Category: Security

Actor Tom Hanks noted that when it opened in 2000, what is now the National World War II Museum in New Orleans was little more than “two brick warehouses, a Higgins boat and a tank.”

This weekend, the Museum unveiled its new, $47 million, 33,610-square-foot Liberation Pavilion, which serves as the final piece of the Museum’s master plan — its “D-Day to Liberation: Road to Victory Celebration” campaign, which raised $400 million over the past two decades.

Hanks, an ardent supporter of the Museum’s efforts since the outset, spoke at Friday’s dedication ceremony, calling the Liberation Pavilion “an extraordinary, perhaps final, chapter here in the job and the story of the National World War II Museum,” but noting the Museum’s job will never truly be finished.

“It actually leaves it open to understand that the true work of building a more perfect union in an imperfect world began the day after the war ended,” Hanks said, “and it continues now and it requires vigilance, it requires attendance, it requires the desire to seek knowledge and it requires, too, the accumulation of wisdom that will be found by anybody who attends this museum on any given day for the rest of time.”

Hanks is a two-time Best Actor Oscar winner, is a Kennedy Center honoree and has been presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom. But he wasn’t the biggest star at Friday’s dedication. The real stars were sitting in the front row, looking at Hanks as he spoke.

About 40 WWII veterans, home front workers and Holocaust survivors were in attendance, along with another 40 Medal of Honor winners, in New Orleans for the previous night’s Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention dinner, hosted by the Museum.

Among the veterans was Edward Tresch Sr., who was 16 when he joined the Merchant Marine during WWII and served in the Atlantic, Pacific and Caribbean during the war. “Pick an ocean. I was there,” he said.

“I’m really impressed with the museum,” Tresch said. “I think it’s magnificent and the whole world ought to see it. The museum is a story in itself.”

Magnificent, indeed. Some 23 years and $420 million later, the Museum is one of the nation’s most-visited, drawing millions of visitors to the Crescent City, and having an estimated $2.4 billion in economic impact over the past 20 years.

For most visitors, however, the Museum isn’t about the economic impact, it’s the emotional impact — and the new Liberation Pavilion which opened to the public Saturday is no exception.

And that impact hits from the moment visitors enter the new exhibit hall.

Entering the Liberation Pavilion, visitors are greeted by the sight of two stark-white, military headstones flanking a coffin case used to bring the remains of Army Pfc. Gerald Williams home to Ohio, immediately driving home the high price of freedom.

Words can barely do it justice.

Visitors also pass through a hallway with 10,000 dog tags with the names of real Americans who fought in the war, with the opposite side lined with photos of some of the nearly 415,000 Americans who died in World War II. For perspective, those American casualties during WWII are more than in World War I, the Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, Iraqi Operations and Afghanistan Operations, combined.

But as Museum officials noted during Friday’s dedication ceremony, the Liberation Pavilion is about more than just American military losses. World War II claimed the lives of an estimated 75 million worldwide.

“And Then They Came For Me” examines the horrors of the Holocaust, in raw and grim detail. There are walls covered in photos of emaciated prisoners in concentration camps, with one photo of a body inside one of the ovens used in the murders of some six million Jews.

Visitors are also taken inside the world of Anne Frank, the German-born Jewish teen whose story of living in hiding from the Nazis from 1942-1944 was brought to the world through her diary, published by her father, Otto, the only member of the Frank family to have survived the Holocaust.

A re-creation of a room in the “Secret Annex” where Anne Frank, her family and others were kept hidden brings the story to life, with Anne’s own words heard as part of an immersive, emotional experience. Stories of other victims and survivors are told through various media, including video and audio recordings.

The Liberation Pavilion also looks at the war crimes trials, both in Nuremberg and Tokyo. One of the more striking artifacts among the 300 on display in the pavilion is the black hood worn by Hideki Tojo, the Japanese prime minister who ordered the attack on Pearl Harbor, when he was hanged.

Faith and its role during the war is also on display in the “Faith In Wartime” gallery, which features the “Four Chaplains” — four men who were aboard the SS Dorchester and sacrificed their lives to save their fellow seamen after their ship was struck by a U-Boat torpedo. There is also a chapel in the pavilion for quiet contemplation.

