One was killed and at least nine wounded in a terror attack after shots were heard at the Beersheba Central Bus Station in southern Israel on Sunday, the police said, qualifying the incident as a terror attack.

Magen David Adom (MDA) said its paramedics were providing medical treatment at the scene to nine individuals who had been wounded with various degrees of injuries, with reports of more.

The young woman who was critically injured succumbed to her wounds at the hospital. She was later identified as 19-year-old Israel Border Police Cpl. Shira Chaya Suslik from Beersheba; she leaves behind her parents and three siblings.

In addition, MDA said it was transferring to the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba two people in serious condition, four people in moderate condition, and two individuals who had been lightly wounded.

According to Israeli media reports, the terrorist was believed to be Ahmad Said Suliman al-Ukabi, a 29-year-old Israeli citizen of Bedouin background.

“We provided initial treatment at the scene to a young woman who was seriously injured and was later transported to the hospital,” United Hatzalah updated.

“We treated another woman who was in critical condition and four people who were moderately and lightly to moderately injured. In addition, we assisted at the scene several people who suffered from emotional shock due to the nature of the incident.”

Condemnations across the spectrum

Following the attack, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the deportation of the terrorist despite his Israeli citizenship and his family, according to Israeli media.

“I call on the Prime Minister to pass the law we proposed today to deport families of terrorists. Pass the law of deporting families of terrorists,” he qualified this by saying,

“There are many Bedouins loyal to the state, but there are some who are not. Those who are unfaithful should be dealt with firmly.”

Mansour Abbas, head of Raam (United Arab List), condemned the attack, saying, “This is not the way of the Arab citizens who knew how to show a moral and legal civic commitment and abhor any kind of violence, and reject any attempt to drag them to participate in acts of political violence.”

The Forum of the Heads of the Bedouin Authorities in the Negev strongly condemned the attack and said it did not reflect human or moral values in the Bedouin community and is in complete contradiction to the common principles of life and peace.

They also warned that we should not allow any “extremist party/group” to take advantage of the situation to deepen societal rifts and sow division between the two peoples and called for increased cooperation and cohesion against terrorism.

Minnesota governor Tim Walz appeared on Fox News Sunday for an adversarial interview after his unsteady vice presidential debate performance this past week.

Walz went back and forth with Fox News host Shannon Bream on a range of subjects, including his governing record on illegal immigration and well-documented history of misstatements about his life.

Under Walz, Minnesota allows illegal immigrants to receive government benefits such as free tuition at state universities and free health care if they enroll in a program meant for low-income residents.

Bream, citing a Wall Street Journal story on Walz’s immigration record, pressed him on those programs and his justification for giving taxpayer-funded benefits to illegal immigrants.

“Are those not magnets to draw people here, many times on dangerous journeys for themselves, and why should your taxpayers in Minnesota or across the states pay for those programs?” Bream asked.

Watch:

🚨 Walz DEFENDS signing into law free driver’s licenses, free college, and free health care for illegal immigrants: “Minnesota ranks as a top five business state!”

This is what’s to come in a Harris-Walz administration — paid for by taxpayers, while citizens come last. pic.twitter.com/J6iMb0W2pj

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 6, 2024

“Well that’s not the vice president’s position,” Walz said, in a reference to Kamala Harris, who selected him in August to be her running mate on the Democratic presidential ticket.

“Minnesota ranks as a top five business state. We rank as a top three state for children-living and we’re the top state for health care access. I would also add this: we also have some of the safest roads,” Walz added.

Towards the end of the interview, Bream gave Walz a chance to respond to the misstatements he has made on details about his life, including his military service, the fertility treatment he and his wife used, and where he was during China’s Tiananmen Square crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1989.

“A lot of people would say they couldn’t get away with saying ‘I’m just too passionate. My grammar’s not right. I’m just a knucklehead.’ What do you say to the American people who think I don’t know that I can trust this guy with all those modifications to be the potential commander-in-chief of this country?” Bream inquired, after Fox displayed a graphic listing the topics Walz has lied about.

Tim Walz on his litany of lies, including Stolen Valor, his DUI arrest being the result of hearing damage, and being in Hong Kong for the Tiananmen Square massacre: “I don’t think people care.”

25 seconds later: “I will own up when I misspeak.” pic.twitter.com/Yx0yAKSxzs

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 6, 2024

“Well I think they heard me, they heard me the other night speaking passionately about gun violence and misspeaking. And I got to be honest with you Shannon, I don’t think people care whether I used IUI or IVF when we talk about this. What they understand is Donald Trump would resist those things,” Walz replied.

“I have never disparaged someone else in this but I know that’s not what Donald Trump does. They disparage everyone, personal attacks. I will own up when I misspeak. I will own up when I make a mistake.”

Walz’s interview on Fox follows his up-and-down vice presidential debate performance against Senator J. D. Vance (R., Ohio), former president Donald Trump’s running mate on the Republican ticket. Vance’s poise during the debate and deep policy knowledge drew widespread praise and polls appeared to show that the American people believed he won the debate.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre is facing heavy criticism after sending mixed messages on whether the Biden-Harris administration has been using FEMA resources to support migrants last week.

Jean-Pierre flatly denied that FEMA resources were going to migrants in a press conference last week, but she stated the opposite when asked about the issue in the fall of 2022.

“Former President Trump is accusing the Biden administration of using FEMA funding to support undocumented migrants. How is the White House responding to that?” a reporter asked during a Friday press conference.

“I mean, it’s just categorically false. It is not true. It is a false statement,” Jean-Pierre responded, going on to cite a Washington Post fact-check article on the subject.

Social media critics then compared her statement to comments made in 2022, where she appeared to explicitly state that FEMA resources were available to illegal immigrants.

Watch:

She just straight up lied yesterday.

Could someone get Glenn Kessler on the phone? pic.twitter.com/Z17AF6COZG

— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) October 5, 2024

She made the statement during a Sept. 16, 2022, press conference when Jean-Pierre was asked about assisting cities in handling the busloads of migrants being sent across the country from Texas.

“FEMA Regional Administrators have been meeting with city officials on site to coordinate — to coordinate available federal support from FEMA and other federal agencies,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at the time.

“Funding is also available through FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter program to eligible local governments and not-for-profit organizations upon request to support humanitarian relief for migrants,” she added.

Scrutiny on the Biden-Harris administration’s use of FEMA funds comes amid catastrophic flooding in North Carolina. Vice President Kamala Harris announced a $100 million package to support the state.

Today, I announced that the Biden-Harris Administration will provide $100 million to repair I-40, a major artery for western North Carolina.

We will stand with North Carolina and every state affected by this storm for the long haul. pic.twitter.com/tk8qXoUI9S

— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) October 6, 2024

Critics pointed out, however, that the package was much smaller than the $157 million in foreign humanitarian support Harris had announced for Lebanon the same day.

“The people of Lebanon are facing an increasingly dire humanitarian situation. I am concerned about the security and well-being of civilians suffering in Lebanon and will continue working to help meet the needs of all civilians there,” she wrote on X.

