Thursday morning news: October 12, 2023

SOUND: [Israel]

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Israel » Israeli airstrikes continue to pound Hamas targets in Gaza as the Pentagon rushes support to Israel.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin:

AUSTIN: The USS Gerald R. Ford strike group has now arrived in the eastern Mediterranean. We’ve also moved to extend U.S. Air Force fighter squadrons in the region.

And he said the U.S. will send more air defense, so-called iron dome interceptors, to help shield Israeli cities as Hamas continues to fire rockets over the border.

Congressman Dan Crenshaw serves on the House Intelligence Committee. He said in the past, Israel has largely carried out brief, surgical strikes in Gaza, but not this time.

CRENSHAW: This war will be going on for a much longer time. I think they will not stop until they have completely decimated Hamas.

And Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Peter Lerner seemed to say as much on Wednesday.

LERNER: We are preparing ourselves. We are making sure that Hamas can never, ever do this to us again.

UN Gaza civilians » The death toll in Israel from Hamas attacks has now topped 1,200.

And roughly a thousand people are also dead in Gaza. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres:

GUTERRES: Civilians must be protected at all times. International humanitarian law must be respected and upheld.

But protecting civilians in Gaza amid the war is difficult as Hamas operates from residential areas and has a long history of using civilians as human shields.

Power has been cut in Gaza and the territory’s only power plant is out of fuel.

Israel unity government » Meantime, in Jerusalem Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a leading opposition figure have formed a war-time unity government. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher reports:

JOSH SCHUMACHER: The newly-formed Cabinet will oversee the fight to avenge the stunning weekend terror attacks. The new government restores a degree of unity — at least for now after years of bitter, divisive politics.

The Cabinet will focus only on issues of war. It will consist of Netanyahu, senior opposition leader Benny Gantz and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Republicans call on Biden to refreeze $6B to Iran » And in Washington, 20 Republican senators have co-signed a letter calling on the Biden administration to freeze $6 billion dollars set to be released to Iran as part of a prisoner exchange.

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham:

GRAHAM: Hamas could not have done this without Iranian support. The Iranians are very much involved in this operation. They’ve been involved in supporting terrorism for decades.

Democratic Senators John Tester and Joe Manchin are also asking the administration to halt the release of those funds to Iran.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan said those funds are not related to the attacks in Israel.

SULLIVAN: Not a dollar of that money has been spent. And I will leave it at that.

But the White House agrees that Iran is complicit in the Hamas attacks.

Ukraine aid » With the West largely focused on Israel, leaders in Kyiv are concerned that more support for Israel might mean less support for Ukraine’s military.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he thinks Russia’s counting on Western support being divided.

But America’s top general, Joint Chiefs Chairman CQ Brown told reporters:

BROWN: I do feel we’re putting Ukraine in a good spot. I realize during the winter months it gets more challenging. But Ukraine has intent to continue their offensive operations throughout the winter months.

And U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the United States can and will continue to support both U.S. allies.

Zelenskyy joined a meeting of more than 50 defense leaders from around the world Wednesday to make a personal pitch for military aid.

Speaker Update » House Republicans are one step closer to choosing a new Speaker.

In a closed-door, secret ballot vote on Wednesday, GOP lawmakers picked Majority Leader Steve Scalise on a vote of 113 to 99.

SCALISE: I want to thank my House Republican colleagues for just designating me as the speaker.

Some have expressed concerns about the Louisiana lawmaker’s health as he continues to battle blood cancer.

But he still edged out Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan on a vote of 113 to 99.

Scalise now faces a full vote on the House floor.

Biden junk fees » The Biden administration wants to ban so-called junk fees attached to everything from concert tickets to utility bills.

BIDEN: These junk fees can add hundreds of dollars weighing down family budgets, making it harder to pay family bills. These junk fees may not matter to the wealthy, but they sure matter to working folks and homes like the one I grew up in.

The Federal Trade Commission proposed the rule which would require businesses to give customers upfront and itemized pricing.

The president has also proposed a rule to ban bank charges for checking a consumer loan balance or requesting an old statement.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce earlier this year criticized the proposal as a “Washington-knows-best approach” that could lead to fewer choices for consumers and make the economy less competitive.

I'm Kent Covington.

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