The new pavilion also looks at postwar America, including the challenges faced by Black Americans and those who had fought for freedom overseas but were so often denied it at home. The Cold War and the lasting impact of World War II are also examined.

Perhaps the shining star of the Liberation Pavilion, however, is found on the pavilion’s third floor in the Priddy Family Foundation Freedom Theater. The gripping, emotionally moving multimedia production examines how freedom was threatened around the world in the years prior to WWII, the cost of protecting freedom, and the responsibility of later generations to “defend democracy, protect freedom and advance human rights.”

The Museum provided media members with an advance showing of the Freedom Theater production Thursday afternoon. At its conclusion, one woman was heard to say “They should let you sit there in the dark for another minute to let that sink in.” Such is the emotional wallop packed into the production, which was developed by THG Creative.

The opening of the Liberation Pavilion was a day Nick Mueller could hardly envision 30 years ago when he and the late Stephen Ambrose first hit upon the idea of opening a D-Day Museum.

“The accomplishments of the past two decades extend far beyond what we could have imagined, even after we decided to broaden our mission to tell the full story of the American experience in World War II,” Mueller said. “Hundreds of thousands of Americans made the ultimate sacrifice during World War II, and millions more survived to serve as a beacon for democracy.

“Now, with the opening of Liberation Pavilion, we honor the legacies of the WWII generation and help visitors understand the relevance of the war today — the meaning of the freedom they secured and each generation’s duty to protect and advance it.”

While this weekend’s opening of the Liberation Pavilion was a cause for celebration, it was a member of the Greatest Generation who brought a somber perspective to the moment.

“I was thinking how many wars were before my time and how many more will be after my time,” said Tresch, who will turn 96 later this month.

“The way they’re making weapons today, there might not be too many more times.”

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© 2023 Advance Local Media LLC

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Stephen Murphy was buckling his 2-year-old daughter, Kali, into her car seat when he heard gunfire in his Compton neighborhood.

He thought the safest place to take cover was his grandmother’s house, just down the street on Willowbrook Avenue.

So he snatched Kali and ran toward his grandmother’s front door.

But he never made it all the way up the porch.

Murphy, 24, and his daughter were killed in a hail of gunfire on Aug. 8, 2001. Their bodies were found on the porch stairs. Their killings long remained a mystery, a footnote of gun violence to everyone except their family and cold case detectives. The pair were casualties of something they didn’t ask to take part in, their relatives said at the time: a gang war.

Now, 22 years later, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has announced an arrest in the double homicide. Jahon Smith was booked on suspicion of two counts of murder. Sheriff’s deputies say they are still searching for three other suspects in the case, and they asked the public to reach out with any information.

“This case is not over by any means. It continues to be an ongoing investigation until all the suspects in [the deaths of] Kali … and her young father, Stephen, are held accountable,” said Sheriff’s Lt. Hugo Reynaga in announcing Smith’s arrest Friday.

Murphy worked at Los Angeles International Airport. He got caught up in gang-related violence, but he was not a member of a gang, Reynaga said.

The deaths of Murphy and his daughter were part of a “series of related shootings” spanning several blocks in Compton and Willowbrook that night. Only one of the four people shot was in a gang, officials said.

Authorities said that a group of gang members from a “Black gang” drove around the neighborhood in two cars — a brown Nissan Sentra and a gold Oldsmobile Cutlass — shooting at random people they believed to be Latino. They were seeking retribution for the killing of a gang member the day before, police said. That homicide is still a cold case.

The men in the two cars killed Murphy and his daughter, Reynaga said, and also shot a 15-year-old Latino boy and fired at a law enforcement officer.

“Whoever did this didn’t care, ’cause I’m sure they saw his daughter in his arms, and they still did it,” Norman Collier, a cousin of Murphy’s, said at the time of the shooting.

The pain two decades later is still raw for Murphy’s relatives.

“We finally feel that justice may not always be swift, but it will be sweet,” Murphy’s mother, Phyllis, said as other family members cried behind her at a Friday news conference announcing the arrest. “Stephen was a loving and kind person. A loving father. A dedicated young man who loved his family and all that he encountered. He always saw the good in everyone.”

She said her son ran for his grandmother’s home that night because he thought that’s where he and his child would be safest during the drive-by shooting.