“To that end, the United States will provide nearly $157 million in additional assistance to the people of Lebanon for essential needs such as food, shelter, water, protection, and sanitation to help those who have been displaced by the recent conflict. This additional support brings total U.S. assistance to Lebanon over the last year to over $385 million,” she added.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said during an interview over the weekend that there needed to be more regulation and censorship on the internet or else the government will lose “control.”

Clinton made the remarks during a Saturday appearance on CNN’s “Smerconish” with host Michael Smerconish while talking about social initiatives that Clinton wants to see society engage in.

“We can look at the state of California, the state of New York, I think some other states have also taken action,” Clinton began.

“But we need national action, and sadly, our Congress has been dysfunctional when it comes to addressing these threats to our children,” she said.

She said that the issue should be “at the top of every legislative political agenda.”

“We should be, in my view, repealing something called Section 230, which gave, you know, platforms on the internet immunity,” she said.

“Because they were thought to be just pass-throughs, that they shouldn’t be judged for the content that is posted.”

“But we now know that that was an overly simple view, that if the platforms, whether it’s Facebook or Twitter, X, or Instagram or Tiktok, whatever they are, if they don’t moderate and monitor the content, we lose total control,” she continued.

She said that the companies needed their immunity to be removed so that “guardrails” could be put into place.

Watch:

Hillary: “We should be in my view, repealing something called Section 230, which gave platforms on the internet immunity … Whether it‘s Facebook or Twitter or X or Instagram, or TikTok, whatever they are, if they don‘t moderate & monitor the content we lose total control” pic.twitter.com/s3ymPSIkBZ

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 5, 2024

“Take phones out of schools,” she added, an effort that has been spearheaded by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. “I’m so happy to see schools beginning to do that, where the kids turn their phone in when they walk in the door.”

“And guess what? Kids are paying better attention in class,” she added. “They are talking to each other in the lunchroom, things that used to be part of your daily life when you were a child in school.”

From swift hurricane response times and deploying disaster relief resources to other states to spearheading an independent investigation into the second Donald Trump assassination attempt, Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis is charting a roadmap for state governors to take important issues into their own hands in the face of perceived federal government inaction.

The popular Florida Republican and former presidential candidate has boldly governed during the Biden era, developing a hotbed of resistance to federal policies and set up his administration as a sharp contrast with the federal government bureaucracy.

After a narrow first election victory in 2018, DeSantis garnered fame for his anti-lockdown COVID-19 policies that left his state more open than a vast majority of the country. Now, he has moved on to challenging the federal government’s immigration policies and conducting an independent probe into a Trump assassination attempt at a time when many conservatives are losing faith in federal investigators.

Just last week, when Hurricane Helene devastated his home state and carved a swath of destruction across the Southeast, DeSantis coordinated a swift response and then ordered resources to deploy to North Carolina—a state hit hard by flooding—for search and rescue operations.

“Floundering federal establishment”

DeSantis’ recent actions have ensured that the former presidential candidate will not fade into obscurity during his last two years in office as the chief executive of the third largest state and hub of conservative resistance to the Biden Administration.

“Florida shows that results matter. We lead not by mere words, but by deeds,” DeSantis said in the address after winning a nearly 20-point election victory, a larger margin than any Florida gubernatorial candidate has received in forty years. DeSantis’ press secretary told Just the News that the governor’s second inaugural address sums up both his philosophy and motivation for taking those bold actions other executives may not.

At the time, DeSantis said that Florida was proof that a “floundering federal establishment in Washington, D.C.” did not dictate the success or failure of the individual states.

“It is often said that our federalist constitutional system—with fifty states able to pursue their own unique policies—represents a laboratory of democracy,” DeSantis said on the steps of the Florida Capitol.

“Now Florida’s success has been made more difficult by the floundering federal establishment in Washington, D.C.,” he added, criticizing government spending, high levels of illegal immigration, and the heavy-handed federal bureaucracy.

In many ways, DeSantis had taken more and bolder action than any governor, Republican or Democrat, across the country to take the reigns over policy in areas he believes the federal government has fallen short.

Using state resources

Most recently, DeSantis used state resources to come quickly to the aid of other Southeastern states in the face of what he insinuated was a slow response.

After Hurricane Helene slammed into Florida’s Gulf Coast causing significant damage and carving a path of destruction across the region, it cut a swath to western North Carolina, leaving the rural mountain counties and the city of Asheville the most severely damaged as the result of historic flooding.

After mobilizing resources to help his own state and restoring power to a majority his residents in only a few days, DeSantis contrasted his state’s response to a slower federal response in other suffering states.

“If you look at how this response went—the prep and the immediate response—this was overwhelmingly state and local, and that’s how we view it,” DeSantis said earlier this week. “We don’t want to be waiting on the feds. We want to be able to lean in.”

The governor touted how he was able to mobilize state resources to respond weeks before the Federal Emergency Management Agency would have been able to.

Operation Blue Ridge

After tending to his own backyard, DeSantis deployed his own Florida State and National Guard resources to help rescue and recovery efforts in North Carolina and Tennessee. This week he said the federal government should be more focused on getting resources to those states, where many are still stranded without reliable access to food or fresh water and the number of deaths is unknown.

Called Operation Blue Ridge, the governor said he wanted to “answer the call for Americans when the federal government fails to act.”

Last week the governor said he would deploy rescue and relief teams from the guardsmen under his authority and from the Florida Department of Emergency Management, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Fish and Wildlife Commission Division of Law Enforcement to participate in the relief effort.

One Florida guard member deployed to North Carolina told Fox News that he is observing a “failure of leadership” in the state, a void that DeSantis has worked to fill.

“There is a complete failure of leadership here in North Carolina and from the federal government,” the guardsman said in an interview with anchor Bill Hemmer. “And it takes my strong leadership in Florida to send us up here.”

“If it wasn’t for DeSantis… this [rescue] never would’ve happened,” he continued.

Days after DeSantis’ order, the Biden White House announced that President Biden ordered the deployment of up to 1,000 active-duty soldiers to aid in the disaster response, including distributing food and water to the impacted communities.

Lawfare against Trump

Last month, DeSantis also intervened in another matter, the second assassination attempt on former president and GOP nominee Donald Trump. The governor said his state has a “strong interest” in bringing the second Trump assassination attempt suspect to justice and signed an executive order to open an investigation independent from the federal government.

“The State of Florida has jurisdiction over the most serious, straightforward offense, which is attempted murder,” DeSantis explained at a press conference.

The suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh was arrested in Florida after his apparent attempt to shoot the former president at a golf course in Palm Beach. Federal prosecutors charged him with attempted assassination, possession of a firearm while a felon, and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

DeSantis also raised concerns that the federal agencies investigating the incident may have a conflict, considering the Department of Justice is currently prosecuting former President Trump in the same district for allegedly mishandling classified documents.

