinking on most of social media, coupled with the wrong document being discussed, has resulted in many analytical leaps regarding Bin Laden’s legacy.

Regarding the recent ATF actions, in usual fashion the ATF’s declaration is extremely vague and subjective. It is unclear as to how this ban will affect maritime safety devices, which are mandated by the USCG on most classes of vessel. It is also unclear as to how this will affect consumer grade fireworks, the HVAC repair industry, or the film industry due to the vague wording on potential exemptions. The ban is probably intended for “tactical”-style devices, but due to the lack of forethought and contradictory stance characteristic of the ATF, the potentially wide-ranging effects of this ban are currently unknown.

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Analyst: S2A

END REPORT

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