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Today's Brief: Hebron, Hormuz, and IDs

The Homebrew · · Posted · AI-drafted daily brief, synthesized from Left, Center, and Right coverage. Facts may be inaccurate — verify with the cited sources below.

Israel ordered a full closure of the occupied West Bank on Friday after soldiers killed two men the military said had launched a shooting attack near Hebron, the Associated Press reported in a story published by NPR. The Israeli military later said two soldiers were killed in the attack and three other soldiers were lightly injured, NBC News reported. Two Israeli sources told ABC News that the U.S. and Israeli militaries have drawn up plans to resume joint strikes on Iran, almost certainly after the Nov. 3 midterms; the White House said the U.S. will not attack Iran before then. At home, the Supreme Court let New Hampshire bar student IDs as voter identification for the midterms, CBS News reported.

West Bank: closure before the vote. The army said the two men carried an M16 rifle and a handgun, and there was no word on the identities of the two men killed or those injured, NPR reported. Magen David Adom had earlier said it got a report around 7:15 a.m. local time of multiple casualties near the Yehuda Junction and treated at least five people, two in critical condition, NBC News reported. The Israeli military later said two soldiers had been killed in the attack and three additional soldiers were lightly injured, according to NBC. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office told security forces to cordon off Hebron and prepare to close the entire West Bank starting Friday, according to NPR.

Netanyahu blamed Hamas, saying the group was "planning a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians," without elaborating, NPR reported. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said the lives of settlers, soldiers and police "are a million times more important than freedom of movement," NPR reported, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said there was "no avoiding a comprehensive military campaign" in the West Bank, according to NBC. It is the fourth time in the past month Israel has imposed restrictions across the territory, according to NPR. Israelis vote Tuesday on whether to give Netanyahu another term, NPR reported.

NBC News noted the United Nations recorded at least 160 Israeli settler attacks linked to the olive harvesting season in the first two weeks of October.

Iran: plans, prices, and a year. "Hunting season is open as soon as the elections end," one Israeli source said, according to ABC News. "The United States will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement to ABC; asked about a Times report, a White House official said the administration does not comment on "sensitive military plans that may or may not exist." The sources said the decision to resume joint strikes is "only for Trump to decide," and one said targets could include petrochemical facilities and nuclear sites but not civilian infrastructure like power plants, according to ABC.

U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz told the Financial Times the war could last another year, CBS News reported. Brent crude hit $114 a barrel Friday after Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed to have disabled seven tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, according to CBS. President Trump said Thursday that "Iran is doing everything they can to drive up the price of Oil prior to the U.S. Midterm Election," accusing Tehran of "making up fake hits, mines, and everything else," CBS reported. The United Arab Emirates reported a tanker oil spill that closed beaches in Umm Al Quwain, CBS reported.

Markets: AI stocks slide. The S&P 500 fell 1.2% Thursday, its worst day since July, and the Nasdaq composite dropped 2.6%, while the Dow added 11 points, the Associated Press reported in a story published by the Guardian. Most stocks actually rose, according to the AP. Meta lost 7% after quarterly revenue beat forecasts though profit fell short, Lam Research fell 11.8%, Tesla fell 3.1% and Nvidia 4.4%, according to the AP.

Russia: diesel sails, sanctions wait. A first tanker of Russian diesel bound for the U.S. under a new import deal has set sail, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday, the Associated Press reported in a story published by ABC News. Marine intelligence firm Kpler said the vessel was signaling it would reach New York on Nov. 7, the first Russian diesel delivery to the U.S. since July 2023, according to the AP. The 40,000-ton shipment equals about 7% of the diesel the U.S. uses in a single day, and energy policy experts say the deal is unlikely to dent prices at the pump, the AP reported.

From the right, Fox News reported that over roughly a week the administration waived most of the new Russia sanctions and tariffs enacted last month. Hal Brands of the American Enterprise Institute told Fox that holding back penalties risks convincing Vladimir Putin that Washington won't follow through.

Courts and Washington. The justices granted a Republican-backed emergency appeal in a brief, unsigned decision citing the "Purcell principle" against lower courts changing election rules on the eve of an election, CBS News reported. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the only justice to publicly dissent, according to CBS. New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella called it "an important victory," CBS reported. From the right, The Federalist headlined it "SCOTUS Says New Hampshire Can Close Student ID 'Loophole' In Elections."

The Department of Homeland Security's inspector general has referred its investigation of Corey Lewandowski, a former special government employee and top aide to then-Secretary Kristi Noem, to the Justice Department, according to a person familiar with the investigation, NBC News reported. The probe stems from questions about how a $220 million ad-campaign contract was awarded, and it expanded, according to a source, after NBC reported allegations that Lewandowski sought payment from the GEO Group, a company seeking government contracts. His attorney, Adam Trigg, told NBC that Lewandowski "has not been contacted by the Justice Department regarding any investigation, and he denies any wrongdoing when he was proudly serving his country in a voluntary capacity."

Trump praised Vivek Ramaswamy's ad featuring the estranged mother of Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton as "very powerful" and said he suggested Ramaswamy keep it up, CBS News reported. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said, "It's wrong to run this ad," and urged the campaign to take it down, according to CBS.

World. At least one person was killed and four injured in a shooting near Paris, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said Friday, NBC News reported. The shooting happened in Trappes and La Verrière, about 20 miles west of Paris, authorities said, according to NBC. One person has been arrested and charged on four counts, including murder, with an aggravating circumstance tied to the victims' actual or supposed race, ethnicity, nation or religion, France's anti-terrorism prosecutor's office told NBC. The mayor of Trappes told BFM TV that one of the injured was a 12-year-old girl, according to NBC.

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake in China's Tibet region killed at least 16 people and injured 54, Chinese state media said, CBS News reported. At least 339 homes collapsed, the Nagqu media office said, citing city officials, CBS reported.

Tom Skerritt, known for "Alien," "Top Gun" and "Picket Fences," died Wednesday at 93 of natural causes, his family said, CBS News reported. He won an Emmy in 1993 for "Picket Fences," according to CBS.

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