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Thursday, January 25, 2024

1/25 WAKE-UP CALL: The General Election Is Underway

Donald Trump and President Biden say the general election has begun, as Nikki Haley looks to keep her primary campaign afloat. The former U.N. Ambassador and the super PAC backing her signaled she would continue battling the former president, including in the Feb. 24 South Carolina primary, though he won yesterday’s New Hampshire primary by double digits. South Carolina is Haley’s native state, which she served as governor, but she trails Trump by more than 30 points in the polling average there. Her strategy includes fresh fundraising efforts and an initial $4 million ad buy in the Palmetto State. Trump’s resounding New Hampshire victory showed some warning signs for November. He risks losing enough Republicans and a substantial share of independent voters to hurt him as a general-election candidate.

➤ISRAEL WAGES NEW BATTLE: The Israeli military said it was pushing into the west of Khan Younis and was engaged in fierce fighting with some of Hamas’s strongest fighters after encircling the southern Gaza city, where the population has swelled by hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians. Israel said Wednesday it was targeting Hamas militants using snipers, tanks and aerial fire and was aiming to destroy complex tunnel networks and infrastructure used by the group. Israeli officials say they believe that inside the city are Hamas’s leadership and Israeli hostages, whom Israeli officials are seeking to free in part through military pressure on Hamas. The military thrust into Khan Younis reflects a new phase in the war as Israel shifts to urban fighting that is more time consuming and dangerous for its troops. About two dozen Israeli troops were killed in central and southern Gaza on Monday in the deadliest day for the military in Gaza since the war began on Oct. 7, according to the Israeli military.

➤RUSSIAN MILITARY JET CRASHED CARRYING 65 POWs: A Russian military plane with 74 people aboard, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, crashed on Wednesday in Russia’s Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said. There were no survivors, according to Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the crash, though Russia accused Ukraine of shooting down the plane. 

Russia's Defense Ministry said it was investigating the crash, which came as Ukraine was marking the 700th day since the start of Moscow's full-scale invasion.

➤U-S RESPONDS TO MISSILE ATTACK: Houthi militants fired three anti-ship ballistic missiles Wednesday at an American-owned and operated cargo ship in the Red Sea, defying a U.S.-led military effort to prevent attacks on commercial shipping. Two of the missiles aimed at the Maersk Detroit were shot down by the USS Gravely, a guided missile destroyer, and the third fell into the sea, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command. The attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis followed a joint strike Monday in Yemen by U.S. and Great Britain warplanes and ships. The Houthis have launched more than 40 attacks from Yemen since November in what they maintain is a reaction to Israel’s invasion of Gaza.


➤IRAN SENDING SOPHISTICATED WEAPONS: Iran is sending increasingly sophisticated weapons to its Houthi allies in Yemen, Western officials and advisers say. Rebels’ missile and drone assaults on merchantmen and U.S. warships in the Red Sea, which they say are retaliation for the Israel-Hamas war, have prompted two weeks of American and British counterattacks. The attacks have disrupted international commerce. The Israeli military said it was engaged in fierce fighting in Gaza targeting Hamas militants as hostage talks regained momentum. Meanwhile, Israel and Ukraine both need 155mm artillery shells, raising the question of whether U.S. and other global arms suppliers can cope with the demand.

🛫BOEING 737-9 MAX TO RETURN TO THE SKY: Following an explosive decompression of an Alaska Airlines Max 9 on Jan. 5, the FAA ordered 171 of the jets out of the skies until inspections could be performed on their mid-cabin door plugs, one of which was installed improperly and ripped away inflight in the Alaska incident. “We grounded the Boeing 737-9 MAX within hours of the incident over Portland and made clear this aircraft would not go back into service until it was safe,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement. “The exhaustive, enhanced review our team completed after several weeks of information gathering gives me and the FAA confidence to proceed to the inspection and maintenance phase. 


➤ALABAMA EXECUTION STIRS ETHICAL CONTROVERSY: On Thursday, Alabama is set to carry out the first-ever execution by nitrogen hypoxia on death row inmate Kenneth Eugene Smith. The planned execution raises heated questions about the ethics of using the untried method to execute Smith, who has already been through one unsuccessful execution attempt. If the execution is carried out, nitrogen hypoxia would be the first new method used since 1982, when lethal injection was introduced.  Why is it controversial? Nitrogen hypoxia is a form of execution in which an inmate is deprived of oxygen until they breathe only nitrogen, causing asphyxiation. "But the terms of how it's going to exactly work is still unclear," said Joel Zivot, an associate professor in anesthesiology. 

➤CALIFORNIA WOMAN WHO GOT HIGH AND STABBED BOYFRIEND 108 TIMES WILL NOT GO PRISON: A California woman who fell into a pot-fueled psychosis after getting high on drugs and stabbed her boyfriend 108 times before slicing her own neck as police tried to stop her will not serve any prison time, a judge has ruled. Jurors found Bryn Spejcher, a 32-year-old from Ventura County, guilty in December of involuntary manslaughter after she stabbed her boyfriend Chad O'Melia 108 times while high on cannabis.  The stabbing took place overnight between May 27 and 28 in 2018, at O'Melia's apartment in Thousand Oaks, according to prosecutors.

🏈JIM HARBAUGH LEAVES MICHIGAN TO BE CHARGERS HEAD COACH: Jim Harbaugh is leaving his position as the head coach of the national champion Michigan Wolverines to join the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers announced the hiring, revealing that Harbaugh's deal is for five years. Harbaugh expressed his commitment to earning success with the Chargers, emphasizing the organization's efforts in investing capital and building infrastructure to achieve their goals.

🏀DOC RIVERS AGREES TO DEAL TO BE BUCKS' COACH, SOURCES SAY: Doc Rivers has agreed in principle to become the next coach of the Milwaukee Bucks after a brief courtship. Rivers, an ESPN NBA analyst and former coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, emerged as the top target following the dismissal of Adrian Griffin. The negotiations concluded with an agreement on a deal after extensive discussions on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

🏈EAGLES' NICK SIRIANNI VOWS TO 'RE-PROVE' SELF AFTER TEAM'S COLLAPSE: Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni hinted at changes in the offensive coaching structure after the team's late-season collapse. In a news conference with general manager Howie Roseman, held nine days after a playoff loss to the Buccaneers, Sirianni expressed the need to "re-prove" himself entering his fourth year as head coach. The Eagles experienced a downturn with six losses in seven games following a strong 10-1 start to the season.

➤THURSDAY'S WEATHER MAP: 



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