Trump praised DeSantis’ independent investigation in a rare positive statement since the Florida governor challenged him for the Republican nomination earlier this year.

“If the DOJ and FBI cannot do their job honestly and without bias, and hold the aspiring assassin responsible to the full extent of the Law, Governor Ron DeSantis and the State of Florida have already agreed to take the lead on the investigation and prosecution,” Trump posted to his Truth Social platform.

When the Biden administration started flying immigrants from the southern border into Florida under the cover of night, DeSantis strongly criticized federal immigration policy, calling it a “human smuggling operation.” His office said that during the summer of 2021 alone, his administration had recorded more than 70 of those flights, paid for with taxpayers’ money.

“A few weeks ago, one of those people that Biden dumped ended up committing a murder in northeast Florida,” DeSantis told the Fox News Channel. “So, these are crimes that would not have happened but for Biden’s recklessness.”

To combat the federal authorities dumping illegal immigrants in his state, DeSantis famously charted flights to sent migrants to liberal jurisdictions across the United States—most notoriously to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts.

Biden a “mere figurehead”

Other conservative governors followed in DeSantis’ footsteps with Greg Abbott,of Texas, and former Governor Doug Ducey, of Arizona sending immigrants to liberal-leaning and self-declared “sanctuary” towns and cities across the country.

“Biden is just a figurehead,” DeSantis told Republicans gathered at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this summer. “He’s a tool for imposing a leftist agenda on the American people. They support open borders, allowing millions and millions of illegal aliens to pour into our country and to burden our communities—but just don’t send any to Martha’s Vineyard, then they get really upset.”

In the initial sales pitch to Hezbollah two years ago, the new line of Apollo pagers seemed precisely suited to the needs of a militia group with a sprawling network of fighters and a hard-earned reputation for paranoia.

The AR924 pager was slightly bulky but rugged, built to survive battlefield conditions. It boasted a waterproof Taiwanese design and an oversized battery that could operate for months without charging. Best of all, there was no risk that the pagers could ever be tracked by Israel’s intelligence services.

Hezbollah’s leaders were so impressed they bought 5,000 of them and began handing them out to mid-level fighters and support personnel in February.

None of the users suspected they were wearing an ingeniously crafted Israeli bomb. And even after thousands of the devices exploded in Lebanon and Syria, few appreciated the pagers’ most sinister feature: a two-step de-encryption procedure that ensured most users would be holding the pager with both hands when it detonated.

As many as 3,000 Hezbollah officers and members — most of them rear-echelon figures — were killed or maimed, along with an unknown number of civilians, according to Israeli, U.S. and Middle Eastern officials, when Israel’s Mossad intelligence service triggered the devices remotely on Sept. 17.

As an act of spy craft, it is without parallel, one of the most successful and inventive penetrations of an enemy by an intelligence service in recent history. But key details of the operation — including how it was planned and carried out, and the controversy it engendered within Israel’s security establishment and among allies — are only now coming to light.

This account, including numerous new details about the operation, was pieced together from interviews with Israeli, Arab and U.S. security officials, politicians and diplomats briefed on the events, as well as Lebanese officials and people close to Hezbollah. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence. They describe a years-long plan that originated at Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv and ultimately involved a cast of operatives and unwitting accomplices in multiple countries. The Washington Post account reveals how the attack not only devastated Hezbollah’s leadership ranks but also emboldened Israel to target and kill Hezbollah’s top leader, Hasan Nasrallah, raising the risk of a wider Middle East war.

Iran launched around 180 missiles against Israel on Tuesday in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Hezbollah’s leadership and warned of harsher consequences if the conflict escalates.

“The resistance in the region will not back down even with the killing of its leaders,” Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said during a Friday sermon in Tehran.

But in Israel, the strike convinced the country’s political leaders that Hezbollah could be put on the ropes, susceptible to a systematic dismantling using airstrikes and, eventually, a ground invasion. Yet while marveling at the plot’s success, some officials continue to worry about the broader ripples of the strike, in a conflict that continues to spiral.

One Israeli political official, referring to the pager plot, summed up the anxieties in a quip at a meeting with Mossad officials.

“We cannot make a strategic decision such as an escalation in Lebanon while counting on a toy,” the official said.

The idea for the pager operation originated in 2022, according to the Israeli, Middle Eastern and U.S. officials familiar with the events. Parts of the plan began falling into place more than a year before Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack that put the region on a path to war. It was a time of relative quiet on Israel’s war-scarred northern border with Lebanon.

Among the half dozen Iranian-backed militia groups with weapons aimed at Israel, Hezbollah is by far the strongest. Israeli officials had watched with increasing anxiety as the Lebanese group added new weapons to an arsenal already capable of striking Israeli cities with tens of thousands of precision-guided missiles.

Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service responsible for combating foreign threats to the Jewish state, had worked for years to penetrate the group with electronic monitoring and human informants. Over time, Hezbollah leaders learned to worry about the group’s vulnerability to Israeli surveillance and hacking, fearing that even ordinary cellphones could be turned into Israeli-controlled eavesdropping and tracking devices.

Thus was born the idea of creating a kind of communications Trojan horse, the officials said. Hezbollah was looking for hack-proof electronic networks for relaying messages, and Mossad came up with a pair of ruses that would lead the militia group to purchase devices that seemed perfect for the job — equipment that Mossad designed and had assembled in Israel.

The first part of the plan, booby-trapped walkie-talkies, began being inserted into Lebanon by Mossad nearly a decade ago, in 2015. The mobile two-way radios contained oversized battery packs, a hidden explosive and a transmission system that gave Israel complete access to Hezbollah communications.

For nine years, the Israelis contented themselves with eavesdropping on Hezbollah, the officials said, while reserving the option to turn the walkie-talkies into bombs in a future crisis. But then came a new opportunity and a glitzy new product: a small pager equipped with a powerful explosive. In an irony that would not become clear for many months, Hezbollah would end up indirectly paying the Israelis for the tiny bombs that would kill or wound many of its operatives.

Because Hezbollah leaders were alert to possible sabotage, the pagers could not originate in Israel, the United States or any other Israeli ally. So, in 2023, the group began receiving solicitations for the bulk purchase of Taiwanese-branded Apollo pagers, a well-recognized trademark and product line with worldwide distribution and no discernible links to Israeli or Jewish interests. The Taiwanese company had no knowledge of the plan, officials said.

The sales pitch came from a marketing official trusted by Hezbollah with links to Apollo. The marketing official, a woman whose identity and nationality officials declined to reveal, was a former Middle East sales representative for the Taiwanese firm who had established her own company and acquired a license to sell a line of pagers that bore the Apollo brand. Sometime in 2023, she offered Hezbollah a deal on one of the products her firm sold: the rugged and reliable AR924.

“She was the one in touch with Hezbollah, and explained to them why the bigger pager with the larger battery was better than the original model,” said an Israeli official briefed on details of the operation. One of the main selling points about the AR924 was that it was “possible to charge with a cable. And the batteries were longer lasting,” the official said.