“To him, the safest place was to get [Kali] back into my mother’s house,” the 77-year-old said. “His legs was on the steps and his body on the porch, trying to save his daughter.”

Smith was charged with two counts of murder and four counts of attempted murder, court documents show.

He has a long criminal history in California and Nevada, according to court records.

In Los Angeles, he was sentenced to a year in county jail in 2010 for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The same year that Murphy and his daughter were killed, Smith was convicted of providing a false identity to a peace officer, court records show.

Because the investigation is ongoing, authorities provided little information on what role Smith is accused of playing in the double homicide.

They did not say which car he was in or whether he pulled the trigger in the drive-by shootings.

They also didn’t describe what prompted the arrest.

Prosecutors said that DNA evidence was among the factors that led to the break in the cold case but did not go into detail.

The Sheriff’s Department held a news conference about the investigation in September and asked the public to reach out with information.

“Investigators are again urging for the public’s assistance with information that can lead to the arrest and conviction of additional murder suspects in this case,” Reynaga said.

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© 2023 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The U.S. Supreme Court will consider reviving National Rifle Association claims that a New York state official unconstitutionally pressured insurance companies including Chubb Ltd. and Lloyd’s of London to stop doing business with the gun lobby.

The justices agreed to review a federal appeals court decision that said the NRA’s allegations of “blacklisting” didn’t amount to a violation of its free speech rights. The claims against former Department of Financial Services Superintendent Maria Vullo is part of a broader lawsuit that also names former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo as a defendant.

The case will shape how much power government officials have to use their positions in ways that might undermine work of advocacy groups. The justices will hear arguments and rule by the end of June.

The NRA in its appeal said the ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gives regulators “free rein to selectively target unpopular speakers in the name of taking action to address key social and environmental issues.”

The dispute involves Vullo’s 2017-18 investigation of the NRA’s “Carry Guard” insurance program, which covers losses associated with the use of personal firearms, including criminal defense costs. The NRA alleges Vullo went on to target other insurance products it endorsed, saying she threatened the companies offering the policies with investigations and penalties if they didn’t distance themselves from the gun-rights group.

The NRA also points to guideline letters and a news release in which Vullo urged insurers to evaluate the risk to their reputations if they dealt with the NRA. She issued those documents after the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Vullo’s lawyers said she “did not violate the First Amendment by expressing her views regarding a national tragedy and encouraging regulated entities to consider their relationships with gun-promotion organizations.” They urged the Supreme Court to reject the appeal, saying the case didn’t present a clean legal issue for the justices to resolve.

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© 2023 Bloomberg L.P

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The share of American consumers with medical debt on their credit reports has declined dramatically over the past year as major credit rating agencies removed small unpaid bills and debts that were less than a year old, according to a new analysis from the nonprofit Urban Institute.

At the same time, millions of Americans have seen their credit scores improve, making it easier for many to get a job, rent an apartment, or get a car.

“This is a very significant change,” said Breno Braga, an economist at the Urban Institute and a co-author of the study. “It affects a lot of people.”

The analysis found that, as of August, just 5% of adults with a credit report had a medical debt on their report, down from almost 14% two years earlier.

Urban Institute researchers also found that Americans with a medical debt on their credit report in August 2022 saw their VantageScore credit score improve over the next year from an average of 585 to an average of 615.

That moved many consumers out of the subprime category. Subprime borrowers typically pay higher interest rates on loans and credit cards, if they can borrow at all.

Consumers’ improved scores don’t mean the medical debts have been eliminated. Hospitals, collectors, and other medical providers still pursue patients for unpaid bills. And many continue to sue patients, place liens on their homes, or sell their debts.

But the credit reporting changes appear to be mitigating one of the more pernicious effects of medical debt that for years has undermined the financial security of tens of millions of patients and their families.

Credit scores depressed by medical debt, for example, can threaten people’s access to housing and fuel homelessness.

A Father Dreamed of a Home for His Family. Medical Debt Nearly Pushed Them Onto the Streets.

As cities like Denver struggle to make homes more affordable, medical debt keeps housing out of reach for millions of Americans.

In total, about 27 million people experienced a significant improvement in their score, the Urban Institute researchers estimated. VantageScore, which uses a slightly different methodology than FICO, in January stopped using any medical debt to calculate scores.

