RR The Wire 2000Z November 09, 2023

PRECEDENCE: ROUTINE RR

DTG: 200009Z NOV 23

ICOD: 193009Z NOV 23

CONTROLS: Public Release

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BLUF: WAR CONTINUES IN GAZA. POLITICAL TARGETING RAMPS UP AROUND THE WORLD.

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-International Events-

European Front: In Spain, prominent politician Alejo Vidal-Quadras, the founder of the far-right (by Spanish standards) VOX party was shot in the head on the street in Madrid. He remains in critical condition at a local hospital. This incident came a few hours after he tweeted his opposition to the formation of a coalition government between the Socialist Party and the Junts, that allowed for Pedro Sanchez (the leader of the Socialist Party) to remain Prime Minister under the new coalition government.

Middle East Front: President Biden states there is “no possibility” for a ceasefire in Gaza. However, Israel has allegedly implemented a daily 4-hour “humanitarian pause” in which citizens of Gaza City are expected to flee south through the previously described humanitarian corridor. AC: As of right now, it is not clear as to what this “pause” is supposed to do, or if it is the same announcement from a few days ago, as the humanitarian corridor that was established days ago has not resulted in any marked cessation of the targeting of civilians. Israel continues to strike clearly marked UN facilities, hospitals, schools, and aid convoys in and near the pre-established Salah al-Din Road “humanitarian” corridor. Conversely, Hamas remains committed to insurgency-style warfare, complicating the situation on the ground even further.

-HomeFront-

TX: Sarah Fields, a journalist for The Publica, continues to face targeting by the FBI for her journalistic efforts to expose a Hamas training camp that was recently active near the US/Mexico border. Her sources for this reporting are confidential, but allegedly Hamas maintained a sophisticated training camp in Matamoros, Mexico in which militants would receive training before infiltrating across the US border to serve as sleeper agents. This camp was allegedly shut down in 2022. AC: The nature of FBI involvement is reportedly not to obtain more information on this training camp, but to determine how the journalist obtained this information, as well as wanting to know the names of Field’s sources.

-Analyst Comments-

Uncomfortable truths are becoming very difficult to ignore as the war in Gaza remains extremely intense. Atmospherics from within the UN indicate exasperation at the futility of establishing even the most basic humanitarian efforts in Gaza. What is going on in Gaza right now fits the definition of Total War, in which no aspect of a population is spared from the conflict, and unrestricted warfare tactics are the norm. Total War in a Counter-Insurgency (COIN) environment results in mostly civilian casualties. For instance, more civilians have been killed in Gaza in 30 days, than were killed in the past 20 months of the Ukrainian War (per UN data).The failure of a populace to understand this importance and severity is likely to result in no hesitation from political world leaders in continuing this war.

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Analyst: S2A

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