As it turned out, the actual production of the devices was outsourced and the marketing official had no knowledge of the operation and was unaware that the pagers were physically assembled in Israel under Mossad oversight, officials said. Mossad’s pagers, each weighing less than three ounces, included a unique feature: a battery pack that concealed a tiny amount of a powerful explosive, according to the officials familiar with the plot.

Read the full article.

Almost two dozen disheveled squatters tormented and terrorized the residents and businesses surrounding a vacant $4 million Brooklyn brownstone they commandeered.

The young miscreants stole packages off neighbor’s porches, threatened passersby, damaged private property, got high on the stoop, and set off fireworks in the early morning hours, neighbors told The Post.

The three-story building at 60 S. Fourth St. in South Williamsburg was finally emptied this week, after police forced the squatters back out onto the sidewalk. They also arrested one of them: Ryan Grewal, 26, who was charged with felony criminal mischief for damaging a motorcycle outside nearby JANE Motorcycles, an NYPD spokesperson said.

Grewal told police he lived at 60 S. Fourth Street.

“They terrorized this whole neighborhood,” said P.J. Ximenez, the building’s new manager.

Ximenez said the squatters first took over the entire second floor after breaking into the brownstone on Sept. 21. They installed a door barricade secured with a wooden plank, on which someone scribbled, “Home is where the blunt is.”

“When I first came in here, I found a bunch of needles and [heroin] spoons, and two used Narcans,” Ximenez said. “So, I guess two people must’ve OD’d in here.”

The squatters — including one who walks with a cane that Ximenez said the others call “Tripod” — also busted into an attached carriage house behind the building. They then used sheets of corrugated steel to barricade those doors. Computers stored inside were also stolen, Ximenez said.

Cops boarded up the 6,090-square-foot brownstone on Monday, and by Tuesday, owner Stella Tsang — who purchased the building in 2021 with an eye towards refurbishing and modernizing it — had a rotation of security guards perched on the porch.

The squatters tried convincing police they were there lawfully.

Ximenez, who has lived in the neighborhood for 58 years, said the squatters presented cops with a lease agreement they said was signed by the building’s previous owner, Francine Rosado. It was dated July 25.

“Problem is, Francine died in 2020,” said Ximenez, showing The Post her mass card. “I guess she rose from the dead to sign that lease.”

Ximenez said everything inside the brownstone was moved onto the sidewalk Tuesday, and the squatters later showed up in a van to collect their belongings.

“They’re professionals, they planned this,” Ximenez offered. “And I think they’ve taken over other spots, because when they were getting into that van, one of them had said they were going home, and another goes, ‘Which one?’”

This week, on a tour of the 114-year-old brownstone, The Post was shown the three stained king-sized mattresses the squatters had been sleeping on. Graffiti now marks most of the walls, and since the building has no running water, the squatters urinated into mason jars and defecated into buckets, Ximenez said.

“It was disgusting,” he added.

Between Sept. 21 and Oct. 2, the group generated 17 complaints to 311.

“They took two of my packages,” said one irate resident, who asked not to be named. “I gave cops the footage, so I don’t want them retaliating against my building.”

“These idiot kids were always blocking the sidewalk, and they’d get real nasty if you asked them to step aside,” said Cordelia Dalle, another neighbor who lives a few blocks from the brownstone. “They were loud and they smelled, and I’m really glad this didn’t drag on for months and months, which happens. I hope they don’t come back.”

Ximenez said the squatters should be behind bars, after breaking in, damaging the building, and committing identify theft with the forged lease.

“These are bad people doing drugs,” he said. “They’re not homeless, they’re drug addicts. They’re criminals. They’re domestic terrorists.”

Madonna’s brother, Christopher Ciccone, has died. He was 63.

Christopher “died peacefully” of cancer on Friday in Michigan, his rep confirmed to The Post on Sunday.

Christopher’s “loving” husband, British hairdresser Ray Thacker, was “faithfully by his side” when he died, the rep said.

Christopher’s death comes less than two weeks after the passing of his and Madonna’s stepmother, Joan Clare Ciccone, from cancer. The siblings also lost their brother, Anthony Ciccone, in Feb. 2023.

Christopher was an artist, interior decorator and designer. He served as the art director on Madonna’s Blond Ambition World Tour in 1990 and was the tour director for her The Girlie Show in 1993.

He also directed music videos for Dolly Parton, and Tony Bennett in the 1990s.

The brother-sister duo had a falling out which Christopher wrote about in his 2008 tell-all book, “Life With My Sister Madonna,” which became a New York Times bestseller.

Christopher claimed that Madonna outed him in her 1991 interview with The Advocate, where she said, “My brother Christopher’s gay, and he and I have always been the closest members of my family.”

He also accused Madonna’s ex-husband Guy Ritchie, whom she was married to from 2000 to 2008, of being homophobic.

In addition, Christopher said the “turning point” in his relationship with the Grammy Award winner was when she brought cameras to their mother’s grave for her 1991 documentary “Truth or Dare.”

“I kept it inside but I thought to myself, ‘OK, there are no boundaries now.’ You know, my mother’s now become a side — a bit player in her life, life story, and it hurt me. And I — my, my opinion of her altered at that moment. I never said anything about it,” he told “GMA” in 2008.

“I think, ultimately, she’s a lonely person and, unfortunately, it, it truly is lonely at the top,” Christoper added about his sister.

Madonna’s rep, Liz Rosenberg, said to the Associated Press at the time that the singer didn’t read the tell-all and found it “very upsetting” that Christopher “decided to sell a book based on his sister.”

Rosenberg added, “I would have to assume she has come to terms with the fact that they do not have a close and loving relationship. And with the book coming out, I assume that will remove the chances of that ever happening.”

Christopher addressed his relationship with the “Vogue” singer in a 2012 interview with The Evening Standard.

“As far as I’m concerned, we’re good. We are in contact with each other, although I haven’t seen her for a long time. We’re back to being a brother and sister. I don’t work for her, and it’s better this way,” he said.

“I couldn’t be more proud of her. She is a force to be reckoned with. Does she have Barbra Streisand’s voice? No,” Christopher also said about Madonna. “Can she dance like Martha Graham? Probably not. But the combination of her abilities has made her great, and left a huge legacy for her, and through her, for me. So yeah, God bless her.”

Christopher married British hairdresser Ray Thacker in 2016.

Madonna tragically lost her stepmother shortly before Christopher died.

“Joan Clare Ciccone passed away peacefully early in the morning of September 24th, 2024, after a brief encounter with a very aggressive cancer,” an online obituary stated. “She will be terribly missed by her family and friends whose lives she enriched with her enthusiasm, joy and love.”

Joan was married to Christopher and Madonna’s father, Silvio, for 58 years.

Their mother, also named Madonna, died in December 1963 at the age of 30.

One of Madonna’s other brothers, Anthony Ciccone, passed away from respiratory failure and throat cancer at age 66 in February 2023.