The credit reporting changes have drawn criticism from debt collectors and some medical providers, who warn that hospitals and physicians may require upfront payments from patients before delivering care or may push more patients into credit cards and other kinds of loans.

In August, a California dermatologist sued the three major consumer credit rating agencies, claiming that with fewer medical debts appearing on credit reports, patients would have less of an incentive to pay their bills, costing physicians nationwide potentially billions of dollars. The case is pending in federal court.

But most leading consumer and patient advocates applaud the more restrictive credit reporting rules. Other research, by the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has found that medical debt — unlike other kinds of debt — does not accurately predict a consumer’s creditworthiness, calling into question how useful it is on a credit report.

In September, the Biden administration announced plans to push broader changes that would eliminate all medical debts from consumers’ credit scores. Federal regulations to implement such a ban will be developed next year by the CFPB, federal officials said.

This would expand current state efforts. In June, Colorado enacted a trailblazing bill that prohibits medical debt from being included on residents’ credit reports or factored into their credit scores. A similar measure was passed by the New York state legislature this year and is pending before the governor.

The Urban Institute researchers predicted that these policies would continue to improve consumer credit scores, though they warned that more systemic changes will be necessary to reduce medical debt, which burdens about 100 million people in the U.S.

“Reducing the burden of medical debt and its wide-ranging consequences would likely require health insurance reforms that build on the Affordable Care Act to further protect consumers from out-of-pocket medical expenses they can’t afford,” the report concludes.

The report by the Urban Institute, which has worked with KFF Health News over the past two years to analyze medical debt data, is based on a sample of credit records from one of the three large credit rating agencies.

About This Project

“Diagnosis: Debt” is a reporting partnership between KFF Health News and NPR exploring the scale, impact, and causes of medical debt in America.

The series draws on original polling by KFF, court records, federal data on hospital finances, contracts obtained through public records requests, data on international health systems, and a yearlong investigation into the financial assistance and collection policies of more than 500 hospitals across the country.

Additional research was conducted by the Urban Institute, which analyzed credit bureau and other demographic data on poverty, race, and health status for KFF Health News to explore where medical debt is concentrated in the U.S. and what factors are associated with high debt levels.

The JPMorgan Chase Institute analyzed records from a sampling of Chase credit card holders to look at how customers’ balances may be affected by major medical expenses. And the CED Project, a Denver nonprofit, worked with KFF Health News on a survey of its clients to explore links between medical debt and housing instability.

KFF Health News journalists worked with KFF public opinion researchers to design and analyze the “KFF Health Care Debt Survey.” The survey was conducted Feb. 25 through March 20, 2022, online and via telephone, in English and Spanish, among a nationally representative sample of 2,375 U.S. adults, including 1,292 adults with current health care debt and 382 adults who had health care debt in the past five years. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points for the full sample and 3 percentage points for those with current debt. For results based on subgroups, the margin of sampling error may be higher.

Reporters from KFF Health News and NPR also conducted hundreds of interviews with patients across the country; spoke with physicians, health industry leaders, consumer advocates, debt lawyers, and researchers; and reviewed scores of studies and surveys about medical debt.

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© 2023 KFF Health News.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Alan Ruck is doing fine after crashing his Rivian truck into a Los Angeles pizzeria on Tuesday.

The “Succession” star was spotted Thursday leaving a convenience store in L.A. and graciously answered a few paparazzi questions about the incident.

“I’m OK,” Ruck said in the footage obtained by TMZ. “I’m fine and thank God nobody was killed.”

Representatives for the actor did not immediately respond Friday to the L.A. Times’ requests for further comment.

On Halloween, Ruck’s electric pickup truck smashed into the side of Raffallo’s Pizza in Hollywood. The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to the L.A. Times that a crash occurred around 9 p.m. Tuesday at the intersection of La Brea Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard. Four vehicles were involved in the collision and minor injuries were reported.

LAPD public information officer Matthew Cruz told the L.A. Times on Friday that “there was no crime involved in this incident and there was no arrest.”

