Iran's direct hit: On Saturday night, Iran launched 300 drones and missiles at Israel; the vast majority were intercepted. The damage appears to be minimal, but a few dozen people have reported injuries and some damage has been sustained at an Israeli military base in the Negev Desert.
The attack was a retaliation for an April 1 Israeli strike in Syria that struck an Iranian consulate complex and killed three senior commanders and four officers reportedly responsible for helping to dictate Iran's military strategy. "Israeli officials said the building was an outpost of the Revolutionary Guards, making it a legitimate military target," per The New York Times.
Israel knew Iran's retaliation was coming. In preparation for Iran's possible move, The Wall Street Journal reports, the U.S. military had repositioned several warships, including one destroyer reportedly carrying the Aegis missile-defense system. On Friday, President Joe Biden was asked about Iran's timing, and whether he had any message for its leaders. "My expectation is sooner than later," he said, in response to the first question. And he minced no words on the second, saying to Iran's government: "Don't."
Israel mostly used the Arrow 3 defense system, which halts ballistic missiles outside of the planet's atmosphere, as opposed to the more frequently used Iron Dome. Allies helped shoot down missiles and drones, including U.S. fighter jets—which destroyed 70-plus drones—and the repositioned warships, which shot down several missiles.
Now Israel is weighing its next move. Aggressive retaliation could increase the possibility of all-out war in the Middle East—which would include U.S. involvement in some form. Though a direct attack, not through proxies, is alarming, Iran did relatively little damage, possibly by design.
"I think Iran is very concerned about what comes next if they were too effective," Gen. Joseph L. Votel, a former leader of the U.S. military's Central Command, told The New York Times. "The early notification of what they were doing seems a little interesting to me."
Some Israeli military sources have pushed back on this idea, though: 300 missiles and drones was at the far end of the expected range, and Iran did not necessarily expect the Arrow 3 system to work as well as it did.
Iran sent hit men after journalists: At the end of March, the Persian journalist Pouria Zeraati, lead anchor for Iran International, was attacked outside of his home in southwestern London by men who appear to have been sent by the government of Iran, angered by Zeraati's critiques of the regime and his platforming of opposition figures and Mahsa protest leaders.
"With all the murder and mayhem that the Islamic Republic causes inside and outside its borders, the thankfully unsuccessful attempts on the lives of Rushdie and my friends from Iran International might seem secondary. But the fact that such attacks could take place on Western soil, in leafy Wimbledon or sedate Chautauqua, makes them especially harrowing," writes Arash Azizi for The Atlantic. "Iran's regime clearly feels threatened by the journalism of exiled reporters who break its monopoly on truth."
Iran faced domestic turmoil over the course of 2022 and 2023 following the death in government custody of Mahsa Amini. The morality police had beaten Amini for wearing her hijab improperly, and her death set off protests throughout the country, many of which were brutally suppressed. Internet blackouts were among the tools deployed to end dissent. But the recent targeting of expat 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 commences today in lower Manhattan, with jury selection.
Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, has charged former President Donald Trump with 34 felonies related to falsifying records of hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. Trump is expected to appear most days in court. For the next two or so weeks, the jury will be selected—a bit of a tough 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 permitted to verbally go after 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 delayed, but he has multiple legal ordeals to jump through, not to mention some $500 million in civil judgments to fork over. Oh, and he's still running for president.
Expect spectacle, several months of runtime, and—if you drive into Manhattan a lot, as I do—some miserable traffic. Do not expect voters' opinions to change much at all 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 dad, who lives in Austin, served as my chauffeur and graciously endured his first Libertarian Party event. Thanks, Dad! (Also: Peep the RFK Jr. fanfare in the lobby.)
QUICK HITS
- More Reasoners in Texas this past weekend: Nick Gillespie did the Lord's work and defended the value of immigration opposite Ann Coulter and Sohrab Ahmari. It's a dirty job, but someone's gotta do it:
Had a phenomenal time in #Dallas last night at the @TheFIREorg / @TheFP debate about shutting America's borders with @AnnCoulter, @SohrabAhmari, @bariweiss, and @cenkuygur! You want to know something great about America? Only one person on the stage has a family history dating… pic.twitter.com/nm0sxqVQ8V
— Nick Gillespie (@nickgillespie) April 12, 2024
- Andrew Beck wrote in First Things about the early cancel-culture case of Brendan Eich, "who ten years ago was attacked and chased out of Mozilla, a company he co-founded, for taking private civic action based upon his quiet Christian faith." Eich was "a visionary technologist whose work had made the web a more accessible, free, and enjoyable experience for everyone," but his donations against the same-sex marriage initiative in California led to career ruin.
- Last week, Chicago police officers shot and killed a 26-year-old black man named Dexter Reed, who had reportedly shot first at them, during a traffic stop. A gun was recovered from Reed's car, and one of the responding police officers was allegedly injured by one of the shots Reed fired. It doesn't look like your standard police killing of an innocent man, but some media organizations and activists have been leaving out context about what transpired between Reed and the officers.
- CBS is, hilariously, launching a misinformation-fighting unit called CBS News Confirmed, helmed by Melissa Mahtani. It takes only a brief glance at Mahtani's X feed to get a sense of just how much of a garden variety liberal she is. I wonder whether obvious partisanship should be disqualifying for ombudsman-type roles; it's not like misinformation/disinformation reporters, units, and czars have a great track record.
- "If you care about your fucking country, read Ludwig von Mises and the six lessons of the Austrian economic school, motherfuckers," said Brazilian MMA fighter Renato Moicano over the weekend after yet another UFC win.
- A Freaky Friday situation in the works: "Polls show former President Donald Trump is ascendant with the youngest bloc of the electorate, even leading President Joe Biden in some surveys, as less-engaged young voters spurn Biden," reports Politico. "Meanwhile, Biden is stronger with seniors than he was four years ago, even as his personal image is significantly diminished since he was elected last time."
- Honestly, the young-people-try-choking thing doesn't shock me. But I am shocked that even the Midwesterners are down.
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