Iranian forces attacked a tugboat northeast of Khor Fakkan, UAE. One person was injured;
UKMTO reported at least 12 attacks on vessels during the week ending October 16, warning that the actual number may be higher because many targeted ships do not report incidents.
America's interminable war with Iran has killed thousands, disrupted commerce that flows through the Strait of Hormuz, and raised prices on the home front.
But there may be one silver lining. In an attempt to lower gas prices that spiked because of the war, the Trump administration has repeatedly issued waivers of the Jones Act, a century-old law that requires all goods moved between American ports to be carried on American-built, American-crewed ships.
With the law (temporarily) not being enforced, commerce has exploded.
Just look at how much propane has been shipped from the mainland United States to Puerto Rico, says Colin Grabow, a trade policy analyst at the Cato Institute and perhaps the nation's foremost advocate for abolishing the Jones Act.
America is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of propane, but the lack of Jones Act–compliant ships capable of carrying gas means that it has been nearly impossible to ship propane from the mainland to outlying parts of the country. In the past, Puerto Rico has imported gas from Nigeria, Chile, and elsewhere because those deliveries don't have to comply with the Jones Act.
For years, libertarians have argued that the Jones Act unfairly impoverishes American consumers and businesses that want to buy and sell things within the same country in order to artificially inflate the price of moving those things across water. Waiving the law seems to have proven that point: There are plenty of ships capable of moving gas and oil around the country as long as the government gets out of the way.
"The instant the Jones Act no longer applied to energy shipments, mainland propane displaced foreign imports, suggesting it had been the cheapest option all along," says Grabow.
Puerto Rico is hardly the only winner.
The Jones Act waivers are offering a glimpse into a world where the law doesn't exist. From March through mid-August, there had been 210 voyages completed that otherwise would have been deemed unlawful without the waivers, according to an analysis of Maritime Administration data by the Institute for Energy Research.
It's a world where American oil and natural gas can be more easily shipped from the Gulf Coast to New England, which had previously been importing energy from Russia and Europe. Another big winner is California, which had been importing gasoline from as far away as the Bahamas because it was nearly impossible to legally ship gas from Texas or Alaska to the West Coast.
President Donald Trump reupped the Jones Act waiver in mid-May. Another extension, issued in August, will last for 90 days but applies only to ships carrying energy products such as gas and oil. Before that waiver expires in November, lawmakers ought to kill the Jones Act permanently.
There is some irony in the fact that one of Trump's most successful policy maneuvers has paused a protectionist law that limited commerce, when so much else of his economic policy has been focused on erecting barriers to trade. It's also amusing that it was a war in the Middle East—something Trump pledged to avoid—that triggered this change.
Still, the proof is in the shipping. The free traders were right all along.
Russian strikes destroyed targets in the Sumy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kyiv, Odesa, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Volyn, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Cherkasy, Chernivtsi, Ternopil, Vinnytsia regions, and the DPR;
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with 2 Kh-59 guided air-launched missiles and 580 strike UAVs;
Russian forces struck a metallurgical plant in Kryvyi Rih;
Russian forces struck an electrical substation in Zhytomyr;
Russian forces struck a metallurgical plant (Zaporizhstal) and an industrial enterprise (PJSC Zaporizhtransformator) in Zaporizhzhia;
Russian forces struck a dry cargo ship in Odesa;
Ukrainian losses amounted to approximately 1,040 troops over the past 24 hours.
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Russian forces took full control of the city of Dobropolye in the DPR.
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Russian forces took control of Varvarovka and Nikolayevka. The Volchansk pocket has been cleared.
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During the past night, Russian air defenses destroyed 610 Ukrainian drones in the rear regions;
Russian air defenses intercepted UAVs in the Leningrad, Novgorod, Tver, Bryansk, Belgorod, Kursk, Oryol, Kaluga, Voronezh, Rostov, Smolensk, and Tula regions, the Moscow region, Krasnodar Krai, the Republic of Crimea, and over the Black Sea;
Ukrainian drone strikes injured six residents in the Shebekinsky district of the Belgorod region;
Ukrainian drones attacked a minibus traveling from Lysychansk to Krasnodar on the road between Novoaidar and Shchastia, killing the driver.
Two supertankers struck a naval mine in the Strait of Hormuz, causing explosions and fire, according to the IRGC Navy;
UKMTO reported two tanker attacks northeast of Al Jubayl, Saudi Arabia, on October 16, one involving an unidentified projectile and the other a small boat firing an RPG.