Surveillance footage showed the Rivian traveling south on La Brea approaching Hollywood Boulevard when it rear-ended a vehicle. The impact pushed that vehicle into the intersection, where it then crashed into another vehicle. The Rivian, meanwhile, continued in a southwest direction, clipping a separate car before slamming into the side of Raffallo’s Pizza. Photos show the cab of the truck breaking through the building’s exterior.

A 32-year-old man from one of the other vehicles was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, officials told KTLA-TV Channel 5. Ruck was not hurt and was later seen on video speaking with police at the scene, the local news station reported Thursday.

Law enforcement officials also told KTLA that no charges will be filed as a result of the multicar crash and impairment was not suspected.

While speaking to paparazzi Thursday, the 67-year-old Ruck acknowledged that he had been limping and wore a brace on his left knee. However, he said, they were not related to the crash.

“This isn’t from the accident,” Ruck said. “This is because I’m getting old.”

He also told the videographers that he’s aware that the recent crash is being compared to his famous Ferrari crash scene from his 1986 film, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

Incidentally, another of Ruck’s injuries made its way into a 2021 episode of “Succession.” The actor tore his shoulder while shoveling snow and the cast that he wore during his recovery was written into a Season 3 episode set inside Kendall Roy’s 40th birthday party. Ruck’s Connor Roy claims he had a fall at his ranch and annoys his younger brother by refusing to take off his coat during the lavish celebration.

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© 2023 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky invited former President Donald Trump Sunday to visit Ukraine to fulfill his claim that he could solve the Russia-Ukraine war in “24 hours,” prompting Trump to issue a response.

During an interview appearance on NBC News, Zelensky was asked about Trump’s claim that he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine in “one day” if he was reelected president of the United States in 2024.

“Former President Trump said that about 24 hours, that he can manage it and finish the war,” Zelensky said. “For me, what can I say? So he’s very welcome as well.”

During a town hall event earlier this year, Trump told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, “If I’m president, I will have that war settled in one day – 24 hours.” Trump explained that he would meet with both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin in order to end the war. “It’ll be over, it’ll be absolutely over,” Trump said.

Despite Trump’s assurances that he could have the war ended almost immediately after being elected president in 2024, Zelensky suggested Sunday that Trump would not be able to bring a quick end to the conflict.

“If he can come here, I will need … 24 minutes to explain to President Trump that he can’t manage this war,” Zelenskiy stated. “He can’t bring peace because of Putin.”

READ MORE: Pic: Hollywood celebrity posts photo with Trump

Following Zelensky’s invitation for Trump to visit him in Ukraine and discuss the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, the former president released a statement to Newsmax, respectfully rejecting the Ukrainian president’s invitation to visit Ukraine.

“I have great respect for President Zelenskyy, but think it would be inappropriate to go to Ukraine at this time,” Trump wrote. “The Biden administration is currently dealing with him, and I would not want to create a conflict of interest.”

During Zelensky’s NBC interview Sunday, the Ukrainian president referenced his partnership with the Biden administration by highlighting Biden’s visit to Ukraine in February. He claimed that the visit allowed Biden to understand “some details” of the war that could only be understood by being on the ground in Ukraine.

C-Knight, the original member of the iconic 90s rap group “The Dove Shack,” is currently facing a life-threatening medical battle after suffering a stroke and cardiac arrest.

The esteemed rapper, widely recognized for his contribution to the West Coast G-Funk era, was hospitalized on October 18 due to severe complications from diabetes, according to TMZ.

C-Knight currently remains in the hospital, unresponsive after suffering a stroke and cardiac arrest while under medical care. According to The Daily Caller, C-Knight was first admitted to the hospital on Oct. 18 for high blood sugar levels due to his battle with diabetes.

While receiving dialysis treatment, C-Knight experienced a stroke that led to the rapper suffering cardiac arrest. C-Knight eventually had to be resuscitated by medical professionals, after which he was placed on life support. The rapper’s current condition remains precarious, with the attending physicians yet to observe signs of improvement.

According to TMZ, the rapper’s family has been awaiting an MRI scan to assess whether or not there is any substantial brain activity. The results will be crucial for the family’s decision-making process concerning C-Knight’s further medical support. TMZ reported that the family allegedly is expected to keep C-Knight on life support at least temporarily, even if brain activity is not detected. The extended life support would allow the family additional time to consider their options.

