The Wire - September 24, 2024

//The Wire//2100Z September 24, 2024//
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//BLUF: WEAPONS CACHE CONTAINING RPGS DISCOVERED ON US/MEXICO BORDER. US NAVY SUPPORT VESSEL RUNS AGROUND. CONGRESS PREPARING FOR DECAPITATION STRIKE ON KEY U.S. LEADERS.//
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-International Events-
Middle East: A US Navy support vessel is reportedly taking on water due to running aground off the coast of Oman. The USNS BIG HORN (T-AO-198) ran aground sometime a few days ago, with various posts regarding her damage being leaked on social media.
AC: As the US Navy has not yet acknowledged this incident, few details remain certain. However, a minor grounding incident (while inconvenient) should not impact the readiness of the Fleet whatsoever, even though this is the only vessel of this class stationed within the 5th Fleet AOR at the moment. In war, it’s generally ill-advised to place such reliance on one single support vessel to the point that the sinking of one ship can jeopardize an entire Carrier Strike Group. As such, if this incident is indeed seriously impacting to operations, the US Navy has much larger problems than a mere grounding incident.
Lebanon: Conflict continues and remains intense among all belligerents, as both sides greatly escalate targeting efforts. Commercial aviation has largely been temporarily halted or reduced throughout the region as civilian airlines mitigate risk amid the latest escalations.
-HomeFront-
Arizona: Leaked Border Patrol documents came to light yesterday that indicate a small weapons cache was discovered last week in the Ajo Station’s area of responsibility, just over the border in Mexico. The weapons cache was discovered during a patrol of the area, allegedly in the vicinity of grid 12RUA5436318472. Most of the contents of the cache included explosives and several RPGs. The explosives and other weapons were confiscated and the cache destroyed. AC: This incident highlights the continually escalating situation on the southern US border. Earlier this year, various cartels began using small drones (sUAS platforms) in a similar fashion as being used in the Ukrainian War. Using drones to drop hand grenades on rival cartel encampments along the border has been increasing in commonality, making the discovery of RPGs and explosives on the border a concerning yet unsurprising development.
Washington D.C. – In Congress, a special committee is working on a proposal to streamline the continuity of government in the event of a mass attack on government officials. Details are few, however the general plan as proposed so far is for each member of Congress to submit a list of 5 names that could be potential successors in the event of their death, bypassing most current election law to speed up the process of mass vacancies.
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Analyst Comments: Any time a government seeks to prepare for mass decapitation strikes, presumably resulting from a very kinetic global conflict, this is generally cause for concern. This concern mostly arises from the very slow departure from (and apparently the ineffectiveness of) the Cold War era doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction; governments around the world are preparing for a global catastrophe as if such a situation is survivable for them. Preparing for catastrophic situations is strongly encouraged among a populace as being a characteristic of a responsible citizenry. However, when governments begin to examine the possibility of these contingent situations a populace might be inclined to think that their government believes that such situations are survivable, and thus might be more willing to seek out, and less willing to avoid, such a conflict in the first place.
Analyst: S2A1
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