Russian strikes destroyed targets in the Sumy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Odesa, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Volyn, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Vinnytsia, Rivne, Cherkasy, Poltava, Ivano-Frankivsk, Zhytomyr regions, and the DPR;
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with 2 Kh-59 guided air-launched missiles and 580 strike UAVs;
Russian forces struck the Focus Logistik, Treuholnyk, Nova Poshta, Veresen Plus, Hradoil, Penoplast Center, Kreativ, and Intermash Prom facilities, the Pomichna depot, and the Sukhoklia, Fundukliivka, and Sharivka substations in Kirovohrad region;
Russian forces struck warehouses, industrial enterprises, and railway infrastructure in Kropyvnytskyi;
Russian forces struck the Izmail port, two dry cargo ships near Odesa, ships in the Bug Estuary and Chornomorsk port, and the EChE-24 and Prymorske substations in the Odesa region;
Russian forces struck a P-37 radar at Starokostiantyniv airfield in the Khmelnytskyi region;
Russian forces struck Lutsk airfield in the Volyn region;
Russian forces struck Kolomyia airfield in the Ivano-Frankivsk region;
Russian forces struck the SE Bordnetze-Ukraine plant in Chortkiv, Ternopil region;
Russian forces struck the GreenCool plant and the Kozyatyn-2 substation in the Vinnytsia region;
Russian forces struck the Chudniv-Volynskyi substation in the Zhytomyr region;
Russian forces struck the ARTISAN plant in Borodianka, Kyiv region;
Russian forces struck the DAO complex in Dnipropetrovsk;
Russian forces struck the 79K6 Pelican radar on Zmiinyi Island in the Odesa region;
Ukrainian losses amounted to approximately 1,120 troops over the past 24 hours.
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Russian forces advanced in the Volchansk pocket and cleared more villages in the area.
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Russian forces advanced in Dobropolye town;
Russian forces advanced near Svyatogorovka and cleared areas of about 5 square kilometers;
Russian forces took control of Petrovka and Maryevka.
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During the past night, Russian air defenses destroyed 166 Ukrainian drones in the rear regions;
Russian air defenses intercepted UAVs in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, Tula, Ryazan, Oryol, Lipetsk, Voronezh, Nizhny Novgorod, Tambov, and Rostov regions, the Moscow region, Krasnodar Krai, and the Republic of Crimea;
Ukrainian drones attacked the Ryazan Oil Refinery. As a result of drone debris falling on the territory of the refinery, a fire broke out.
The Yemeni army (Ansar Allah) advanced in the Jabal Arus area south of Taiz;
The Yemeni army (Ansar Allah) advanced in the areas west of Lahij province;
The Yemeni army (Ansar Allah) forces are reportedly attempting to outflank Saudi-backed forces around Bab al-Mandab through Al-Mudharabah district in Lahij province;
On October 12, the Yemeni attacked King Khalid Airport in Riyadh, Khamis Mushait Air Base and Abha with missiles and drones.
Russian strikes destroyed targets in the Sumy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kyiv, Odesa, Rivne, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr regions, and the DPR;
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with 108 strike UAVs;
Russian forces struck the Palp Mill Print production workshop, the Darnitsa locomotive shed, a railway car repair plant, Ukroplastik, and TPP-5 in Kyiv;
Russian forces struck the Nova Poshta logistics centre, a UAV depot, and a dry cargo ship in the Mykolaiv region;
Russian forces struck the territory of the Kharkiv-Holovny locomotive depot and Liubotyn railway station in Kharkiv;
Ukrainian losses amounted to approximately 1,365 troops over the past 24 hours.
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Russian forces took control of Klinovoye.
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Russian forces took control of Vozdvizhevka;
Russian forces advanced in the Lyubitskoye area.
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During the past night, Russian air defenses destroyed 604 Ukrainian drones in the rear regions;
Russian air defenses intercepted UAVs in the Bryansk, Belgorod, Oryol, Kaluga, Tula, Kursk, Voronezh, Tver, Lipetsk, Ryazan, Rostov, and Smolensk regions, the Moscow region, Stavropol Krai, Krasnodar Krai, and over the Sea of Azov;
Ukrainian strikes damaged a school building, two private houses, and a car in the Mosalsky district, Kaluga region;
A Ukrainian drone attacked an ambulance in the Belovsky district of the Kursk region, wounding a paramedic;
Ukrainian forces struck a civilian vehicle in Nova Kakhovka, Kherson region, wounding a woman and her child.
