November 12, 2023 - Your Weekend Recap

A looming government shutdown as war rages on in Israel and Ukraine

Today is November 12, 2023, and here is your weekend recap of the top news stories you may have missed. Apologies for the lack of posts the past few days, I have been moving into a new home and battling a cold. If you enjoy this content and want access to more, exclusive content or just want to support my work, then please consider becoming a monthly subscriber at the link below:

1) Israel Update

We have now entered month two of the war in Israel, and there does not appear to be an end in sight. As it currently stands, the Israeli military has launched a significant ground invasion that has cutoff north Gaza from south Gaza. Currently, the Israeli military is focusing its efforts on the Al-Shifa hospital, which is the largest hospital in the Gaza strip. Over the past 36 hours, Israeli tanks have lined up within feet of the hospital, asking patients and staff to evacuate. The justification for this stems from the Israeli military’s belief that Hamas has a military post within or underneath the hospital. The Hamas-backed Gaza Health Ministry has argued that Israel is laying siege to the hospital, not allowing any patients to leave. The Israeli military, however, has argued that an evacuation path currently is open, and that some patients have been able to leave the hospital over the past day. More to come on this.

Meanwhile, the odds of military conflict between the Israeli military and Hezbollah to the north is growing, with many believing that such a conflict is inevitable. Previously, it was believed that a ground operation in Gaza would be a redline for Hezbollah, and in recent weeks, attacks from Lebanon have grown. As of this post, however, Hezbollah has not yet entered the conflict officially. Despite this, Israeli has reported that several Israeli civilians were injured during the past day as a result of attacks from Lebanon.

Finally, despite calls for a ceasefire from many, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected any such request. The United States does not support a ceasefire. For those who don’t know, there have been at least 15 ceasefires between Israel and Hamas since 2003. There was also a ceasefire in place on October 6th, the day before Hamas’ terrorist attacks. Hamas has broken each of these ceasefires including the one in place on the 6th. As a result, opponents of a ceasefire have argued that a ceasefire would only be broken by Hamas again, and would allow Hamas to replenish its weapon stockpile. Instead of a ceasefire, Israeli officials have agreed to temporary humanitarian pauses, allowing civilians to evacuate Gaza and humanitarian aid to enter the enclave. These pauses are four hours in length and are supposed to occur daily.

2) Ukraine Update

New reporting suggests that a large number of Wagner Group mercenaries have been assimilated into Russia’s National Guard. Meanwhile the current leader of what’s left of the Wagner Group is being led by the son of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the former leader of the Wagner Group who was killed in a mysterious plane accident. Meanwhile, on the ground, the Russian military is ramping up attacks in Eastern Ukraine in an attempt to gain ground near the town of Bakhmut. If you remember, this town was the subject of a major battle that spanned several months earlier in the war. Since Russia captured Bakhmut, Ukrainian forces were able to regain area near the town.

As winter is approaching, these increased attacks are designed to push back any Ukrainian counteroffensive attempts in the east. Elsewhere, both sides have engaged in limited conflict with shelling occurring in the town of Melitopol, Donetsk, and Dnipro. As it stands right now, the war is one of attrition with neither side making much progress. With winter quickly approaching, expect increased attacks by the Russian military on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in an attempt to harm civilians living in Ukraine. Either way, as we near the two year anniversary of Russia’s illegal invasion, there does not appear to be a clear end in sight.

3) Government Shutdown in 5 Days

Finally, we are now just five days away from a possible government shutdown. The Republican Party, led by Mike Johnson has proposed a two-step continuing resolution that would temporarily fund the government through January 19th. The two-step resolution would require Congress to fund part of the government by the 19th and the other part by a date in February. This proposal has not drawn much excitement from Democrats and Republicans alike. Democrats have opposed Speaker Johnson’s request, while many far-right Republicans argue that a continuing resolution, like the one proposed, is contrary to the promises made when Johnson was made Speaker. For reference, this proposal is the same one that got former Speaker Kevin McCarthy ousted from his position. The current deadline for a government shutdown is midnight on November 17th. Here’s everything you need to know about the impacts of a possible government shutdown.