READ MORE: Pic/Vid: Rapper 50 Cent slams Biden over beach trip: ‘Joe get the f-ck up’

During the pinnacle of their fame, C-Knight, alongside 2Scoops and Bo-Roc, propelled “The Dove Shack” to the forefront of the G-Funk movement, sharing the spotlight with prominent legends like Snoop Dogg and Warren G, according to The Daily Caller.

Amidst the uncertainty of the rapper’s health condition, the unwavering spirit of the community reflects the influential legacy C-Knight and “The Dove Shack” imprinted on hip-hop culture. As the wait for an update on C-Knight’s heath continues, the world looks on, hoping for a positive update on the beloved rapper’s health.

This news article was partially created with the assistance of artificial intelligence and edited and fact-checked by a human editor.

Christian Ernest Beyer, a 41-year-old Army veteran, was arrested by federal authorities in California on charges of threatening to kill military personnel at Fort Irwin military base.

According to a Justice Department press release, Beyer could face up to five years in federal prison if convicted. The announcement came on Thursday, following a series of disturbing YouTube videos posted on October 30, in which Beyer threatened to kill the commanding general, the chief of police for the post, and a senior enlisted soldier at the base.

According to Military.com, Beyer’s military service began in August 2000, when he served as an armor crewman before leaving in March 2023. His career included three deployments to Iraq, as well as two to Kuwait. However, details regarding his service, such as awards or the circumstances of his discharge, remain undisclosed, though service court records reveal a court-martial in 2022 that resulted in his demotion.

The indictment against Beyer also references an arrest in April 2021 for assaulting his wife at Fort Irwin. Beyer’s Facebook profile, which is cited by prosecutors, formerly showed posts indicating other instances of intoxicated and aggressive behavior.

“You have like two days or I’m coming myself, and you know I can f-cking get there,” Beyer declared in one video. “I will come there with guns.”

The indictment explained that Army personnel believed Beyer knew “how to access the Fort Irwin installation through unofficial trails and/or means and … how to circumvent official entry/access points.”

In his videos, Beyer expressed animosity, particularly towards base police officers and the chief of police. “Go kill them. All of them. It’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” he said in one of the recordings viewed by Military.com.

READ MORE: Veteran stories preserved on 18-year-old’s YouTube channel

Court documents paint a portrait of Beyer as a man who grappled with alcohol and violence in his later military years. A July 2021 memo from Brig. Gen. Curtis Taylor, the commander of Fort Irwin, detailed concerning behavior following Beyer’s arrest in the preceding April.

“I am deeply concerned regarding your actions,” Taylor stated in the indictment, recounting the incident where Beyer pushed his wife and resisted arrest.

In August 2022, Beyer was convicted of multiple violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, leading to a 45-day confinement and demotion.

Beyond his military-related threats, Beyer used his social media to threaten the California Highway Patrol. According to Military.com, his arrest on October 28 for disorderly conduct under the influence preceded an incident the following day involving an altercation with elderly individuals, which escalated to him brandishing a knife.

While the specific details of Beyer’s federal arrest remain unclear, records indicate that Beyer was presented before a judge on Thursday and remains in custody. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is currently investigating the recent incident with Beyer as part of its Los Angeles Joint Terrorism Task Force.

A group of left-wing, pro-Palestinian protesters vandalized the White House fence with red paint and were seen shaking the gates Saturday night as tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Washington, D.C., urging the Biden administration to stop showing support for Israel.

The New York Post reported that the protest in front of the White House also included chants directed against President Joe Biden. The pro-Palestinian protestors reportedly chanted, “Allahu akbar” and “F-ck Joe Biden.”

Social media posts further revealed the General Marquis de Lafayette Statue at Lafayette Park was draped with Palestinian flags and marked with graffiti. Demonstrators repeatedly chanted remarks against President Joe Biden, with some even climbing the White House’s wrought-iron gates, amplifying the protest against Israel.

“Free, free Palestine,” the crowd chanted in unison, as echoes of “Allahu akbar” and calls for a “Cease-fire now!” resonated throughout the evening. The protesters’ demands come in the wake of the ongoing conflict in Gaza after a surprise attack by Hamas terrorists that resulted in thousands of casualties in Israel, mostly civilians.