Elon Musk jumped wildly with his fists in air as he joined Donald Trump on stage for the first time.

The appearance by the Tesla and SpaceX boss came as Trump returned to the Butler Farm Show grounds in Pennsylvania, where he survived an attempted assassination three months ago.

After leaping up and down, Musk told the huge crowd: ‘America is the home of the brave and the true test of someone’s character is how they behave under fire.

‘We had one president who couldn’t climb a flight of stairs and another who was fist-pumping after getting shot! FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT!

Musk, wearing a black baseball hat, urged supporters to vote, and register to vote, and to get others to ‘vote right now’.

‘I’m being repetitive for a reason,’ he said. ‘Honestly you want to be a pest. Fight, fight, fight! Vote, vote, vote!’

Musk’s appearance at Trump’s rally in Butler was the first time he has taken the stage at a political rally.

The billionaire was inspired to endorse Trump publicly after the failed assassination attempt of the former president at Butler on July 13.

As the two men were on stage Trump praised Musk for donating Starlink systems to victims of hurricane Helene, joking he did not understand what the space satellite internet system was.

‘I didn’t know what the hell Starlink was,’ Trump admitted.

The crowds shouted ‘Elon! Elon! Elon!’ In response.

Before Musk’s arrival Trump paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, the man who was shot and killed when gunman Thomas Crooks opened fire on July 13..

After Trump called for a moment of silence, opera singer Christopher Macchio sang ‘Ave Maria’ and a bell rung at the same time that gunfire began three months ago.

The widow of Comperatore and their children also returned to the rally, seated with members of the Trump family.

Trump also paid tribute to two other men who were injured in the attack.

One had returned to the rally, Trump revealed, but one was in the hospital being treated.

At one point, the former president had to pause the rally after a woman fainted.

Supporter shouted ‘We love Trump!’ and sang the National Anthem for about four minutes as she was attended to.

Although the temperature in Butler is only in the high 60s, rallygoers have frequently collapsed at political rallies due to heatstroke this election season.

Earlier, as Trump took the stage he said: ‘A very big thank you, we love Pennsylvania. And, as I was saying…’

He had displayed on two big screens a chart on immigration that was there when he was shot.

Trump said: ‘I return to Butler to deliver a simple message. We are going to make America great again, we are going to win the election. And to all Americans, together, in just one month we are going to usher in a new golden age.

He added: ‘For 16 seconds, time stopped as this vicious monster unleashed pure evil. That villain did not succeed.’

Watch the full speech:

A protester tried to self immolate outside of the White House during an anti-Israel protest on Saturday evening, disturbing video shows.

The unidentified man can be see screaming in pain after he lit his left arm on fire in the middle of the street as shocked police officers and bystanders rush over to help, according to one clip.

He holds his left arm high in the air as its engulfed in flames as the crowd douses his arm with water and batters out the flames out with towels.

The man screams that he is a journalist as he’s restrained by DC Metropolitan police officers, another clip posted by Free Beacon reporter Jessica Costescu shows after the fire had been extinguished.

The left-sleve of his burnt shirt appears drenched in liquid and pink, superficial burns can be seen on his bare arm.

One passerby pours his bottle of water on the wound, according to the clip.

“We spread the misinformation,” he screams at one point in the video as a crowd gathers around him.

A Lunatic claiming to be a Journalist just attempted to Light himself on Fire during a Pro-Palestinian Demonstration near the White House in Washington; with him being stopped by other Protestors and Officers with the D.C. Metropolitan Police. pic.twitter.com/d3V0B1tPjj

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 5, 2024

“I’m a journalist and I said it was okay,” he yells as a woman gives him a hug.

A white-shirt officer jumps into the scene and screams at onlookers to “back it up,” pushing some out of the way, the video shows.

The man lit himself on fire in the 800 block of 16th Street just outside of the White House around 5:45 p.m., according to the Washington DC Metropolitan Police.

DC Fire and EMS responded and transported the man to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries, cops said.

“The District of Columbia has a long and proud history of peaceful first amendment activities and the Metropolitan Police Department handles hundreds of protests, demonstrations and other events every year,” the department said.

“We will continue to support those who choose to protest peaceful and safely, and we will continue to hold accountable those who commit criminal acts while in our city.”

Protesters descended on Washington DC around the White House on Saturday night ahead of the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel killing some 1,200 people sparking the ongoing war in the region.

The protesters are demanding a ceasefire in the Gaza strip, where an estimated 40,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military in the past year.

One of Iran’s top military commanders is believed to have been killed in an Israeli attack that targeted the new leader of terror group Hezbollah.

Esmail Qaani, head of the Quds Force – the elite wing of the feared Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) – was reported to be with the new leader of Hezbollah, Hashem Safieddine, who was targeted in his HQ bunker in Beirut by the Israelis.

The air strike on Thursday night during heavy bombing of southern Beirut was mounted as Safieddine held a secret meeting with other Hezbollah leaders in the underground intelligence headquarters.

He had only just taken over from Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated by the Israelis last month.

Last night, Arabic and English language media in the Middle East were reporting that Safieddine is highly likely to have died.

Lebanese sources told Sky News Arabia that all contact with him has been lost. The Israeli military has not officially confirmed his death. But it has now emerged that Qaani may also have been at the meeting. Some Israeli media have reported that Qaani was wounded, while others claimed that he might have died.

That would represent a stunning coup for the Israelis, who promised to hit back after Iran’s missile attack last week. Experts say Qaani’s death would severely weaken Iran’s military capability, but it will also further inflame tensions in the spiralling conflict.

Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, commenting after the Jewish New Year, did not address Qaani’s death.

He said Israel was fighting a war on ‘seven fronts’ but gave no indication of when he would attack Iran.

The attack on Safieddine and Qaani was in Dahieh, a suburb of southern Beirut which is a Hezbollah stronghold. It has been extensively bombed by the Israeli Air Force since it began its onslaught on Hezbollah.

Lebanese sources said it was difficult to establish if Qaani or Safieddine were alive or dead because it was impossible to go near the bombed site of the bunker because of drone strikes.

Several buildings were destroyed in the assault, with the scale of devastation surpassing the strike that killed Nasrallah, sources said.

Qaani, 67, succeeded Qassem Soleimani as leader of the Quds Force after his predecessor was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad airport in January 2020.

As Ayatollah Khameini’s right-hand man, Qaani would have been one of the key figures behind the missile strikes against Israel last week and in April.

He would also be the Tehran regime’s main contact with Hezbollah, as well as other terror groups that are Iran’s proxies, such as the Houthis in Yemen and Iraqi militia outfits.

If Qaani is dead, it would be huge blow for Iran just before a planned Israeli attack in response to the barrage of missiles fired at Israel on October 1.

However, Iranian media denied Qaani was dead.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed French President Emmanuel Macron and other Western leaders on Saturday who he said had called for an arms embargo on Israel over its airstrikes against Hamas in Gaza.