On October 13, Israeli forces raided the Kudna area in Quneitra province;
On October 13, Israeli troops entered the vineyards of Mazraat Beit Jinn in the western Damascus countryside, and opened fire to prevent farmers from reaching their fields and demolished abandoned military fortifications in the area;
On October 12, Israeli troops entered Bariqa village in Quneitra and detained a young man.
This is the newest update of the ‘U.S. Carrier Strike Groups Locations Map’ exclusive series showing the approximate locations of U.S. Carrier Strike Groups. SouthFront: Analysis & Intelligence tracks locations of U.S. aircraft carriers using the available open-source information. No classified information was used in production of the map.
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Carrier strike group (CSG) is an operational formation of the United States Navy. It is centered on an aircraft carrier and a carrier air wing of 65 to 70 aircrafts. It’s composed of roughly 7,500 personnel, an aircraft carrier, at least one cruiser, a destroyer squadron of at least two destroyers and/or frigates. A carrier strike group also, on occasion, includes submarines, attached logistics ships and a supply ship. Carrier strike groups comprise a principal element of U.S. power projection over the world’s oceans
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The .org domain name had been blocked by the US (NATO) (https://southfront.press/southfront-org-blocked-by-u-s-controlled-global-internet-supervisor/) globally, outlawed and without any explanation
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On October 11, Ansar Allah forces captured Jabal Habashi and al-Misrakh in Taiz province;
On October 11, Ansar Allah carried out missile and drone attacks on King Khalid Airport in Riyadh, King Fahd Airport in Dammam, and Aramco facilities at Shedgum and Tanajib;
On October 11, Ansar Allah forces captured Jabal Habashi and al-Misrakh in Taiz province;
On October 11, Ansar Allah carried out missile and drone attacks on King Khalid Airport in Riyadh, King Fahd Airport in Dammam, and Aramco facilities at Shedgum and Tanajib;
Two additional oil tankers struck naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, triggering explosions and fires, according to the IRGC Navy;
On October 11, the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker MT Valthera was hit by an unidentified projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, causing damage and a fire;
On October 11, the oil-products tanker MT Petro Dolphin was struck by a drone while anchored off Sohar, Oman.
Russian strikes destroyed targets in the Sumy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kyiv, Odesa, Lutsk, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, Vinnytsia, Rivne, Zhytomyr, Ternopil regions, and the DPR;
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with 160 strike UAVs;
Russian forces struck the Tenet data center in Odesa and a dry cargo ship in the port of Chornomorsk;
Russian forces struck the Kyiv electrical substation and an industrial facility in Bucha;
Russian forces struck the Zmiiv Thermal Power Plant in the Kharkiv region;
Ukrainian losses amounted to approximately 1,470 troops over the past 24 hours.
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Russian forces took control of Reznikovo and Kupino.
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Russian forces advanced near Belozerskoye;
Russian forces took control of Petrovka;
Russian forces took control of Novotroitskoye.
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During the past night, Russian air defenses destroyed 479 Ukrainian drones in the rear regions;
Russian air defenses intercepted UAVs in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, Tula, Ryazan, Oryol, Lipetsk, Voronezh, Tambov, Nizhny Novgorod, Vladimir, Saratov, Samara, Penza, Volgograd, and Rostov regions, Krasnodar Krai, the Republic of Crimea, and over the Black Sea;
Ukrainian strikes targeted the Yandex data center in the Energetik district of the Vladimir region;
Ukrainian drones targeted the Bryansk region. Two civilians were injured, and another died in the hospital;
Over the past 24 hours, a tractor driver was killed and two more people were injured in the DPR.
The Yemeni army (Ansar Allah) advanced on the western outskirts of Taiz city, cutting a supply route and encircling Saudi-backed forces in Al-Misrakh and Najd Qasim;
Saudi airstrikes killed a woman in Same’a district, and Saudi-backed shelling killed a girl in Sabr al-Mawadim district, Taiz province;
More than 170 Saudi-backed forces from the Sabiha tribes were killed and 700 others were injured during the clashes with Ansar Allah;
The Yemeni retaliatory missile strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid Airport allegedly killed 12 people and injured more than 300.
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