Despite the size of the protest and the actions of the protesters, the Secret Service reported that the protests were reportedly managed peacefully, according to Fox News.

“Demonstrators are beginning to disperse from the area and the attempted gate trespass from earlier was handled without incident by Secret Service Uniformed Division officers and support teams,” said Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the Secret Service. “As of now, no arrests have been made by Secret Service personnel.” 

Kyle Becker, “Relentless Podcast” host, tweeted a video of the protest, suggesting that as many as 100,000 people gathered in Washington for a “National Protest for Palestine.”

READ MORE: Video: Rep. Tlaib ‘cries’ at pro-Palestine protest, blames Israel

He captioned the video, stating, “This is why you don’t import your enemies.”

This was Washington D.C. earlier today.

100,000 strong turned out for the National Protest for Palestine.

Now, many have surrounded the White House. They are chanting ‘F*** Joe Biden’ and issuing demands.

This is why you don’t import your enemies.pic.twitter.com/7wmF6FBJCU

— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) November 5, 2023

Ron Halber, the executive director for the Jewish Community Relations Group, criticized the demonstrators in comments to The New York Post, asserting that the protesters were “wholeheartedly supporting a homicidal terrorist organization that slaughtered 1,400 Israelis in cold blood and has taken numerous civilians hostage including from our own country.”

Halber added, “They are just incredibly misguided, uninformed and reactionary, and history will judge they have put themselves on the side of supporting terrorists versus a democracy trying to defend itself.”

This news article was partially created with the assistance of artificial intelligence and edited and fact-checked by a human editor.

The United States military announced the deployment of a nuclear-powered Ohio-class submarine to U.S. Central Command’s region of responsibility Sunday.

According to Fox News, the nuclear-powered submarine has been deployed to the Middle East in order to deter additional escalation in the region. The U.S. military’s deployment of the submarine comes roughly one month after Hamas terrorists killed about 1,400 Israelis during an attack on Oct. 7, which sparked a war between Israel and Hamas and has threatened to destabilize the region.

U.S. Central Command shared a photo of the Ohio-class submarine Sunday on X, along with a statement, explaining, “On November 5, 2023, an Ohio-class submarine arrived in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.”

According to Stars and Stripes, the Department of Defense rarely announces the movements of U.S. submarines. Stars and Stripes noted that the announcement of the submarine deployment appears to be part of the military’s strategy to prevent the current conflict in the Middle East from escalating into a larger-scale war.

Fox News explained that while it is not clear whether the Ohio-class submarine deployed to U.S. Central Command is armed with nuclear ballistic missiles or cruise missiles, Ohio-class submarines are part of the U.S. military’s “nuclear triad” that includes nuclear bombers, land-based ballistic missiles, and nuclear submarines.

READ MORE: 300 more U.S. troops deployed to Middle East

In another Sunday post on X, U.S. Central Command shared photos of a B-1 bomber in the region. B-1 bombers are also capable of carrying nuclear weapons.

“On November 5, 2023, a U.S. Air Force B-1 Lancer begins aerial refueling from a KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 912th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron while conducting a Bomber Task Force mission over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility,” U.S. Central Command stated. “The mission was designed to build agility and interoperability between U.S. and partners while demonstrating the ability of the U.S. military to respond to crises and contingencies across theaters.”

On November 5, 2023, a U.S. Air Force B-1 Lancer begins aerial refueling from a KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 912th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron while conducting a Bomber Task Force mission over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The mission was… pic.twitter.com/HQQn9EECIS

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) November 5, 2023

According to Fox News, the United States has either redirected or deployed over 17,350 military personnel to U.S. Central Command’s region of responsibility since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks against Israel. In addition to the personnel, the U.S. military has deployed aircraft carrier strike groups, A-10s, F-15s, F-16s, F-18s, and F-35s, to the Middle East.

Last week, the Pentagon confirmed there have been at least 28 attacks against U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq since Oct. 17. The Pentagon has emphasized that the U.S. military will “do what’s necessary” to protect U.S. military personnel and U.S. interests in the Middle East.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently stated, “What we’re seeing is a prospect of a significant escalation of attacks on our troops and our people throughout the region. We’re going to do what’s necessary to make sure that our troops are in that position and they were protected and that we have the ability to respond.”