“As Israel fights the forces of barbarism led by Iran, all civilized countries should be standing firmly by Israel’s side, yet President Macron and other western leaders are now calling for arms embargoes against Israel. Shame on them, “Netanyahu said in a statement.

He continued, “Is Iran imposing an arms embargo on Hezbollah, on the Houthis, on Hamas and on its other proxies? Of course not. This axis of terror stands together, but countries who supposedly oppose this terror axis call for an arms embargo on Israel.”

Netanyahu called their stance a “disgrace,” adding that Israel would win “with or without their support, but their shame will continue long after the war is won.”

He said, “in defending ourselves against this barbarism, Israel is defending civilization against those who seek to impose a dark age of fanaticism on all of us. Rest assured, Israel will fight until the battle is won – for our sake and for the sake of peace and security in the world.”

Netanyahu noted that Israel is defending itself on seven different fronts, including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Lebanon, Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria, terrorists in Judea and Samaria and Iran.

On Saturday, Macron said France would no longer supply arms to Israel, although the country will continue to send missile defense equipment.

“I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza,” Macron said in an interview, according to Euro News.

Also on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had raided and dismantled a Hezbollah underground command complex in Lebanon.

“The troops entered a terror tunnel about 250 meters long, located about 300 meters from the border and not crossing into Israeli territory,” IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a press conference.

The U.S. continues to supply Israel with arms, although President Biden has spoken out against the country’s approach to its war with Gaza where tens of thousands of civilians have died.

“I think what he’s doing is a mistake,” Biden said in August, while continuing to call for a cease-fire. “I don’t agree with his approach.”

This week in a surprise appearance at a White House press briefing, Biden, in answering a reporter, said he wasn’t sure if Netanyahu was holding off on a cease-fire to influence the November election.

“Whether he’s trying to influence the election, I don’t know – but I’m not counting on that,” Biden said. “No administration has helped Israel more than I have. None, none, none, and I think he should remember that.”

Democrats are expressing increasing optimism that regaining control of the House is within the party’s grasp.

“We have opportunities everywhere,” said Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Democrat from Washington state and chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “We’re making sure we pick up seats in presidential battleground states like Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan, but I want to point out how vast and geographically diverse the House map is. We’re going on offense in states like New York, California and even Iowa … and Alabama. Those are places that don’t get much national attention, but they illustrate how broad our map is.”

DelBene joined Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison and Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, at a remote news conference Friday, one month out from Election Day.

The GOP gained control of the House in 2022, powered largely by gains in New York and California, states that heavily favor Democrats, particularly in a general presidential election.

Democrats are hoping to regain those seats and are also going on the offensive in Iowa, where races featuring Republican Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in the 1st District and Zach Nunn in the 3rd were recently shifted from Tilt Republican to Toss-up by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales. And Democratic Rep. Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico’s 2nd District saw his race shift from Toss-up to Tilt Democratic.

However, not all changes in the House map favor Democrats. In Maine’s 2nd District, held by Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, the race has shifted from Tilt Democratic to Toss-up.

A spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee dismissed the Democrats’ optimism.

“Talk is cheap, but the money shows House Democrats in a full blown retreat,’’ said Will Reinert, NRCC national press secretary. “Here are the facts — seven of the ten most expensive House races in the country are in House Democrats’ own territory because Republicans are playing offense coast to coast.”

Republicans currently have a 220-212 majority. There are three vacancies, with two of those previously held by Democrats and one by a Republican.

Overall, Republicans need to win four of the 15 Toss-up races, according to Inside Elections, eight held by Democrats and seven by Republicans, to retain control of the House. Democrats, meanwhile, need to win a dozen of those contests to win a bare majority.

Donald Trump Jr. and others blasted Vice President Kamala Harris after it was revealed that she went on the explicit podcast “Call Her Daddy” this week while Americans were dying in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

Trump Jr. and others took to social media following reports on Friday in outlets like The Hill that Harris had sat for an interview on Tuesday with Alex Cooper for her popular podcast to talk about abortion, per the campaign, set to air sometime next week, while the death toll was climbing across the southeastern states of Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas.

“Americans are dying and this is how the sitting Vice President is spending her time!” Trump Jr. wrote on X. “EXCLUSIVE: Kamala Harris taped explicit “Call Her Daddy” interview as Helene death toll rose.”

Americans are dying and this is how the sitting Vice President is spending her time!

EXCLUSIVE: Kamala Harris taped explicit “Call Her Daddy” interview as Helene death toll rosehttps://t.co/ANC2rN7XMW

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) October 4, 2024

Another person wrote, “While the death toll in North Carolina continues to rise, residents see their family members hanging in trees, and aid is actively being blocked by FEMA, Kamala Harris decided to film an episode of ‘Call Her Daddy’ Call Her Daddy is primarily a sex and relationship podcast.”

While a third person wrote, “Kamala Harris allegedly recorded a Podcast with Alex Cooper from ‘Call Her Daddy’. This is an infamous Podcast where Promiscuous Women talk about their scandalous activities. This Podcast took place two days ago amidst The Hurricane Helene Disaster, when The Death Toll was sharply increasing, and still is.”

“The Presidential Candidate is going on a Podcast to talk about how she’s going to change The Country when an incident is happening RIGHT NOW. She’s still in Office and is UNWILLING to help,” the person added. “It’s over. She’s lost Americans who are paying attention. You have shown you DO NOT CARE about We The People.”

As others noted, on the same day Harris did the interview on the sex and relationship podcast, the Associated Press had reported the widespread destruction of the hurricane.

It also reported that at least 30 people had been killed in the county where Asheville, North Carolina, is located, and efforts to provide relief to flooded areas were ongoing, with cadaver dogs being called in to help find bodies.

On Monday, former President Donald Trump visited Georgia, touring the damaged areas and calling attention to the destruction and help people need. President Joe Biden and Harris did not visit the area until Wednesday.

As of Friday, NBC reported that more than 200 people had lost their lives in the hurricane and communities were still without power a week later.

Two teens have been charged in the attack on ex-Governor David Paterson and his stepson, according to sources.

The juveniles turned themselves over to police along with their parents at the 23rd Precinct on Saturday night, less than 24 hours after the attack on Paterson and his step-son, Anthony Chester Sliwa, as the pair walked their dog on the Upper East Side Friday.

The alleged assailants are facing second-degree assault charges, police sources say.

A third teen who spoke to cops along with the suspect was not charged as it was determined he did not attack the Sliwa or former governor, who is legally blind.

Paterson, 70, and Sliwa, 20, encountered the group of teens climbing a fire escape on Second Avenue near East 96th Street.

Sliwa admonished the teens out of fear for their safety and that of others, according to Paterson.

The teens then came off the fire escape and yelled at the father-step-son duo – but the pair continued on their walk.

Then on the way back home, the same group confronted and then attacked them outside a McDonalds, the sources said.

“I got punched in the face a couple of times and I got punched in the shoulder,” Paterson said, “but the person who punched me on the shoulder, I threw them against the McDonalds window myself.”

