Coronavirus

• The Department of Justice is asking Congress to craft a bill suspending some Constitutional rights. The DOJ wants the power to indefinitely detain people. The powers extend to any emergency, not just coronavirus. The DOJ is also pushing to deny asylum to anyone who tests positive for coronavirus. [Link]
• Massachuttes will deploy 2,000 National Guardsmen to help fight the coronavirus. [Link]
• At least four US Senators have now been found to have sold off hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in stock in the days leading up to the coronavirus outbreak and stock market downturn. [Link]
• 2,600 personnel from European Command are in self-isolation. [Link]

US News

• The DEA claims to have struck a blow to a major Mexican drug cartel by arresting 600 of its members in the US over the past week. While the DEA claims this to be a success, it will unlikely do major damage to the cartel. [Link]
• The US claims to have successfully test-launched a hypersonic missile glider. [Link]
• Sixty lawmakers sent a letter to the State Department asking for an investigation into Israel using US bought military equipment to destroy the homes of Palestinians. [Link]

North Korea

• North Korea tested two short-range missiles. [Link]

Afghanistan

• At least 20 Afghan soldiers were killed by an insider attack by the Taliban. [Link]
• The Taliban and the Afghan government have started negotiations over a prisoner release via Skype. [Link]

Middle East

• Israel’s Prime Minister claims to have come to a unity government agreement with the Blue and White party. The deal would make Netanyahu prime minister for the next year and a half before allowing the Blue and White leader to hold the position. The Blue and White party denies the report. [Link]
• Iran released an American citizen under a medical furlough that has been held as a prisoner since 2018. The American is now staying at the Swiss embassy. Iran conditioned his release on him staying in Iran. [Link]
• The State Department says it “deeply regrets” the French decision to release an Iranian man accused of violating US sanctions. The US had requested France extradite the man to the US. [Link]
• Within the Trump administration debates continue to happen about attacking Iran. The Secretary of Defense and head of the Joint Chiefs are the two advocates for not attacking Iran. [Link]
• Clashes broke out between the Saudi and UAE backed forces in Yemen. [Link]

Somalia 

• A US airstrike in Somalia killed a 13-year-old boy traveling to school and a 70-year-old disabled man. AFRICOM denies the civilian deaths, claiming only militants were killed. [Link]