Sliwa, the son of Curtis Sliwa, is trained in martial arts and was raised to be a Guardian Angel from a young age.

But he was not able to escape the incident unharmed. While fending off the assailants, Sliwa was hit several times in the face and a cut to his lower-lip required five stitches.

Paterson and Sliwa were treated at NY-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Center and discharged early Saturday morning.

Police initially said a group of five people – including an adult woman with purple hair who threw the first punch – were being sought in connection to the incident.

Police would not confirm that they were seeking any more suspects.

Paterson, who served as New York’s governor from 2008 to 2010, is married to Mary Paterson, the ex-wife of Sliwa.

Sources claim that Prince Harry is taking his “fall from grace” quite hard, as he faces fading A-lister friendships and attempts to repair his public image — making numerous public appearances in recent days sans wife Meghan Markle.

The Daily Mail reports that the Duke of Sussex was not in attendance at his supposed pal George Clooney’s humanitarian awards ceremony in New York City, despite being in the Big Apple for a high-profile appearance on “The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon the very same day.

Last year, Johnny Hornby, once a staunch ally of the Prince, stepped down from Harry’s charity to work with a fierce, high-profile critic of Meghan, TV personality Jeremy Clarkson.

Couple dwith his many appearances and trips, such as traveling to London and Lesotho, without Meghan in tow, sources are speculating as to why Harry is opting to go stag.

While a source in California posited that “solo Harry” is the Duke’s idea — telling Daily Mail that he “wanted it this way” and “wants space” — insiders across the pond offered more insight.

One London source told the tabloid that Harry might be getting serious about repairing his public image and needs to do so alone.

“This definitely feels like he is upping his game to cement his position as a serious player on the international stage,” the anonymous source claimed.

“He’s always been desperate to be taken seriously and people I know say his fall from grace will really have got to him.”

The same source, however, said they were surprised Meghan did not accompany Harry to Lesotho, despite her noticeable absence from Harry’s 40th birthday celebration last month.

The Daily Mail reported, however, that it was supposedly Meghan who planned Harry’s birthday, which involved a hiking trip with his friends.

“There may be a good reason she can’t leave the kids, but she’s never been to Lesotho and that surprises me — it is like a second home [to Harry],” they said, adding that the “royal family there is like his second family.”

“Sentebale is such a big part of his life, you’d think he would want to share it.”

Pumped-up spectators poured into Butler Farm Show grounds on Saturday, saying that it was “gutsy” for former President Donald Trump to make an appearance at the location where he was nearly assassinated.

Trump is set to appear at the site where he was nearly killed in a deadly July 13 shooting, with the Republican presidential nominee slated to speak at 5 p.m. EST.

Supporters decked out American flags and Trump slogans shared with Fox News Digital that Trump’s return to the site was “gutsy.”

“I think it’s gutsy. It really shows strength to the people that he’s here, and he’s not hiding,” 21-year-old River Jager, from Buffalo, Ohio, said.

“If anyone else got shot at, they would duck away,” he said. “Instead of running off, he got his composure and pulled himself together to show us he was all right.”

Father-daughter duo, 44-year-old Tom Bye and 19-year-old Brooke Bye, said that Trump’s return proved that “he’s doing this for us.”

“He’s not afraid. He’s doing it for us. He doesn’t have to. He speaks for the people, the way people speak,” Tom said. “It speaks volumes, he’s not going to run and hide.”

“He’s coming back to show that he’s strong,” Brooke said.

The pair shared their hope for change under a Trump administration, saying that the “country is going downhill.”

“If he doesn’t become president now, this country is not going to be able to be saved,” Tom said. “It’s time for a change.”

Brooke echoed her father’s sentiment, citing the rise in illegal immigration as her top voting issue.

“It needs to be changed,” she said. “Things with our immigrant problem — things need to change.”

Friends Jody Cavalieri and Dena Diebold said that they drove three hours from Buffalo, New York, to see Trump.

The pair commended Trump’s bravery, saying that “life was so much better under Trump.”

“Brave – for the country, for the people,” Cavalieri said.

“Ditto,” Diebold said, agreeing. “God bless Trump.”

“Life was so much better under Trump,” Cavalieri said. “I want my kids to feel good about buying a house. My 24-year-old still lives at home, and it’s not easy to get out and to get a mortgage. I want things to be better for our kids.”

“We felt safer when Trump was in office,” Diebold said. “There was peace around the world. Not so much right now.”

Journi Dostal, a 27-year-old business owner, told Fox News Digital that this was her first Trump rally.

The young voter said that Trump’s return to Butler marked an “historical moment.”

David Mills, who was decked out in a Trump wig, said that he “wouldn’t miss” the rally, saying that it’s his third one he’s attended.

“Wouldn’t miss it. This is my third rally in Butler,” 64-year-old Mills said.

“We got to eject all the illegals, cut the size of government, which is just grossly bloated,” he said.

Denise Materia, an athletic secretary for the Saint Mary school district, said that she is elated to hear Trump “finish the speech.”

“I want him to make America better,” she continued. “Things were so much better when he was president.”

Dan Beasley, a real estate broker, said that the former president was “very courageous” to return.

“I think he’s very courageous,” he said. “God has an explicit purpose for him. He’s coming back to give that message.”

Trump’s campaign said that the former president’s return to Butler would honor those lost in the assassination attempt during the rally.

Corey Comperatore, 50, was a firefighter and a father of two daughters. He “historically sacrificed his life to shield his wife and daughters” during the assassination attempt against Trump, the campaign said.

Trump will also recognize the two other Americans who were wounded by the shooter, David Dutch and James Copenhaver.

“He will express his deep gratitude to law enforcement and first responders, and thank the entire community for their outpouring of love and support in the wake of the attack,” the campaign said.

Trump’s campaign said that his return to the location of the first assassination attempt is a “tribute to the American spirit.”

“In America, we do not let monsters like that evil assassin have the last word. Every time our nation is struck by attack or hardship, we rally, we persevere, and we prevail,” the campaign said in a statement. “When terrorists knocked down our towering skyscrapers, we rebuilt taller. When our communities are ravaged by fire, storm, or natural disaster, we pull together and come back stronger.”

“And when a shooter attacked our democracy and tried to end this movement, President Trump will return to the site, joined by tens of thousands of proud citizens, and together, they will celebrate a unifying vision for America’s future in an event like the world has never seen before,” it continued.

Trump’s campaign said that he is “more determined than ever” following the two assassination attempts in the past nine weeks, one in Butler and the other at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

“In that Butler field on July 13th, he took a bullet for democracy — and on Nov. 5, he is going to save our democracy,” they said. “With the help of the amazing people of Pennsylvania and citizens all across our land, we will make America safer, stronger, freer and greater than ever before.”

WATCH LIVE:

The IDF on Saturday commented regarding the retaliation against Iran for launching ballistic missiles toward Israel, clarifying that combat is currently ongoing on seven different fronts. Alongside the continued fighting in Gaza and the West Bank, Israeli soldiers and forces are engaged in operations in Lebanon, Iran, and its proxies in Yemen, Syria, and Iraq.

The struggle with Iran is viewed as a direct conflict, and it is expected that the Iranians will be preoccupied with their own affairs rather than just with their proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza, Yemen, and Iraq.

The IDF plans to respond significantly but has not detailed the nature of that response. The IDF noted that the Iranians launched 201 missiles from Iran to Israel, some of which impacted targets.

Consequently, there is a broad recommendation within the IDF to respond to the Iranian attack while minimizing risks and maximizing opportunities.

The IDF has threatened to strike in Syria against weapons that originated from Iran and are intended for Hezbollah’s use. The military emphasized its determination to thwart arms smuggling.

Reports indicate that in Yemen, a port used by the Houthis to receive oil supplies from the sea was attacked, along with two power stations and further damage to the port itself, preparing for future engagements.

In related developments, the IDF asserts that its defense systems have proven effective during this week’s missile attacks.

Developing operations in Lebanon

The IDF is conducting targeted raids to dismantle infrastructure established by Hezbollah, including the targeting and removal of Hezbollah operatives to ensure the safe return of northern residents to their homes.

A large amount of weaponry has been located, particularly focusing on Kornet missiles. According to IDF estimates, 400 Hezbollah operatives have been killed since the beginning of the operation. Commanders of various brigades, including those in key regions such as Har Dov, Marwahin, and Markaba, have been among the casualties.

In Beirut, significant damage has been inflicted on command centers, warehouses, and areas within the Shiite-dominated southern suburb of Dahieh, which has been almost completely evacuated of civilians. This includes damage to command and control systems in Beirut and surrounding areas.

In the IDF’s operations division, decisions are being made about what will land in Lebanon and what will not. Military and civilian crossings for transferring weapons from Syria to Lebanon have been targeted, with ongoing drone surveillance over these crossings 24/7. In the last day, Iranian aircraft have been observed flying without entering Lebanese airspace.

What’s happening in Gaza, the Philadelphi corridor?

Most of the tunnels along the Philadelphi corridor have been discovered and destroyed. Fighting continues in Rafah and along the Philadelphi corridor.

Regarding Lebanon, the IDF has made it clear that it does not intend to see Hezbollah on the Lebanese border in the aftermath of the conflict.

From the IDF’s perspective, there is potential for broader change in Lebanon, but there remains an ongoing, extensive combat process aimed at achieving war objectives. Current assessments indicate that the conditions now present the potential for a change in the security landscape, not only in southern Lebanon but throughout the country.

The West Bank

There have been significant counterterrorism efforts in the West Bank, including one in Tulkarm that involved the use of IAF fighter jets. A major plot to carry out large-scale attacks has been thwarted, and the area has been reinforced with reserve battalions.

In the Southern Command, preparations are underway to expand operations. There is a buildup for offensive efforts moving forward, which are making significant progress.

International Collaborations

The IDF anticipates cooperation from its allies, including the US and others interested in defending against Iranian aggression.

The IDF notes that the Western world understands that Israel is determined to eliminate threats in Lebanon and Gaza and that Iranian attacks cannot be tolerated.

All seven members of the Chicago School Board have agreed to resign later in October in a Friday announcement amid disagreements with the mayor over the district’s budget.

Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago Public School CEO Pedro Martinez have disagreed in recent months over the Mayor’s proposed plan to fill a $1 billion gap in the budget for the school district, The New York Times reported.

Martinez was initially backed by the board in the dispute over the budget, with the mayor unsuccessfully asking Martinez to resign in late September.

Johnson’s budget plan includes increasing union members’ salaries along with taking out a loan covering a $175 million pension for non-teaching district faculty, according to the NYT.

“Mayor Brandon Johnson and members of the Chicago Board of Education are enacting a transition plan which includes all current members transitioning from service on the Board later this month,” the mayor’s office said in a press release.

“With the shift to a hybrid elected and appointed Board forthcoming, current Board members and Mayor Johnson understand that laying a strong foundation for the shift is necessary to serve the best interests of students and families in Chicago Public Schools.”

Chicago’s public schools have faced many issues in recent years, like a drop in enrollment and budget problems. The Chicago Teachers Union has opposed measures to close down or consolidate some schools facing issues.

“I know that families and staff may have concerns about what this means for the future of our District,” Martinez said in a press release.

“Please know that regardless of the makeup of the Board of Education, my team and I remain focused on the work: robust teaching and learning, building on the great momentum we’ve seen in students’ academic gains, and continuing to realize our vision of a District where every student has a rigorous, high-quality, and joyful learning experience.”

The United States announced that it would be providing $157 million in humanitarian aid to address the “crisis in Lebanon” and those who have been affected by it.

In a press release on Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that the “nearly $157 million” in humanitarian assistance would go towards addressing “new and existing needs to internally displaced persons and refugee populations” for communities in Lebanon.

“The United States will provide nearly $157 million in new U.S. humanitarian assistance to support populations affected by conflict in Lebanon and the region,” Blinken said in the press release. “This funding will address new and existing needs of internally displaced persons and refugee populations inside Lebanon and the communities that host them. The assistance will also support those fleeing to neighboring Syria.”

The U.S. is at the forefront of humanitarian response to the growing crisis in Lebanon, announcing nearly $157 million in assistance today. We are committed to supporting those in need and delivering essential aid to displaced civilians, refugees and the communities hosting them.

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) October 4, 2024

The press release from Blinken comes as Israel has been waging war against Hezbollah terrorists located in Lebanon.

Breitbart News Senior Editor-at-Large Joel Pollak reported that over the course of Thursday and Friday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had continued advancing on Hezbollah terrorists, carrying out airstrikes. Within “four days of combat,” the IDF was reported to have killed more than 200 Hezbollah terrorists.

As Breitbart News previously reported, as the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has continued, “hundreds of Lebanese Christians” have been reported to be leaving their homes as Israel has directed them to evacuate:

Although Israel has declared it is not at war with Lebanon in general and is targeting fighters and weapons from the Shia militia Hezbollah, which is designated a terrorist organization by the United States, this has not stopped it from forcibly evacuating a number of Christian villages in southern Lebanon, which is a Shia majority area interspersed with Christian communities not aligned with Hezbollah.

The news that roughly $157 million in humanitarian aid would go towards helping the people affected by the fighting in Lebanon comes as communities in western North Carolina, such as the city of Asheville and the village of Chimney Rock, were affected by heavy rains and flooding from Hurricane Helene. Other communities in eastern Tennessee, southwestern Virginia, Georgia, and Florida were also affected.

President Joe Biden previously announced that the U.S. would be sending $8 billion in military aid to Ukraine. Days after this announcement, Vice President Kamala Harris announced $750 in assistance for the victims of Hurricane Helene.

“The federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like. And you can apply now.”

This represents $50 more than the Biden administration gave to those who were affected by the Maui wildfires.